Kiwi poker players Jay Gilbert and Jason Brown have taken home $40,500 each after chopping the Main Event prize pool at the 2015 New Zealand Poker Championships in Christchurch this morning.
After 27 hours of play over two days, Gilbert and Brown found themselves heads up after Charlie Hawes bowed out in third place and decided to cut a deal.
Gilbert, who had slightly more chips than Brown, took home the trophy but the pair shared the champion title as the prizemoney for first and second pace was combined, then cut down the middle.
The duo outlasted a field of 136 players that all bought into the tournament for $1650, generating a prize pool of $204,000.
Gilbert, who flew down to the tournament from Wellington, was playing in his first major live tournament series and credited his success to patience and well timed aggression.
