When Tyron Krost defeated a field of 746 to win the 2010 Aussie Millions and a $2 million first prize, little did he know that further riches would await. Two years later, the Sydneysider was one of nine former Aussie Millions champions competing in the Tournament of Champions – with the prize for the winner being lifetime entry into the tournament that had changes their lives forever.
As fate would have it, Krost emerged as the winner of this “Golden Ticket” and hasn’t had to stump up a buy-in since.
That “Golden Ticket” remains valid to this day, although the now 37-year-old admits he was a little nervous when asking the Crown poker staff about it given the six-year break since the last Aussie Millions was held in 2020.
“It was always something that had to come and remind the cage about each year, or pre-empt them with an email before, because I always knew it was one of those things that doesn’t seem real,” he laughed while speaking to PokerMedia Australia before today’s Day 2 of the 2026 Main Event kicked off.
“Every time I have gone to the cage to collect the ticket [in past years] I’ve just been hoping my ticket was there waiting for me. Some years it has been, some years they have had to call up to the supervisors and get it verified.
“It’s always a funny story. They just look at me incredulously, so I have to show them the email and point to my photo on the wall. That’s when they start to believe that maybe I’m telling the truth.
“But you’ve got to take advantage of [the Golden Ticket], right? It’s such a good tournament. It’s such a good opportunity to play poker.”
Krost returns on Day 2 with a healthy stack of 130,700 and dreams of making another deep run some 16 years after his memorable Main Event success.
Despite holding a place in Aussie Millions folklore, he admits he doesn’t play as much poker these days as he once did, instead focusing on the family office furniture business in Sydney.
But he never misses a chance to get to Melbourne at least once a year.
“It’s awesome to be back,” he said. “It’s something I’ve really missed the last six years. I don’t get to play too much poker these days, but it has always been something I have looked forward to on the calendar.”
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