News - EPT
So who is racing ahead at EPT Prague?
Jude Ainsworth and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier are both among the chip leaders as EPT Prague goes into Day 2.
Ainsworth, the Irish pro, and currently has 160,300 chips while French PCA and WPT champion ElkY has 159,800 chips. They are among the 211 players who made it through Day 1b, making a total of 328 players who will come back tomorrow.
A thumping 584 players from 40 countries competed in the £5,250 EPT Prague Main Event overall, all looking forward to win first place prize of £682,000. The total prize pool is a massive £2,842,100.
Marc Gork from Germany, still remains the chip leader, with 169,200. Rui Cao from France is in second place with just 100 chips fewer than Gork.
Many other champions survived Day 1b including the 2008 WSOP finalist, popular French pro Antony Lellouche. Leo Margets - the Spanish player who was the last remaining female in this year's WSOP, chess whiz Jeff Sarwer, who came third at EPT Vilamoura two weeks ago, French footballer Vikash Dhorasso and Danish pro Theo Jorgensen.
Nearly 70 players won their seats to EPT Prague, which runs December 1-6 at the Hilton Prague Hotel. Last year's EPT Prague winner - Italian Salvatore Bonavena - was eliminated today. More updates are being added on hourly basis on eptseasons.com
PokerStars Champions cruze through EPT Prague Day 1a
PokerStars Champions are in good shape at the end of Day 1a of EPT Prague in the Czech Republic.
Leading player is Florian Langmann who has 108,700. Fellow team members JP Kelly from the UK, Sandra Naujoks from Germany and Season 4 winner Arnaud Mattern from France are also thriving with over 70,000 each. They are among the 117 survivors who return for Day 2 on Thursday.
German Marc Gork is the current chip leader, with 169,200. He was third at EPT Dortmund last season. PokerStars player Rui Cao from France is in second place with just 100 chips behind Gork.
219 players started Day 1a of the £5,250 main event and well over 200 more are expected for Day 1b tomorrow. Nearly 70 players won their seats to EPT Prague online with PokerStars. Last year's event was won by Italian Salvatore Bonavena for £774,000.
EPT Prague runs from December 1 -6 at the Golden Prague Casino in the Hilton Prague Hotel. All updates and news only on www.eptseasons.com
EPT Prague starts with a bang
EPT Prague event started today with more than 200 players taking their seats for Day 1a.
Popular champions competing in the £5,250 main event today are EPT5 Grand Final winner Pieter De Korver, new Britisher JP Kelly, last season's EPT Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks and Arnaud Mattern, who won the first event in Prague in 2007.
70 lucky players won their seats to EPT Prague online with PokerStars. Last year's event was won by Italian Salvatore Bonavena for £774,000 first prize. Bonavena, 45, is still the only Italian who has ever won an EPT Main Event. EPT Prague runs from December 1 - 6 at the Golden Prague Casino in the Hilton Prague Hotel. More updates only on www.eptseasons.com
Top champions attending last EPT of 2009!
A list of top players will be competing in the Czech Republic next week for the last EPT of the super surprising 2009. Among those taking seats for the £5,250 EPT Prague main event, which runs December 1-6 at the Hilton Prague, are Arnaud Mattern, Italians Luca Pagano and Dario Minieri, PCA champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, EPT5 Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks and EPT5 Barcelona winner Sebastian Ruthenberg. These biggies are going to make this a special event.
Rino Mathis, who won the £1k NLHE side event in Vilamoura last week, is also competing alongside Katja Thater, Benjamin Kang and Florian Langmann. While other players like Johnny Lodden, Marcel Luske, William Thorson, Vlad Zguba and Marcin Horecki are also taking part.
Other champions who would join them are Cristiano Blanco, Soren Kongsgaard Nielsen, PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb, Ludovic Lacay, Nicolas Levi and Dragan Galic along with 60 PokerStars qualifiers. Marius Dunca and Baloi Dan Gabriel both won their seats in a live satellite at the PokerStars Romanian Poker Championships.
The 2008 season at Prague attracted a total of 570 players from 40 different countries. The event was won by Italian estate agent Salvatore Bonavena for £774,000.
This year, as always the event kicks off in sumptuous style with a welcome drinks party at the spectacular Cloud 9 Sky Bar & Lounge on the rooftop of the Hilton Prague. Cloud 9 is the first true "sky bar" in the whole of the Czech Republic.
Stay updated about everything that is happening only on www.eptseasons.com
Portuguese Businessman Wins EPT Vilamoura
Portuguese businessman Antonio Matias has won EPT Vilamoura, the richest poker tournament ever held in Portugal, for a first prize of £404,793.
Matias, 54, is the owner of travel agency, has beat some of the best players in the world to win the £5,300 main event, the first EPT ever held in Portugal. Matias now wins a seat into the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo next April.
Matias was the first player to win on home soil. He winning words were: "I like to think of myself as a citizen of the world but it is very satisfying win an EPT in my home country. I wasn't intimidated by the competition because I play a lot of very good players in cash games. I just decided to play the way I play, and hope that luck didn't turn its back on me. I play poker just for a hobby but when I got the chip lead yesterday, at that point, the only thing I had on my mind was winning."
The runner-up was Belgian Pierre Neuville. He is a retired businessman and has played numerous EPT events and had his heart set on victory after bubbling the final at EPT San Remo last season. At 67 years old, he was the oldest finalist in EPT history.
Former chess whizz Jeff Sarwer from Canada was at third place. Sarwer has run deep in back-to-back EPTs after finishing tenth at EPT Warsaw last month. French veteran Michel Abecassis came sixth for £62,468 while Ryan Franklin, 18, from Lake Tahoe in the USA came seventh for £46,851.
A total of 322 players took part in the £5,300 main event, including 69 players who won their seats online. The total prize pool was £1,561,700.
EPT spokesperson Kirsty Thompson said: "It's always exciting when the European Poker Tour visits a new destination and we have wanted to hold an EPT in Portugal for some time so we are delighted that so many players took part including 63 players from Portugal. It's been a superb week of poker."EPT Season 6 ends at Portugal, now heading towards another destination, but all news on EPT Season only on www.eptseasons.com
Portuguese Businessman Leads at Vilamoura Final
Portuguese businessman Antonio Matias, 54, is the chip leader as EPT Vilamoura and has now entered final day. Matias eliminated French pro Antony Lellouche early on Day 4 to take the lead, and kEPT it for the rest of the day. He goes into the final with 3,003,000 in chips.
Running strong in second place is Canadian former chess pro Jeff Sarwer. After bubbling the final table at EPT Warsaw last month, the 31-year-old Canadian was determined not to make the same mistake today - and played really good to finish up with 1,983,000.
In tomorrow's final you also get to see Ryan Franklin, 18, from Lake Tahoe as well as French veteran Michel Abecassis. Michel has played numerous EPTs but this is the first time he has reached the final table. Belgian player Pierre Neuville, who bubbled the final at EPT San Remo last season, has also made it through and is currently in fourth place with 1,027,000.
The day saw several big names hit the rail. Ruben Visser from Holland started the day in fourth place but saw his chips taking a back track and was then left at 14th place.
Other stars who couldnt make it included Portuguese pros Ricardo Sousa and Joao Barbosa, as well as Jim Collopy and Matt Johns.
