Cracker, a plasterer from Lower Hutt, won his way into the high-stakes game via a satellite, making his win all the more profitable. The event was fiercely contested, with 306 players from 21 different countries combining to create the $800,000 prize pool. That can only bode well for the poker scene in New Zealand – the attendance of 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event winner Joe Hachem would have also helped to raise the profile of the game.

As well as the cash prize, confirmed when his pair of twos held up in the heads-up match against Matthew Konnecke, Craker also won a seat to the APPT Grand Final in Sydney.