April 2007 Archives

This week's Sunday Million was one of the best in recent memory. The 12-hour marathon saw the return of amichaiKK to the Sunday Million final table (his second this month!) and a lot of exceptional final table play. MattSuspect, who suffered several beats just before the final table, rallied back to a first place finish. Congratulations to all the players. Final table results are below.

PokerStars Sunday Million Results
(based on finishing order and a heads-up chop that left $30,000 for the winner)

1. MattSuspect (United States) $223,637.17
2. gunning4you (United States) $175,818.83
3. dazzy2004 (Denmark) $89,136.00
4. AUSSIE_JASE (Australia) $73,440.00
5. Dubner (United States) $59,040.00
6. Luie Sojo (United States) $44,640.00
7. Dogg11 (Canada) $31,392.00
8. Azzel (Sweden) $19,872.00
9. amichaiKK (Israel) $11,520.00

It's been 15 years since Europe's biggest AIDS fundraiser, the Life Ball, kicked off. More than a decade later, there is still need for more research and the Life Ball continues. This year, PokerStars is serving as one of the events chief sponsors. PokerStars is donating $100,000 and $1 for every charity freeroll entry it gets in the run-up to the event. What's more, if you play in one of the freerolls, you have a chance to attend the gala event in Vienna, Austria.

You can now play in PokerStars' daily "AIDS Charity" Freerolls which run at 2pm EST (8pm CET). Players who place 1-27 in each freeroll will play in an online final scheduled for May 6th and May 20th, where they will have the chance to win an exclusive Life Ball package. For full package details, visit the PokerStars Life Ball freerolls page. These special freerolls are located under the "Tourney/Freerolls" tab in the PokerStars lobby.

For full information on the 2007 Life Ball, visit the PokerStars Life Ball page.

Poker is an important part of all of our lives. However, in light of the all-too-real tragedy at Virginia Tech, it's a lot easier to see that our game is just that...a game. When faced with the insanity of real life, it's sometimes hard to figure out how to help.

PokerStars and its players are stepping up to help the people of Virginia Tech with a special fundraiser. Here is a snippet from the announcement:

This Saturday, 28 April 2007 at 3:00pm eastern U.S. time, PokerStars will host a tournament to raise money for the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund. The Fund has been established by Virginia Tech to cover expenses including, but not limited to: grief counseling, memorials, communication expenses, comfort expenses, and incidental needs of those affected by the tragedy.

You can find this tournament under the Tourney/Special tab on PokerStars, under the name Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund - $20 fundraiser. $0.01 from each entry will go toward the tournament's prize pool. The remaining $19.99 from each entry will be matched by PokerStars and then sent to the Fund. Registration is open now.

For those wishing to contribute directly to the Fund, information on doing so is available on the Virginia Tech website.

If you are one of those people who have been trying to come up with a way to help, this is one way you can use your bankroll for good.

The PokerStars Sunday Million again proved why it has become appointment poker for the world's best. More than 6,700 players signed up for the $1.3 million event. In just eleven hours, the Netherland's SvZff put them all away, pocketing more than $160,000 after a three-way deal.

Here's how the action played out.

Cashcondo was the first to go when he open-pushed with a pair of threes. Anywhat called with pocket fives and sent cashcondo out with an $8,300 win in ninth place.

Bad Rodin caught a bad river when he got pocket jacks in against chaimr's naked ace. An ace on the river put Bad Rodin out in eighth with an extra $13,000 in his bankroll.

Matilaro went out when he couldn't find a way to beat chaimr's 55 on a [7d 6s Ac 8d] [2s] board. Nonetheless, a $22,000 win is a pretty good return on his investment.

ShiP ThA $$$ was looking to get his chips in and re-raised all-in with 88 after a raise from SvZff. WiCane woke up with TT and got all his chips in as well. No miracle on the board and ShiP ThA $$$ won $30,000 for sixth place.

Gator615 suffered a rough beat when he got his AK in against SvZff's KQ on a K44 flop. A queen on the turn and no ace on the river put Gator315 out in fifth place for $43,000.

Just before the discussion of a deal, chaimr's pocket aces got cracked by WiCane's 67 on a K67 flop. The deal was immediately canceled and though he managed to double up once, chaimr was out a few hands later, earning more than $56,000 for his finish.

With chaimr's exit, talk of a deal resumed. After some brief negotiation, the players worked out a chip count chop and got back to work. Anywhat was out shortly thereafter, running his 9T into WiCane's KK.

Heads up play lasted just ten minutes. WiCane did his best to battle SvZff's big stack, but in the end his AK couldn't outrun SvZff's KT on a ten-high flop.

Here are the final table results.

PokerStars Sunday Million Results
Based on finishing order and a three-way deal that left $30,000 for first place

1. SvZff (Netherlands) $163,974.12
2. WiCane (United States) $113,000.00
3. Anywhat (Austria) $90,000.00
4. chaimr (Canada) $56,540.40
5. Gator615 (United State)s $43,213.02
6. ShiP ThA $$$ (United States) $30,962.60
7. mantilaro (Chile) $22,212.30
8. Bad Rodin (France) $13,462.00
9. cashcondo (United States) $8,346.44

I remember when PokerStars introduced the VIP Club and its Supernova concierge service. I asked someone at PokerStars privately, "So, really, what do you think people are going to use that for?"

The answer was both intriguing and a little mysterious: "Just about anything they want."

Oh, really? From time to time, I hear stories about what players are using their FPPs for. One player used his FPPs to buy a guitar. Another bought a kayak. And , in my personal favorite to date, one player used FPPs to pay for a wedding.

All of that, I think, is pretty cool. However, I just learned today about one of the neatest FPP transformations yet. Supernova bouh just turned a bunch of FPPs into an African safari.

Bouh took a ton of pictures on the trip. The one above is nice and the rest are just as amazing. To check them out, see bouh's Picasa Album from the trip.

For more information on on the concierge service at PokerStars, check out the PokerStars VIP Club FPP store.

This week's PokerStars Sunday Million featured a lot of familiar faces competing for a monster prize pool. The winner, James "jcamby33" Campbell, struck a deal heads up and walked away with a monster $180,000. He agreed to tell us a little more about himself and give us a behind-the-scenes look at how he took down the world's biggest weekly tournament.

A lot of people know who you are already. What was your life before poker?