Tomorrow's finalists are all vying for a first prize of £404,793 as well as a seat in the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo next April. There is lot more action to be seen at EPT Season 6 at Portugal and all news and updates only on www.eptseasons.com
So who is leading at EPT Vilamoura
Day 3 of EPT Vilamoura was not so exciting and come to an early closure - with the same champions as yesterday still jostling for the lead.
The former Canadian chess champion Jeff Sarwer - has exchanged places with French pro Antony Lellouche. Young player Ruben Visser, who was third last night, has now slipped down to fourth place, with now with just 24 players left.
Also still in the fighting strong is Irish player Jude Ainsworth. Other survivors include Portuguese star Joao Barbosa and French veteran Michel Abecassis.
All those returning to take their seats in the Salao Miralago at Casino Vilamoura tomorrow are guaranteed at least £10,151 but few will be content with that while there's a £404,793 first prize on offer.
Some 24 players have already cashed including German Jan Heitmann and Johannes Strassman, player Johan van Til, Danish pro Martin Wendt and Hendon mobster Ross Boatman. More news on EPT Season 6 currently in Portugal only on www.eptseasons.com
Stars Lead the Field in Portugal
As always the biggest names in poker are among the chip leaders as the £5,300 EPT Vilamoura Main Event enters into Day 3.
Former chess champion Jeff Sarwer with 549,800 is the current chip leader. The 31-year-old Canadian, a dominant force at the last EPT in Warsaw, was chip leader at the end of Day 1b and enjoyed a major boost today when he knocked out Shaun Deeb.
Other biggies will be giving Sarwer a rough ride tomorrow as they dive in to scoop the £404,793 first prize. Currently in 2nd place is French pro and EPT4 San Remo runner-up Antony Lellouche while Dutch player Ruben Visser is in third place. Visser climbed up to 389,500 when he doubled up against Andy Black on the last hand of the day. Danish player Martin Wendt is in 5th place, Belgian player Pierre Neuville is on seventh and Dutch player Johan Van Til is on the 9th position.
69 players managed to enter Day 3, from a total of 322 players from 30 countries who entered the £5,300 main event. The total prize pool is £1,561,700 which will be given out to 48 players. Others reaching Day 3 are Jan Heitmann, Alexander Kravchenko, Johannes Strassmann, Jude Ainsworth and local hero Nuno Coelho.
EPT Portugal, which runs November 17-22, has attracted some of the best players in the world to the glamorous Vilamoura resort. More news on EPT Portugal only on www.eptseasons.com
Jeff Sarwer has a good hold in Portugal
Dominant personality at the last EPT Warsaw, the chess champion Jeff Sarwer, is again proving his skills at EPT Vilamoura in Portugal.
On Day 1b of the £5,300 Main Event, the Canadian emerged as the day's chip leader with 143,400. But this leaves him in fifth place with Day 1a competitor Ruben Visser, still in third place and Austrian Ljubomir Josipovic still the chip leader.
A good total of 322 players from 30 different countries took part in the Main Event and 177 remain overall, all vying for a first place prize of £404,793. The total prize pool is £1,561,700.
Debutant day 1b survivors include JP Kelly from the UK has 93,700, as well as Portuguese Pro Henrique Pinho who has 82,000.
Rino Mathis from Switzerland, Germany's Katja Thater, Johannes Strassmann, and Jan Heitmann, Joep Van Den Bijgaart from Holland, Italian Luca Pagano, Chad Brown and Jason Mercier from the USA, Spaniard Juan Manuel Pastor, Alex Kravchenko from Russia and Portugal's Nuno Coelho, and many more champions are list fighting for the top positions.
Other big names still in the running and will be returning to the Salao Miralago at Casino Vilamoura tomorrow include Andy Black, Praz Bansi, EPT Warsaw winner Christophe Benzimra, EPT4 Baden winner Julian Thew and Hendon Mobsters Ross and Barny Boatman.
The tournament runs November 17-22, has attracted some of the best players in the world to the glamorous Vilamoura resort. A total of 69 players won their seats on online satelites. Do come back on www.eptseasons.com for more news on EPT Warsaw.
Ruben Visser Runs doing good At EPT Vilamoura
Dutch Pro Ruben Visser is in third place at the end of Day 1a of EPT Portugal at Vilamoura, the first EPT to be held in Portugal. This 20-year-old lad who is a WCOOP bracelet winner from Amsterdam has 172,400 in chips.
Leading currently is Austrian Ljubomir Josipovic with 192,900 while Lithuanian Dominykas Karmazinas is in second place with 183,000. A total of 136 players tried their luck on day 1 for the £5,300 main event, which runs November 17-22 at Casino Vilamoura; a further 200 players are expected for Day 1b tomorrow.
Ruben hasn't looked back since depositing just $100 on PokerStars soon after his 18th birthday. He has had various good online results; as well as his WCOOP triumph, he has also won a PokerStars Sunday Warm-up, come sixth in a High Stakes SCOOP event and final tabled the Sunday Million, finishing fourth for $77,301.
Day 1's 76 survivors also include Jason Mercier, Joep Van Den Bijgaart, Katja Thater and Chad Brown as well as Shaun Deeb.
Among tomorrow's Day 1b players are Peter Eastgate, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Vanessa Rousso, Dario Minieri and Luca Pagano as well as local heroes Luis Medina, Nuno Coelho and Henrique Pinho.
JP Kelly from the UK and Jude Ainsworth from Ireland will be making their debut tournament appearances at EPT Portugal.
Among the 30 qualifiers playing tomorrow are American Carter Phillips, who won EPT Barcelona in September and online MTT star Kevin Macphee. Other big names include Roberto Romanello, Andy Black, Praz Bansi and Huck Seed as well as EPT Warsaw winner Christophe Benzimra, EPT4 Baden winner Julian Thew and Hendon Mobster Ross Boatman.
More EPT news only on www.eptseasons.com
Stars rush to EPT Portugal at Vilamoura
The beautiful Algarve resort of Vilamoura will experience poker with some of the best players in the world who will take part in the very first EPT in Portugal.
Those competing at the £5,300 event, are last year's world champion Peter Eastgate, PCA champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, EPT Warsaw High Roller winner Dario Minieri and EPT4 Prague winner Arnaud Mattern.
More than 130 players took their seats for Day 1a today including the EPT4 San Remo title-holder and London high roller champion Jason Mercier.
Also competing today are Dutch Ruben Visser and Joep Van Den Bijgaart, Katja Thater from Germany and Chad Brown from the USA.
More than 70 players won prize packages to EPT Vilamoura by winning the online staellites. Among the qualifiers are EPT4 Dublin champion Reuben Peters, who is playing today, and American Carter Phillips, winner of this season's Barcelona event, who is playing Day 1b.
Today's players also include Hendon Mobster Barny Boatman, EPT4 Dortmund winner Mike McDonald, Rolf Slotboom, Michel Abecassis, Antony Lellouche, Ludovic Lacay, Swedish football legend Tomas Brolin and Shaun Deeb. More action from EPT 2009 - Season 6 at Portugal will available on www.eptseasons.com
Has the complete EPT Season Six schedule announced ?
The second and better half of the EPT Season Six schedule was announced yesterday which included the dates for the spectacular EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo as well an addition of a brand new venue- EPT Snowfest in the Austrian Alps.
