Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- A 22-year-old Dane rated 6,941st in poker's rankings became the youngest champion at the World Series of Poker's richest event, collecting $9.15 million in Las Vegas yesterday.

Peter Eastgate, known as the ``Ice Skate,'' won the longest final in series history by defeating Russia's Ivan Demidov -- another low-ranked player who learned his poker on Internet sites -- to eclipse Phil Hellmuth, a 24-year-old winner in 1989.

``I wasn't thinking about the records or anything like that, I just was thinking about playing my game,'' Eastgate said on the series' Web site.

The final, held at the Rio All-Suites Hotel-Casino, started with nine players and lasted 15 hours and 28 minutes -- 78 minutes longer than the previous longest final table in 2005.

In July, more than 6,800 participants began in what is officially called the World Championship No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em. It's known as the Main Event because it's the richest of more than 50 tournaments on a circuit founded in the 1970s.

The 27-year-old Demidov, ranked 425th, won $5.8 million for finishing second. Eastgate's paycheck was the second-largest in series history after the $12 million won by 2006 World Series of Poker champion Jamie Gold.

``I don't know right now,'' said Eastgate, when asked in a televised interview how he would spend the money. ``I haven't planned.''

Scandinavia is proving a hotbed for poker. Last year, Norway's Annette Obrestad won 1 million pounds ($1.5 million) at the World Series of Poker Europe in London to become the youngest winner in series history at age 18. She's too young to compete in the U.S., where the minimum age is 21.

To contact the reporter on this story: Grant Clark in Singapore at gclark@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 12, 2008 00:04 EST