I have lived in Marlboro, MA for my entire life. I am 24 years old and I am a professional poker player now. I lived away at college at Umass-Dartmouth for four years from 2001-2005. After I graduated in 2005, I immediately went into the "real world" and started my career as a financial advisor. It lasted about nine months until I decided to leave work before the WSOP last year and haven't looked back since. When I am not playing poker, I am using hanging out with my fiancee, friends, and family. I spend a great deal of time with all of them and that is really important to me. I also enjoy playing basketball which I played throughout high school and college. I was one of the leading scorers in the state of Massachusetts my senior year of high school, averaging nearly 30 points per game. I went on to play four years of varsity basketball at Umass-Dartmouth where I had a great college experience. I was a jock in high school, playing basketball, baseball, golf, and football throughout high school. I still enjoy getting out on the golf course a couple days a week during the summer.

How did you get started playing poker?

I began playing poker about three years ago when I come home from college for Christmas and I saw my father playing online at PokerStars. He taught me the basics and since then I have been in love with the game. He's still not very good. I started just like anyone else deposited 50 bucks playing $5 sit and go's. I was your typical fish for the first couple months. I finally started to develop a little understanding of the game by that summer and was able to win my first MTT for like 1k. While I was a senior at college, I made enough to live comfortably without having to get a job. After my senior year, I went into the finance field doing financial advising. I decided to leave that job and play poker full time right before the WSOP last year. I have been playing professionally for the last nine months now.

How does this win compare to your already successful poker career?

This is my biggest win by far. I have won 35,000 multiple times. I have won the 100 rebuy and 200 rebuy on Sundays a couple times each for around 35k. I have also won that amount in a couple other tournaments at different sites.

So, what does a guy do with an extra $180,000 in his bankroll?

I plan on using the money to buy myself a Cadillac Escalade that I have always wanted. The money will also make buying a house this summer a little easier. The rest will just go to my bankroll. I have had a good amount of success through poker, so I already have an idea of how to handle money wisely.

Give us an idea what it was like as you took down the Sunday Million

I was actually playing all of the Sunday tournaments at my buddy's house. There were about 6 of us over playing throughout the day, but by the time the final table started there was only 3 of us left. The others all had work early in the am, so ended up watching the rest of the tourney at their houses. The last hour was exciting. Whenever I won a big hand, we were running around the room giving each other high fives.

The first person I called when I left my friends house was my fiance and left her a message telling her how much money I won. By the time I ended up winning the tournament, it was 3am and most of my friends were all sleeping by that point. However, when I got home, both my parents were up and were very excited for me. My father is my biggest fan and is constantly watching me play. My family and fiancee have all been very supportive when dealing with my life as a "professional poker player." Today I have received hundreds of phone calls from friends and other poker players congratulating me on my win.

There were already a lot of people who knew the screen name jcamby33. Now, it's impossible to ignore. Jcamby33 has won $180,000 in the PokerStars Sunday Million, finishing first out of more than 7,000 players. Final table results are below.

PokerStars Sunday Million Results
Results based on finishing order and two-way deal that left $30,000 for first place

1. jcamby33 (United States) $180,000.00
2. chick x (Canada) $121,421.60
3. cpfactor (United States) $71,090.00
4. SurreyStud (United Kingdom) $56,872.00
5. jonnybsting (United States) $42,654.00
6. cjwill33 (Costa Rica) $31,279.60
7. ValuePlay (Sweden) $22,037.90
8. htd112 (United States) $12,796.20
9. CalBandGreat (United States) $8,388.62

After Seth Moody took down the Easter Sunday Million, we thought it would be nice if we could introduce you to him. So, here's a little bit about the guy we call BrainGuy...in his own words.

I'm 23 and was born and raised in Canton, Ohio. I went to school in Baltimore at Johns Hopkins and graduated last May with a degree in neuroscience (hence the screen name). I supported myself during college by playing poker part-time, but it wasn't until last summer--at which point I had no idea what I wanted to do post-grad and was starting to make significant dough playing online--that I decided to just play poker for the time being.

I've made most of my money playing sit-n-go's, multi-table tourneys, and limit hold'em. I bought directly into this particular tournament for $215. I've had several 5 figure cashes, but this was, by far, my largest cash -- by almost $100K.

The final table was relatively normal and went by pretty quickly. I was pretty calm the whole time, but I did throw back a couple of drinks on one of the breaks to ensure that I would continue to play fearlessly. I was playing for one of the top couple spots (as opposed to just trying to inch up into higher money spots) and had no interest in discussing a deal until there were 3 or fewer players remaining.

Once it got heads-up I had a huge chip lead and decided, at that point, to just play to attempt to win it outright. However, my opponent doubled through me and, even though I still had a 2:1 chip advantage, I thought it was prudent to look at the numbers. After a short bit of negotiating my opponent and I cut a deal which ensured me $140K, and it was only a couple hands afterward that I took him out and garnered the extra $30K for winning.

Right after I won I didn't really celebrate much. I was alone in my one bedroom condo (I find that I play my best when I'm by myself and can zone in) and it was close to three in the morning. I called up my brother, who was still awake, and talked about it with him a bit. But then I just lit up a "victory cigar" on my balcony and tried to let "$170,000" sink in. I'm sure there will be more gregarious partying and celebration in the days and weeks to come, though.

I'm not sure what I'll do with my winnings. Some of it will be added to my poker bankroll but by no means all of it. A large chunk will go to the IRS, which sucks. As far as a "splurge" purchase, I may look into buying a new car.

It was an awesome experience and definitely my biggest poker achievement to date.

Lastly, I'd like to make a shout out to my boys Chris, Stevie, Donnie, Seth, Dave, Keahnan and Eddie. I clearly wouldn't have had this great success without the $5 home games that I've played with these guys.

The holiday weekend didn't keep people away from the world's biggest weekly poker tournament. More than 6,600 players sat down for the PokerStars Sunday Million and competed for more than $1.3 million in prize money. The final table played out fast. When BrainGuy and amichaiKK got heads-up, they cut a quick deal and locked in six-figure paydays. BrainGuy walked away with the win and more than $170,000. Final table results are below.

PokerStars Sunday Million Results
Results based on finishing order and two-way deal that left $30,000 for first place

1. BrainGuy (United States) $170,302.38
2. amichaiKK (Israel) $120,000.00
3. arulx (Australia) $71,546.86
4. Stimpy444 (Germany) $55,750.80
5. IBluffUOut4 (Canada) $42,609.54
6. section2006 (Australia) $30,530.20
7. rdtedm (United States) $21,902.10
8. toetagU (United States) $13,274.00
9. SuperTommy (Norway) $8,229.88

Online qualifiers pocket nearly $5m from Europe's richest poker event

by Conrad Brunner

As you may have heard, PokerStars qualifier Gavin Griffin won the EPT Grand Final on Monday. He picked up the top prize of 1,825,010 euros (approximately $2.4m) after qualifying via a $240 Double Shoot Out on PokerStars.

