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Nordic Poker Awards taking place eve of EPT Copenhagen – posted 26.01.2010

EPT Copenhagen will yet again be kicking off proceedings with a lavish awards ceremony on the eve of the main event to recognize and reward the talent of poker players from right across the Nordic region.

The PokerStars Nordic Poker Awards is taking place this year at Park Café in Copenhagen at 8pm on Monday, February 15. All EPT players are invited to the ceremony which has been renamed to reflect the achievements of players from all four Nordic countries including Finland.

Awards this year include Best Live Tournament Player, Best Online Player, Rookie of the Year and Best Performance. Nordic players had a great year in 2009 so the competition will be tough.

Members of the public can vote online for their favourite players from shortlists created by the Awards’ media partners - Ace Magazine (Denmark), Norsk Pokermagasin (Norway), Poker Magazine (Sweden) and Pokerisivut (Finland).

This year’s nominees include players from all four Nordic countries who, although still youngsters, are already poker legends thanks to their phenomenal achievements. Team PokerStars Pro Peter Eastgate – who won two awards last year – is up for another two this year: Best Live Tournament Player and Best Performance. Also up for two are several Finns - Patrik Antonius, WSOP Player of the Year runner-up Ville Wahlbeck and EPT Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllönen as well as Norwegian EPT Grand Final finalist Dag Martin Mikkelsen.

Last year’s winners included Peter Eastgate (Rookie of the Year, Best Performance), Patrick Antonius (Best Live player), Ilari Sahamies (Best Online Player) and Magdalena In De Betou (Best Female).

The awards were launched on the eve of the European Poker Tour Copenhagen event in January 2007. Last year, hundreds of Nordic poker players and fans voted for their favorite player from their country.

PokerStars players will get priority invites to the ceremony; qualifying satellites for EPT Copenhagen are running now on PokerStars.

Jake Cody wins EPT Deauville – posted 26.01.2010

British online pro Jake “neverbluff67” Cody has won €847,000 and the EPT Deauville champion’s title after seeing off competition from a record-breaking field that included 13 EPT champions and two former world champions.

Cody, 21, from Rochdale, was playing his first ever EPT. His previous biggest ever cash in a live event was winning €2,800 for 33rd place in Galway at the new PokerStars UK and Ireland Poker Tour in December.

Cody, who also wins a seat to the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo in April, said: “This is so overwhelming. It 's the sort of stuff I dreamed about with my mates just a few weeks back. I can't believe this is happening.”

Cody won the €53,00 EPT Deauville main event with KK after beating Romanian Teodor Caraba’s AK. Caraba, one of 100 players who won their seat online, won €516,000 for second place and is now the EPT’s most successful Romanian.

EPT Dortmund winner Mike “Timex” McDonald, who had hopes of becoming the first ever EPT double champion, was eliminated in third place. Team PokerStars Pro and PCA champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, also in the running for a second EPT victory, was knocked out in ninth place.

A total of 768 players entered the EPT Deauville main event in France, which ran January 21 – 25 at Casino Barrière and generated a total prize pool of €3,686,400.

Team PokerStars Pro and former world champion Peter Eastgate made a second final table, coming eighth for €70,000. Luca Pagano achieved a record third EPT cash this season – and 14th cash overall. He was eliminated in 72nd place for €10,900. Other Team PokerStars Pros Dario Minieri and Vadim Markushevski from Belarus also both cashed.

Martin Kabrhel from the Czech Republic beat Frenchman Antony Lellouche heads-up to win €250,000 in the €20,000 EPT High Roller event. Kabrhel has now won side events at the last three EPTs in Europe – the €2k in Prague, the €2k in Vilamoura and EPT Deauville. Kabrhel has now earned at least €400,000 at EPTs and Lellouche more than €900,000.

French player Audrey Guyonvarch won the €220 Ladies Event for €5,800 after besting a field of 89 players including four men. Dagmara Aleksandrowicz, who won the EPT London Ladies Event, came tenth.

For full reports from EPT Deauville, please see the PokerStars blog and vblogs on PokerStars.tv. Satellites are running now on PokerStars for the next EPT - the 35,000 DKK buy-in EPT Copenhagen from February 16-21, 2010 at Casino Copenhagen in the Radisson SAS Scandinavia Hotel.

Teodor Caraba still in the lead for EPT Deauville final - posted 24.01.10

PokerStars qualifier Teodor Caraba from Romania goes into the final of EPT Deauville with a massive chip lead after knocking out Team PokerStars Pro Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier.

The 21-year-old from Timişoara, who won his seat in a $530 satellite on PokerStars, has 6.9 million in chips and is one of two Romanians to make the final – the other is 35-year-old timber company manager Claudiu Secara. Of the two, it is Secara who is the more experienced – he has played several EPTs and came 12th at EPT Prague in December. Caraba has only been playing 18 months - mainly cash games - but is confident he can go the whole way.

Also in the final is Mike “Timex” McDonald who was the youngest ever EPT champion when he won in Dortmund in Season 4 for $1.4m. He now has the chance of becoming the first two-time champion in the tour's six-season history, on what will be his third EPT final table. Along with Caraba and fellow finalist Craig “HU4ROLLZ” Bergeron, McDonald is one of 100 players who won their Deauville seats on PokerStars.

Former world champion and Team PokerStars Pro Peter Eastgate has also made the final after nursing a short stack for most of Day 3. Eastgate is still the final table short stack with just 695,000 in chips.

The other four players who are still in the running for the €847,000 first prize are British online pro Jake Cody, Stephane Albertini from Corsica and Parisian optician Michael Fratty. They have bested a field of 768 players in the €5,300 EPT Deauville main event and are taking the lion’s share of the €3,686,400 prize pool.

Also returning to the Salle Des Ambassadeurs tomorrow will be Antony Lellouche who has made the final – and the money – of the €20,000 High Roller tournament.

French player Audrey Guyonvarch was the €5,800 winner of the Ladies Event yesterday. The €220 tournament attracted 89 runners including four men but – much to the delight of the female-dominated field, none of the men cashed. Among those in the money were Violetta Szczerba who came third, PokerStars qualifier Melanie Wiesner who came fourth and EPT London Ladies Event winner Dagmara Aleksandrowicz who came tenth.

For full reports from EPT Deauville, please see the PokerStars blog and vblogs on PokerStars.tv. EPTLive continues tomorrow at noon (Sunday, January 24) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Russian.

PokerStars qualifier leads field for EPT Deauville Day 4 - posted 23.01.10

A total of 24 players will making their way back to the opulent Salle des Ambassadeurs at Casino Barrière tomorrow for Day 4 of the €5,300 EPT Deauville main event.

The current chip leader is PokerStars qualifier Teodor Caraba, 21, from Timişoara in Romania with 3,220,000. He is one of 100 players who won their seats on PokerStars, along with EPT4 Dortmund winner Mike “Timex” McDonald from Canada, currently in third place.

Only two Team PokerStars Pros still have an opportunity to snag the €847,000 first prize but both stand a very good chance - by virtue of their immensie talent as well as their respectable chip stacks. The 2008 world champion Peter Eastgate is in fourth place with 1,682,000 while 2008 PCA champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier is in seventh place with 1,220,000.

PokerStars qualifier Craig “HU4ROLLZ” Bergeron, who held the chip lead for much of Day 3, is in sixth place with 1,447,000. The 20-year-old online pro from Michigan won the €2k event at EPT Dortmund last year.

A total of 768 players from 41 countries entered this year’s €5,300 EPT Deauville main event generating a massive €3,686,400 prize pool.

Several other events were taking place in the Salle des Ambassadeurs today. The €220 Ladies Event kicked off at noon with 89 runners, including - thanks to French anti-discrimination laws - four men. Loud cheers went up every time one of them was eliminated. Players included EPT London Ladies Champion Dagmara Aleksandrowicz, ‘Job 2 Stars’ finalist Barbara Martinez and Poker Mission Caraibes contestant Karine Nogueira.

Also taking place was the €20,000 High Roller Event which attracted 24 entrants including Team PokerStars Pro Vicky Coren, French footballer Vikash Dhorasso, popular French pro Antony Lellouche, EPT Prague champion Jan Skampa, EPT Vilamoura runner-up Pierre Neuville, who won his seat in a live satellite, last year’s winner Juha Helppi, European Champion Martin Kabrehl and EPT5 Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllonen.

Thomas Bichon, one of the top three cash game players in France, was the winner of PokerStars’ “Job 2 Stars” promotion. The 33-year-old Corsican outlasted the other nine finalists to win what is arguably the best job in poker - a €100,000 salary from PokerStars and €200,000 worth of live event buy-ins.

For full reports from EPT Deauville, please see the PokerStars blog and vblogs on PokerStars.tv. EPTLive starts tomorrow at noon (Sunday, January 24) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Russian.

Nicolas Levi storms into lead at EPT Deauville - posted 23.01.10

French pro Nicolas Levi has stormed into the lead at EPT Deauville and has bagged up 648,000 chips at the end of Day 2.

The 27-year-old Parisian is a familiar sight on the European Poker Tour – he has had several EPT cashes including seventh place at EPT Dortmund in Season 3 for €85,700.

Team PokerStars Pro Luca Pagano, second in chips last night, has slipped down the ladder a little bit but is still in good shape with 260,000. He is among 133 players who will be returning to the Salle des Ambassadeurs tomorrow for Day 3. The leading PokerStars qualifier, one of 100 players who won their seats on PokerStars, is Benjamin Juhasz with 447,000.

Other Team PokerStars Pros who still have a shot at the Deauville title and €847,000 first prize include Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier (331,500), the 2008 world champion Peter Eastgate (294,000), Vadim Markushevski, Jude Ainsworth and Italian maverick Dario Minieri.

A total of 768 players from 41 countries entered this year’s €5,300 EPT Deauville main event generating a total prize pool of €3,686,400. A total of 104 players will get paid.

For full reports from EPT Deauville, please see the PokerStars blog and vblogs on PokerStars.tv. EPTLive starts on Sunday (January 24) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Russian.

Pagano looking strong at EPT Deauville - posted 23.01.10

The man who has had more EPT cashes than any other player is having yet another promising run at the EPT champion title he so craves. Team PokerStars Pro Luca Pagano finished Day 1b of the EPT Deauville main event close to the chip lead with 193,100.

The popular Italian, who currently tops the EPT Tournament Leader Board ahead of fellow Team Pro Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, smashed his own records at EPT Prague in December by making a sixth final table and 13th EPT cash.

A total of 768 players from 41 countries entered this year’s €5,300 EPT Deauville main event – even more than last year’s record-breaking 645-strong field. The massive numbers have generated a prize pool to match: €847,000 to first place, and a total prize pool of €3,686,400 being shared among 104 players.

Among the Day 1b survivors are Team PokerStars Pros Peter Eastgate, Dario Minieri, Alex Kravchenko, Jude Ainsworth, ElkY and Vadim Markushevski. They will join Day 1a’s 186 survivors –which include Arnaud Mattern, in the Casino Barrière’s Salle des Ambassadeurs at noon today.

Rising star Benjamin Pollak now seems closest to the €300,000 first prize in the PokerStars “Job 2 Stars” contest. He and nine others are battling against each other to win the lucrative PokerStars deal and, at the start of yesterday, four were very close in points. Pollak now appears to have pulled ahead with a chip stack of around 120,000.

Team PokerStars Pros survive Day 1a of EPT Deauville – posted 21.9.10

More than 180 players made it through Day 1a of the €5,300 EPT Deauville main event yesterday from an original starting field of 339. Among the survivors who’ll be returning to the Salle des Ambassadeurs for Day 2 on Friday are all the Team PokerStars Pros who have played so far: Arnaud Mattern (60,200), Katja Thater (56,400) and Ukrainian Vlad Zguba who bagged up almost exactly what he started with: 30,500.

The current chip leader is PokerStars qualifier Robert Cezarescu from Romania with 216,900. He was one of 100 players who won their seats to the €5,300 No Limit Hold’em event on PokerStars.

