Just when many of us were looking to move beyond the joys of Easter and settle back into the old routine, there were plenty of people in Dublin still living it up. There is no doubt that Dublin is a place that likes to party 24/7 but with the Irish Open Poker Main Event taking place on Monday afternoon and evening, there was to be no early finish for the players. Of course, that is just the way that many poker players like it, so you wouldn’t get many complaints about what was on offer in Dublin.
One of the biggest elements of the Irish open was the Paddy Power Poker Sole Survivor title. This was given to the player that came through to the Main Event from a Paddy Power Poker satellite and lasted the longest. There were two players in the running for this in the final 7 players, so it shows once again that there is a great deal of talent qualifying for major poker events through these satellite events.
The winner of the Paddy Power Poker Sole Survivor title was Calvin Anderson and this weekend was certainly a lucrative payday. For being the longest lasting player, he picks up €50,000 and entry to next year’s WSOP and the Irish Open Main Event. That is a great range of prizes and when you think that Anderson also gets to take home the prize money for his final table finish, it has certainly been a lucrative Easter holiday for him.
Late night fun was had by the final five
At 10pm, there were still five players in the hunt for the Irish Open and the excitement was getting to everyone. The player at most immediate risk was Mark Davis, who had 1,380,000 chips. In fourth place sat Michael Farrelly who had 1,570,000 chips at his disposal and Namir Mohamed was in third place, with a chip count of 2,510,000.
The Sole Survivor Calvin Anderson was sitting in second place with 2,940,000 chips as well as the big wad of cash that was already secure. This meant that in the lead was Ian Simpson, who held 5,690,000 chips at this point. This definitely gave Simpson a fantastic start for the run-in but we’ve all played far too many poker games to know that these leads are not always insurmountable.
This was proven by the fact that Anderson exited in fifth place. However, any disappointment he may have had was eased with taking home a massive cheque which combined his Sole Survivor prize and his finishing place money. In fourth was Namir Mohamed and in third place was Mark Davis. This left two players and at the start of the heads up, Ian Simpson had a massive lead of 11,470,000 chips compared to Michael Farrelly who held 3,440,000.
It was therefore no surprise when Farrelly was quickly ground out of the event, taking home €141,500 which meant that Ian Simpson was the Irish Open champion, receiving €265,000 for his time and effort. That certainly made for a happy Easter for Simpson!