Category: Live Poker Tournaments

The song about being off to Wembley has been sung by plenty of football fans over the years and it has definitely been a big hit this season. This is down to the fact that not only is the FA Cup final held at Wembley Stadium, the Champions League final is going to be held there this season too. This means that there is a lot of football fun making its way to the biggest stadium in the English capital but football is not the only activity that will get people out of their seats at Wembley.

Poker fun at the National Stadium

The International Stadium Poker Tour Wembley leg is a huge event that plenty of people were already looking forward to but the latest new should see a great deal more excitement. This is down to the fact that the Dusk Till Dawn poker name is going to guarantee that the winner will take away a minimum of 1million euros. This is exactly the sort of poker prize that poker players will look forward to and can ensure that there is a cracking payday to be gained. With Wembley Stadium being the venue where so many rich and famous superstars strut their stuff, it is only fitting that a poker player will be taking away a massive prize too.

There have been some concerns as to whether this event would take place or if it would live up to the billing but the fact that the DTD name is involved is definitely great news. When it comes to poker, it can be all too easy to get swept up in the hype but there are some poker names that can be relied upon. This means that all poker players for the event can look forward to playing for a million euros.

Even though some eyes in London on Sunday may have been on the North London Derby where once again Gareth Bale stepped up to the plate, there was a lot more exciting action taking place in the English capital. The final day of the GUKPT Main Event was taking place in The Vic and the remaining poker players were jostling for positions and those all-important poker chips.

There were just over 20 players left in the mix on the final day and the eventual winner was Martin Bader. The leader coming into the final day was Chiraag Thanki who held a sizeable chip lead over his rivals but as so often, the momentum built up in the penultimate day was not enough to get a player over the line when it came to the final day. In the end, Thanki came seventh and will need to console himself with the £13,100 prize that he took home with him.

Big money for big poker players

David Barraclough was the unlucky player finishing in second place but there is some consolation for him in the fact that he takes home the most money. His £62,000 winnings is £6,000 more than the money received by the actual winner and if money is your main motivation it is not always important to win poker tournaments, just be involved in the mix!

However, Martin Bader is hardly going to be upset at the amount of money he gets to take home and of course, he takes the acclaim of being London GUKPT Main Event Champion of 2013. There may come a time when all of the money is used up and gone but the title is something that will never be taken away from Bader.

University is often the best time of life for many people and it is certainly a great time to get your head down and do some studying. Of course, you don’t always want to waste your time by studying unimportant stuff in the classroom, it seems as though many students are spending their time going over the finer arts of poker. Well, this is probably as relevant and as useful for students as the majority of their degrees so why shouldn’t they have some fun while they learn new skills that may benefit them in life.

Of course, for many UK students, playing poker is not just a casual past-time to while away the hours between lectures, for many, it is an activity that brings fun, some money and the opportunity to travel. It is serious business and this can be shown in the fact that the UK Student Poker Championships is not far away from celebrating its 10th year.

Students and poker have a fine tradition

It was back in the heady days of 2004 that students from St Andrews University decided to create a poker tournament for students across the UK. The tournament has gone from strength to strength, becoming the biggest poker event that is only open to students. This year, the event will be hosted in the Ricoh Arena in

Coventry and the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour is a major sponsor of the event.
This may well see a lot more money in the event but there is no doubt that it will bring a lot more prestige to the event, which can only be a good thing. With that 10th anniversary to come next year, some added awareness of the event this year can only help to set things up for a massive poker party.

In sport, international boundaries are no longer what they used to be. A perfect example of this is the fact that the Tour De France makes various detours into other countries and in 2014, the race will be starting in Yorkshire! This may not be the picturesque French mountainside that people normally associate with the epic cycling race but it just goes to show how things are stretching out. In a way, it is fun that this is happening but underneath it all, there is clearly a marketing focus to create awareness and draw more people to an event or tournament.

Poker players have to tour

Even though the Norwegian Championship is one of the most respected live poker events in Europe, it seems as though the organisers are looking to add some more excitement and drama to the event. Then again, perhaps they are just looking for a great party because they have decided to bring the event to Dublin and the event will coincide with St Patrick’s Day! The CityWest Hotel in Dublin is the venue for the event which will run between the 16th of March and the 24th of March.

While the idea of hosting the Norwegian Championships outside of Norway sounds strange, it is actually common practice. This is due to the fact poker is banned by the Norwegian authorities, so it is perfectly understandable that the Norwegian poker community is keen to celebrate their love of the game but also avoid arrest at the same time! The Championship is only open to Norwegian nationals so there will be an influx for this event.