Nice one Gavin. You proved once again that you are an outstanding poker player, adding the EPT Grand Final title to the WSOP bracelet you picked up in 2004. To find out more about a remarkable person, click here.

But the PokerStars story does not end there. There were three other PokerStars qualifiers on the final table -- 3rd place finisher Soren Kongsgaard of Denmark (610,550 euro), American Josh Prager (5th for 391,500 euro) and Britain's Steve Jelinek (6th, 305,270 euro), who together demonstrated one statistically verifiable fact: PokerStars qualifiers rock!

Let me explain that in a little more detail. The number of players in the overall field was 706, making this comfortably the biggest European poker tournament ever. A total of 192 were PokerStars qualifiers, with 144 cash qualifiers and 48 winning their seats via Frequent Player Point. In total, the PokerStars qualifiers represented less than one third (27.2 per cent) of the field. Yet when the six day tourney got down to the last 32, there were still 16 PokerStars horses in the race, now representing 50 per cent of the field. Not bad at all. Then, when you then add in those fantastic final table performances, you see the slice of the overall prize pool heading towards the PokerStars qualifiers rising to a seriously impressive 55.3 per cent. That chunk adds up to over 3.6m euros -- $4.9m -- into the pockets of PokerStars qualifiers.

Once again, you guys over performed. And it's not like the opposition in Monte Carlo was exactly soft. Here are just some of the star names that you had to do battle with in Monte Carlo: Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer, Chris Moneymaker, Barry Greenstein, Isabelle Mercier, Bill Chen, Phil Hellmuth, Andy Black, Carlos Mortensen, Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius, John Gale, Marcel Luske, Ram Vaswani (the all time EPT Tournament Leaderboard number one), Noah Boeken, Martin de Kniff, Lee Nelson et cetera, et cetera. Oh, and I forgot to add all the EPT regular season winners, including Victoria Coren and Roland de Wolfe. In short, this tournament was as tough as it gets.

In 2006, PokerStars qualifiers -- led by winner Jeff "Yellowsub86" Williams -- took the top four places at the EPT Grand Final, so clearly you take a liking to Monte Carlo! For those itching to get into qualifying action, the WSOP satellites are up and running. As these statistics show, PokerStars qualifiers can head for Las Vegas with hope AND expectation in their hearts.

For full details of PokerStars qualifiers at EPT events, click here.

To see the update EPT All-Time Tournament Leaderboard, click here.

Here is the full roll of honour from the EPT Grand Final, Monte Carlo:

1 -- Gavin Griffin -- USA -- 1,825,010
3 -- Soren Kongsgaard -- Denmark -- 610,550
5 -- Josh Prager -- USA -- 391,550
6 -- Steve Jelinek -- UK -- 305,270
10 -- Alexander Kim -- USA -- 99,550
12 -- David Peters -- USA -- 66,360
14 -- Jan Veit -- Germany -- 49,770
16 -- Christian Neirinck -- Belgium -- 39,820
17 -- Kristof De Smedt -- Belgium -- 33,180
18 -- Dean Sanders -- USA -- 33,180
19 -- Roi Elmaliah -- Israel -- 33,180
21 -- Simon Johansson -- Sweden -- 33,180
23 -- Johannes Strassman -- Germany -- 33,180
27 -- Jacob Larsson -- Sweden -- 26,550
28 -- Hernan Zango -- Costa Rica -- 26,550
37 -- Ernst Hermans -- Netherlands -- 23,230
42 -- Atanas Gueorguiev -- Bulgaria -- 19,910
46 -- Halldor Sverrisson -- Iceland -- 19,910
49 -- David Sonelin -- Sweden -- 16,590
56 -- Sasa Biorac -- Germany -- 16,590
57 -- William Hill -- UK -- 13,270
58 -- David Sykes -- Canada -- 13,270
62 -- Jonathan Little -- US -- 13,270

by Brad Willis and Simon Young

Gavin "wsop2005" Griffin may have showed up with a frivolously pink-hued hairdo. He may have kept on his boyish smile and joked around with his fellow players. He may have sneaked to the rail to share a kiss with his girlfriend. He may have done all those things that might indicate he was just in it for the fun.

Anyone who thought that, though, would've been making a mistake. The young man had been sick all day. Even from the rail, you could see him sniffle and wearing under the week-long event. Still, he held strong. Gavin Griffin, the PokerStars qualifier and one-time youngest WSOP bracelet winner, showed the whole of Europe he is a professional. And now he is a professional who is more than $2 million richer.

The event itself was unlike anything anyone had seen in Europe. The venue looked like a planetarium. The tournament was paying bigger than most players had ever seen outside of Las Vegas. The side action (we heard reports of €40,000 SNGs) was bigger than ever. The success of PokerStars qualifiers was proof of the online world's skill. In total, 246 of the 706 players made it here to Monte Carlo as PokerStars qualifiers to experience the trip of a lifetime. Sixteen of the final 32 runners were here courtesy of PokerStars -- and four of them made it all the way through to the final table. What's more, this event was held in one of the most luxurious places in the world.



Here's how the final table players stacked up as they headed into final table play.

Seat 1: Ram Vaswani (UK) 432,000
Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (UK--PokerStars qualifier) 758,000
Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 1,742,000
Seat 4: Andy Black (Ireland) 683,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark--PokerStars qualifier) 1,612,000
Seat 5: Josh Prager (USA--PokerStars qualifier) 1,593,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA--PokerStars qualifier) 2,597,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondal (Norway) 1,203,000

Ram Vaswani announced his intentions from the very beginning. He didn't have a lot of chips and he wanted more. Soft-spoken as he is, he made his plan clear in another way--all-in on the first hand. He didn't get action that time. Four hands later, though, he was ready to play again.

Ram raised to 70K in mid-position and Marc Karam called from the button. Both blinds folded and the flop came out 445 with two diamonds. Both players checked. The turn was a ten. Ram checked, Marc bet 70K, and Ram moved all-in. He got a very quick call from Marc. Ram showed JT of diamonds with top pair and a flush draw. Marc showed KT. Ram needed jack or diamond to win...or a ten, ace, or four for the split. That was just the fifth hand of the day and the first flop we'd seen here. It spelled Ram's end. He exited in 8th place for €159,270.


Ram Vaswani -- 8th place -- €159,270

Andy Black didn't look as though he was ready to give up. He had a rail full of green-hatted buddies. He was happy to joke about the number of chips moving to Marc Karam on his right.

"It's one-way traffic at the moment, boys," Andy Black down at the parade of chips moving into Karam's stack.

