Christopher "MAKKAPAKKK" Johnson Wins 888poker XL Spring $50,000 Opening Event ($9,884)
The $1 million guaranteed XL Spring Series kicked off online at 888poker on Sunday, May 30 with four exciting events of the 25 on its schedule including the $50,000 Opening Event won by Christopher "MAKKAPAKKK" Johnson running under the watchful eye of the PokerNews Live Reporting Team.
The 888pokerTV Twitch channel also broadcast this event with Nick Wealthall and David Tuchman announcing the action while also entertaining the masses.
Ukraine's "Sultanhcik", Brazil's "lourimar", and United Kingdom's "godfatheR2AA" also won XL Spring Events on the opening day.
Check out the results from the first day of the XL Spring Series at 888poker.
Satellites to the XL Spring Series now running at 888poker
XL Spring #1 - $50,000 Opening Event
| Buy-in | Date | Entries | Prize pool |
|---|---|---|---|
| $55 | May 30 | 1,353 | $67,650 |
It took almost 9 1/2 hours for Christopher "MAKKAPAKKK" Johnson to make their way through the field of 1,353 entries to take down the top prize of $9,884 in XL Spring #1 - $50,000 Opening Event. The event smashed its $50,000 guarantee by more than 35 percent with the prize pool growing to $67,650.
Johnson, from West Midlands, United Kingdom, essentially went wire-to-wire on the final table with the chip lead. He started the final table as the only player with more than 5 million chips, and never lost the lead for any substantial period of time.
The British poker player is no stranger to online poker success as he has amassed nearly $2.5 million in online winnings according to PocketFives.
Joining Johnson on the podium were "Panxetillo" (second - $7,225) and "JacobMitro" (third - $5,311).
XL Spring #1 - $50,000 Opening Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christopher "MAKKAPAKKK" Johnson | United Kingdom | $9,884 |
| 2 | Panxetillo | Andorra | $7,225 |
| 3 | JacobMitro | Canada | $5,311 |
| 4 | Vimtefeedar | Brazil | $3,903 |
| 5 | LazBanker | United Kingdom | $2,889 |
| 6 | flockystern | Russia | $2,151 |
| 7 | jonahindi | United Kingdom | $1,617 |
| 8 | Isitaskes | Lithuania | $1,224 |
| 9 | AcidAscorbic | Brazil | $934 |
Head to our Live Reporting Hub to read more about this event.
XL Spring #2 - $25,000 Mini Opening
| Buy-in | Date | Entries | Prize pool |
|---|---|---|---|
| $16.50 | May 30 | 1,520 | $25,000 |
The XL Spring #2 - $25,000 Mini Opening was exactly as it sounds as it was a mini-version of the Opening Event featuring a $16.50 buy-in and a $25,000 guarantee. Thanks to that guarantee, the tournament provided $2,200 in extra value to the 180 players that cashed for at least a $50 min-cash.
The event was a marathon lasting nearly 10 1/2 hours before it ended with Ukraine's "Sultanhcik" besting Brazil's "FIRMINO19" (second - $2,670) to win the top prize of $3,653.
United Kingdom's "whoooosh" (third - $1,963), Denmark's "N33dCoaching" (fourth - $1,443), and Belarus' "Ficximer" (fifth - $1,068) also collected four figure prizes at the final table.
XL Spring #2 - $25,000 Mini Opening Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sultanhcik | Ukraine | $3,653 |
| 2 | FIRMINO19 | Brazil | $2,670 |
| 3 | whoooosh | United Kingdom | $1,963 |
| 4 | N33dCoaching | Denmark | $1,443 |
| 5 | Ficximer | Belarus | $1,068 |
| 6 | RedFish2018 | Unknown | $795 |
| 7 | An1g_ | Ukraine | $598 |
| 8 | Alexhest383 | Denmark | $453 |
| 9 | tnevs_ | Brazil | $345 |
XL Spring #3 - $15,000 Micro Opening
| Buy-in | Date | Entries | Prize pool |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5.50 | May 30 | 1,735 | $10,000 |
The XL Spring #3 - $10,000 Micro Opening was the final event of the day and one of the most affordable ones with just a $5.50 buy-in. This didn't stop 888poker from placing a lofty $10,000 guarantee on this event which led to the 240 players to cash to share $1,375 in overlay.
The tournament ended after a three-way deal was agreed upon with Brazil's "lourimar" officially shipping the event for $1,221. Romania's "darioboss23" (second - $983) and Russia's "dimdaf" (third - $926) also scored big as part of the final table deal.
Meanwhile, Ecuador's Marcelo "can.have.win" Navarette finished just outside the deal in fourth place for $549.