EPT Snowfest will be held in Saalbach-Hinterglemm from March 21 -26, 2010 and will surely be a huge hit with players from all parts of the world. The resort is one of Austria's most renowned ski resorts giving players the chance to enjoy winter sports action when they're not playing poker. PokerStars qualifiers will be staying at the luxury Alpine Palace hotel during the six-day 5,300 event.
The European Poker Tour is now the world's richest poker tour in terms of both player numbers and prize pools and takes place in some of Europe's most scenic and thrilling destinations. The new EPT schedule and Festival of Poker formats are already proving a huge draw. The recent EPT London Main Event smashed all record for UK tournament with 730 players.
Online satellites for the new EPT event in Vilamoura and for the PCA are running now on with buy-ins from as little as $2.22. Players who qualify on PokerStars not only win their seat; but they also win luxury hotel accommodation (or cash equivalent) and spending money as part of their prize package. Isn't that great.
Poker Players take a flight to Portugal for EPT Vilamoura
A league of top international poker champions are flying to the Algarve coast in Portugal for EPT Vilamoura this November 2009.
Among those competing at the £5,300 event are Peter Eastgate, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Arnaud Mattern, Luca Pagano, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Jan Heitmann, Rino Mathis and George Danzer along with local heroes Henrique Pinho, Luis Medina and Nuno Coelho.
More than 30 PokerStars players have already won seats to Vilamoura, the first EPT ever to be held in Portugal, which runs November 17-22 2009.
Satellites are running on the PokerStars website until at least November 8, providing players the chance to win a prize package worth nearly $10,120 including tournament buy-in, a week's accommodation at the stunning Tivoli Marina Hotel and $1,000 spending money. Great bounty to win!!!
Some thrilling poker action is expected during the week-long tournament. The schedule reveals a range of side events including £1,100 NLHE and PLO events, a £220 NLHE tournament, £330 NL Turbos, NL Shoot-outs and a £330 Ladies Only event as well as cash games running daily and £200+ Sit and Gos.
Vilamoura, as a tourist destination offers a wide choice of leisure activities. For those who love the 4 letter sport, the Tivoli Marina has a dedicated Golf Desk helping guests book discounted rounds at any one of the 31 courses in the region, as well as a free shuttle to and from the Vilamoura courses (Old Course, Millennium, Laguna, Pinhal and Vila Sol) - and a putting green located at the hotel.
Other sports facilities in close vicinity are riding, tennis and lawn bowling, but for those seeking flat-out relaxation, there are fabulous treatments available at the Tivoli's famous Angsana Spa. Out and about in Vilamoura, great shopping and lively nightlife attracts locals and visitors alike with restaurants, bars, stores and night clubs.So if you are not a poker player, you could witness the action and also enjoy Vilamoura.
EPT Warsaw has a winner and its French businessman Christophe Benzimra winning first prize of £358,644.
The 47-year-old from French guy beat Italian champion Alfio "aLFiosNob" Battisti to win the coveted title. He started playing poker three years ago and has also taken part at almost every EPT in the last two seasons. His winning quotes were: "I think I was lucky today. I am not a professional, I play for fun. I'm not giving up work! I play poker just for the pleasure of it." Now he wins a seat into the Season 6 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo.
Runner-up Battisti, took home approx. £200,520. Luca Pagano was on fourth place winning approx. £85,938. Canadian Clayton Mozdzen, 26, one of 33 players to win their Warsaw seats on PokerStars, came sixth, earning approx. £56,144. Among the 24 players to cash were PokerStars Passport winner Shaun Deeb and Polish player Wojciech Polak. Dario Minieri won the EPT Warsaw high roller event earning £77,206.
The next event of EPT Season 6 is EPT Vilamoura in Portugal from November 17-22, 2009. Satellites are running on PokerStars for both Vilamoura and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in January.
The EPT Warsaw Main Event attracted 203 players at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, generating a total prize pool of approx. £1,145,826.
Luca Pagano makes record fifth EPT final
Luca Pagano broke all his own records at EPT Warsaw by making his fifth EPT final table and 12th EPT cash. Luca from Italy, started Day 4 with one of the shortest stacks but has staged a great recovery to reach the final in second place.
The other four finalists were Ruslan Prydryk from Ukraine, French EPT stalwart Christophe Benzimra and Russians Anatoly Gurtovoy and Alexander Klimashin.
All were vying for a first prize, of around £359,000. A total of 203 players competed at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel generating a total prize pool of 4.7 million Zloty.
In the high roller event, Italian Dario Minieri was chip leader, heads-up against David Steicke from Australia.
PokerStars players jostle for lead at EPT Warsaw
EPT Barcelona winner American Carter Phillips spent most of Day 2 way ahead of his rivals only to lose the lead to Clayton Mozdzen from Canada. Mozdzen had 332,300 and Phillips had 299,800. The pair were among 33 players who won their seats online.
Others in the competition were WCOOP bracelet winner Shaun Deeb and Anton Genadiew. Italian Luca Pagano , world champion Peter Eastgate and Dutch PRO Thierry Van Den Berg also moved to Day 3.
A total of 203 players from 33 countries competed in the Main Event creating a whooping total prize pool of some 4.7 million Zloty (around £1,145,830). The tournament, which runs October 20-25, has attracted some of the best players in the world to Casinos Poland at the Hyatt. Next EPT 2009 will be held in Portugal.
Day 4 - Jeff Sarwer, former Chess champion leads at EPT Warsaw
Jeff Sarwer was dominating the action at EPT Warsaw and had nearly a million in chips on Day 4.
Sarwer was one of 24 players who remain in the tournament and are now in the money, with a guaranteed a minimum payout of £6,874.
Sarwer is one of several players who have shifted their base from chess to poker, like 2008 WSOP finalist Ylon Schwartz. He learned chess at the age of four and one of his matches was the inspiration for the climax in the film Searching for Bobby Fischer. He has been playing poker seriously for around a year and cashed at EPT Prague last year.
In second place was Clayton Mozdzen from Canada. Mozdzen's Day 2 chip lead had a rocky Day 3, but he ended with 574,000. Fellow qualifier Alexander Debus from France is in third place with 479,500. The pair are among 33 players who won their seats online with PokerStars.
Luca Pagano is the last remaining Team PokerStars PRO in the tournament. Pagano, from Italy, who has 112,500 in chips, is cashing for the 12th time at an EPT - breaking his own record. His best result so far was sixth place at the Season 4 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo for £337,000. Shaun Deeb has had a rough day sitting two seats along from Jeff Sarwer but was still strugling in the tournament with 192,500 chips. Antony Lellouche and Michel Abecassis are also both still in the running for the 1,493,170 PLN first prize.
The high roller event also kicked off today featuring Dario Minier from Italy and Florian Langmann from Germany. Finnish high stakes player Sami Kelopuro from Finland is also competing.
Carter Phillips -The Chip leader ar EPT Warsaw
The online poker world has known Carter Phillips for quite some time, but now he seems to be in limelight facing the real world - real poker stars, who only found out about him last month when he snatched an amazing $850,000 bounty at EPT Barcelona. Day 1a at EPT Warsaw, saw the 21-year-old American, once again in the lead with 194,850 stack which was nearly double his nearest rival, the popular Clayton Mozdzen.