Well over 375 players are expected for Day 1b today meaning that EPT Deauville is set to smash last year’s total of 645 entrants by a long way.

Today’s Day 1b players include the PokerStars-sponsored French rapper Bruno "Kool Shen" Lopes, kick box champion Jérôme Le Banner and eight members of Team PokerStars Pro - the former world champions Greg Raymer and Peter Eastgate, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Luca Pagano, Dario Minieri, Jude Ainsworth, Vicky Coren and Vadzim Markushevski from Belarus.

Also playing today is Fouad Merini, who won his seat in the French TV show “En route to the EPT” as well as ten players who won the PokerStars’ “Job 2 Stars” promotion.

The first France Poker Awards took place last night with the PokerStars-sponsored French pro Julien Brecard winning the People’s Choice award. His competition for the award – chosen by public vote – included Team PokerStars Pro ElkY, Ludovic Lacay, Antony Lellouche, Fabrice Soulier and WSOP finalist Antoine Saout; today he’ll be up against them all over again when he takes his seat for the Deauville main event.

For non-stop coverage of the action from EPT Deauville, please see reports on the PokerStars blog and vblogs on PokerStars.tv. EPTLive starts on Sunday (January 24) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Russian.

EPT Deauville set to smash records – posted 01.20.10

At least 350 players have sat down to play Day 1a of EPT Deauville today making this season’s French EPT the biggest poker tournament ever held in this stunning Normandy coast resort.

Not only is the total set to better last year’s 645 entrants but there are actually so many players today that they can’t all be accommodated in the magnificent Salle des Ambassadeurs and additional room has had to be found in the Casino Barrière de Deauville’s elegant Salon Privé.

Among today’s players are Team PokerStars Pros Arnaud Mattern from France, Katja Thater from Germany and Vlad Zguba from Ukraine as well as French pros Marion Nedellec and Adam Lounis, both sponsored by PokerStars.

Other famous faces seen around the Salle des Ambassadeurs today include EPT4 Dortmund winner Mike McDonald, Hungarian pro Richard Toth, who came 14th at the PCA last week and EPT Vilamoura runner-up Pierre Neuville. They are among 100 players who won their seats to the €5,300 No Limit Hold’em event on PokerStars. Antoine Saout, who came third at the World Series of Poker, is also competing today.

The first France Poker Awards takes place tonight with EPT founder and Team PokerStars Pro John Duthie on the jury. Among the players up for a gong are Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier (International Player of the Year), Christophe Benzimra, the winner of EPT Warsaw (New Player of the Year), Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso (French Woman Player of the Year) and ElkY for “Performance of the Year”.

For non-stop coverage of the action from EPT Deauville, do check out the PokerStars blog - and watch the EPT video blogs on PokerStars.tv. EPTLive starts on Sunday (January 24) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Russian.

Eyes on France as EPT heads to Deauville – posted 01.15.10

After ten days in the Bahamas for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, the European Poker Tour heads back to European waters next week for the start of EPT Deauville on the French Normandy coast.

PokerStars players still have a chance to win a seat to the €5,300 main event in a €530 qualifier taking place on Sunday, January 17. A hundred players have already won prize packages on PokerStars which include their buy-in, spending money and accommodation in the beautiful Normandy Hotel.

Among the top players attending the event are Team PokerStars Pros Peter Eastgate, Arnaud Mattern, Vicky Coren, Greg Raymer, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Dario Minieri, Katja Thater, Luca Pagano, and Vadim Markushevsky.

In addition to the main event, EPT Deauville is featuring numerous other events including numerous No Limit tournaments with buy-ins ranging from €500 to €2,000 as well as the €20,300 High Roller event and a €220 Ladies Only event on Saturday January 23.

Team PokerStars Pro Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier is getting involved with the Ladies event by sponsoring up to 15 players. Any female players who would like ElkY to stake them in the event should come along to the O2 Lounge at the Casino Barriere at 9pm the night before – January 22. Anyone who correctly answers five questions about ElkY has a chance of being backed in the event wearing a special “ElkY Lady” T-shirt.

Also taking place at 9pm on January 20 – Day 1a of the main event – is the French Poker Awards. Organised by the French Poker Players Federation, the ceremony sets out to reward successful French poker players and organizations. All EPT players are invited to attend.

EPT founder and Team PokerStars Pro John Duthie is on the jury and among the players up for an award are Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier (International Player of the Year), Christophe Benzimra, the winner of EPT Warsaw (New Player of the Year), Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso (French Woman Player of the Year) and ElkY for “Performance of the Year”.

The following night, January 21, ElkY will again be in the limelight when he signs copies of his book “Kill ElkY” in the Barriere Casino’s Galerie D’Honneur at 9pm. The book is the French translation of Lee Nelson’s highly successful “Kill Everyone”.

Kelly Rowland to star at PokerStars PCA party – posted 12.29.00

PokerStars players will be treated to a unique performance from R&B star Kelly Rowland at the PCA party on January 9. Rowland is one of the founding members of the hit R&B group Destiny’s Child and is now forging a massively successful solo career. Her appearance at the PCA party follows the stunning performance by American rap star Nelly at PokerStars’ WSOP party in Las Vegas last summer. Kelly Rowland

The PCA party, exclusive to PokerStars players, is being held at beautiful Paradise Harbour from 9pm to 12am on January 9. All PokerStars players are invited, along with one adult guest. Accredited media are also welcome. The party is not the only celebration taking place during the PCA; there is also a Welcome Party Reception taking place on the eve of the main event on Monday, January 4th from 7pm to 9pm on the Atlantis Resort Royal Deck. Free hors d’oeuvres and drink will be provided as well as local entertainment.

More than 900 PokerStars players are taking part in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure which runs January 4-14 at Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. More than 50 events are scheduled including the $10,000 main event, $25,000 high roller tournament and $5,000 amFar celebrity charity tournament.

A shuttle bus will run party guests to the PCA party from the Atlantis Resort’s Coral and Royal Towers between 8.30pm and midnight on January 9. All guests will need a wristband to get in – please pick up your band from the PokerStars welcome desk in the conference centre.

PokerStars.com announces €1 million guaranteed first prize for EPT Berlin – posted 12.22.09

A new stop in Berlin isn’t the only thing ushering the European Poker Tour (EPT) into 2010 – the first prize winner of EPT Berlin will walk away with a guaranteed €1 million.

PokerStars.com, the sponsor of the EPT, guarantees the winner of EPT Berlin one million euros. This enormous first prize is certain to draw the attention of the poker world to PokerStars’ EPT Berlin – the newest addition to the set of season six stops. Berlin

Berlin will be the venue for the biggest professional poker tournament ever held in Germany when the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) visits the city from March 2 to March 7, 2010.

Up to 1,000 players are expected to play in the Main Event. Among those set to play are tennis legend and Team PokerStars SportStar Boris Becker, all of Team PokerStars Germany – including the Season 5 Germany winner Sandra Naujoks, and Jan Heitmann from Munich who is Boris Becker’s poker coach.

The start of the New Year sees EPT visit the Bahamas for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure held from Jan 4 – 14, 2010 - players can qualify online at www.pokerstars.com until Dec 27, 2009. From the Bahamas the EPT will then head onto Deauville from Jan 20 – 25, 2010 and Copenhagen from Feb 16-21, 2010 before touching down in Berlin.

Team PokerStars Pros eye up the PCA side events - posted 12.18.09

Team PokerStars Pros are discovering a lot to wet their appetites on the PCA schedule. From heads-up to Badugi, High Roller to 8-game, Triple Stud to MTT online events, there is something to suit every taste this January.

Some have their eyes set on events they’ve already won while others are looking forward to the chance to compete live – often for the first time - in poker variants which mirror their online specialties.

Canadian poker legend Daniel Negreanu is relishing the idea of the $5k 8-game Championship which will give him a chance to demonstrate the breadth of his skills. He said: “PokerStars is the home of the 8-game mix, the only poker site to offer it online, and I pride myself on being a well-rounded player. Daniel is not the only player who’ll be competing on January 8 - both Luca Pagano and Greg Raymer will be taking part as well. As Luca admitted: “the skill factor is very high in 8-game and, for pro players, there's always a lot of excitement around these games.”

German Team PokerStars Pro Katja Thater is looking forward to the Badugi/ 2-7 Mix event. She frequently plays the games online but has never played them live before. She won’t be alone; fellow team member and former world champion Greg Raymer also has the January 6 tournament in his sights. Greg loves both games and, with neither game that common yet, looks forward to finding inexperienced opponents.

Greg also hopes to compete in the $1k triple stud tournament. He said: “Looking back over my entire tournament poker career, I’ve probably done best in stud tournaments. I always enjoy razz and Stud 8 is definitely my favorite form of poker overall.”

Swedish Pro William Thorson is planning an assault on all the big buy-in Omaha tournaments including $5k No Limit, $5k PLO and $2k PLO heads-up and Hevad Khan will be playing the PCA $2k NLHE side event – not least because he won it last year.

But for many of the team, it’s the heads-up which is creating the most excitement. PokerStars has never hosted live heads-up tournaments before but PCA players will have not just a variety of buy-ins to choose from ($5k, $2k and $1k) but both NLHE and PLO as well.

With her great heads-up track record (runner-up at the 2009 NBC Heads-Up tournament; winner of a Sunday $215 event on PokerStars), Vanessa Rousso is expecting to do well. She could find herself up against any number of fellow team members however. Heads-Up mavericks Johnny Lodden and Dario Minieri and EPT3 London winner Vicky Coren are all planning to get involved. Vicky mainly plays Heads-up online but also reckons the format gives her the best chance of making it to the beach. She said: “Intense one-on-one poker action for a few hours, then an afternoon in the sea; that's what I call a holiday.”

The $2k Battleship Multi Tabling Championship is tempting EPT3 Grand Final winner Gavin Griffin. He said: “This is a tournament you won't find anywhere else and it should be exciting both to watch and play in.”

World champion Joe Cada and EPT4 San Remo winner Jason Mercier have both already chosen their partners for the first ever live PokerStars Tag Team event. Joe is teaming up with his friend Tony Gargao for the $2k event - in which one team member plays Pot Limit Hold’em and the other PLO – while Jason is joining forces with online pro Christian “charder” Harder. Jason said: “This will be the first time anyone has ran a tournament like this and we are both very excited about it.”

The $25,000 High Roller is also proving a big draw for the team. ElkY has already won it and will be back to try again. Others would like to win it and, as Greg Raymer puts it: “Against a field as elite as this, it really doesn't matter what type of poker you're playing. It’s going to be a great event.”

For more info on the PCA, please visit www.caribbeanpokeradventure.com. Satellites are running right up until December 27th.

Jan Skampa wins EPT Prague in his home city – posted 12.06.09

Czech student Jan Skampa has won EPT Prague for a first prize of €682,000.

Skampa, who came fourth only two weeks ago at EPT Vilamoura, beat Israeli businessman Eyal Avitan after a three-hour heads-up battle. He had already broken records by making back-to-back EPT finals after finishing fourth in Vilamoura two weeks ago. Jan Skampa

Skampa, 23, who is studying economics at St Charles University in Prague and is the first Czech champion in EPT history, was competing in the biggest poker tournament ever held in his country.

A total of 584 players took part in the €5,250 Main Event creating a prize pool of €2,842,100. Skampa, who also wins a seat into the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo, said: “It feels great to win. It’s my fourth EPT and I won it in my home town – that must be one of the greatest accomplishments you can have in poker. It was tough when we were three-handed but once Stefan Mattsson was out, I felt confident I could win.”

Team PokerStars Pro Luca Pagano smashed records by making a sixth EPT final table and 13th EPT cash but was knocked out in sixth place for €100,000.

Team PokerStars Pro Arnaud Mattern, the first EPT Prague champion, also cashed as did fellow Pros Marcin Horecki, Pieter de Korver and Florian Langmann.

