Qualifier Goes Wire-To-Wire in LAPT Win

LAPT Florianopolis champ Matthias Habernig.

A PokerStars Qualifier went wire-to-wire to win the PokerStars.net Latin American Poker Tour Florianopolis main event in Brazil this weekend.

19-year-old Austrian Matthias Habernig grabbed the chip lead on day one at the Costao de Santinho resort and outlasted all 364 players who entered to book the $247,441 win three days later.

Habernig entred the final table with roughly half the chips in play and simply steamrolled over the group in a mere five hours of play.

The one hiccup came when he lost the chip lead to Dayan Vardanega during heads up play.

However, Habernig would soon right the ship, making aces-up against Vardanega's inferior aces-up to take control.

In the end, one of five Brazilians in the final, Vardanega fell, taking the hopes of the host nation with him.

Next up for the PokerStars LAPT is a stop in Rosario, Argentina Sept. 23-26.