Carter who hails from North Carolina, won accolades on numerous online tournaments before EPT Barcelona, including winning the PokerStars $500k guaranteed and the Sunday Second Chance tournament. He has also won the PokerStars $100 rebuy event three times.....this guy is surely going a long way from here.
Also being noticed in Warsaw is Luca Pagano who ended Day 1a with 101,575. Angel Guillen from Mexico and JC Alvarado have been knocked out, but Peter Eastgate, Arnaud Mattern and Alex Kravchenko are all through to Day 2. Marcin Horecki who at one point was down to just 75 chips enjoyed a miracle recovery and is now surviving at 9,850.
In all 88 super players took their seats today for the 25,000 PLN main event, which is scheduled from October 20th until October 25th at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency. More than100 players are expected for Day 1b tomorrow, who include Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Katja Thater, Florian Langmann, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Dario Minieri, Thierry Van Den Berg and William Thorson along with JP Kelly and EPT presenter Michelle Orpe.
Other biggies to play tomorrow will include 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen, Danish poker pro Gus Hansen, last year's finalist Ludovic Lacay and WCOOP bracelet winner Shaun Deeb.
Dont miss the flight to Warsaw - EPT Warsaw
Champion Poker Players made sure not to miss their flight to Warsaw, Poland for EPT Warsaw which begins on 20th October, Tuesday at yet another superb venue - Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.
Peter Eastgate alongside fellow team member Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, 2009 WSOP bracelet winner Angel Guillen, as well as Arnaud Mattern and Dario Minieri, who both made last season's final table are few of the champions taking part in the 23,500 PLN buy-in event.
Other stars competing include Marcin Horecki from Poland, Sebastian Ruthenberg and Katja Thater from Germany, Dutchman Thierry Van Den Berg, Player of the Year Luca Pagano from Italy and Swedish star William Thorson. The new EPT presenter Michelle Orpe will also be seen playing on the table.
33 PokerStars players won their trip to Warsaw via online qualifiers, a package which included buy-in, spending money and accommodation at the luxury Hyatt Regency hotel. Lets watch if one of them makes it to the finals.
EPT Warsaw 2008 was won by Joao Barbosa from Porto, Portugal for. For EPT Warsaw 2009, there are many contenders, lets see who is the lucky one.
Aaron Gustavson wins EPT London Main Event
American Aaron Gustavson beat World Champion Peter Eastgate today to win the EPT London Poker Festival Main Event and a £850,000 first prize
Online pro Gustavson, 23, was one of 149 PokerStars qualifiers at the £5,300 event. A total of 730 players entered the tournament creating a prize pool of £3,540,500 and making it the biggest poker tournament ever held in the UK.
Gustavson and Eastgate, who wins £530,000 as runner-up, started their heads-up battle straight after dinner. It lasted just seven hands when Gustavson's A-Q beat Eastgate's A-9.
Gustavson said: "I'm speechless, totally overwhelmed. I don't think it's going to hit me for a quite a while. Having this title is amazing - a dream come true."
Gustavson, known online as "Aguskb", plans to spend some of his winnings buying a house in Vegas and a Porsche. He also wins entry into the EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final. He has a string of successes on PokerStars including winning the PokerStars Sunday Warm Up for $135,000 and 12th place in the PokerStars $530 NLHE World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) event last month.
Also in the final was Martin Gudvangen from Norway (4th place, £227,000), British player Dominic Cullen (5th place, £173,000) and Raymond Wu from Taipei finished 7th for £87,000.
A total of 104 players cashed including Kevin Schaffel, friend of Darus Suharto, Maria Mayrinck and Arnaud Mattern, as well as former England footballer Teddy Sheringham.
This season's EPT London Poker Festival featured 16 different events. Side event winners included Joe Hachem, Jason Mercier and William Thorson. The next EPT event this season is EPT Warsaw from October 20-25, 2009. Satellites are running now, as well as for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in January.
World champion Peter Eastgate in EPT London final
We've come down from 730, to 318, to 111, to 24 and now - after five days of intense and dramatic poker, we are down to our final eight super stars at the EPT London Main Event.
Today's final table players hail from eight countries - four continents but all have just one goal in mind - becoming the next EPT London champion and taking home the big £850,000 first prize.
The final has some highly talented players, like current world champion Peter Eastgate who is second in chips, along with American qualifier Aaron Gustavson who is the leader with more than double of Eastgate's stack. Martin Gudvangen from Norway, who is playing only his second EPT and Dominic Cullen from the UK are also through.
Finalist Raymond Wu, 24, from Taipei has a loyal team supporting him on the trail - including his mother, girlfriend, friends, team mates and his manager.
Cross your finger and sty tuned to eptseasons.com to know who won EPT London 2009.
Michael Berry leads field at EPT London
Michael Berry has free-rolled his way into a major chip lead in the EPT London Main Event. With only 24 players left as the tournament goes into its penultimate day, the entrepreneur from South Yorkshire, UK, could well be looking at an £850,000 happy ending.
Berry is one of thousands who took part in a special PokerStars online tournament run in conjunction with the Daily Mirror newspaper. Only 290 made the final and it was Berry who won the $12,000 package - a seat in the Main Event and five nights luxury hotel accommodation at the Hilton Metropole. He is so luck !!!! He finished day one with a below-average stack but bagged up at the end of Day 2 with a tidy 324,000. Now he's on 1,837,000.
Brazilian qualifier Rodrigo Dos Santos Caprioli is in second place with 1,647,000 while Benjamin Spindler, who came 3rd at the PCA in January, is on 1,110,000.
In the Main Event, which attracted a record 730 players generating a £3,540,500 prize pool is Peter Eastgate, the current world champion as well as Raymond Wu from Taiwan and Kevin Schaffel.
Another event which has proved immensely popular at the EPT London Poker Festival is the £200 Ladies Event which started yesterday and was still going strong at midnight. The big turnout - 120 players - amazed everyone and included seven who won their seats online on through PokerStars.
Star of Day 3 at EPT London : Kevin Schaffel
As EPT London goes into Day 3, Kevin Schaffel, is among the chip leaders . Schaffel, from Florida, has been a golfer for more than 25 years and is now trying his luck and implementing his strategies in Poker. It’s been a family re-union for Schaffel at EPT London as his brother Jordan has been with him throughout the tournament along with his cousin, Martin.
It was a terrible day for many players, with more than 200 heading towards Heathrow. The early hours of play on October 5 will also be crucial – as only 111 players remain and the money kicks in at 104 players. Most players will have their eyes set on the EPT title and the £850,000 first prize, rather than the £7,500 min cash on offer to the first eight players out.
In all 730 players entered the EPT London Main Event, creating a total prize pool of £3,540,500. Stay here to read more news on EPT London.
EPT London creates history
The EPT London Main Event has managed to smash records with a starting field of 730 players. The record field has staggered players and media alike and is well above the mark of 100 players more than last season’s event at London.
With 426 players taking their seats for Day 1b, the Kings Suite of the Hilton Metropole Hotel was packed by every inch - however only half survived.
The Day 1b chip leader was the young German, Nikolai Senninger, with 323,100. Senninger was third in the Latin American Poker Tour event in Brazil and recently won the Bodensee Poker Championships 2009 for €40k.
318 players return to the Kings Suite for Day 2 of the £5,000 event – all with their eyes set on the £850,000 first prize. The total prize pool for the event is £3,540,500.