PokerStars qualifier Larry Ryan, 46, was competing in his first ever live event outside Ireland and came fifth for €135,000. Ryan won his seat to Prague in a $22 rebuy satellite, one of nearly 70 PokerStars qualifiers.

In side events, the Dutch Team PokerStars Pro Thierry van den Berg came fifth in the €1k NLHE event for €17,300 while fellow team member, Ukrainian Vlad Zhuba won €5k for 12th place in the €2k NLHE event. PokerStars qualifier Melanie Weisner won the €330 EPT Prague Ladies Event for €3,100.

For blog reports from Prague, please see the PokerStars blog; for vblogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

Team PokerStars Pro Pagano makes yet another final – posted 12.05.09

Team PokerStars Pro Luca Pagano has broken yet another of his own records at EPT Prague by making his sixth EPT final table and 13th EPT cash. It’s only six weeks since Pagano made the final in Warsaw and came fourth for €87k.

Also breaking records is Jan Skampa, playing in his home city and the current chip leader. Skampa has made back-to-back EPT final tables after coming fourth two weeks ago in Vilamoura. The 23-year-old economics student, who won €117,128 in Portugal, is already by far the most successful Czech player on the EPT circuit and is lying third in the Czech all-time money list.

Currently in second place is the talented Swedish pro Stefan Mattsson. Although Mattsson, 30, has played numerous EPTs and has made over $800k in live events like the WSOP and WPT, this is his first EPT final.

PokerStars qualifier Larry Ryan, 46, who is playing his first live event outside of his native Ireland is also still in the running for the Prague title and €682,000 first prize. Ryan won his seat in a $22 rebuy satellite and has also qualified for the PCA in January and next weekend’s debut PokerStars.com UK and Ireland Poker Tour tournament in Galway. He is one of nearly 70 players who won their seats to Prague on PokerStars.

PokerStars players have also been enjoying success in the side events. Team PokerStars Pro Thierry van den Berg from Holland came fifth in the €1,100 NLHE event for €17,300, while PokerStars qualifier Melanie Weisner has won the €330 EPT Prague Ladies Event for €3,100. A total of 18 women entered.

A total of 584 players competed in the €5,250 main event at the Hilton Hotel creating a €2,842,100 prize pool.

For blog reports from Prague, please see the PokerStars blog; for vblogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

Avitan Leads EPT Prague At Start Of Day 4 – posted 12.04.09

Israeli businessman Eyal Avitan is the chip leader as EPT Prague goes into Day 4. The 34-year-old realtor has nearly two million in chips, some 700,000 ahead of his nearest rival, the Finnish pro Juha Lauttamus.

Avitan has only played a few major events but clearly loves his poker. Even while competing in the €5,250 main event, he bothered taking part in an EPT Prague side events a few nights ago – a $300 turbo - and finished second for $13,500.

Also returning for Day 4 tomorrow is Luca Pagano, the last remaining Team PokerStars Pro. Pagano has now cashed for the 13th time at an EPT – far more than any other player. He came fourth at EPT Warsaw in October and has made five final tables since the EPT started in 2004.

In third place is Czech student Jan Skampa, who finished fourth at EPT Vilamoura just two weeks ago. EPT5 Grand Final champion Pieter de Korver’s hopes of making it an EPT double ended late today when he was knocked out in 30th place. Fellow team member Marcin Horecki was eliminated one spot later in 29th; both players made €12,800.

A total of 24 players still remain in the €5,250 main event and all are guaranteed at least €15,500 although it’s the €682,000 first place prize that everyone is eyeing up. A total of 584 players took part in the third EPT Prague event, creating a massive €2,842,100 prize pool.

Other big names still in include the popular French pro Antony Lellouche and Swedish pro Stefan Mattsson. The last remaining PokerStars qualifier is Irish player Laurence Ryan. He is one of nearly 70 players who won their seats to Prague in online satellites.

For blog reports from Prague, please see the PokerStars blog; for vblogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

De Korver soars at EPT Prague – posted 12.03.09

EPT5 Grand Final champion and Team PokerStars Pro Pieter de Korver has managed to increase his chips more than 15-fold during Day 2 of EPT Prague and is now lying in third place in the €5,250 Main Event.

The 27-year-old from Leeuwarden in Holland will be returning to the Hilton’s Congress Hall with 465,800 tomorrow – compared to the 30,800 he started with at noon today.

Some 95 players are still in the running for the €682,000 first place prize in Prague, including Team PokerStars Pro Luca Pagano who has 280,400. A total of 584 players started the event creating a prize pool of €2,842,100.

Also through to Day 3 are Team PokerStars Pros Arnaud Mattern, Marcin Horecki, Jude Ainsworth, Sandra Naujoks and Florian Langmann. The current chip leader is Frenchman Yann Brosolo with 574,000 while PokerStars player Rui Cao is still in second place.

Other big names who have survived Day 2 include the popular French pro Antony Lellouche, Pierre Neuville, runner-up at the recent EPT Vilamoura event in Portugal, and Jan Skampa, the Czech student who came fourth in Vilamoura. Leo Margets – the Spanish player who was the last remaining female in this year’s WSOP – went out in the last hand of the day.

The leading PokerStars qualifier is American Frank Calo. He is one of nearly 70 players who won their seats to Prague in online satellites.

For blog reports from Prague, please see the PokerStars blog; for vblogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

Team PokerStars Pros thrive in Prague – posted 12.02.09

Team PokerStars Pros Jude Ainsworth and Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier are both among the chip leaders as EPT Prague goes into Day 2.

Ainsworth, the Irish pro who joined the team before EPT Barcelona, has 160,300 while French PCA and WPT champion ElkY has 159,800. They are among the 211 players who made it through Day 1b, making a total of 328 players who will return tomorrow. Elky

A total of 584 players from 40 countries competed in the €5,250 EPT Prague Main Event overall, all vying for a first place prize of €682,000. The total prize pool is a massive €2,842,100.

Marc Gork from Germany, who came third at EPT Dortmund last season, remains the chip leader, with 169,200. PokerStars player Rui Cao from France is in second place with just 100 chips fewer than Gork.

Other Team PokerStars Pros who made it through Day 1b include Luca Pagano on 135,100, as well as Rino Mathis from Switzerland, Dutch pros Noah Boeken and Thierry van den Berg, Alex Kravchenko from Russia and Ukranian pro Vlad Zhuba.

Numerous big names also survived Day 1b including Friend of PokerStars Darus Suharto, 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 winner – Italian Salvatore Bonavena – was eliminated today.

For blog reports, please see the PokerStars blog; for video blogs, please see PokerStars.tv .

Team PokerStars Pros make it through EPT Prague Day 1a - posted 12.01.09

A bunch of Team PokerStars Pros are in good shape at the end of Day 1a of EPT Prague in the Czech Republic. Florian Langmann

The leading Team PokerStars Pro is Florian Langmann (pictured) 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.

The current chip leader, with 169,200, is German Marc Gork who came third at EPT Dortmund last season. PokerStars player Rui Cao from France is in second place with just 100 chips fewer than Gork.

Also through are Team PokerStars Pros Katja Thater, Marcel Luske, Pieter De Korver and Marcin Horecki. However Shaun Deeb, the online poker phenom and PokerStars passport winner, went out in the first level of the day. This marked his last ever appearance at a European poker tournament - Deeb announced his retirement while at EPT Vilamoura two weeks ago.

A total of 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. For blog reports, please see the PokerStars blog; for video blogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

EPT Prague kicks off – posted 12.01.09

The third EPT Prague event kicked off today with more than 200 players taking their seats for Day 1a. Arnaud Mattern

Among the Team PokerStars Pros competing in the €5,250 main event today are EPT5 Grand Final winner Pieter De Korver, new British team member JP Kelly, last season’s EPT Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks and Arnaud Mattern (pictured), who won the first event in Prague in 2007.

Other stars include PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb, EPT4 Prague runner-up Gino Alacqua and UK pros John Kabbaj and Julian Thew.

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 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. For blog reports, please see the PokerStars blog; for video blogs, please see PokerStars.tv.

Top names attending last EPT before Christmas! - posted 11.25.09

A roster of top names will be competing in the Czech Republic next week for the last EPT of 2009. Among those taking seats for the €5,250 EPT Prague main event, which runs December 1-6 at the Hilton Prague, are Team PokerStars Pros Arnaud Mattern, who won the event in Season 4, Italians Luca Pagano and Dario Minieri, PCA champion Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, EPT5 Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks and EPT5 Barcelona winner Sebastian Ruthenberg. Prague

New Team PokerStars Pro member Rino Mathis, who won the €1k NLHE side event in Vilamoura last week, is also competing alongside fellow Team PokerStars Pro Germany members Katja Thater, Benjamin Kang and Florian Langmann. Johnny Lodden, Marcel Luske, William Thorson, Vlad Zguba and Marcin Horecki are also taking part.

Other stars set to play include Cristiano Blanco, Soren Kongsgaard Nielsen, PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb, Ludovic Lacay, Nicolas Levi and Dragan Galic as well as more than 60 PokerStars qualifiers. Marius Dunca and Baloi Dan Gabriel both won their seats in a live satellite at the PokerStars Romanian Poker Championships.

Last season EPT Prague attracted a total of 570 players from 40 countries. The event was won by Italian estate agent Salvatore Bonavena for €774,000.

This year, 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 and PokerStars will be hosting an open bar there from 9pm - 11pm on November 30th for all EPT players and accredited media.

You can still buy in to the EPT Prague main event via your PokerStars account - from now until three hours before the start of the event.

Portuguese Businessman Wins EPT Vilamoura - posted 11.22.09

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, who runs a travel agency, beat some of the best players in the world to win the €5,300 main event, the first EPT ever held in Portugal. As well as the champion’s title, Matias wins a seat into the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo next April. Antonio Matias

Matias was the first player to win on home soil since Team PokerStars Pro Sandra Naujoks in Dortmund last season. He said: “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 PokerStars qualifier Pierre Neuville. The retired businessman 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.

Third place finisher was the former chess whizz Jeff Sarwer from Canada. 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 PokerStars player 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.

More than 20 Team PokerStars Pros took part and among those who cashed were Ruben Visser from Holland, who came 13th, and Irish pro Jude Ainsworth who came 14th. Also in the money were German Team PokerStars Pros Jan Heitmann and Johannes Strassman.

PokerStars players also enjoyed success in the numerous side events that took place during EPT Vilamoura. New Team PokerStars Pro Rino Mathis from Switzerland won the €1k Pot Limit Omaha side event for a first prize of €15,932 while Polish Team PokerStars Pro Marcin Horecki beat a 97-strong field to take down the €330 NLHE Turbo for a first prize of €10,303.

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.”

For blog reports, please see the PokerStars blog and video blogs on PokerStars.tv.

	Name	Country	PokerStars status	€
1	Antonio Matias	Portugal		€404,793
2	Pierre Neuville	Belgium	PokerStars qualifier	€257,681
3	Jeff Sarwer	Canada		€156,170
4	Jan Skampa	Czech Republic		€117,128
5	João Silva	Portugal		€78,085
6	Michel Abecassis	France		€62,468
7	Ryan Franklin	USA	PokerStars player	€46,851
8	Andrei Vlasenko	Russia		€31,234

The next event of EPT Season 6 is EPT Prague in the Czech Republic from December 1-6, 2009. Satellites are running now on PokerStars for EPT Prague, EPT Deauville and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in January.

Portuguese Businessman Leads Field for Vilamoura Final – posted 11.21.09

Portuguese businessman Antonio Matias, 54, is the chip leader as EPT Vilamoura goes into its 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.

Still in second place is Canadian chess whizz 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 meticulously to finish up with 1,983,000.

Also in tomorrow’s final is PokerStars player Ryan Franklin, 18, from Lake Tahoe as well as French veteran Michel Abecassis. Michel has played numerous EPTs but this is his first final. Belgian PokerStars qualifier 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. Team PokerStars Pro Ruben Visser from Holland started the day in fourth place but saw his chip stack seep steadily away. He eventually bust in 14th place for €13,274. The next player out was Irishman Jude Ainsworth, who joined Team PokerStars Pro just three months ago. Jude also picked up €13,274 for his 13th place finish.

