The nine events that made up the fourth installment of the Full Tilt Online Poker Series were stacked to the brim with the very best poker players on the planet looking to stake their claim at the five million dollars up for grabs. In fact, the very first event of FTOPS IV, a $216 no limit event, drew a ridiculous 2,573 players, making it the fourth largest FTOPS event ever. The fun would only increase from there, as the Main Event, a $535 tournament, drew nearly 4,000 people, the largest tournament ever offered on Full Tilt Poker at the time and one of the largest to date. In the end, one poker player’s life was changed forever. John_McClane17 nabbed first place in the FTOPS IV Main Event, pocketing just over $336,000 and becoming the talk of the town in May, 2007.
Heads up, John_McClane17 defeated KingDan23, who took home a healthy $203,193. Coming in third place in the FTOPS IV Main Event was CroqueMonsieur, who nabbed $132,930. Others at the final table included sicklol (who finished fourth), amatos (who finished fifth), boNeZee (who finished sixth), IdahoQueens (who finished seventh), RastaAl (who finished eighth), and SN8WMAN (who finished ninth). Each took home at least $25,000, well worth the $535 buy-in. Many of the contestants in the Main Event as well as other FTOPS tournaments won a satellite to gain entry. Full Tilt offers one of the best satellite systems in the industry.
Full Tilt prides itself on the strength of its pros. In the FTOPS IV Main Event, Aaron “GambleAB” Bartley took 82nd, the highest among the Full Tilt pros that entered. Bartley made a final table of a World Series of Poker Circuit Event in Atlantic City in 2005, cashing for over $140,000. He’s one of the top online poker players in the business as well. Other Full Tilt pros that cashed included Paul Wolfe (179th) and Lee Watkinson (198th), who won a gold bracelet at the 2006 WSOP.
CalBandGreat was another huge winner in the fourth FTOPS, claiming victory in Event #4, a $1,060 buy-in no limit event with a $300,000 guarantee. He cashed for $208,840 The event drew a blistering 908 people, tripling its guarantee. Full Tilt’s own Erick Lindgren had a solid showing in this event, taking home 14th place. The top nine finishers cashed for over $15,000.
Then there’s Imper1um, who took home his second FTOPS title after winning Event #8, a $216 Pot Limit Hold’em tournament. Playing as kristy_sea in FTOPS III, Imper1um won a $216 rebuy no limit event. He became the first player ever to win two FTOPS event, outlasting 1,071 other entrants in Event #8. Heads up, he defeated A G WIJK, who won just over $25,000.
A monster showing in the fourth FTOPS led to even bigger and better things in FTOPS V, which would kick off about five months later in August, 2007.