XL Spring #3 - $10,000 Micro Opening Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | lourimar | Brazil | $1,221* |
| 2 | darioboss23 | Romania | $983* |
| 3 | dimdaf | Russia | $926* |
| 4 | Marcelo "can.have.win" Navarette | Ecuador | $549 |
| 5 | helpyoubust | Russia | $406 |
| 6 | BellaFicha | Brazil | $303 |
| 7 | MrGori11a | Mexico | $227 |
| 8 | three8shield | Russia | $172 |
| 9 | Teenwolf666 | United Kingdom | $131 |
*Reflects three-way deal at the final table.
XL Spring #4 - $15,000 Late Opening
| Buy-in | Date | Entries | Prize pool |
|---|---|---|---|
| $33 | May 30 | 481 | $15,000 |
XL Spring #4 - $15,000 Late Opening Final Table Results
The XL Spring #4 - $15,000 Late Opening was the final XL Spring event on Sunday. The tournament came just 19 players shy of meeting its $15,000 guaranee with the field attracting 481 entries.
Four players were waiving the Union Jack flag at the final table including the eventual winner "godfatheR2AA" who banked $2,744 after defeating Denmark's "EsEslAben" (second - $1,989) in heads-up play.
Ukraine's "tenshj" (third - $1,442) and Brazil's "mribeiro89" (fourth - $1,053) were the only two other players to bank four-digit hauls.
XL Spring #4 - $15,000 Late Opening Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | godfatheR2AA | United Kingdom | $2,744 |
| 2 | EtEslAben | Denmark | $1,989 |
| 3 | tenshj | Ukraine | $1,442 |
| 4 | mribeiro89 | Brazil | $1,053 |
| 5 | gutolpacheco | Brazil | $776 |
| 6 | Come2click | United Kingdom | $570 |
| 7 | muntyx | United Kingdom | $422 |
| 8 | greekmack | Canada | $313 |
| 9 | garethmonk | United Kingdom | $234 |
2021 888poker XL Spring Schedule
| Date | Time (GMT) | Event | Buy-in | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 30 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #1 - $50,000 Opening Event | $55 | $50,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #2 - $25,000 Mini Opening | $16.50 | $25,000 | |
| 6:30 p.m. | XL Spring #3 - $10,000 Micro Opening | $5.50 | $10,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #4 - $15,000 Late Opening | $33 | $15,000 | |
| May 31 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #5 - $20,000 R&A Event | $33 | $20,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #6 - $8,000 Mini R&A | $5.50 | $8,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #7 - $8,000 Late R&A | $11 | $8,000 | |
| June 1 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #8 - $50,000 High Roller | $320 | $50,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #9 - $25,000 Mini High Roller | $55 | $25,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #10 - $20,000 Late High Roller | $109 | $20,000 | |
| June 2 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #11 - $30,000 PKO | $109 | $30,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #12 - $15,000 Mini PKO | $16.50 | $15,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #13 - $10,000 Late PKO | $33 | $10,000 | |
| June 3 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #14 - $40,000 PKO 8-Max | $160 | $40,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #15 - $15,000 Mini PKO 8-Max | $22 | $15,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #16 - $15,000 Late PKO 8-Max | $55 | $15,000 | |
| June 4 | 5 p.m. | XL Spring #17 - $30,000 DeepStack | $55 | $30,000 |
| 5 p.m. | XL Spring #18 - $15,000 Mini DeepStack | $16.50 | $15,000 | |
| 7 p.m. | XL Spring #19 - $10,000 Late DeepStack | $33 | $10,000 | |
| June 5 | 6 p.m. | XL Spring #20 - $30,000 6-Max | $109 | $30,000 |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #21 - $15,000 Mini 6-Max | $16.50 | $15,000 | |
| 8 p.m. | XL Spring #22 - $15,000 Late 6-Max | $55 | $15,000 | |
| June 6 | 5 p.m. | XL Spring #23 - $500,000 Main Event | $250 | $500,000 |
| 5:30 p.m. | XL Spring #24 - $50,000 Mini Main Event | $33 | $50,000 | |
| 6 p.m. | XL Spring #25 - $15,000 Micro Main Event | $5.50 | $15,000 |
Claim Your $888 Welcome Bonus Today
Head to 888poker between May 30 to June 6 if you want to get your teeth into the XL Spring events.
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In this Series
- 1 More Than $1M GTD in the 888poker XL Spring Series
- 2 Christopher "MAKKAPAKKK" Johnson Wins 888poker XL Spring $50,000 Opening Event ($9,884)
- 3 Brazil Wins Two Titles in the XL Spring on Monday at 888poker
- 4 "leblond1996" Wins the 888poker XL Spring High Roller ($11,718)
- 5 "GoldHand2077" Wins 888poker XL Spring $30K PKO; Vivian Saliba Finishes Seventh
- 6 "Edi0908" Wins the 888poker XL Spring #17 - $30,000 DeepStack ($5,880)
- 7 "Ckfather" Ships the 888poker XL Spring Series 6-Max ($8,372)