On the last hand of the day's first level, Andy Black saw all his chips march away. On a flop of 883, Andy check-raised Kristian all-in. After just a brief moment of thought, Kristian called. Andy flipped up a pair of sevens. He shook his head when he saw Kristian's pair of jacks. No miracle seven on the turn or river and Andy Black departed 7th place, earning €238,910.


Andy Black -- 7th place -- €238,910

During the break, Steve Jelinek stepped outside to cool off with his girlfriend, Irina. It was a private moment and one we reported chose not listen in on. He came here hearing an upcoming corporate merger could mean the end of his day job. A big won here might have allayed a lot of those concerns.

Just back from the break, Steve came in for a raise and got a re-raise from Marc Karam. Steve moved all-in and Karam called. Steve showed pocket nines to Karam's pocket jacks. The board ran out KT7/2/J and Steve was eliminated in sixth, earning €305,270.


Steve Jelinek -- 6th place -- €305,270

PokerStars qualifier Josh Prager was starting 2007 out in style. After taking a year off to spend time with his new baby, Prager got back into poker and cashed in the Aussie Millions. His day started badly after having to fold his hands with lots of money already in the pot. Finally, he had chipped down and needed to find a double-up hand. Holding 7-7, he called Soren Kongsgaard's 85,000 opening raise. The flop was 8-2-2 rainbow. Soren bet out 200,000, Josh moved all-in over the top and was called quickly by the Dane. Soren showed 10-10, a mile ahead of Josh's pocket sevens. The turn and river, an eight and a jack, brought no miracle seven. Josh took home €391,550.


Josh Prager -- 5th place -- €391,550

Four-handed so fast, there was some thought the game would slow down a little bit. Not so. Griffin came in for a raise to 80K under the gun. It was folded to Soren in the big blind. He made it another 120K to go. Gavin announced, "All-in." Soren did not think long before calling with pocket jacks. Gavin showed QQ. The board ran out AA5/K/3. Soren fell down to around 800,000 and Gavin moved up close to four million chips.

Players headed to dinner with chip stacks that looked like this:

Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 4,148,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark, PokerStars qualifier) 845,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA, PokerStars qualifier) 3,896,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondaln (Norway) 1,676,000

Shortly after play resumed, Gavin tried to get rid of Soren. They got it all-in with Gavin's AJ vs. Soren's 88. No ace or jack came on board and Soren got a key double up when he needed it. Gavin's luck didn't improve in the next few minutes. He lost about 1.2 million chips to Marc after calling a 700K river bet on 3sTdQc/6d/Jd board. Marc showed him the king-high flush and Gavin mucked.

However, it would not be long before we were heads up.

Gavin Griffin and Kristian Kjondal saw a flop of 6-9-4. Gavin then bet 165,000, Kristian moved all in over the top, and Gavin called. It was 4-4 for Gavin, and 8-9 for a pair for Kristian. The turn was 5, giving The Dane a straight draw, but the river was a king. Kristian left with a healthy €471,180.


Kristian Kjondal -- 4th place -- €471,180

Gavin, now with the chip lead, went to work on Soren's stack. His end was a battle of the blinds, with Soren calling from the small blind, and Gavin checking. The flop was 5-4-6, and both players checked. The turn was an ace, Soren checked, Gavin bet 200,000 and Soren moved all in. He got an instant call. Soren turned over 9-10 for just ten high. Gavin, meanwhile, had A-J for top pair. The river would change nothing, and Soren, from Denmark, left with €610,500.


Soren Kongsgaard -- 3rd place -- €610,500

Left heads up, Marc Karam and Gavin Griffin settled in for a lengthy heads up match. Having dispatched their fellow players rather quickly, they were both left with enough chips to play for a long while. After playing for an hour, they sat basically even in chips. After a break, they came back and traded a million chips back and forth for a while. Neither player, however, gave up much ground. It took until the end of the 25,000/50,000/5,000 level for the final hand to play out.

Gavin made it 150,000 to go pre-flop and Marc re-raised to 400,000. Gavin called. The flop came 3-2-4. Marc pushed out a bet of 500,000. Gavin thought for just a few seconds before raising to 2 million. The room suddenly felt like it does just before a huge electrical storm in the American Midwest. The skies opened when Marc announced, "All-in."

Gavin, still with the sniffles, looked like he was in pain. He had Marc covered by only about 500,000. After about two minutes of thought, he said, "You have the best hand."

"You're calling," Marc asked. We couldn't tell if he was incredulous or happy.

"Yeah, I call," Gavin said.

Marc forcefully put his 4-7 on the table. Top pair, seven kicker. Gavin showed K-5. He may not have thought he was in such good shape. With fourteen outs twice, he was in good shape. The turn, though, suddenly didn't look as good for the pink-haired pro. it was a three. The river seemed to come down slow. But just by looking at the boy's faces, it was clear what had happened. The river was a king, and just like that, Gavin Griffin had won the EPT Grand Final. Marc Karam, who everyone agrees played a stellar game here, finished in second place for €1,061,820.


Marc Karam -- 2nd place -- €1,061,820

Gavin, who said he expects to win every tournament he enters, still gave a lot of credit to his opponents and girlfriend.

"I've been sick all day, and I'm really tired, but I've had the support of my girlfriend here, who has been fantastic," Gavin said. "It's not the most exciting thing to watch every day, so thank you to her. Marc played great. It was a hell of a move on that last hand, but by the time he moved all in I had to call."

Griffin actually qualified on PokerStars for the EPT Grand Final on the same day he qualifier for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. There, he confesses that he didn't play very well. Here, however, was a different story.

Griffin came to both win this event and support the a breast cancer charity walk. PokerStars donated $15,000 to his charity and matched all donations from PokerStars players 100%. Griffin said, he was able to acheive both goals at once.

"This tournament's structure was awesome, just incredible. It was my first visit to Europe, and you can be assured I will be coming back," he said. "I have been supporting the breast cancer charity here because when my girlfiend was 21, she suffered from it. In September we will be doing a 39-mile charity walk over two days as we thought it was important to try and give something back, and hopefully help women in the future."

Congratulations to Gavin Griffin on his amazing win.





Goodnight, from Monte Carlo and the EPT Grand Final.



Many thanks to everyone who helped out on the blog this week. It would not have been possible without all your help --Brad

12:16am--Gavin Griffin wins EPT Grand Final!!!!

An amazing hand played out at the very end of this level. Gavin made it 150K to go pre-flop, Marc made it 400K, and Gavin called. The flop came 3-2-4. Marc Made it 500K, Gavin raised to 2 million, amd Marc almost immediately pushed all in. Gavin looked like he was in pain. he had Marc covered by only about 500K. After about two minutes of thought, he said, "You have the best hand." And then he called.