Other stars who fell by the wayside included Portuguese pros Ricardo Sousa and Joao Barbosa, as well as PokerStars qualifiers 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. A total of 322 players from 30 countries entered the £5,300 EPT Vilamoura main event creating a total prize pool of €1,561,700. A total of 69 players won their seats online with PokerStars.

For full reports, please see the PokerStars blog and Vilamoura vblogs on PokerStars.tv

Stars Jostle for Lead at EPT Vilamoura – posted 11.20.09

Day 3 of EPT Vilamoura drew to an early close today – with the same heavyweights as yesterday still jostling for the lead.

With just 24 players left, last night’s chip leader – the Canadian chess whizz Jeff Sarwer - has swapped places with French pro Antony Lellouche. Young Dutch Team PokerStars Pro Ruben Visser, who was lying third last night, has now slipped down to fourth place. Vilamoura

The biggest push of the day came from Portuguese star Ricardo Sousa. Sousa, 31, who cashed three times last season including second place in Warsaw, is playing his first event of the season but has barely figured on the radar so far. However he won a massive 600,000 pot against PokerStars qualifier Matt Johns and now lies in third place.

Also still in the running is Irish pro Jude Ainsworth, making his debut appearance as a member of Team PokerStars Pro. 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 Team PokerStars Pros Jan Heitmann and Johannes Strassman, PokerStars player Johan van Til, Danish pro Martin Wendt and Hendon mobster Ross Boatman. A total of 322 players from 30 countries entered the £5,300 EPT Vilamoura main event creating a total prize pool of €1,561,700.

A total of 69 players won their seats online with PokerStars.

For full reports, please see the PokerStars blog and Vilamoura vblogs on PokerStars.tv

Stars Lead the Field in Portugal – posted 11.19.09

Some of the biggest names in poker are among the chip leaders as the €5,300 EPT Vilamoura Main Event goes into Day 3.

The current chip leader is former chess prodigy Jeff Sarwer with 549,800. 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 PokerStars Passport winner Shaun Deeb. Vilamoura

A host of big names will be giving Sarwer a rough ride tomorrow though as they bid to scoop the €404,793 first prize. Currently in second place is the popular French pro and EPT4 San Remo runner-up Antony Lellouche while Dutch Team PokerStars Pro Ruben Visser is in third place. Visser rocketed up to 389,500 when he doubled up against Andy Black on the last hand of the day. Danish pro Martin Wendt is in fifth place, Belgian PokerStars qualifier Pierre Neuville is lying seventh and Dutch online star Johan Van Til is in ninth place.

A total of 69 players are through to Day 3, out of the 322 players from 30 countries who entered the £5,300 Main Event. The total prize pool is €1,561,700 which will be paid out to 48 players. Among the other players going through to Day 3 are ten PokerStars qualifiers as well as Team PokerStars Pros Jan Heitmann, Alexander Kravchenko, Johannes Strassmann, new Irish Team Pro Jude Ainsworth and local hero Nuno Coelho.

The tournament, which 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 online with PokerStars.

For full reports, please see the PokerStars blog and Vilamoura vblogs on PokerStars.tv

Sarwer keeps up the pressure in Portugal – posted 11.18.09

Former chess prodigy Jeff Sarwer, a dominant force at the last EPT in Warsaw is again proving his mettle at EPT Vilamoura in Portugal.

At the end of Day 1b of the €5,300 Main Event, the 31-year-old Canadian has emerged as the day’s chip leader with 143,400. This still only leaves him in fifth place overall however, with Day 1a competitor Ruben Visser, the Dutch Team PokerStars Pro, still in third place and Austrian Ljubomir Josipovic still the chip leader. Vilamoura

A total of 322 players from 30 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.

The Day 1b survivors include JP Kelly from the UK, who is making his debut appearance as a member of Team PokerStars Pro and has 93,700, as well as Portuguese Team PokerStars Pro Henrique Pinho who has 82,000.

Other Team PokerStars Pros still in contention are 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.

Numerous big names are also still in the running and will be returning to the Salao Miralago at Casino Vilamoura tomorrow. They include Andy Black, Praz Bansi, EPT Warsaw winner Christophe Benzimra, EPT4 Baden winner Julian Thew and Hendon Mobsters Ross and Barny Boatman.

The tournament, which 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 online with PokerStars.

For full reports, please see the PokerStars blog and Vilamoura vblogs on PokerStars.tv

Ruben Visser Runs Good At EPT Vilamoura - posted 11.17.09

Dutch Team PokerStars Pro Ruben Visser is in third place at the end of Day 1a of EPT Vilamoura, the first EPT to be held in Portugal. The 20-year-old WCOOP bracelet winner from Amsterdam has 172,400 in chips.

The current chip leader is Austrian Ljubomir Josipovic with 192,900 while Lithuanian PokerStars qualifier Dominykas Karmazinas is in second place with 183,000. A total of 136 players took their seats today 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 numerous good online results; as well as his WCOOP triumph, he has 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.

Today’s 76 survivors also include Team PokerStars Pros Jason Mercier, Joep Van Den Bijgaart, Katja Thater and Chad Brown as well as PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb.

Among tomorrow’s Day 1b players are Team PokerStars Pros 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 as the newest members of Team PokerStars Pro.

Among the 30 PokerStars 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.

For full reports, please see the PokerStars blog and Vilamoura vblogs on PokerStars.tv

Stars flock to attend first EPT in Vilamoura – posted 11.17.09

Some of the best players in the world have pitched up in the beautiful Algarve resort of Vilamoura this week to take part in the very first EPT in Portugal.

Among those competing at the €5,300 event, which runs from November 17-22 at the glamorous Casino Vilamoura, are more than 20 members of Team PokerStars Pro. They include 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 Team PokerStars Pros 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 playing on PokerStars.com. 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 PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb.

Full EPT Season Six schedule announced – posted 11.04.09

The second half of the PokerStars.com EPT Season Six schedule was announced today including dates for the spectacular EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo as well as the addition of a brand new event – EPT Snowfest in the Austrian Alps.

EPT Snowfest will take place in Saalbach-Hinterglemm from March 21 -26, 2010 and is bound to prove a huge hit with players. The resort is one of Austria’s finest ski areas giving players the chance to enjoy winter sports action when they’re not competing at the poker tables. PokerStars qualifiers will be staying at the luxury Alpine Palace hotel during the six-day €3,750 event and will also benefit from hotel/airport transfer plus six days’ ski package (lift pass, skis, boots and poles).

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 exciting 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. The EPT’s chief executive John Duthie said: “Players really relish the chance to play more side events with a variety of games and buy-ins. We had huge names entering – and winning – these events in London which created massive interest throughout the week.”

Online satellites for the new EPT event in Vilamoura and for the PCA are running now on PokerStars with buy-ins from as little as $2.22. Players who qualify on PokerStars don’t just win their seat; they also win luxury hotel accommodation (or cash equivalent) and spending money as part of their prize package.

See individual event pages or http://www.europeanpokertour.com/tournaments/ for more details.

Top International Poker Pros head to Portugal for EPT Vilamoura – posted 10.29.09

A wealth of top international poker pros are heading to the Algarve coast in Portugal for EPT Vilamoura this November.

Among those competing at the €5,300 event are Team PokerStars PROs Peter Eastgate, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Arnaud Mattern, Luca Pagano, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Jan Heitmann, Rino Mathis and George Danzer as well as 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 continue on PokerStars.com until at least November 8, giving players the chance to win a prize package worth $10,120 including tournament buy-in, a week’s accommodation at the stunning Tivoli Marina Hotel and $1,000 spending money.

Superb poker action is promised 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.

Away from the poker tables, Vilamoura offers a wide choice of leisure activities. For the sporting-minded, 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 nearby include 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.

French businessman Christophe Benzimra wins EPT Warsaw – posted 10.25.09

French businessman Christophe Benzimra has won EPT Warsaw and a first prize of 1,493,170 PLN (approx. €358,644).

The 47-year-old from Nice, who runs a Plexiglas factory in Bucharest, Romania, beat Italian pro Alfio “aLFiosNob” Battisti to win the title. He only took up poker three years ago but has taken part at almost every EPT in the last two seasons. He said: “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.” As part of his prize, Benzimra also wins a seat into the Season 6 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo.

The 25,000 PLN EPT Warsaw Main Event attracted 203 players to Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, generating a total prize pool of more than 4.7 million PLN (approx. €1,145,826).

Runner-up Battisti, a SuperNova Elite on PokerStars, takes 834,840 PLN (approx. €200,520) back home to Latina, near Rome in Italy.

Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano was knocked out in fourth place for 357,790 PLN (approx. €85,938). It was a bitter-sweet experience for the 31-year-old Italian who broke all his own records in Warsaw - reaching a fifth EPT final table and recording his 12th cash finish. Pagano now overtakes fellow Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier to top the EPT all-time Tournament Leader Board, but his best result in money terms remains his sixth place finish at the Season 4 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo, worth €337,000.

Canadian PokerStars qualifier Clayton Mozdzen, 26, one of 33 players to win their Warsaw seats on PokerStars, came sixth, earning 233,750 PLN (approx. €56,144). Among the 24 players to cash were PokerStars Passport winner Shaun Deeb and Polish PokerStars player Wojciech Polak. Team PokerStars PRO Dario Minieri won the EPT Warsaw high roller event earning €77,206 (approx. 322,375 PLN).

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.

Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano makes record fifth EPT final – posted 10.24.09

Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano has broken all his own records at EPT Warsaw by making his fifth EPT final table and 12th EPT cash. The 31-year-old from Treviso, Italy, started Day 4 as one of the shortest stacks but has staged a great recovery to reach the final in second place.

The current chip leader is Ukranian pro Oleksandr Vaserfirer, a friend of Team PokerStars PRO Alex Kravchenko. Canadian PokerStars qualifier Clayton Mozdzen, one of 33 players who won their seats online, is in third place with 978,000 while Italian PokerStars SuperNova Elite player Alfio Battisti is in fifth place. luca

The other four finalists are Ruslan Prydryk from Ukraine, French EPT stalwart Christophe Benzimra and Russians Anatoly Gurtovoy and Alexander Klimashin.

All are vying for a 1,493,170 PLN first prize, around €359,000. A total of 203 players competed in the 25,000 PLN event at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel generating a total prize pool of 4.7 million Zloty (around €1,145,830).

In the high roller event, Italian Team PokerStars PRO Dario Minieri is chip leader, heads-up against David Steicke from Australia.

For more details, please see the PokerStars blog tournament reports http://www.pokerstarsblog.com and videoblogs on PokerStars.tv http://www.pokerstars.tv/channels/46FY/warsaw-english.html

Former chess prodigy Jeff Sarwer leads at EPT Warsaw – posted 10.23.09

Former chess prodigy Jeff Sarwer is dominating the action at EPT Warsaw and has nearly a million in chips as the 25,000 PLN event goes into Day 4.

Sarwer is one of 24 players who remain in the tournament and are now in the money, with a guaranteed a minimum payout of 28,620 PLN (around €6,874). Sarwer

Sarwer is one of several players who have made the transition from chess to poker, much like 2008 World Series finalist and Team PokerStars PRO 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. He also plans to attend next week's PokerStars Baltic Festival in Tallinn, Estonia.

In second place is PokerStars qualifier 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.

PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb has had a tough day sitting two seats along from Jeff Sarwer but is still in the tournament with 192,500. French players Antony Lellouche and Michel Abecassis are also both still in the running for the 1,493,170 PLN first prize.

A total of 203 players from 33 countries competed in the Main Event creating a total prize pool of some 4.7 million Zloty (around €1,145,830).

