Poker News

Phil Shaw

The European Poker Tour, created by Poker Million winner John Duthie and sponsored by Pokerstars.com, has been a breakthrough for the European poker circuit, with TV coverage on digital channel Eurosport and the arrival in droves of satellite winners, Swedes and students all seeking glory, as well as the dozens of high profile sponsored European players, like The Hendon Mob, Marcel Luske and Devilfish.

The crowning moment however, didn’t come until late March with the EPT Grand Final, held in glamorous of Monte Carlo, which established a new record European prizepool of E2,110,000, surpassing the previous best set by the WPT in Paris last July.

The key word for the extravaganza was opulence, from the helicopter ride between Nice Airport and Monte Carlo along the southern coast of France, to the four and five star hotels surrounding the casino square where lit up fountains and palm trees complement the elegant buildings, and PokerStars logos were projected onto the ornate buildings.

A no-expenses spared party opened the proceedings and a grand buffet throughout the week ensured everyone got in the spirit, with side tournaments accompanying the main E10,000 event, and sit’n'gos from E100 - E1000 replacing the lack of cash games, due to legal reasons.

The tournament itself was immaculately structured and ran over four days, meaning that like the WSOP Trial event in Vienna, it is likely to be one event that is almost always won by a pro. The first champion, accordingly, was Dutch master Rob Hollink, who is better known throughout the continent and the internet for his prowess at Pot Limit Omaha. He received an enormous glass trophy and cheque for E650,000, having overcome the champion of the EPT Deauville, Seattle based Brandon Schaeffer. Schaeffer, who received E350,000 to go with the E144,000 from Deauville despite having only been playing six months, arrived in Monte Carlo on the back of two freerolls, having won his initial seat in a PokerStars Frequent Player Points satellite and the Monte Carlo one as reward for his victory there. Fearless and relentless throughout the final, he took command of the table early on thanks to a few well timed blows to the aggressive Hollink.

But the Omaha expert’s years of experience finally turned the tide when he flopped trips on a board of TT3 and raised Brandon’s bet. Having raised pre-flop with 34 the Seattle speedster then saw fit to tank it all in with bottom pair, handing Rob a decisive lead which he drove home on the next hand, where he raised with J8 and bet a board of K95J8 the whole way, picking up his two pair on fourth and fifth street and busting Brandon’s K7 with which he check-called all the way to the river where he was all-in.

The Grand Final was filmed with a TV table running throughout the tournament, something not even the World Poker Tour have attempted, and it will be shown in four 90 minute shows, giving a feel for the entire event rather than just the closing stages. This should prove a more realistic showcase for tournament poker than has been seen previously, and with Gus Hansen, Marcel Luske and Julian Gardiner on display you can expect it to make for some fascinating viewing.

[Editor’s Note: You can find complete coverage of the European Poker Tour on the PokerStars EPT Weblog.

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