Hermann Schweiger of Germany has taken the title at The Hendon Mob Winter Championships Main Event at the Grand Casino, Liechtenstein, after overcoming a 4:1 chip deficit in his heads-up battle against Nicola Diaco.
Diaco had led the field as chip leader from Day 1a and almost took a wire-to-wire victory, having laid waste to most of the final table, but ultimately came up just short.
Schweiger outlasted the 506 runner field and, for his victory, took home the sum of 30,900 CHF and a package to The Hendon Mob Championship Event in Cape Town in November 2024, along with the trophy and belt.
2024 350 CHF THMWC Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (CFH) | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hermann Schweiger | Germany | 30,900 + package | $35,414 |
| 2 | Nicola Diaco | Italy | 19,400 | $22,234 |
| 3 | Stefan Fink | Austria | 13,880 | $15,906 |
| 4 | Boro Skalonja | Switzerland | 10,970 | $12,571 |
| 5 | Michele Falcone | Italy | 8,570 | $9,821 |
| 6 | Marius Wolf | Germany | 6,760 | $7,747 |
| 7 | Hao Liu | Switzerland | 5,060 | $5,798 |
| 8 | Zita Farkas | Hungary | 3,580 | $4,102 |
| 9 | Daniel Schwitter | Switzerland | 2,860 | $3,277 |
Winner’s Reaction
PokerNews sat down with the champion to discuss his triumph.
Schweiger, who described himself as “a very enthusiastic amateur” player, confirmed he felt “great, so pleased, this has been a long time coming”, noting that his last five-figure score had come all the way back in 2014.
He continued “on Day 1 I had one of those days you dream about, everything went my way, I was driving people crazy at the table and everything I did worked.”
In terms of plans for his winnings, Schweiger chuckled and stated he has his first WSOP trip planned for Las Vegas this summer and that he was “on the verge of canceling my hotel this week as I wasn’t sure I had the bankroll, but then I decided I would just have to head to The Hendon Mob event in Liechtenstein and win it.”
Fortunately for him, that is exactly what he managed to do, and Schweiger confirmed he would be ticking off playing the Main Event this year from his bucket list. Schweiger also praised the tournament in general, stating he thought the structure was excellent and superbly organized and that he really enjoyed the overall atmosphere.
Final Table Recap
Nine players returned for the final table, and Diaco had a reasonable chip lead over the field. He soon set about increasing it, knocking out Daniel Schwitter in ninth having, turned a flush against Schwitter’s top set.
Zita Farkas, who came into the final table as the short-stack, departed in eighth after she ran her pocket nines into Diaco’s pocket jacks.
Schweiger then disposed of Hao Liu in seventh in a cooler as Liu’s pocket kings came up against Schweiger’s pocket aces.
The knockouts kept coming quickly as Boro Skalonja knocked out Marius Wolf in sixth with a set of twos. Diaco then disposed of the by now short-stacked Michele Falcone in fifth.
Diaco then eliminated Skalonja in fourth in a blind-on-blind battle, and Diaco also saw off Stefan Fink in third when his king-high overtook Fink’s ace-high on the board in another all-in situation.
Having eliminated five of his opponents, Diaco entered heads-up with a 4:1 chip advantage over Schweiger. However, Schweiger began the fightback immediately, doubling up with ace-queen versus Diaco’s king-ten.
Schweiger’s jacks then held versus Diaco’s ace-king in another all-in and call situation, and all of a sudden, the roles had been completely reversed, with Schweiger holding a 5:1 chip lead.
Schweiger would not relinquish the lead, and when Diaco moved all in with four-three, and Schweiger woke up with pocket fives, it was all over, and the title and 30,900 CFH first prize were heading to Germany with Schweiger.
That concludes PokerNews coverage of the The Hendon Mob Winter Championship Main Event, but be sure to stay tuned for more coverage of tournaments across the world.