Season eight of the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) began in Tallinn, Estonia, and gave a title to yet another country as Ronny Kaiser became the first player from Switzerland to bring home a red spade EPT trophy – not to mention a cool €275,000 in cash for beating out a field of 282.
This represented a significant downturn on last year’s field of 420, which saw Danish pro Kevin Stani take down the top prize of €400,000.
However, a healthy turnout still meant a seven-figure prize pool and Kaiser certainly won’t be complaining about the €275,000 boost to his bankroll.
The Swiss high-stakes Omaha player had no trouble adjusting to the two-card game and beat Gregorz Cichocki heads-up to secure the title. In the final hand he called a 3-bet shove holding A-9o and was ahead against
-6d, making top pair on the flop and locking it up on the turn before adding a flourish to the victory by making two pair on the river.
Other notable finalists included British pro Stuart Fox, who wound up finishing in sixth place at the hands of 2008 EPT London High Roller runner-up Jani Sointula. Beforehand, PokerStars SCOOP 2011 Champion Sami “LarsLuzak” Kelopuro had busted in seventh place with a failed bluff into a straight.
In total, the final table saw players representing six countries with Finland having a dominating grip on the final eight – Sointula, Kelopuro and Arvi Vainionkulma all hailed from the Scandinavian nation.
The full final table places and payouts were as follows:
1. Ronny Kaiser €275,000
2. Gregorz Cichocki €180,000
3. Raigo Aasmaa €110,000
4. Jani Sointula €80,000
5. Stuart Fox €55,000
6. Erland Melsom €45,000
7. Sami Kelopuro €35,000
8. Arvi Vainionkulma €25,000
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