The tournament, which ends October 25, has attracted some of the best players in the world to Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

The high roller event also kicked off today featuring Team PokerStars PROs Dario Minier from Italy and Florian Langmann from Germany. Finnish high stakes player Sami Kelopuro from Finland is also competing.

PokerStars players jostle for lead at EPT Warsaw – posted 10.22.09

A group of PokerStars players are jostling for the lead at EPT Warsaw as the 25,000 PLN event goes into Day 3 with just 55 players remaining. carter

American PokerStars qualifier Carter Phillips, who won EPT Barcelona last month, spent most of Day 2 way ahead of his rivals only to lose the lead to fellow qualifier Clayton Mozdzen from Canada. Mozdzen now has 332,300 and Phillips has 299,800. The pair are among 33 players who won their seats online with PokerStars.

Others in the running for the 1,493,170 PLN first prize are PokerStars Passport holder and WCOOP bracelet winner Shaun Deeb and PokerStars qualifier Anton Genadiew. Italian Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano , world champion Peter Eastgate and Dutch PRO Thierry Van Den Berg also move to Day 3.

A total of 203 players from 33 countries competed in the Main Event creating a 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. You can follow all the action on the PokerStars blog and watch videoblogs on PokerStars.tv.

Carter Phillips keeps the lead at EPT Warsaw - posted 10.21.09

PokerStars qualifier Carter Phillips is still chip leader at EPT Warsaw as the 25,000 PLN event goes into Day 2. carter

From the total field of 203 players who entered EPT Warsaw, 148 players now move forward to Day 2, with Carter’s 194,850 stack ahead of Frenchman Antony Lellouche who is in 2nd place with 131,475.

Phillips, 21, from North Carolina, USA, is on something of an EPT roll after winning EPT Barcelona for €850,000 last month. Also still up among the leaders is Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano from Italy who goes into Day 2 with 101,575.

A total of 203 players from 33 countries competed in the 25,000 PLN Warsaw main event creating a total prize pool of some 4.7 million Zloty (around €1,145,830).

Still in the running for the 1,493,170 PLN first prize are Team PokerStars PROs Peter Eastgate, Arnaud Mattern, Marcin Horecki, Alex Kravchenko, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Dario Minieri and Thierry Van Den Berg as well as PokerStars-sponsored EPT presenter Michelle Orpe.

The tournament, which runs October 20-25, has attracted some of the best players in the world to Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency including 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen as well as 33 players who won their seats online with PokerStars.

Follow all the action from EPT Warsaw on the PokerStars blog and watch videoblogs on PokerStars.tv

Carter Phillips is EPT Warsaw chip leader - posted 10.20.09

The online world has known about Carter Phillips for quite some time. The “live” world only found out about him last month when he snatched an amazing €850,000 victory at EPT Barcelona. Now, at the end of Day 1a of EPT Warsaw, the 21-year-old American, who won his seat on PokerStars, is once again in the lead. His 194,850 stack is nearly double his nearest rival, PokerStars qualifier Clayton Mozdzen. carter

Phillips, from North Carolina, notched up numerous online successes before EPT Barcelona, including winning the PokerStars €500k guaranteed and the PokerStars Sunday Second Chance tournament. He has also won the PokerStars €100 rebuy event three times.

Also thriving in Warsaw is Team PokerStars PRO Luca Pagano who has ended Day 1a with 101,575. Team PokerStars PRO Mexico players Angel Guillen and JC Alvarado have been knocked out but Peter Eastgate, Arnaud Mattern and Alex Kravchenko are all through to Day 2. Team PokerStars PRO Marcin Horecki who at one point was down to just 75 in chips enjoyed a miracle recovery and is now on 9,850.

A total of 88 players took their seats today for the 25,000 PLN main event, which runs October 20-25 at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency; well over 100 are expected for Day 1b tomorrow. They include Team PokerStars PROs Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Katja Thater, Florian Langmann, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Dario Minieri, Thierry Van Den Berg and William Thorson as well as PokerStars-sponsored players JP Kelly and EPT presenter Michelle Orpe.

Other big names set to play tomorrow include 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen, Danish poker pro Gus Hansen, last year’s finalist Ludovic Lacay and WCOOP bracelet winner Shaun Deeb.

World champions among field at EPT Warsaw – posted 10.20.09

Two world champions are among the scores of players taking part at EPT Warsaw in Poland. The current world champion and Team PokerStars PRO Peter Eastgate took his seat at table eight. He will be followed into the casino by the 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen who has bagged himself a seat for tomorrow - Day 1b.

Around 70 players are competing on Day 1a of the 25,000 PLN buy-in event including Team PokerStars PROs Arnaud Mattern, who came 5th last season, local hero Marcin Horecki, Player of the Year Luca Pagano and Russian Team PokerStars PRO Alex Kravchenko, as well as JC Alvarado and WSOP 2009 bracelet winner Angel Guillen, both members of Team PokerStars PRO Mexico.

Other big names today include PokerStars qualifier Carter Phillips, who won EPT Barcelona in September for €850,000. He is among the 33 PokerStars players who won their trip to Warsaw via online satellites – a package which included buy-in, spending money and accommodation at the luxury Hyatt Regency hotel.

Ukranian Alexander Dovzhenko, runner-up at EPT Kyiv is also playing today, alongside German Nico Behling, second-place finisher here last season and Mikhail Tulchinskiy who came third at the Monte Carlo Grand Final in May. Others include French veteran Michel Abecassis, French chess master Almira Skripchenko, Oskar Silow from Sweden andVoitto Rintala from Finland

Stars head to Poland for EPT Warsaw – posted 10.19.09

A host of champion poker players are heading to Poland for EPT Warsaw which begins on Tuesday (October 20) at Casinos Poland at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

Among the pros taking part in the 23,500 PLN buy-in event are world champion and PokerStars Team PRO Peter Eastgate alongside fellow team members PCA high roller champion 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.

Other stars competing include Team PokerStars PROs 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 is also playing, sponsored by PokerStars.

A total of 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.

Last season’s EPT Warsaw was won by Joao Barbosa from Porto, Portugal for €367,141. It was Barbosa’s third EPT cash in Season Five and he made the money a further three times to cement his reputation as one of the best players in Europe.

PokerStars qualifier Aaron Gustavson wins EPT London Main Event – posted 10.08.09

American Aaron Gustavson beat Team PokerStars PRO and 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. winner

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 PokerStars qualifier Martin Gudvangen from Norway (4th place, £227,000), British PokerStars player Dominic Cullen (5th place, £173,000) and Raymond Wu from Taipei, a member of Team PokerStars Asia, who finished 7th for £87,000.

A total of 104 players cashed including Kevin Schaffel, the PokerStars-sponsored World Series of Poker “November Nine” finalist, Friend of PokerStars Darus Suharto, Team PokerStars PROs Maria Mayrinck and Arnaud Mattern, as well as the PokerStars-sponsored former England footballer Teddy Sheringham.

This season’s EPT London Poker Festival featured 16 different events. Side event winners included Team PokerStars PROs 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 makes EPT London final – post 10.07.09

We’ve gone 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 at the EPT London Main Event.

Today’s final table players hail from eight countries on four continents but all have just one goal in mind – becoming the next EPT London champion and taking home the £850,000 first prize.

The final comprises some highly talented players, not least the Team PokerStars PRO and current world champion Peter Eastgate who is second in chips. Three PokerStars players have also made it into the final – American qualifier Aaron Gustavson is the massive chip leader with more than double Eastgate’s stack. Martin Gudvangen from Norway, who is playing only his second EPT and Dominic Cullen from the UK are also through. schaffel

Finalist Raymond Wu, 24, from Taipei, a member of Team PokerStars Asia, has a loyal team supporting him on the rail – including his mother, girlfriend, friends, team mates and his manager.

The £5,000 Main Event attracted a record 730 players, making it the biggest tournament ever held in the UK and generating a £3,540,500 prize pool.

A total of 96 players have already cashed including Michael Berry, who won his seat via a PokerStars/Daily Mirror promotion, Kevin Schaffel, the PokerStars-sponsored World Series of Poker “November Nine” finalist, Friend of PokerStars Darus Suharto, Team PokerStars PROs Maria "maridu" Mayrinck and Arnaud Mattern and the PokerStars-sponsored UK footballer Teddy Sheringham.

EPTLive continues today at 12:00 today (October 7) with expert commentary in seven languages. See http://www.pokerstars.tv/channels/TPI/live.htmlfor full broadcast details.

PokerStars qualifier Michael Berry leads field at EPT London – posted 10.06.09

PokerStars qualifier 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. schaffel

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.

Berry is not the only PokerStars player. Brazilian qualifier Rodrigo Dos Santos Caprioli is in second place with 1,647,000 while PokerStars player Benjamin Spindler, who came 3rd at the PCA in January, is on 1,110,000.

Still in the Main Event, which attracted a record 730 players generating a £3,540,500 prize pool is Team PokerStars PRO Peter Eastgate, the current world champion as well as Raymond Wu from Taiwan, a member of Team PokerStars Asia, and Kevin Schaffel, the
PokerStars-sponsored World Series of Poker “November Nine” finalist.

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.

EPTLive is providing coverage of the final two days of the EPT London main event starting at 12:00 today (October 6). See http://www.pokerstars.tv/channels/TPI/live.html for full broadcast details.

Kevin Schaffel makes Day 3 of EPT London – posted 10.04.09

Kevin Schaffel, the PokerStars-sponsored World Series “November Nine” finalist, is among the chip leaders as EPT London goes into Day 3. Schaffel, from Florida, has been a golfer for more than 25 years. It’s been a family affair for Schaffel at EPT London. He has been supported by his brother Jordan throughout the tournament, while his cousin, Martin, busted earlier in the day.

It was a brutal day for many players, with more than 200 heading for the door. The early hours of play tomorrow (October 5) will also be decisive – 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.

Still in contention are numerous PokerStars qualifiers and players as well as Team PokerStars PRO Peter Eastgate, the current world champion, Raymond Wu of Team PokerStars Asia, Maridu Mayrinck from Team PokerStars PRO Brazil and the latest team member Arnaud Mattern from France.

A total of 730 players entered the EPT London Main Event, creating a total prize pool of £3,540,500.

EPT London smashes record for UK poker tournament – posted 10.04.09

The EPT London Main Event has smashed records for the biggest poker tournament ever held in the UK with a starting field of 730 players. The record field has staggered players and media alike and is well over 100 players more than last season’s event.

With 426 players taking their seats for Day 1b today, the cavernous Kings Suite of the Hilton Metropole Hotel was virtually filled - however less than half survived the Day 1b. senninger

The Day 1b chip leader – by some distance - is the young German, Nikolai Senninger, with 323,100. Senninger came third in the first ever PokerStars Latin American Poker Tour Rio event in Brazil $ 86,350 and recently won the Bodensee Poker Championships 2009 in Bregenz for €40k.

The leading PokerStars-sponsored player is Raymond Wu from Taiwan, a member of Team PokerStars Asia, with 130,000 in chips while PokerStars qualifier Andreas Johansson has bagged up 184,100.

Six members of Team PokerStars PRO are through to Day 2 including the 2008 WSOP runner-up Ivan Demidov and Lex Veldhuis, a member of Team PokerStars PRO Netherlands. They are all among the 318 players returning 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; 104 players will cash.

PokerStars qualifier leads field in EPT London Main Event – posted 10.03.09
French PokerStars qualifier Mario Cordero is 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 which now has a swanky new home in the spacious Kings Suite at the Hilton Metropole Hotel. At least 350 more are expected for Day 1b making the EPT London Main Event the biggest poker tournament ever held in Britain. Arnaud

Among the 129 Day 1a survivors is Team PokerStars PRO’s newest member Arnaud Mattern from France (pictured right). He bagged 116,000 in chips while fellow team member Maridu Mayrinck from Brazil has amassed a tidy 115,000 and world champion Peter Eastgate from Denmark is sitting on 122,000.

PokerStars Team PROs 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, as did Kevin Schaffel, the PokerStars sponsored “November Nine” WSOP finalist, who will be returning on Sunday for Day 2 along with his cousin Martin.