Marc showed 4-7 for a pair of fours. Gavin showed K-5 for the open ender with two overs. The turn was a 3. The river..........a king. And Gavin Griffin has won the EPT Grand Final. A full report will be out soon.

12:04am--Gavin has pulled away a bit in the last 30 minutes, but this tense heads-up battle is far from over. Both are playing it strong, with raises and re-raises taking pots down. Last count Gavin had 6.5 million, Marc 4.3 million. I hope the organisers have booked this arena for long enough - we could be here for some time.

11:33pm--And a swing back close to even for Marc Karam. Gavin came in for a raise to 125K and Marc called. The flop came 9-6-5. Marc checked, Gavin bet 225K, and Marc called. The turn was a nine and both players checked. The river was a ten. Marc bet out 800K. Gavin thought for a bit before calling. Marc showed him 9-6 for the turned full house. Chips now stand at 5.2 million for Marc, 5.4 million for Gavin.

11:20pm--Gavin Griffin takes a big chip lead after winning another monster pot. This time he raised up to 125,000 pre-flop, called by Marc. Flop came J-6-J. Marc check-calls Gavin's 195,000. Turn an A, Marc check-calls 460,000. River an 8: Marc checks, Gavin bets 800,000 and, after some chip counting and weighing up of options, Marc called. Gavin had J-4, Marc mucked. Gavin now has 7.25 million to Marc's 3.4 million.

11:11pm--This time it's Gavin's turn to bring in a big one. Gavin made it 125K to go, Marc raised it to 400, Gavin called. With 800K in the pot, they saw a flop of 5-7-5. Marc bet 500K and Gavin called. The turn brought a three and both players checked. The river was another three. Marc checked, Gavin bet 700K, and Marc thought for a long while before folding. Advantage, Gavin.

Marc 4.9M
Gavin 5.7M

10:43pm--Marc Karam rakes in a huge pot. He raised on the big blind to 150,000, called by Gavin. The flop came 10-5-Q, Marc bet 300,000, Gavin re-raised to 700,000 - then Marc made it another one million. It was too much for Gavin, who mucked. There are more swings in the heads-up battle than a playground.

10:43pm--Back from break, lots of play for both stacks. We'll see how it goes.

10:32pm--We're on a 10 minute break. We'll come backk to 25,000/50,000/5,000. At the moment, Gavin Griffin and Marc Karam are nearly even in chips.

Marc 5,120,000
Gavin 5,410,000





Blind Level 20,000/40,000/4,000

9:57pm--We are heads up! Soren Kongsgaard has gone in third place after first having his stack nibbled away by Gavin Griffin - then gobbled up completely. The end was a battle of the blinds, with Soren calling from the small blind, and Gavin checking. The flop was 5-4-6, and both players checked. The turn was an ace, Soren checked, Gavin bet 200,000 and Soren moved all in. Instant call, and Soren turned over 9-10 for just ten high. Gavin, meanwhile, had A-J for top pair. The river would change nothing, and Soren, from Denmark, leaves with €610,500.

Canada's Marc Karam has the chip lead as the final two go head to head. He has about 6 million, compared to Gavin's 4.6 million.


Soren Kongsgaard -- 3rd place -- €610,500

9:43pm--After a lot of little pots, we've happened upon a big one. Marc Karam just took down about a 2.5 million chip pot. It's three-handed to a raise and a 3s-Td-Qc flop. All three players checked. On a 6d turn, Gavin checked, Marc bet 300K, Soren folded, and Gavin called. The river was the Jd. Gavin checked, Marc bet 700K. Gavin thought for a long while before, with a look of resignation said, "Call." Marc flipped over the second nuts--the king-high flush.

9:20pm--Gavin Griffin has busted Kristian Kjondal in fourth place. The two of them saw a flop of 6-9-4, Gavin then bet 165,000, Kristian moved all in over the top - and Gavin called. Showdown.... 4-4 for Gavin for the set, and 8-9 for a pair for Kristian. The turn was 5, giving The Dane a straight draw, but the river was a king. Kristian leaves with a healthy €471,180. Gavin now takes the chip lead.


Kristian Kjondal -- 4th place -- €471,180
9:00pm--Gavin Griffin has just doubled up Soren. They got it all in before the flop. Gavin held AJ to Soren's 88. No ace or jack came on board and Soren doubled up.

8:50pm--The four remaining players are sitting down after a 90 minute dinner break. When it comes time for the next meal, two of the four players will be at least a €1,000,000 richer.

Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 4,148,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark, PokerStars qualifier) 845,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA, PokerStars qualifier) 3,896,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondaln (Norway) 1,676,000

7:23pm--We're now headed to a 90-minute dinner break. Chip counts will be updated in just a second. Marc Karam looks to hold the chip lead with around 4 million chips. Not a lot of big action of consequence in the last 45 minutes of play, apart from an AK vs AK split pot between Marc and Soren.

Blind level: 15,000/30,000/3,000

6:49pm--Soren Kongsgaard doubles up against Marc Karam, all in pre-flop with 2-2 against the Canadian's A-9. The board of 5-6-Q-Q-K meant the twos held up. Soren is now back up to about 1.3 million in chips.

Latest chip count:
Gavin Griffin 3.9M
Marc Karam 3.85M
Kristian Kjondal: 1.7M
Soren Kongsgaard 1.3M

6:23pm--Soren has just lost a monster to Gavin Griffin. Griffin came in for a raise to 80K under the gun. It was folded to Soren in the big blind. He made it another 120K to go. Gavin announced, "All-in." Soren did not think long before calling with pocket jacks. Gavin showed QQ. The board ran out AA5/K/3. Soren is down to around 800,000 in chips. Gavin is now close to four million chips.

6:12pm--PokerStars qualifier Josh Prager is out in fifth place. Holding 7-7 he called Soren Kongsgaard's 85,000 opening raise. The flop was 8-2-2 rainbow. Soren bet out 200,000, Josh moved all in over the top, called quickly by the Dane. Soren showed 10-10, a mile ahead of Josh's pocket sevens. The turn and river, 8 and a J, brought no miracle seven, and we are down to four. Josh takes home €391,550.


Josh Prager -- 5th place -- €391,550

5:04pm--Gavin just came in for a button raise and Kristian re-raised out of the small blind to 240. After some thought, Gavin called. The flop came down Jc-Kh-6d. Kristian led out for 320,000. After quite a bit of consideration, Gavin folded.