There is definitely something about Dublin that appeals to the Norwegians as the CityWest Hotel in Dublin was the venue for the 2009 and 2012 finals too. The Championship has been held in Riga in Latvia, with this city last hosting the Championship in 2011 and in England where the famous Dusk Till Dawn venue hosted the Championship in 2008.

The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour has been long awaited and even though the first couple of days of the opening leg have already seen some great poker action take place, Thursday the 28th of February is the day that poker players have been waiting for. The Victoria Grosvenor Casino found in the heartbeat of London is host to the first of a dozen stop-offs during this tour and there is no doubt that the Main Event, beginning on Thursday, is where the main focus lies.

The satellite events have been busy, frantic and filled with poker excitement in the lead-up to the Main Event which promises to be one of the most exciting poker events of the first half of the year. The organisers will be hoping to match and exceed the success of last year’s event where 315 players took part in the Main Event. Instantly recognisable poker names and players like Victoria Coren (a player called Victoria playing in the Victoria, no doubt that fact gets pointed out to her quite a lot), James Akenhead and Praz Bansi were in the running but all missed out on the top prize.

Local poker player pulls through

This is because it was a local London lad that managed to scoop £84,310 as the first prize with Robin Keston coming out on top.

With the final day of the Main Event scheduled to start at noon on Sunday, there is an awful lot of poker to be played before we find out who the 2013 winner of the GUKPT opening leg is but there is sure to be an awful lot of excitement and twists and turns before that happens. There may be seven different poker events taking place this week during the GUKPT at the Victoria but when it comes down to it, all eyes are on the Main Event.

UK and Irish poker players have an opportunity to have a busy, productive and possibly even lucrative weekend this weekend if they can make it over to Dublin. A weekend in Dublin always seems like a great idea but there will be no late night drinking sessions or trawls around the many bars this weekend for the dedicated poker player. This is down to the fact that the city is playing host to the Racing Aces Super 2013 festival. The name may not instantly tell you that a UK and Ireland poker jamboree is in store but if you make your way to the Citywest Hotel in Dublin you will find out all about what is on offer.

In total there will be 11 tournaments taking place over the long weekend but if you were looking for diversity, you will have to look long and hard to find it. Of the 11 big game tournaments taking place, 10 of them are Hold ‘Em poker tournaments. This isn’t unusual, Hold ‘Em poker is by far and away the most popular poker choice for players these days but it you want a little bit of diversity, don’t give up. There is a Pot Limit Omaha game taking place too so if you need to take a break from Hold ‘Em or if your skills lie in a PLO game, you will have the chance to strut your stuff.

The Main Event is the big poker draw

Friday night sees the Poker Aces Team Challenge grab the attention but for those players that are instantly drawn to the Main Event, Saturday at midday is the time to look out for. Last year, a grand total of 877 players turned out for the Main Event and the players were battling it out for a prize pool of over 260,000 euros. There has been a lot of publicity and positive talk about the event and the organisers are said to be quietly confident of getting over a thousand players on board for the Main Event this time around. That could see the prize pool swell even further so you are in with a shout of playing for a lot of cash if you get involved.

The opening leg of the 2013 GUKPT is looming large and even though there are 11 legs and the Grand Final to look forward to, the curtain raiser of the season is definitely something that grabs the attention.
Edgware Road in London is the place to be for the start of the tour as the Grosvenor Victoria Casino hosts the opening event. The event starts on 24th of February and runs all the way through until the 3rd of March, so there is plenty of poker action to look forward to.

A lot of poker fun to look forward to

If your main focus is going to fall on the Main Events, you can have a few more days to prepare because the first Main Event doesn’t take place until Thursday the 28th of February. The £1,000 No Limit Hold ‘Em has a guaranteed pool of £200,000 and is set to last 4 days. With a mid-day start-time on Thursday, this could be an event that tests poker player’s skills and endurance to a great level but it is the sort of poker event that will get the season off to a bang.

If you don’t fancy paying the £1,000 buy-in and the £70 registration fee, you may want to come along earlier in the week and see if you can play your way through the various satellite events. There are going to be plenty of opportunities for players to book their seat at the Main Event starting from Sunday the 24th of February. If you believe that you can battle through the pack or you just want to save money while having poker fun, this could be the route that appeals to you!

Either way, it is sure to be a great start to the 2013 GUKPT.