Team PokerStars SportStar Fatima Moreira de Melo, one of Holland’s best known field hockey players, competed but bust towards the end of the day.

For reports on all the day’s action, please see the PokerStars blog and video blogs on PokerStars.tv - http://www.pokerstars.tv/channels/3T9P/london-english.html.

EPT London Main Event looks to smash record / High Roller Crowned – posted 10.02.09

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 the PokerStars.com 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 taking their seats was world champion and Team PokerStars PRO Peter Eastgate. He was joined by fellow stellar team members 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.

EPT London has also signaled a welcome return for Team PokerStars SportStar Fatima Moreira de Melo, one of Holland’s best known field hockey players (pictured right). fatima

Wearing the Team PokerStars PRO patch for the first time was the popular French player Arnaud Mattern who won EPT Prague in Season 4. Today’s field also included Kevin Schaffel and Eric Buchman, two of the PokerStars-sponsored “November Nine” World Series finalists, limbering up in London before returning to Vegas next month.

American Carter Phillips, who won EPT Barcelona last month, is also here, as is his British heads-up rival Marc Goodwin. Other poker heavyweights in attendance include Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, Roland de Wolfe and Freddy Deeb.

In related news, the winner of the EPT London High Roller was crowned just a few minutes ago taking home £542,000. American high-stakes player Matt Glantz has won the £20k PokerStars.com EPT London High Roller event after beating Canadian Erik Cajelais heads-up.

Glantz, who had four deep finishes at this summer’s World Series, snatched the title and £542,000 first prize shortly after the dinner break when his A-2 triumphed over Cajelais’ Q-J. A 5-Q-J flop gave French-speaking Cajelais top pair but an Ace on the turn sealed it for Glantz.

The final table featured Team PokerStars PROs Dennis Phillips and Leo Fernandez. American Phillips came seventh for £60,000 while Fernandez from Argentina finished fourth for £104,000.

A total of 75 players entered the prestigious High Roller event including 13 members of Team PokerStars PRO. The High Roller event was the first of 16 tournaments taking place during the eight-day EPT London Poker Festival at the Hilton Metropole Hotel.

Team PokerStars PROs make EPT London High Roller final – posted 10.02.09

Team PokerStars PROs Dennis Phillips from the USA and Leo Fernandez from Argentina have both made it through to the final table of the PokerStars.com EPT London High Roller event.

The pair are the last two survivors from a 13-strong pack of Team PokerStars PROs which started the £20,000 event at the Hilton Metropole Hotel on September 30.

They will have their work cut out for them though as the current chip leader, Canadian Erik Cajelais, stands with a monster stack of 893,500. Fernandez and Phillips will be no pushovers though as both have made final tables before.

Phillips first came to public attention 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 for his troubles.

A total of 75 players entered the event; 31 survived to Day 2 and we are now down to our final eight. dennis

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

The final table is being filmed for broadcast and will also be shown on EPTLive starting at 12:00 local time today (October 2). Please see http://www.pokerstars.tv/channels/TPI/live.html for details. You can also follow all the action on www.pokerstarsblog.com.

Ilari Sahamies leads in EPT London High Roller - posted 10.01.09

Finnish high stakes player Ilari "Ziigmund" Sahamies is leading the field at the start of Day 2 of the PokerStars.com EPT London High Roller. Ilari has amassed 373,800 despite turning up for the £20,000 event four and a half hours late.

A total of 31 players are left in the three-day tournament from a starting field of 75. Seven Team PokerStars PROs are still in contention with EPT London Season 3 winner Vicky Coren heading the PokerStars PROs pack with 152,100. The others are former world champion Joe Hachem, Dennis Phillips, Leo Fernandez, Alex Kravchenko, Humberto Brenes and William Thorson.

November Niner Phil Ivey was the first to bust on Day 1 with other knocked-out notables including Tom Dwan, plus Team PokerStars PROs 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. He then hot-footed it over to the Hilton Metropole, handed over almost all of his winnings but unfortunately busted out several hours later.

For non-stop coverage of the action, check out the PokerStars blog. EPTLive starts at 13:00 CET (12:00 GMT) on October 2 with coverage of the EPT London High Roller final table. See PokerStars.tv for details.

Poker Pros Flock To UK For EPT London Poker Festival - posted 09.11.09

With EPT Barcelona now safely out the way, all eyes are set on London for what promises to be the biggest poker festival ever held in the UK.

A total of 16 events are planned for the PokerStars EPT London Poker Festival which will run over eight days from September 30 to October 7. Among the top pros taking part are Michael Martin, the EPT London defending champion, as well as EPT London Season 5 High Roller winner Jason Mercier, former world champions Joe Hachem, Chris Moneymaker, Greg Raymer and current world champion Peter Eastgate – all members of Team PokerStars PRO. winner

EPT London will also give European's their first chance to see three of this year’s World Series “November Nine” finalists competing against each other. Joe Cada, Eric Buchman and Kevin Schaffel – all sponsored by PokerStars - are all set to play the £5,300 EPT London main event.

Satellites for EPT London Poker Festival events are running now on PokerStars, giving players the chance to win their seat in major live events for as little as $2.22.

For the first time, EPT London will be taking place outside the confines of its traditional home – the Grosvenor Victoria Casino – and moving just a few hundred yards up the road to the Hilton Metropole Hotel. The change of location has enabled PokerStars to seriously ratchet up the festivities and provide an action-packed and varied roster of top events.

The start of the festival is September 30 with the return of the EPT London £20k High Roller event. This tournament was sensationally won by young American Jason Mercier last year against one of the toughest fields in poker history. Mercier, now on Team PokerStars PRO, defeated a raft of leading pros including John Juanda, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu and Gus Hansen.

The £5,300 EPT London main event starts on October 2 with other tournaments kicking off throughout the week including 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 follows the two-week European Poker Championships being held at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino, and will once again cement London’s reputation as the poker capital of Europe.

Pokerstars Qualifier Carter Phillips Wins Pokerstars EPT Barcelona - posted 09.09.09

American PokerStars qualifier Carter Phillips has won EPT Barcelona and a first prize of €850,000. The 20-year-old from North Carolina beat UK veteran Marc Goodwin to the title after a tense three-hour heads-up match.

A total of 478 players entered the €8,300 Main Event creating a total prize pool of €3,382,000. Despite his young age, Phillips has racked up numerous online wins including the PokerStars €500k guaranteed and the PokerStars Sunday Second Chance tournament. He has also won the PokerStars €100 rebuy event three times.

Phillips said: “It’s unbelievable. I was hoping that I’d be in this position some day, but for it to happen so early in my career is amazing. Marc Goodwin is a great player. It was a tough battle.” winner

His heads-up up opponent Goodwin, 49, is a veteran of live events all over the world with a poker career going back nearly three decades. He won his first tournament in 1979 and his live tournament earnings now total more than $1.4 million.

The third-place finisher was PokerStars-sponsored player Santiago Terrazas who takes €300,000 back home to Madrid - the biggest sum ever won by a Spanish player at an EPT.

Nearly 50 players – including Phillips – won their seats to EPT Barcelona online with PokerStars. Among the top pros who competed were Team PokerStars PROs Daniel Negreanu, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier and Jason Mercier as well as Team PokerStars SportStar Boris Becker and the PokerStars-sponsored French rapper Bruno “Kool Shen” Lopes.

The next event of EPT Season 6 is the EPT London Poker Festival. With 16 events planned - including the £5,300 main event and £20k high roller, EPT London promises to be the biggest series of poker tournaments ever held in the UK. The festival kicks off September 30, 2009 at Hilton Metropole Hotel. See www.ept.com/tournaments/london for event details.

Two PokerStars qualifiers make EPT Barcelona final table – posted 09.09.09

Two talented young PokerStars qualifiers have made it to the EPT Barcelona final table. American Carter “bdybldngpkr” Phillips, 20, from North Carolina is the chip leader with 4,421,000 while Canadian Matt “Lapozie” Lapossie, 23, lies in third place with 2,138,000. Both players have put in notable performances throughout the €8,300 Main Event and are in with a good chance of scooping the €850,000 first prize.

Carter Phillips qualified for Barcelona twice and nearly won the €1k side event last week – eventually chopping with Team PokerStars PRO Jason Mercier and Dag Martin Mikkelsen. Matt Lapossie has only played one EPT before Barcelona but, since the event started, has never been far from the chip lead. day1b

In second place, with 3,100,000 in chips is leading UK pro Marc Goodwin. Goodwin has had three EPT cashes to date but this is his first EPT final table. Santiago Terrazas, sponsored by PokerStars and the last remaining Spaniard in the tournament, is also through with 546,000.

A total of 478 players entered EPT Barcelona, creating a total prize pool of €3,832,000. Five former EPT champions made it to Day 4, including Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and EPT Dortmund winner Mike McDonald but by 9pm last night all had been eliminated.

EPTLive continues today (September 9) at 14:00 local time providing live coverage and expert commentary in five languages.

Former Champions Line Up To Claim Unique EPT Double– posted 09.08.09

It’s the record that dozens have been chasing but no one has yet achieved – becoming the first ever EPT champion to win the main event for a second time.

As EPT Barcelona goes into Day 4, five former EPT winners – including Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier from France - are still in contention. day1b

ElkY took down the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in 2008 while Frenchman Jan Boubli won the main event here in Barcelona back in Season 2. The other contenders are EPT3 Dublin winner Roland de Wolfe, EPT4 Dortmund winner Mike McDonald and last season’s Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllonen.

At the other end of the spectrum is the young Canadian PokerStars qualifier Matt Lapossie. He has only played one EPT before, but since Barcelona started has never been far from the chip lead. He is currently lying in second place with 1,664,000, just behind the young Greek pro Georgios Kapalas who has 1,724,000 in chips and is hoping to become Greece’s first ever EPT champion.

Only 23 players remain from the starting field of 478 at the €8,300 NLHE event. All are chasing a first prize of €850,000.

EPTLive kicks off today (September 8) at 12:30 local time providing live coverage and expert commentary for the final two days.

Players enter the money at EPT Barcelona – posted 09.07.09

The 478-strong field at the start of EPT Barcelona has now been whittled down to just 72 players here at the end of Day 2. All remaining players are now in the money with a guaranteed payday of at least €12,000.

Canadian PokerStars qualifier Matt Lapossie, 23, is the chip leader on 700,300. He won his trip to Barcelona in an $800 satellite on PokerStars and is one of 50 players to win their seats online.

Only days after receiving his Guinness World Record, Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier is putting in a dynamite performance at EPT Barcelona and ended Day 2 in fifth place with 454,200 in chips. day1b

As well as PCA champion “ElkY” and EPT1 Copenhagen winner Boeken, four former EPT champions are still in the running in Barcelona. They are EPT3 Dublin champ Roland de Wolfe, EPT5 Copenhagen winner Jens Kyllonen, EPT4 Dortmund winner Michael McDonald and Frenchman Jan Boubli who the EPT Barcelona Season 2 title in 2005.

The only other Team PokerStars PROs still in the tournament are also both from the Netherlands - Noah Boeken and Thierry Van Den Berg. Lex Veldhuis, a teammate who was among the chip leaders, suffered a couple of brutal hands late yesterday and busted out of the €8,300 event just two places short of the money.

A day of rapid-fire poker also ended well for young Latvian Kaspars Renga. He has 88,900 in chips and is now the first player from his country ever to cash at an EPT.

EPTLive starts tomorrow (September 8) with coverage of the final two days in five languages including English, Spanish and French.

Team Pokerstars PRO Lex Veldhuis Rocks Day 1b Of EPT Barcelona – posted 09.06.09

Some of the biggest names in poker are competing at EPT Barcelona but it was Team PokerStars PRO Lex Veldhuis (pictured) who dominated the action on Day 1b and is now in eighth place as the €8,300 event goes into Day 2.