4:52pm--Steve Jelinek has just been eliminated in sixth place. He came in for a raise. Karam popped him back. Steve moved all-in and Karam called. Steve showed pocket nines to Karam's pocket jacks. THe boar ran out KT7/2/J and Steve was eliminated in sixth, earning €305,270.


Steve Jelinek -- 6th place -- €305,270

5:46pm--Gavin Griffin is getting back what he lost in the first level. He just picked up about half a million chips off Josh Prager.

5:37pm--Back from break. A few reminders:

Check out EPT Live.com for live streaming coverage of the final table. Also, help Gavin Griffin and PokerStars support the Avon Walk for Life by donation to a special PokerStars account during the final table. PokerStars is matching all donations up to $100,000. Click here for details.

5:26pm--Updated chip counts at the break:

Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (UK, PokerStars qualifier) 563,000
Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 3,010,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark, PokerStars qualifier) 1,516,000
Seat 5: Josh Prager (USA, PokerStars qualifier) 1,519,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA, PokerStars qualifier) 2,259,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondaln (Norway) 1,529,000

5:16pm--On the last hand before the break, Andy Black met his demise. On a flop of 883, Andy check-raised Kristian all in. After just a brief moment of thought, Kristian called. Andy flipped up a pair of sevens. He shook his head when he saw Krisitian's pair of jacks. No miracle seven on the turn or river and Andy Black is gone in 7th place, earning €238,910.



5:13pm--"It's one-way traffic at the moment, boys," Andy Black said looking down at Marc Karam stacking another pot into his stack. Karam seems to be winning every other pot.

4:48pm--Marc Karam wins a battle of wills, and a big pot, from Josh Prager. Marc raised it up to 65,000, called by Steve Jelinek and Josh. Flop came 6-K-7, two hearts. Steve checked, Marc made it 110,000, then Josh re-raised to 240,000. Steve, sensing big danger, got out of the way. As he did, Marc re-raised again - to 540,000. Too much for Josh, and he put his hand in the muck.

Josh lost a chunk of chips in that clash, some of which he had taken off Karam the previous hand when his 10-J was enough on a board of 6-3-8-4-10.

4:35pm--Ram Vaswani has been eliminated. Ram raised to 70K in mid-position. Karam called from the button. Both blinds folded. The flop came out 445. Both players check. The turn was a ten. Ram checked, Marc bet 70K, Ram moved all in. He got a quick call from Marc. Ram showed JT of diamonds with top pair and a flush draw. Marc showed KT. Ram needed jack or diamond to win...or a ten, ace, or four for the split. That was the fifth hand of the day and the first flop we'd seen. Ram started this affair with an all-in move. He announced his intentions to play hard. This time, it didn't get him there. He exits in 8th place for €159,270.



4:28pm--And we're underway. Player introductions have been make and the cards are in the air. Don't miss the live streaming coverage on EPT Live.

4:20pm--As you might have noted, it's taking a little time to get underway here. The sound of rising music indicates we might be starting soon. In the meantime, here are some profiles of todays players.



Seat 1: Ram Vaswani, 37, London, England - 432,000

Even before this Grand Final began, Hendon mobster Ram Vaswani was heading the EPT all-time Tournament Leader Board -- thanks to winning EPT1 Dublin, coming 2nd in Copenhagen last year and a string of other high cash finishes (including a record number of EPT final tables appearances). Ram is generally considered the UK's top tournament player and although he may be short-stacked right now, it's worth noting he was also the short stack when he won in Dublin. Ram knows chip leader Gavin Griffin from their joint final table appearance when Griffin won his 2004 WSOP bracelet. Ram is supported in Monaco by as wife Jackie and baby daughter Holly.



Seat 2: Steve Jelinek, 36, Birmingham, UK - 758,000

This popular UK player from Birmingham reckons he has qualified for major events at least 14 times -- but has never cashed in any of them. His qualifier "jinx" has included being first out in Monte Carlo two years ago and qualifying with PokerStars three times for the WSOP but never making it past Day 2. Known online as "superowl99" (Steve supports UK football team Sheffield Wednesday aka The Owls), Steve arrived in Monte Carlo last week worrying about work. He heads up an IT department in a UK construction firm but a forthcoming merger means he could be out of a job. Today, looking down at a minimum €159,000 payout, he can think about turning pro with confidence. He is supported here by his girlfriend Irina, also a successful player.



Seat 3: Marc Karam, 27, from Ottawa, Canada - 1,742,000

Marc "Myst" Karam has come along way since quitting his job as a glazier last year to turn pro. He has cashed in four of the five major live tournaments he's played -- and made three TV final tables, including last year's EPT Grand Final when he won $270k for 4th place. His other big wins have been $170k for 6th place at the 2006 North American WPT Championship and $275k for 6th at the Aussie Millions in January. At last year's Grand Final, he busted Dutch pro Marcel Luske with J7 of diamond against Marcel's 8s. He caught running 77 on the turn and river. After the hand, Luske stood up, placed his finger in his mouth and pretended to vomit.



Seat 4: Andy Black, 41, from Belfast, Ireland - 683,000

Andy started playing cards with his mother but took up the game seriously while studying law at Trinity College, Dublin -- played in the JCR university poker school that had previously included players like Donnacha O'Dea and Padraig Parkinsom. He was famously knocked out of the 1997 WSOP by the eventual winner, Stu Ungar, and when he lost the 1998 WSOP as well, he threw away all his possessions and became a Buddhist, living in a monastery for five years.

Black returned to poker in 2004, and the following year came 5th in the WSOP main event. Since then, he has cashed in two Dublin EPTs as well as dozens of other tournaments. In 2006 Andy won $100,000 for 5th place at the Tournament of Champions and he’s enjoyed a spectacular start to 2007 at the Aussie Millions: 2nd for $100k in the Pot Limit Omaha event and 3rd in the Main Event for $550k. As of 2007, Andy's total live tournament winnings exceed $2,600,000.



Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard, 19, from Jutland, Denmark - 1,612,000

Since qualifying for EPT Deauville last year after winning a magazine freeroll, Soren is enjoying great success. The young student has played in four EPTs and made around $15k in live tournaments, including winning a Hold'em side event at EPT Copenhagen in January. He's also fresh off a 6th place finish at the Asian Poker Classic in Goa, India.



Seat 6: Josh Prager, 33, from California, USA- 1,593,000

E-mails have been pouring in to the EPTlive webcast, offering words of support and encouragement for popular Josh, he trains a college tennis team in Yuba City with his wife Helen. After cashing for $77k in the 2005 WSOP, Prager took a year off to be with he and Helen's their new baby, Ezra. Now, though, Josh is back on the circuit. The PokerStars qualifier just cashed in the Aussie Millions (41st place) and is now on his way to posting his biggest ever tournament cash.