For videos related to EPT 2009 visit
Sunject - EPT London Main Event will break most records
One high stakes tournament ends as another juicy one begins; the champion of the EPT London High Roller event was crowned just minutes ago taking home a whopping £542k while the EPT Main Event started with over 305 players.
The Main Event of EPT London started Day 1a today with 305 players, making it very likely the £5,000 event will be the biggest poker tournament ever held in the UK.
Among the main stars in the arena there was world champion Peter Eastgate. He was joined by EPT3 London winner Vicky Coren, last season's Grand Final winner Pieter de Korver, Player of the Year Luca Pagano, EPT5 Barcelona winner Sebastian Ruthenberg and EPT5 Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks.
French player Arnaud Mattern who won EPT Prague in Season 4 was also seen at the event. American Carter Phillips, who won EPT Barcelona last month, was also there with his British heads-up rival Marc Goodwin. Other poker personalities in attendance include Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Roland de Wolfe and Freddy Deeb. American high-stakes player Matt Glantz won the £20k PokerStars.com EPT London High Roller event after beating Canadian Erik Cajelais heads-up.
The final table featured Dennis Phillips and Leo Fernandez. American Phillips came 7th for £60,000 while Fernandez from Argentina finished 4th for £104,000. 75 players entered the High Roller event. The High Roller event was the first of 16 tournaments taking place during the eight-day EPT London.
Sunject - Mario Cordero leads field in EPT London Main Event
Mario Cordero was leading the pack at the end of Day 1a of the EPT London Main Event with 218,000 in chips.
A total of 305 players turned up for the first day of the £5,000 event and at least 350 more were expected for Day 1b making the EPT London Main Event the biggest poker tournament ever held in Britain.
Among the 129 Day 1a survivors there was Arnaud Mattern from France who bagged 116,000 in chips while Maridu Mayrinck from Brazil had 115,000 and world champion Peter Eastgate from Denmark was on 122,000.
Alex Kravchenko, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Florian Langmann, Victor Ramdin and EPT5 Grand Final winner Pieter de Korver all made it through the grueling nine-level day.
SportStar Fatima Moreira de Melo, one of Holland's best known field hockey players, competed but bust towards the end of the day. She is expected to come back with a bang in the next season. More EPT 2009 news coming up
Suject - Who makes it to EPT London High Roller final?
Dennis Phillips from the USA and Leo Fernandez from Argentina have both made it through to the final table of the EPT London High Roller event. The pair are the last two survivors from a 13-member team of which started the £20,000 event at the Hilton Metropole Hotel on September 30. Fernandez and Phillips will be no pushovers though as both have made final tables before.
Phillips became famous when he became one of the original November Nine finalists at last year's World Series. Fernandez came sixth at LAPT Mar del Plata in April and took home $63,520.
A total of 75 players entered the event; 31 survived to Day 2 and here are final eight.
Seat 1: Eugene Katchalov, USA, 530,000
Seat 2: Shane Reihill, Ireland, 236,000
Seat 3: Matt Glantz, USA, 647,500
Seat 4: Dennis Phillips, USA, 218,500
Seat 5: Ilari Sahamies, Finland, 311,000
Seat 6: Leo Fernandez, Argentina, 460,000
Seat 7: Adolfo Vaeza, Uruguay, 468,000
Seat 8: Erik Cajelais, Canada, 893,500
Subject - Is Ilari Sahamies leading in EPT London 2009 High Roller ?
Finnish player Ilari "Ziigmund" Sahamies is leading at the start of Day 2 of EPT London High Roller. Ilari has collected 373,800 despite turning up four and half hour late for the £20,000 event.
31 players were left in the three-day tournament from a starting field of 75. Phil Ivey was the first to bust on Day 1 with other knocked-out notables including Tom Dwan, plus Chris Moneymaker, Greg Raymer, Barry Greenstein, Vanessa Rousso, Luca Pagano, JC Alvarado and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier.
It was a double-bust day for Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott who was still in a separate poker tournament at the start of the day. He was knocked out of that event in 35th place for £21,142.
More news on EPT London coming up
Poker Pros proceed to UK for EPT London Poker Festival
After a good tournament at Bacelona now all eyes are fixed on the happenings at EPT London, which is supposed to be the biggest poker festival ever held in the UK.
This festival will run for a week i.e from 30th Sept - 7th Oct, which consists of 16 events. The pros who are a part of this competition includes the EPT London defending champion, Michael Martin, as well as EPT London Season 5 high roller winner Jason Mercier and the former world champions Joe Hachem, Chris Moneymaker, Greg Raymer and current world champion Peter Eastgate.
It's the first chance for Europeans to see three of this year's World Series "November Nine" finalists trying to best each other. Joe Cada, Eric Buchman and Kevin Schaffel are all set to play the £5,300 EPT London main event.
For the first time, EPT London will be held beyond the boundaries of its traditional home by moving just a few hundred steps ahead the road to the Hilton Metropole Hotel. The change of location has enabled PokerStars to seriously ratchet up the celebrations and provide an exciting and diverse list of top events.
September 30 will be the start of the festival with the return of the EPT London £20k High Roller event.
Last year this tournament was won by American Jason Mercier against one of the toughest grounds in poker history. Mercier defeated a raft of leading pros including John Juanda, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu and Gus Hansen.
The EPT London main event begins from 2nd Oct with the start of other tournaments such as the first-ever £2k European 8-Game Championship as well as a £500 8-Game event, a £1k Pot Limit Omaha High-Low event, a £1k No Limit 6-Max event and a £2k PLO event.
The festival trails the two-week European Poker Championships being held at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino, and will once again strengthen London's prominence as the poker capital of Europe.
Carter Phillips Pokerstars Qualifier Wins Pokerstars EPT Barcelona
Carter Phillips won the EPT Barcelona main event €8,300 after an exhausting three hours match. Phillips won the first position by winning prize €850,000 by defeating UK veteran Marc Goodwin.
Out of 478 players who had participated in the main event Barcelona, Phillips is the only one who has successfully won the Pokerstars €500k guaranteed and the Sunday Second Chance tournament. Nevertheless to say he has also won €100 rebuy event three times.
According to Phillips it was very difficult to beat strong players like Marc Goodwin. He had not expected to reach this position so early in his career. Goodwin is very famous all over the world for his constant success in the game of poker. In 1979, he won his first tournament and his live tournament earnings now totals more than $1.4 million.
Santiago Terrazas, the Spanish player stands third in place by winning €300,000. This was the biggest sum ever won by a Spanish player at an EPT. Phillips was the one out of 50 players who won their seats at Barcelona including players like Daniel Begreanu, Bertrand Grospellier, Jason Mercier, Boris Becker and Bruno Lopes.
EPT London Poker Festival will be the next destination for all the Poker Pros. This is expected to be the largest series of poker tournaments ever held in the UK. There are almost 16 events planned which includes the £5,300 main event and £20k high roller.
Two PokerStars qualifiers reach the final table at EPT Barcelona
Cater Phillips from North Carolina and Matt Lapossie made it to the final table at EPT Barcelona by wining 4,421,000 and 2,138,000 chips respectively. Among these two experts, Math stood third in place but he still managed to perform well. Both of them have performed brilliantly at the main €8,300 event and are expecting to scoop the first prize €850,000.