The 25-year-old from Rotterdam was up to 100,000 in chips by the end of Level 1 and kept up a relentless pace throughout the day.

He wreaked havoc at Table 19 which also – at various times - featured fellow Team PokerStars PROs Peter Eastgate, William Thorson and Daniel Negreanu. Veldhuis now has 149,500. day1b

Other stars who took part on Day 1b included former world champions Scotty Nguyen and Carlos Mortensen as well as tennis legend and Team PokerStars SportStar Boris Becker, French film star Patrick Bruel and French rapper Bruno “Kool Shen” Lopes who was sponsored by PokerStars.

“Kid Poker” Negreanu survived the day and currently has 106,100 in chips, but unfortunatly both Thorson and Eastgate busted out. Other Team PokerStars PROs still in the running for the €850,000 first prize include Noah Boeken, EPT Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks, PCA and WPT champion Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and WSOP 2008 runner-up Ivan Demidov. The chip leader remains Spanish PokerStars qualifier Diego Arias who has 193,300.

EPT Barcelona attracted a total of 478 players creating a total prize pool of €3,832,000. More than 50 players won their trip to Barcelona on PokerStars after qualifying in online satellites.

PokerStars qualifier leads field at EPT Barcelona – posted 09.05.09

Day 1a of PokerStars.com EPT Barcelona has come to an end with the young Spanish PokerStars qualifier Diego Arias leading the field. Arias (pictured), who has 193,300 in chips, won his €8,300 seat after qualifying in an $800 satellite on PokerStars run especially for Spanish players.

PokerStars qualifier Friedrich Franz from Germany is also doing well with 146,550 while PokerStars players Carlos Lopez and Jorn Walthus are following closely behind. day1a

The first day of EPT Bacelona started with a total of 207 players but only 107 move on for a shot at the EPT Barcelona title.

Unfortunately, of the Team PokerStars PROs playing Day 1a, only EPT4 London runner-up Florian Langmann from Germany has made it through.

Day 1b will see a roster of star names turning up including Team PokerStars PROs Daniel Negreanu and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier as well as Team PokerStars SportStar Boris Becker and the PokerStars-sponsored French rapper Bruno “Kool Shen” Lopes.

EPTLive will be providing great coverage of the final two days with expert commentary in five languages including English, Spanish and French while the PokerStars blog will be keeping readers bang up to date from Day 1.

It’s official - ElkY receives the Guinness World Record – posted 09.04.09

They said it couldn’t be done – but Team PokerStars PRO Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier proved them wrong when he won the world record for winning the most online poker tournaments in an hour. At last night’s Welcome Party for EPT Barcelona, ElkY was officially presented with the Guinness World Record for his spectacular achievement.

The challenge was set back in April on Day 1a at the EPT Season 5 Grand Final in Monte Carlo. Cheered on by dozens of spectators, ElkY took to the stage of the Salle des Etoiles ballroom in front of a bank of screens. He had an hour to play as many Sit and Go tournaments as possible – and had to end up with a positive balance. ElkY raced through his way through 62 SNGs to clinch a $23.67 profit – his world record was in the bag.

Now several hundred players face a challenge of their own – the start of EPT Barcelona – one of the toughest tournaments on the European Poker Tour.
elky

Among those who will be taking their seats for Day 1a today are Team PokerStar PRO Germany and defending champion Sebastian Ruthenberg. He will be up against numerous EPT champions and World Series Of Poker bracelet winners today including Team PokerStars PRO Jason Mercier. Mercier won a WSOP bracelet this summer to add to his two EPT titles and will be hoping to better his sixth place finish in Barcelona last year.

Other Team PokerStars PROs who will setting their sights on an EPT title today include Marcin Horecki from Poland, Dutch players Noah Boeken and Thierry Van Den Berg, Nordic heroes Johnny Lodden and William Thorson as well as Ruthenberg’s Team PokerStars PRO Germany colleague Katja Thater.

The overall cap for the €8,300 event is 700 players and it looks certain to sell out. Last season, EPT Barcelona attracted a record 619 players and created a prize pool of nearly €5 million.

Champions descend on Barcelona for next stop on EPT Season 6
– posted 08.26.09

Champion poker players will be out in force for the start of EPT Barcelona which begins next week. Defending title holder Sebastian Ruthenberg will be up against numerous EPT champions and World Series Of Poker (WSOP)* bracelet winners as well as the current world champion Peter Eastgate and runner-up Ivan Demidov.

Ruthenberg faces serious competition from American Jason Mercier, now a member of Team PokerStars PRO. Mercier won a WSOP* bracelet this summer to add to his two EPT titles and will be hoping to better his sixth place finish in Barcelona last year. Ruthenberg will also need to watch out for Dutch Team PokerStars PRO Pieter de Korver, winner of last season’s EPT Grand Final and fellow Team PokerStars member Sandra Naujoks, winner of EPT Dortmund. winner

Last season, EPT Barcelona attracted a record 619 players and created a prize pool of nearly €5 million. This season’s field includes a wealth of stars guaranteed to fuel another riveting week of poker at the Gran Casino.

The Team Poker PRO roster for the €8,000 event, which runs September 4-9, is a roll-call of top names including Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier who last year won $2,000,000 at the PokerStars Caribbean Poker Adventure.

Poker legend Daniel Negreanu and EPT Player of the Year Luca Pagano will also grace the felt with their skills.

As if this wasn’t enough tennis legend and Team Pokerstars SportStar Boris Becker is competing. PokerStars-sponsored rap star Bruno “Kool Shen” Lopes will be bringing the drama, while home-grown competition comes in the form of Spanish Team PokerStars players Juan Maceiras and Juan Manuel Pastor.

Other notable players include Vanessa Rousso, Marcel Luske, Lex Veldhuis, Katja Thater, Johnny Lodden, Dario Minieri and Noah Boeken.

More than 50 players won 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 ended, but PokerStars PlatinumStar VIP players still have until Sunday, August 30 to buy in to the event using W$.

EPTLive will be providing great coverage of the final two days of EPT Barcelona with expert commentary in five languages including English, Spanish and French while the PokerStars blog will be keeping readers bang up to date from Day 1.

Maxim Lykov Wins Ept Kyiv – posted 08.23.09

Maxim “Decay” Lykov, 21, from Moscow, became the first Russian to win an EPT today when he took down the €5,000 EPT Kyiv tournament for €330,000.

Nearly 300 competitors – including near 80 PokerStars players - attended the first event of EPT Season 6 which was held at the Kyiv Sports Palace in the Ukraine capital.

Lykov was also the first EPT champion to hold the chip lead three days running and then win the event. He said: “On days two and three, I really felt quite confident that I would make the final. I am very proud to win this tournament. It was a hard contest but I believed I could do it.”

In June, Lykov won $145,000 after coming third in the 5k NLHE shootout at the World Series, bringing his total tournament winnings this summer to over €600,000. winner

EPT Kyiv was the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States. It is the first time the EPT has been held in the region. The 296 competitors who attended, from 33 countries, created a total prize pool of €1,391,200.

Stars who competed 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 included Gus Hansen, Shaun Deeb, Cristiano Blanco, John Kabbaj.

The last two days of EPT Kyiv were broadcast live on PokerStars.tv in five languages; the event was also filmed for television.

The next event of EPT Season 6 is EPT Barcelona from September 4-9, 2009.

For full coverage of all the action from EPT Kyiv, see the PokerStars blog and EPT video blogs.

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PokerStars qualifiers make EPT Kyiv final - posted 08.22.09

Two PokerStars qualifiers are through to the final of the first ever PokerStars EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship. After a gruelling 12 hours of play, Torsten Tent from Germany and Frequent Point Player qualifier Lucasz Plichta from Poland (pictured below) have both it through to Day 5 of the €5k event. Vitaly Tolokonnika

The two are guaranteed a €30,000 payday but it's the €300,000 first prize and title of EPT Kyiv champion that they're both gunning for. The current chip leader remains Maxim “Decay” Lykov, a 21-year-old profesional player from Russia, with 2,597,000 in chips.

EPT Kyiv attracted a total of 296 players overall, making it the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.

For non-stop coverage of the action, check out the PokerStars blog and EPT video blogs. EPTLive continues at 12pm today local time with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian and Russian. See PokerStars.tv for details.

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EPT Kyiv down to final 32 - posted 08.20.09

Eight players have gone home richer today and 32 more still have their sights set on a €330,000 payday. We are down to the final 32 at the €5,000 PokerStars.net EPT Kyiv and tension is mounting. Tomorrow the EPT cameras start rolling and some players will be getting their first ever experience of sitting at a televised feature table.

Locals and semi-locals – players from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus - dominate the field with chip leader Maxim Lykov from Russia (pictured below ) marginally ahead of his closest rivals. Last night’s chip leader Vitaly Tolokonnikov is now in third. Vitaly Tolokonnika

The leading PokerStars qualifier is still Michael Meyburg, the former backgammon champion from Germany, who has 240,500.

PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb from New Jersey, hugely well-known online and a WCOOP champion, was celebrating his first ever win at a live event after taking down the €20,000 High Roller event – against only two other players.

The EPT Kyiv Main Event attracted a total of 296 players overall, making it the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.

For non-stop coverage of the action, check out the PokerStars blog and EPT video blogs. EPTLive starts tomorrow (August 22) with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian and Russian. See PokerStars.tv for details.

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Kyiv field whittled down to 9 tables - posted 08.20.09

A fierce day of action at the Kyiv Sports Palace saw the majority of the field grabbing their jackets and heading home on Day 2 of the €5,000 PokerStars EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship. A total of 203 players started the day; only 69 finished it.

The current chip leader is Russian Vitaly Tolokonnika (pictured below) who had a miracle comeback from just 12,000 in chips and now has 371,000.

The leading PokerStars qualifier is Michael Meyburg, a former backgammon champion from
Germany, who has 289,300.

Unfortunately, all the remaining Team PokerStars Pros were eliminated today, alongside PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb. However, 14 PokerStars players are still in the running for the €330,000 first prize.

The EPT Kyiv Main Event attracted a total of 296 players overall, making it the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.

For non-stop coverage of the action, check out the PokerStars blog and EPT video blogs. EPTLive starts on August 22 with expert commentary in English, German, French, Italian and Russian. See PokerStars.tv for details.

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EPT Kyiv speeds into Day 2 – posted 08.19.09

The first ever PokerStars EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship is down to 203 players after a further seven hours of action-packed play at the Kyiv Sports Palace.

The current chip leader is Viktor Ivanov from Russia with 153,825 in chips. PokerStars qualifier Jason Kudron from the US is in third place overall with 118,100. Team PokerStars Pros Katja Thater and Alex Kravchenko are also in the running as well as PokerStars passport winner Shaun Deeb. Other stars who have survived include Nicolas Levi, Dragan Galic, Andrew Feldman and Alexander Kostritzyn. Ivan Demidov

Day 2 will start tomorrow with numerous stars still in the running for the first prize of €330,000 including Team PokerStars Pro Ivan Demidov (pictured), runner-up in the 2008 WSOP, and his girlfriend Liya Gerasimova. In line with the new EPT structure introduced this season, levels will now be 75 minutes from now until the end of the tournament.

The EPT Kyiv Main Event attracted a total of 296 players overall, making it the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States with a total prize pool of €1,391,200.

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EPT Kyiv gets off to a flying start - posted 08.18.09

The first event of European Poker Tour Season Six got off to a spectacular start in Ukraine today with players treated to a vibrant welcome ceremony featuring a four-man drumming troupe and more than 50 Ukrainian folk dancers.

The PokerStars.net EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship has attracted hundreds of players to the Ukraine capital for a week of poker which includes the €5,000 NLHE Main Event and a wealth of side events.

This is the first EPT in Ukraine and is already set to be the largest poker tournament ever held in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Among today’s 129 Day 1a players were Team PokerStars Pros Alex Kravchenko and Luca Pagano. Kravchenko has survived with 45,450 in chips but Pagano was knocked out early evening.