Seat 7: Gavin Griffin, 25, Chicago, USA - 2,597,000

Chip leader and PokerStars qualifier Gavin Griffin arrived in Europe for the first time last week sporting pink-dyed hair and a pink wristband. But the gently-spoken 25-year-old from Chicago is no poker punk: the pink theme is to mark his involvement in the Avon Walk for Life charity. Gavin and his girlfriend Kristen, 21, who suffered breast cancer a few years ago, set off on their 39-mile, two-day Los Angeles marathon in September. PokerStars is helping Gavin raise even more money with an immediate donation of $15,000. PokerStars has also setting up a special account to raise further funds. For every dollar donated during today's final table, PokerStars will match it up to $100,000.

Gavin first came to poker fame in 2004 when he became the youngest player ever to win a World Series of Poker bracelet, aged 22. (He took down the $3k Pot Limit Hold’em event for $240,000.) University-trained as a speech therapist, he turned pro four years ago and is having a great 2007. He's made four final tables already, including 3rd place for $86,685 in the San Diego WSOP Circuit Event in February.



Seat 8: Kristian Kjondal, 21, Oslo, Norway – 1,203,000

In the world of high stakes online poker, Kristian “Kris85” Kjondal is already a huge name and has turned over at least $250k this year alone. He was nominated for Online Player of the Year in the Pokerstars' Scandinavian Poker Awards in January but was beaten by his good friend and fellow Norwegian Johnny Lodden. Kristian is now working his way into the brick-and-mortar poker world but this is first major final table. He most recently posted a 19th place finish at a WPT event in Canada.

When PokerStars qualifier Gavin Griffin showed up at the EPT Grand Final with pink-tinted hair, there was no shortage of questions about the genesis of the hairdo. We've learned Gavin dyed his hair in support of the upcoming Avon Walk For Life. He and his girlfriend Kristen are walking 39 miles this summer.

Griffin is starting the final table with the chip lead and a mission to help support the breast cancer charity. PokerStars is helping Gavin raise even more money with an immediate donation to the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer of $15,000. PokerStars has also set up a special account on PokerStars to raise further funds. To donate, simply transfer funds from your own PokerStars accounts to "AvonDonate" account during today's final table. For every dollar given during the final table, PokerStars will match it up to $100,000.

by Simon Young

One of the greatest things to come out of this incredible event - and there have been many - has been the stunning success of our PokerStars qualifiers. Many got here for free on frequent player points only, while the others won through a variety of cash satellites.

In total, 246 of the 706 players made it here to Monte Carlo as PokerStars qualifiers to experience the trip of a lifetime, and it soon became clear they were not just here for the fun. They were here to win.

So much so, that 16 of the last 32 runners were here courtesy of PokerStars - and four of them have made it all the way through to the final table! Chip leader Gavin Griffin from Chicago, Josh Prager from California, Steve Jelinek from the UK, and Denmark's Soren Kongsgaard make up our quartet of players gunning for the mouth-watering €1.8 MILLION top prize.

Jelinek has been a regular qualifier to big events through PokerStars. He reckons more than a dozen. But, despite his great qualification record, he is yet to make a big cash. Until now. Several WSOP Main Event attempts have ended before day three, while here in Monte Carlo he was first out of the tournament two years ago! Today, he stands to make at LEAST €160,000. "This is payback time," he said. "Just goes to show, if you win enough tickets.....".

PokerStars has qualifiers running now for the World Series of Poker. Make sure you take part to have a shot at going for the Big One.

Gavin Griffin isn't the type of guy who walks in a room and starts begging for attention. He's polite at the table and doesn't play to the cameras. So, one might think his pink-hued hair is a bit out of character. Not so. In fact, it's an indication of a bit of altruism on his part.

If you look down at his wrist, you'll see a yellow Livestrong bracelet and a pink bracelet to go with his hair. Today, Andy Black was poking a bit of fun at Gavin's pink 'do. He suggested several possible meanings for the pink. Gavin let Andy go on for a bit before explaining he's planning to walk 39 miles in the Avon Walk for Life breast cancer charity and dyed his hair to go with the pink theme.

Pink is serving Gavin well. The biggest chips in play right now (10,000) are pink and Gavin has collected more of them than anybody at the final table. As we go to the final eight, Gavin, a PokerStars online qualifier, sits on nearly 2.6 million chips.

Gavin Griffin

Here's how the final eight stack up going to the final table (bold type indicates PokerStars qualifier):

Seat 1: Ram Vaswani (UK) 432,000
Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (UK) 758,000
Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 1,742,000
Seat 4: Andy Black (Ireland) 683,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark) 1,612,000
Seat 5: Josh Prager (USA) 1,593,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA) 2,597,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondal (Norway) 1,203,000

They'll be playing for some of the biggest money you'll see in poker tournaments. Here's what they stand to win.

1. €1,825,010
2. €1,061,820
3. €610,550
4. €471,180
5. €391,550
6. €305,270
7. €238,910
8. €159,270


Ram Vaswani

Ram will be sitting in in Seat #1. He's a man who needs no introduction to serious poker players. A former snooker player turned poker pro, he's the youngest member of the UK's Hendon Mob. He's well-known for playing in some of the biggest cash games around. He's here this week with his family.


Steve Jelinek

Steve Jelinek may not be world famous, but he gets around the UK poker circuit well enough to have won thousands upon thousands of dollars in winnings. Hailing from Manchester, the IT specialist took second place in the 2006 Scottish Poker Championships for £24,000.


Marc Karam

Marc Karam is on a quite a run. Not only did he make the EPT Grand Final final table last year, he's also, more recently, made the final tables of a WPT event in Canada and the 2007 Aussie Millions. Known in the online word as Myst, Karam is developing quite a reputation for himself as a final table player.


Andy Black

He was well-known before his 2005 WSOP final table, but Andy Black has become a celebrity since then. The poker player turned Buddhist poker player is as unpredictable at the poker table as he is off it. He should know Marc Karam well. He shared a final table with him at the 2007 Aussie Millions.


Soren Kongsgaard

Denmark's Soren Kongsgaard is on his way to his second final table this year. He's fresh off a sixth place finish at the Asian Poker Classic in Goa, India.


Josh Prager

Josh Prager hails from Yuba City, California. After cashing for $77,000 in the 2005 WSOP, Prager took a year off to be with his new baby. Now, he's back on track. The PokerStars qualifier just cashed in the Aussie Millions (41st place) and is now on his way to posting his biggest ever tournament cash.