Carter Phillips with great presence of mind moved ahead by defeating Team PokerStars PRO Jason Mercier and Dag Martin Mikkelsen. Last week Phillips was qualified twice for Barcelona by winning €1k side event. On the other hand, Matt had played EPT only once prior to Barcelona but he made tremendous efforts and could not keep himself away from the chip lead.
UK pro Marc Goodwin stood second in place at EPT Barcelona final table by winning 3,100,000 in chips. Though he has had three EPT cashes to date, Goodwin is now at his first EPT final table.Santiago Terrazas, the only Spaniard left in the tournament was also through with 546,000.
Overall 478 players entered EPT Barcelona creating a total prize pool of €3,832,000. Few former EPT champions including Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and EPT Dortmund winner Mike McDonald made it to Day 4 but unfortunately they lost out by the end of the day.
Former Champions Strive To Claim EPT Double
Many former champions have been struggling to stay on the top at the Barcelona event but yet none have succeeded in becoming the first ever EPT champion to win the main event for a second time.
The EPT at Barcelona proceeds to Day 4 creating a fierier situation, Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier from France along with other five former EPT winners are facing tough competition.
The Champions involved in the event for this year were Elky who won the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in 2008, Frenchman Jan Boubli EPT 2 season winner. While EPT3 Dublin winner Roland de Wolfe, EPT4 Dortmund winner Mike McDonald and last season's Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllonen were the runner-ups.
On the other hand Matt Lapossie Canadian Pokerstars qualifier stood second in place with 1,664,000 chips whereas Greek pro Georgios Kapalas has 1,724,000 in chips and is expecting to become Greece's first ever EPT champion. Lapossie has only played once at EPT, but since Barcelona started has never been away from the chip lead.
Out of 478, only 23 players stay back at the €8,300 NLHE event. All players are striving their best to achieve the first prize of €850,000. Let's see who finally grabs the booty...
Players enter cash at EPT Barcelona
The Day 2 at EPT Barcelona ends with only 72 players which had a huge group of 478 players at the begging of the season. All remaining players are now in the cash with an assured payday of at least €12,000.
Matt Lapossie, Canadian PokerStars qualifier is a young chip leader moving strong with 700,300. He was fortunate to win his trip to Barcelona in an $800 satellite on PokerStars and is one of 50 players to win their seats online.
Few days after he achieved his Guinness World Record, Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier gave his best performance at EPT Barcelona and ended Day 2 by the fifth place with 454,200 in chips.
Besides PCA champion "ElkY" and EPT1 Copenhagen winner Boeken, who are still in the running in Barcelona, there are four former EPT champions too. They are EPT3 Dublin champ Roland de Wolfe, EPT5 Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllonen, EPT4 Dortmund winner Michael McDonald and Frenchman Jan Boubli who won the EPT Barcelona Season 2 title in 2005.
Noah Boeken and Thierry Van Den Berg both from Netherlands are the only other Team PokerStars PROs still surviving in the tournament. Lex Veldhuis, a teammate who was among the chip leaders, lost a couple of brutal hands and busted out of the event just two places short of the money.
A day of fierce and suspense also ended well for young Latvian Kaspars Renga. He owns 88,900 in chips and is now the first player from his country ever to cash at an EPT.
Lex Veldhuis Rocks Day 1b Of EPT Barcelona
It was Team PokerStars PRO Lex Veldhuis who conquered as a leader on Day 1b and is now in eighth place as the €8,300 event proceeds to Day 2.
This very young guy from Rotterdam won 100,000 chips by the end of level 1 and maintained a persistent speed throughout the whole day. He was playing at Table 19 where he created some chaos. The other competitors at Table 19 were Peter Eastgate, William Thorson and Daniel Negreanu who played at various intervals. Veldhuis now owns 149,500 chips.
The other champions who were a part of Day 1b were former world champion Scotty Nguyen and Carlos Mortensen, Boris Becker, French film star Patrick Bruel and French rapper Bruno "Kool Shen" Lopes who was sponsored by PokerStars.
The current chip holder "Kid Poker" Negreanu survived the day with total 106,100 chips in his hands, but unfortunately both Thorson and Eastgate got busted out. Noah Boeken, EPT Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks, PCA and WPT champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier and WSOP 2008 runner-up Ivan Demidov are still struggling for the €850,000 first prize. But the most famous is the chip leader Spanish PokerStars qualifier Diego Arias who has 193,300.
Overall there were 478 players who played the EPT Barcelona with the total prize pool of €3,832,000. However more than 50 players were lucky to win their trip to Barcelona on PokerStars after qualifying in online satellites.
PokerStars qualifier moves ahead for EPT Barcelona
Spanish Pokerstars qualifier Diego Arias who owned 193,300 chips put an end to EPT Barcelona Day 1a by winning his €8,300 seat. He achieved this after qualifying in an $800 satellite on PokerStars run especially for Spanish players.
Pokerstars qualifier and Pokerstars players Franz from Germany also performed well by gaining 146,550 chips whereas Carlos Lopez and Jorn Walthus are the second best on the list. The first day of EPT Bacelona had a total of 207 players but unfortunately 107 players moved ahead for the Barcelona title 2009. Among the Team PokerStars PROs playing Day 1a, only Florian Langmann from Germany who is the EPT4 London runner-up had made it through.
The famous poker stars like Pokerstars Pros Daniel Negreanu and Bertrand "Elky" Grospellier, Pokerstars Sportstar Boris Becker and the Pokestars sponsored French rapper Bruno Lopes will be involved in Day 1b.
ElkY receives the Guinness World Record
Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, the Pokerstar Pro receives the Guinness World Record for winning the most online poker tournaments within the span of one hour in one hour. At the Barcelona EPT party, he was delighted to officially receive the Guinness World Record for his stunning achievement.
This challenge was set back in the EPT Season 5th Grand Final in Monte Karlo. He had an hour to play as many Sit and Go tournaments as possible and had to wind up with good balance. He made a $23.67 for 62 SNGs winning a world record that came to his luck. Barcelona is carrying out one of the toughest tournaments on the European Poker Tour making several hundred players to face a challenge of their own.
The masters who will be involved in this event are Team PokerStar PRO Germany and defending champion Sebastian Ruthenberg. His challenge is to face the numerous EPT champions and World Series Of Poker bracelet winners including Team PokerStars PRO Jason Mercier. Jason who played brilliantly and defeated many players in WSOP this summer, won a WSOP bracelet and two EPT titles. He hopes to perform well and give his best in this Barcelona tournament.
It wont be surprising if this season draws in more players as compared to the last season where it had 619 players and the prize pool from that event was €5 million.
Barcelona, next destination for EPT season 6 Champions
Poker player champions are all set to head Barcelona for the next season 6 EPT tournament which will be held in the forthcoming week. Sebastian Ruthenberg who is the defending title holder will play against various EPT champions and World Series of Poker braclet winners. He will also compete against the current world champion Peter Eastgate and runner up Ivan Demidov.
American Jason Mercier who is the member of Team PokerStars PRO is the strongest competitor of Ruthenberg. Mercier who stood sixth last year at Bacelona also won the WSOP bracelet this summer.
Ruthenberg will also see the competitors like Pieter de Korver, winner of last season's EPT Grand Final and Sandra Naujoks, winner of EPT Dortmund.
