London Poker Festival – Day 5 Wrap
Saturday is here and with it the city is alive with the hustle and bustle of those enjoying the sights and sounds of London. On the casino floor we have seen an influx of players eager to make their mark on the festival, with a jam-packed line up of events set to tantalise the chip clickers and clackers throughout the day.
The day got underway with the London Women’s Championship, an event run by non-other than IPT’s brand ambassador Tanya Masters. With the prosecco flowing, gift bags and tasty treats the atmosphere at these events is always fantastic. This event had 34 entries bringing the prize pool to £5775. With Nikhila Sakinala, Shari Fitton and Louisa Plint who are regulars at KJ’s women’s meet-up at the Hippodrome to name a few of the field, the scene was set. As play progressed it was Janet Rayner who finished in 3rd taking home £990, in 2nd was Vanessa Colls who banked £1340 and taking home the trophy was her playing partner at the Granite Social Club, Scottish native Katy McAulay who banked £1865.
Before cards hit the felt, there was extra excitement as Silvia EMontini was announced as the lucky winner of the Facebook giveaway. In a lovely gesture from Kerryjane Craigie from the Hippodrome Cardroom, Katie Swift’s mum, Sue O’Connor, was also added into the mix as she’s been unwell recently. These gestures capture what makes the IPT community special … it’s not just about the cards, it’s about the people and the spirit of togetherness that makes these events truly memorable.
Next up was the London Main Event Day 1F which saw 137 entries signing up to this event. With London teams playing in the background there was friendly banter between local rivals as the goals were flying in. Ben Skinner, the Mystery Bounty winner, was in the field, along with regular crushers on the UK circuit Sebastian Jung and Thomas Bingham. As play progressed players began to fall by the wayside and in the end 23 went through. From this flight the biggest stacks brought forward were with Thomas Bingham who had 447,000, Iosif-Daniel Spulber who had 497,000, and the biggest bag was with Pui Ng who brought forward 512,000.
The London 250 commenced with a total of 46 entries signing up. With a mix of local talent and regulars from the IPT the atmosphere was fantastic from start to finish. As play progressed, we were left with the final table. Una Kelly, winner of NLH on Wednesday evening was in the mix but unfortunately bubbled out. In the end it was Simas Butikis who finished in 3rd with £1650. In 2nd place was Tove Kristiansen who took home £2350, she was runner-up in the NLH last night. The winner was Deptford local Kieran Collins who took home the trophy and £3350.
London Main Event Day 1G got underway, with 99 entries throwing their hats in the ring. With all hoping to last long enough so they could make it through to the final day. Nikhaila Sakmala, who had just come 3rd in the London Women’s Championship, headed straight over to have a go at the Main. Deniz Orhan who is 2nd in the PartyPoker Tour leaderboard and Stratford local was also in the mix. In the end 16 players went through to Day 2, the biggest stacks went to Stavros Tsourou who bagged up 365,000. Mark Southwood took forward 418,000 and the biggest stack of the flight was with Dongze Hao who had 571,000.
The Omaha 7 Max 4/5 Cards was the last event of the day with Stratford regulars Sam Acheampong and Jordan Caplan facing off against each other at the same table. In the end both were unable to make through to bank any money, but as always, they provided entertainment at the table throughout. In the end it was down to 3 players, all of which went all in on a hand together resulting in Shane Keary taking home the trophy and £2775. In 2nd was Ho Tai Peter Law who banked £1930 and in the 3rd was Vahid Amir Zahin who pocketed £1390.
Ladies and Gentlemen, IT’S TIME! With the final day of the festival and another stacked schedule for those unable to make through to the Main Event final, the climax of the London Poker Festival is set to be the Dogs Bollocks.
Stay tuned to livepokerupdates for all the action from the final day. –