A total of 93 players are through to Day 2, the high number of survivors reflecting a brand new structure for EPT main events which gives each player a 30,000 starting stack. The current chip leader is Mihaylo Demidenko from Ukraine with 145,125.

Day 1b will see even more stars take their seats in the cavernous Kyiv Palace of Sports including Team PokerStars Pros Ivan Demidov, Dario Minieri, Katja Thater and Vlad Zhuba, the first member of the new Team PokerStars Ukraine Pro as well as Team PokerStars Argentina Pro Leo Fernandez.

Side events on Day 1b include the €1,100 NLHE freezeout and a €330 Ladies Only NLHE event. Nearly 50 of the players in Kyiv this week won their trip online with PokerStars, including their buy-in, six nights at the beautiful Premier Palace hotel and spending money.

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Stars Head To Kyiv For Launch Of EPT Season 6 – posted 08.15.09

The EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship begins in the Ukraine on Tuesday August 18 and marks the start of the season six PokerStars.com European Poker Tour.

The €5,000 NLHE Main Event, the first EPT event to be held in the Ukraine, 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.

A full schedule of events is planned for the week with all the action taking place at the Kyiv Sports Palace from August 18-23. Nearly 50 players have won their trip to Kyiv online with PokerStars, including their buy-in, six nights at the spectacular Premier Palace hotel and spending money.

The EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship is expected to be the largest poker tournament ever held in the Ukraine according to event sponsor PokerStars.com. In addition to the Main Event, tournaments include €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.

Day 1 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

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Official statement on EPT Moscow- posted 07.25.09

The PokerStars.com European Poker Tour (EPT) announces an alternate venue for its August event, now scheduled to be held in Kyiv, the largest city and capital of Ukraine, at the Kyiv Sports Palace, from August 18-23, 2009. The "EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship" is to be held under the regulation and authority of the Ukrainian Ministry of Youth, Family and Sport, and in partnership with the Ukrainian Poker Federation. This event is expected to be the largest poker tournament ever held in the Ukraine.

The Kyiv event replaces the previously-scheduled 2009 Russian Open poker tournament due to be held at the Radisson SAS Slavyanskaya, Moscow from August 18-23, 2009. That event has been cancelled because our ability to run the event was placed in doubt due to the recent closure of all casinos in Russia.

Euro Poker Tour Ltd. sincerely apologises to all players who were intending to attend the Moscow event, but unfortunately these circumstances were beyond our control. Players are encouraged to consider attending the Ukrainian event instead, and to participate in the opening of the EPT's sixth season.

PokerStars advises its players who qualified online for the Moscow event that their packages (including buy-in and hotel) will be converted to EPT Kyiv packages; however they will also be eligible to take a credit for a future event, or receive the cash equivalent value as alternatives.

The buy-in for the "EPT Kyiv Sports Poker Championship" Main Event will be 5,000 EUR (4,700 + 300).

Players should note that the Ukraine does not require visas for citizens of the European Union, United States or Canada (among many other countries) when travelling to Ukraine for less than 90 days. Players from other countries should check this webpage (http://www.mfa.gov.ua/uk/en/2322.htm) or with their local embassy for more information.

We appreciate the opportunity to bring the EPT to beautiful and historic Kyiv, and look forward to exploring the sights, sounds and flavors of the rich Ukrainian culture.

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The World’s Richest Poker Tour Announces Biggest Season Yet - posted 06.16.09

John Duthie, Chief Executive of the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour (EPT), today announced the first half of the schedule for EPT Season Six. The European Poker Tour is now the world’s richest poker tour in terms of both players and prize pools and is sponsored by PokerStars, the world’s largest online poker site with over 23 million registered players worldwide.

The new EPT season includes many events which have made the past five seasons such a triumph with world record breaking fields and prize pools across Europe.” said Duthie. “We have set very high standards and we aim to improve on this still further in Season Six - with new additions to the schedule as well as a richer mix of games and buy-ins to cater for more players.”

Last year’s PokerStars EPT season proved a massive success and overtook the WPT in terms of amount of players and prize pools. EPT Season Five generated a total prize pool of almost €55 million (approx $77 million USD) with 7,980 players from 97 countries of which 3,077 were PokerStars players. The four richest prize pools available in poker tournaments outside the United States last year occurred during the fifth season of the PokerStars EPT at: the PCA ($12.7M USD); Monte Carlo ($12.3M USD); San Remo ($7.5M USD); and Barcelona (7M USD).

The EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final generated the biggest ever prize pool in Europe at more than €9.3 million. The Grand Final winner, newly-signed Team PokerStars Pro Netherlands member Pieter de Korver, a 26-year-old poker pro from Leeuwarden, Holland, bested a record field of 935 players to take the first prize of €2.3 million ($3.2 million USD).

“This year’s EPT will be bigger and better than ever, kicking off in August in one of our new scheduled destinations – magnificent Moscow in Russia. Overall, the tour will visit an unprecedented thirteen countries* - an increase of four events on top of last season. As well as Russia, the tour will include new stops in Portugal this November and other destinations to be announced shortly.” said Duthie

The PokerStars EPT Season Six looks set to continue building upon the successes of the previous five seasons, attracting even more players and even larger prize pools. There will be more ‘Festival of Poker’ style stops on the tour, beginning in London this October with “The Pokerstars.com EPT London Festival at the Hilton Metropole Hotel” which will feature significant Pot-Limit Omaha and 8-Game events, as well as the return of the popular High Roller event. The EPT London Main Event will likely be the richest tournament ever in the United Kingdom.

Online satellites for the PokerStars EPT Moscow, Season Six start today, Monday, 15 June, 2009 on PokerStars with buy-ins from as little as $2.22. Players who qualify on PokerStars don’t just win their seat; they also win hotel accommodation (or cash equivalent) and spending money as part of their prize package. The EPT invites players from around the world to participate in this exciting event in Russia’s historic and storied capital.

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Pieter de Korver wins fifth EPT Grand Final - posted 4.5.09

The 5th season of the EPT has come to an end in Monte Carlo and produced the second Dutch Grand Final champion in five seasons. Pieter de Korver, 26, from Leeuwarden, Holland, a member of Team PokerStars Pro Netherlands, outlasted a record field of 935 players to snag the €2.3 million first prize at the €10,600 EPT Monte Carlo main event. The total prize pool was a staggering €9.35 million making it the richest poker tournament ever held outside Las Vegas. The first ever EPT Grand Final was won by Dutchman Rob Hollink.

De Korver only turned pro two years ago and last year triumphed in a PokerStars-sponsored TV show called 'Poker Kampioen Van Nederland' against some 20,000 competitors. He staged a remarkable comeback during the nine-hour final table - at one stage he had just two big blinds but then won a series of showdowns to take the chip lead.

Norwegian pro Dag Martin Mikkelsen looked set to take the EPT Grand Final title after amassing more than half the chips but he fell away just as dramatically as De Korver came back - and ended up finishing fourth. Russian player Mikhail Tulchinskiy was eliminated in third place before PokerStars qualifier Matthew Woodward was dominated in a heads-up battle lasting a little over an hour.

Scores of stars competed in the event, held from April 28 to May 3 at the Monte Carlo Bay Resort, including nearly the entire Team PokerStars Pro team such as poker legend Daniel Negreanu, current world champion Peter Eastgate and former world champions Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker as well as rappers Nelly and Bruno "Kool Shen" Lopes, rugby star Sebastien Chabal, footballer Tomas Brolin and tennis legend Boris Becker. Celebrated poker pros such as Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, Tony G, Liz Lieu and Andy Black also took part. A total of 157 PokerStars players won their seats online for the prestigious event which attracted entrants from a record 57 countries.

Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso won the inaugural €25,000 Monte Carlo high roller tournament after beating fellow American Randy Dorfman heads-up to take the €720,000 first prize. Tony G came third and donated a substantial part of his winnings to charity. A total of 79 players entered the event.

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Stars out in force for PokerStars "Ante Up for Africa" at EPT Grand Final - posted 28.4.09

The first ever Ante Up For Africa (AUFA) in Europe kicked off last night on the eve of the European Poker Tour Grand Final in Monte Carlo.

The star-studded event, which raised a total of €160,000 for the humanitarian mission in crisis-torn Darfur, featured a host of international sports and entertainment stars including rapper Nelly, French rapper Bruno "Kool Shen" Lopes, F1 racing driver Nico Rosberg, Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina, French rugby star Sebastian Chabal and England's Mike Tindall as well as UK TV presenter Kirsty Gallacher, , US R’n’B Star Christina Milian, singer songwriter The Dream, James Kyson Lee from "Heroes" and Jason Lewis from "Sex in the City".

Also playing in the €4,000 event were Team PokerStars Pros Daniel Negreanu, Victor Ramdin, Joe Hachem, Peter Eastgate, Dario Minieri, Vanessa Rousso and Greg Raymer.

French rugby star Sebastian Chabal, French sports commentator Patrick Chene, professional poker player Tony G and ex-England footballer Teddy Sheringham all made the final table alongside Team PokerStars Pros Luca Pagano, Dario Minieri, John Duthie, Daniel Negreanu and Isabelle Mercier.

The entire €160,000 prize pool from the tournament is being donated to Ante Up For Africa, with PokerStars donating a further €100,000. PokerStars will be awarding the winner of the tournament with a special prize package to the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas in January 2010.

More than 400,000 people have died and more than four million have lost their homes in Darfur since the conflict began. To date, Ante Up For Africa has raised closed $2 million for the cause.

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Battleship storms ahead at EPT Grand Final - posted 28.4.09

Battleship took off on Day 1a of the EPT Grand Final with a series of great promotions. Six French players won a trip to Monte Carlo to play ElkY simultaneously in the Kill ElkY promotion. "rice64" was the only player to win his match and gets a seat in the main event for his efforts.

Later in the day, in the Battle Boris promotion, German qualifiers were faced with the task of winning four consecutive heads-up Battleship matches - against tennis legend Boris Becker and three German Team Pros of their choice. "xXGlynn" was the only player to win all his matches - after beating Boris, Sandra Naujoks, Anton Allemann and Johanes Steindl. His reward was $40,000 cash and and a seat in the main event seat.

The $530 eight-player tournament kicked off with Mike "timex" McDonald ousted in the first round, but Shaun Deeb through to Round 2 - and still in the running for the $2,500 first prize.

Battleship players compete online while also sitting face-to-face. The format was first pioneered at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in 2006 and has been a popular fixture at both the PCA and the EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final ever since.

Battleship continues with loads more exciting events providing non-stop action 15 hours a day. As well as the now-familiar 64-player 'main event” Battleship match, the schedule includes 32, 16 and eight-player tournaments as well. There will also be a range of buy-ins - from $200 to $5,000 – and the addition of PLO and PLO/PLH events for the first time.

Players will also have plenty of opportunities to come along to the Battleship area at other times to play individual heads-up matches against their friends.

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* WORLD SERIES OF POKER and WSOP are trademarks of Harrah's License Company, LLC ("Harrah's"). Harrah's does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with PokerStars.com or its products, services, promotions or tournaments.

Rank	Name	TLB Points
1.	Luca Pagano	3902
2.	Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier	3354
3.	Sebastian Ruthenberg	3063
4.	Antony Lellouche	2887
5.	Johannes Strassmann	2519
6.	Jason Mercier	2320
7.	William Thorson	2301
8.	Dario Minieri	2227
9.	Mike McDonald	2208
10.	Joao Barbosa	2173

Rank	Name	Top Ten Cash
1.	Glen Chorny	$3,170,600
2.	Pieter de Korver	$3,008,852
3.	Poorya Nazari	$3,000,000
4.	Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier	$2,898,182
5.	Jason Mercier	$2,590,386
6.	Gavin Griffin	$2,429,103
7.	Sebastian Ruthenberg	$2,414,459
8.	Michael Martin	$2,397,730
9.	Denes Kalo	$2,308,870
10.	Constant Rijkenberg	$1,960,400

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