It is expected that this season at the Gran Casino will involve a wealth of stars who are certain to rise another thrilling week of poker. Last season it has attracted 619 players with the total prize pool €5 million.
The list for the €8,000 event, which is held during 4th-9th September, includes top players such as Bertrand "Elky" Grospellier who has won $2,000,000 last year at the Pokerstars Caribbean Poker Adventure. Four times WSOP champion Daniel Negreanu and Luca Pagano who made the final table at EPT Dortmund earlier this year will also grace the felt with their skills.
Boris Becker the tennis legend is also competing in this event. Pokerstars sponsored rap star Bruno Lopes will be bringing in some drama, while home-grown competition comes in the form of Spanish Team Pokerstars players Juan Maceiras and Juan Manuel Pastor.
The list does not end here. The other players included are Alex Kravchenko, Vanessa Rousso, Marcel Luske, Lex Veldhuis, Katja Thater, Johnny Lodden, Dario Minieri and Noah Boeken.
Around 50 players managed to win their trip to Barcelona on PokerStars - a package worth nearly $16,000. This included Main Event buy-in, accommodation at the luxury AB Skipper hotel, spending money and a VIP pass for the PokerStars welcome party.
PokerStars' qualifying satellites for EPT Barcelona have now come to an end, but PokerStars PlatinumStar VIP players still have a chance to buy in to the event using W$ by Sunday, August 30th
EPT Kyiv Winner Maxim Lykov
The first Russian to win the EPT Kyiv Poker tournament championship held in Ukraine this month
Is Maxim "Decay" Lykov. The 21 year old Master made a record by winning the €5,000 EPT Kyiv tournament for €330,000.
EPT season six was held in Kyiv Sports Palace, Ukraine. Nearly 300 competed in the tournament which including almost 80 PokerStars players.
According to Lykov, He was very confident that he would make it through the final though it was a tough competition but he still believed he would reach this success. It was a sense of pride and honour for him to win the tournament.
He stood 3rd in the 5k NLHE shootout at the World Series in June this year by grabbing $145,000. His total wins in the tournament was €600,000 for this season.
This was the first ever played EPT in the realm and it was the largest Poker tournament ever held in Commonwealth of Independent States. From 33 countries, 296 players actually played in this tournament creating total prize pool of €1,391,200.
The Stars and Pros who battled against in this tournament included Team PokerStars Pros Ivan Demidov, Alex Kravchenko, Luca Pagano, Dario Minieri as well as Vlad Zhuba, the first member of the new Team PokerStars Ukraine Pro and Team PokerStars Argentina Pro Leo Fernandez. Other pros taking part were Gus Hansen, Shaun Deeb, Cristiano Blanco, John Kabbaj.
PokerStars Qualifiers Reach The Final
Two PokerStars qualifiers battled strongly and were successful in reaching the final of the first ever PokerStars EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship. Frequent Point Player qualifier Lucasz Plichta from Poland and Torsten Tent from Germany played exhaustingly for 12-hours and they then made it through to Day 5 of the €5k event.
Both the players are promised for a €30,000 payday. They are gunning for the €300,000 first prize and also foor the EPT Kyiv champion title. Maxim "Decay" Lykov, from Russia remains as the current chip leader holding in hand 2,597,000 chips.
EPT Kyiv pulled in a total of 296 players overall, which led to forming it as the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.
EPT Kyiv Final Proceed With 32
Eight players got richer while they packed their bags and sailed back home. Whereas 32 out of the whole group still have their focus aiming at a €330,000 payday. The €5,000 PokerStars.net EPT Kyiv being final down to 32 players has started experiencing the heat of the game on a tougher platform.
Further, the EPT cameras will be switched on giving some players their first ever experience of playing live at the televised feature table.
Players from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus including the locals and semi-locals ones lead the field with chip Master Maxim Lykov from Russia who is slightly ahead of his closest rivals. The previous chip leader Vitaly Tolokonnikov now stands 3rd in place.
Michael Meyburg still holds the place of the leading PokerStars qualifier who is also the former backgammon champion from Germany having 240,500.
New Jersey's PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb, was carousing his first ever success at a live event after taking down the €20,000 High Roller event - against only two other players. Deeb is famously well-known online and a WCOOP champion.
A total of 296 players overall were involved at The EPT Kyiv Main Event, making it the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.
Kyiv field cut down to few tables
A gloomy experience was witnessed on the 2nd day at the Kyiv Sports Palace. Majority of the players had their luggage being packed and their trip winding up with no success at their fate. This day was less fortunate giving seats to only 69 players out of 203.
Vitaly Tolokonnika from Russia being the current chip leader survived with only 12,000 chips in his hand but later came a radical change increasing his chips to 371,000.
Whereas Backgammon champion Michael Meyburg a PokerStar qualifier from Germany is leading with 289,300
Pokerstars Pros along with Pokerstars passport winner Shaun Deeb were eliminated yesterday from the game as lady luck didn't favor them. There are still 14 players of Pokerstar fighting hard for €330,000 first prize.
The EPT Kyiv Main Event managed to pull in a total of 296 players overall. And this led to making it the most major poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.
The game is now presenting a tougher stage for the players as it moves ahead.
Keep reading this section for latest news on EPT Season 6....
EPT Kyiv heads into Day 2
EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship experienced a better start on day 2 of the event. The action game went on for almost seven hours at Kyiv sports palace and around 203 players managed to proceed to day 2.
Viktor Ivanov from Russia stays on the top as the leader with 153,825 in chips and following him is Jason Kudron from US who stands in the third place overall with 118,100. The other surviving players at the long lasting game in the Sports Palace are Team PokerStars Pros Katja Thater and Alex Kravchenko, along with PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb. Nicolas Levi, Dragan Galic, Andrew Feldman and Alexander Kostritzyn are the other players who have also stayed back.
Day 2 will enjoy a challenging time with numerous stars still battling for the 1st prize of €330,000 having 2008 WSOP runner-up Ivan Demidov along with is beloved Liya Gerasimova. With the new EPT layout initiated this season, levels will now be 75 minutes from now until the tournament terminates.
As this game is already expected to be the largest poker tournament ever held in the country, it has pulled in 296 players so far with the total prize pool of €1,391,200.
Cheers !!
Spectacular EPT Season begins at Kyiv
European Poker Tour Season 6 began its first event in Ukraine last evening. The players were greeted by a live performance presented by 50-60 Ukrainian folk dancers and a group of four-man drummers.
The PokerStars.net EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship consisted of the €5,000 NLHE Main Event and a capital of side events. The championship managed to gather a large number of players to the destination of Kyiv. This event, though being the first in Ukraine is deemed as the largest tournament ever held in the common wealth of Independent States.
Alex Kravchenko and Luca Pagano, the Team PokerStars Pros were proficient enough to survive for the Day 1a among the rest. Pagano wasn't fortunate and so lost out at the end of the day whereas Kravchenko moved ahead with 45,450 chips in his hand.
Around 93 players have proceeded to Day 2, with the current chip leader Mihaylo Demidenko from Ukraine with 145,125. A brand new layout for EPT main events reflected due to a great number of survivors and provided each player with a starting pile of 30,000. Day 1b will find even more stars occupying their seats in the vast Kyiv palace of Sports. This will include Team PokerStars Pros Ivan Demidov, Dario Minieri, Katja Thater. The first member of the new Team PokerStars Ukraine, Vlad Zhuba and Team PokerStars Argentina Pro Leo Fernandez will also be a part of this team.
