Germany’s Rainer Kempe wins Super High Roller Bowl poker tourney at Aria

German poker pro Rainer Kempe overcame a star-studded final table to claim the $5 million first prize at the Super High Roller Bowl early Thursday at Aria.

The four-day, No-limit Hold ‘em event featured a $300,000 buy-in, the most expensive of any tournament this summer, and drew 49 entrants. It was televised live on CBS Sports Network.

Kempe defeated countryman Fedor Holz in a heads-up match that lasted nearly four hours and saw several lead changes before finishing just shy of 1 a.m. Thursday. On the final hand, Kempe’s pocket eights held up against Holz’s pocket twos.

Holz, a rising star in tournament poker, collected $3.5 million for second place.

The final table included Poker Hall of Fame members Phil Hellmuth and Erik Seidel, and the seven players combined for more than $74 million in career tournament winnings. Kempe entered the final table with the chip lead and was responsible for the final four eliminations.

Seidel went out in third place ($2.4 million), while Hellmuth was eliminated in fourth to collect $1.6 million.

This was the second major title in recent months for Kempe, 26, who also won a European Poker Tour’s High Roller event in December for more than $591,000.