The €1,100 NLHE freeze-out and a €330 Ladies Only NLHE event are set as the Side events on Day 1b. This week nearly 50 players in Kyiv were happy to win their trip online with PokerStars. They were lucky to achieve their buy-in, six nights at the beautiful Premier Palace hotel and spending money.
Good Luck!!!
Players get set to kyiv for Launch Of EPT Season
Tuesday August 18,2009 will see the curtains opening for EPT poker championship at Kyiv sports in Ukraine. This event shall mark the beginning of the season 6 European Poker Tour.
The first €5,000 NLHE Main Event will feature a wealth of stars including WSOP 2008 runner up and Team Pokerstars Pro Ivan Demidov as well as fellow team members Luca Pagano, Dario Minieri, Katja Thater and Alex Kravchenko. Vlad Zhuba, the first member of the new Team PokerStars Ukraine Pro, is also competing.
The entire event from Aug 18th-23rd held at Kyiv Sports Palace is packed with lots of action. Almost 50 players were fortunate to win their buy-in, six nights at the amazing Premier Palace hotel and spending money for their trip to Kyiv playing online with PokerStars
According to Pokerstars.com (sponsor) this EPT Kyiv Poker Championship is expected to hold the largest poker tournaments ever in Ukraine. Apart from this main event, other tournaments included are €1,100, €2,250 and €3,200 NLHE side events, a €330 ladies’ event, a €2,150 Pot Limit Omaha event as well as daily cash games from 4pm to 1am.
Here's Day first seat draw.
| Start day | Full Name |
|---|---|
| Day 1A | Raphael Wurm |
| Day 1A | Sebastian Seelbach |
| Day 1A | Shaun Deeb |
| Day 1A | Allan Bække |
| Day 1A | Raoul Gilmar Refos |
| Day 1A | Rodolphe Lampe |
| Day 1A | Giovanni Mifsud |
| Day 1A | Surow Andriej Nikolajewicz |
| Day 1A | Antoon Pieter Jozef Kleijnen |
| Day 1A | Dominykas Karmazinas |
| Day 1A | Boris Yanpolskiy |
| Day 1A | Fabio Di Giampietro |
| Day 1A | Trazevskij Andriej Borisowicz |
| Day 1A | Guido Meacci |
| Day 1A | Mauro Medico |
| Day 1A | Vlad Mezheritsky Jr. |
| Day 1A | Alexander Fitzgerald |
| Day 1A | Michael Shahnovich |
| Day 1A | Matthew Fletcher |
| Day 1A | Masayuki Nagata |
| Day 1A | Stanislav Shinkarev |
| Day 1A | Wendy Monosky |
| Day 1A | Eren Sergil |
| Day 1A | Torsten Tent |
| Day 1A | Andrew Malott |
| Day 1A | Aleksandr Ivanchenko |
| Day 1A | Ronald Wasiel |
| Day 1A | Vadim Shlez |
| Day 1A | Naletow Michail Andreewicz |
| Day 1A | Brian Green |
| Day 1A | Eduard Poltaves |
| Day 1A | Karpus Sergey Dmitrovich |
| Day 1A | Mardanov Artur Rafikovich |
| Day 1A | Arkadiy Tsinis |
| Day 1A | Alexander Morozov |
| Day 1A | Gregory D Dyer |
| Day 1A | Alexander Kravchenko |
| Day 1A | Yurii Valerievich Alaniya |
| Day 1A | Giuseppe Dario Sammartino |
| Day 1A | Antonio Failla |
| Day 1A | Pier Paolo Fabretti |
| Day 1A | Maurizio Colazingari |
| Day 1A | Kristian El Dosoky |
| Day 1A | Atanas Stoyanov |
| Day 1A | Brendan Murphy |
| Day 1A | Terry Cook |
| Day 1B | Darren Mould |
| Day 1B | Nouri Malik |
| Day 1B | Aleksey Sergeev |
| Day 1B | Børge Dypvik |
| Day 1B | Gaetan Milvaque |
| Day 1A | Menno Mulder |
| Day 1A | Juhász Barnabás |
| Day 1A | Fursov Vasily |
| Day 1A | Mikoulik Taras |
| Day 1A | James Creighton |
| Day 1A | Iodanishvili Beka Bekarovich |
| Day 1A | Vlad Zhuba |
| Day 1A | Luca Pagano |
| Day 1A | Ivan Demidov |
| Day 1A | Mauri Dorbek |
| Day 1A | Arnaud Mattern |
| Day 1A | Luca Falaschi |
| Day 1B | Michael Jurgen Meyburg |
| Day 1B | Eric Turner |
| Day 1B | Jason Kudron |
| Day 1B | Lukasz Plichta |
| Day 1B | Priit Türner |
| Day 1B | Lennart Vahemets |
| Day 1B | Mario Puccini |
| Day 1B | Elio Fox |
| Day 1B | Mario Kühl |
| Day 1B | Xun Yu Chen |
| Day 1B | David Sonelin |
| Day 1B | William Carter Phillips |
| Day 1B | Faraz Jaka |
| Day 1B | Dario Minieri |
| Day 1B | Katja Thater |
| Day 1B | Christophe Benzimra |
| Day 1B | Stuart Rutter |
| Day 1B | Joshua Field |
| Day 1B | Nicolas Levi |
| Day 1B | Tristan Clemencon |
| Day 1B | John Carsten |
- The much awaited Finals of EPT season 5 took place in bay Resort in Monte Carlo.
- There were 935 entrants making a prize pool of €9.35 million all vying for the jackpot of €2.3 million.
- It was a five day event with two different starting fields on the first two days.
- Both the days saw a milieu of well known poker champs.
- The final table saw the following standing-
- The first to be eliminated (at the 8th place) was Peter Traply by the chip leader Dag Martin Mikkelsen.
- Daniel Zink paved way out of the table (at the 7th place), he too was dominated by Dag Martin Mikkelsen.
- The next elimination saw Alem Shah (at the 6th place) leaving the table, he was competing against Mikhail Tulchinskiy.
- The 5th elimination was of Eric Qu once again he was dominated by Mikhail Tulchinskiy
- The last four standing were Pieter De Korver , Matthew Woodward, Mikhail Tulchinskiy and Dag Martin Mikkelsen
- Dag Martin Mikkelsen (at the 4th place) couldnt stand up against Tulchinskiy’s after De Krover managed to double his chips
- Mikhail Tulchinskiy was the next to leave has he had the least number of chips.
- The final two standing were then Matthew Woodward and Pieter De Korver.
- In just 45 hands Pieter De Korver made the call. He was the confirmed winner taking home the enviable pot of €2.3 million.
The final table at a glance and the prize money each winner won -
| RANK | PLAYERS | AMOUNT |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Pieter De Korver | €2,300,000 |
| 2nd | Matthew Woodward | €1,300,000 |
| 3rd | Mikhail Tulchinskiy | €800,000 |
| 4th | Dag Martin Mikkelsen | €600,000 |
| 5th | Eric Qu | €470,000 |
| 6th | Alem Shah | €350,000 |
| 7th | Daniel Zink | €250,000 |
| 8th | Peter Traply | €170,000 |