Gavin Griffin

Gavin Griffin came to fame in 2005 when he won a World Series of Poker bracelet. Since then, he's become a well-known member of the PokerStars tournament schedule and the brick-and-mortar circuit, as well. He recently took third place in a WSOP Circuit Event. He seems determined to take his chip lead to a first place finish.


Kristian Kjondal

Norway's Kristian Kjondal is a high-stakes online player who is working his way into the brick-and-mortar poker world. Still he has yet to make a major final table. He most recently posted a 19th place finish at a WPT event in Canada. Now he sits in fifth place at one of the biggest poker tournaments ever. I'd say he has arrived.

***

The final table begins at 4pm local time (10am ET) on Monday. You'll be able to watch the whole thing play out on the live streaming coverage at EPT Live. We'll also keep you updated here on the PokerStars Poker Blog.

This post will be updated continuously throughout Day 4 of the EPT Grand Final. Click refresh to see the most recent action.

The final eight players return at 4pm local time on Monday to play it out for the big money. Here are the final table players and their chip counts. A final report on the day will follow in a bit.

Seat 1: Ram Vaswani (UK) 432,000
Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (UK) 758,000
Seat 3: Marc Karam (Canada) 1,742,000
Seat 4: Andy Black (Ireland) 683,000
Seat 5: Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark) 1,612,000
Seat 5: Josh Prager (USA) 1,593,000
Seat 7: Gavin Griffin (USA) 2,597,000
Seat 8: Kristian Kjondal (Norway) 1,203,000

Blind level 12,000/24,000/3,000

1:43am--And just like that, we're down to the final eight. From our vantage, we couldn't see the cards, but it was clear Erik was ahead (we believe with two queens). The board ran out four spades, though, to give his opponent the flush. And that takes us down to our final eight players.

1:26am--PokerStars qualifier Alex Kim has just busted out. He nursed his short-stack to the money jump then got it all in with A9 suited in clubs. He got callers in both blinds. Marc Karam made Gavin go away after 533/T came out on the board. Karam ended up showing down JTo. After a six on the river, Kim was gone, finishing in 10th place. Right now, we're condensing down to one table of nine. Unless Erik Van Der Berg finds two quick double ups, we should be down to the final eight fairly quick.

Alex Kim

01:15am--Carlos Mortensen has been busted in 11th place. Short-stacked, the Spaniard pushed with 6-7 spades, and was called by Josh Prager, of the US, with Q-3 clubs. The flop was 9-5-6 with two clubs, giving Carlos the pair and a gutshot straight draw - but Josh the flush draw. Turn was 8 diamonds, filling Carlos' straight, but the river was 2 clubs, giving Josh the flush, and sending The Matador to the rail. He collects €66,360 for his week's work.

12:43am--We're back from break.

All action below is blind level 10,000/20,000/2,000

12:24am--Two all-ins and two wins. Alex Kim, while still short, just won't go away. This time he was behind but flopped trip nines against Marc Karam. We're now headed to break. Back in 15.

12:14am--It was a raise to 60,000 from Alex Kim that started it all. Gavin, pink hair and all, called from the button with pink chips. Then Marc Karam got involved from the small blind. He pushed out a stack of pinks--200,000 in all. Kim barely gave it a second thought.

"All-in," he said, waving his hand forward.

"Please show me queens," Karam said. "I call."

Alex flipped up pocket sixes and Marc tabled his kings.

A king on the flop and Alex is left with just 52,000 in chips. He's all in on the next hand and doubled up. Still, he's very, very short.

12:05am--Carlos Mortensen has just survived his all in to double up to 400,000. He pushed with A-Q clubs and found a caller in Kristian Kjondal holding 9-9. The flop was 2-10-4, all hearts, giving Kristian the flush draw as well. Turn 6 spades, and the river? Ace diamonds. Carlos punched the air and is breathing a little easier now.

11:54pm--Ram has just doubled up again. Ram came in for a raise, Karam came over the top all-in, and Ram called. He held K6 to Marc Karam's A9s. The flop wasn't bad for Marc--Q39. However, running ten and jack gave Ram the straight and nearly gave me a black eye as Marc flailed away from the table. He's still in, but not nearly as stacked as he was.

11:47pm--PokerStars qualifier, 19-year-old David Peters, just exited the event. He got all his chips in on a Ad9hTd flop. Alex Kim called his all-in check-raise with AQ. No kig, no running diamonds, no running straight cards. Peters leaves in 12th place, earning €66,360. As I tpyed this, Ram Vaswani doubled up. No details on that one unfortunately.


David Peters

11:35pm--Spain's Carlos Mortensen, now on the feature television table, has said he has been "card dead" for a couple of hours. He's just got the best two in some time, raised, but been forced to put them down after Josh Prager came over the top, effectively putting "The Matador" all in.

11:14pm--Pete "The Beat" Giordano is out in 13th place - his K-K busted by Kristian Kjondal's A-Q of clubs - the club on the river doing the damage. 12 players remain, just four to go before the final table is set.

11:14pm--Erik Van Der Berg has just dooubled through Ram Vaswani. Erik pushed all in with Ah9s. Ram called out of the big blind with KhQs. No help on the board for Ram and Erik now sits on 262,000.

In other news, the boys at that table are passing the time best they can. Karam has lost a good many chips and looks almost as miserable as Ram. Andy Black and Gavin Griffin, the two big stacks at the table, are joking it up and having a good time. It was also learned during this level that Gavin dyed his hair pink in support of a breast cancer awareness charity walk. He walked 39 miles over two days with pink hair. Should the PokerStars qualifier go on to win this thing, he could do a lot of good charity work with $2 million.

10:52pm--Alex Kim has just doubled up off Marc Karam. They got it all in on a KJT flop. Marc held JT for two pair to Alex's AK. A nine on the turn meant nothing, but an ace on the river gave Alex the win. He's now on about 670K

10:39pm--We've updated the EPT Chip Counts page. However, if you don't feel like clicking over, here they are, listed in order of seating.

Ram Vaswani (UK) 499K
Gavin Griffin (USA) 2.35M
Marc Karam (Canada) 1.1M
Andy Black (Ireland) 1.1M
Erik Van Der Berg (Holland) 235K
David Peters (USA) 400K
Alex Kim (USA) 333K

Kristian Kjondal (Norway) 1.1M
Steve Jelinek (UK) 950K
Soren Kongsgaard (Denmark) 910K
Josh Prager (USA) 550K
Carlos Mortensen (Spain) 450K
Pete Giordano (USA) 600K

All action below was at blind level 8000/16000/2000

10:22pm--Headed to break. We'll be back at 10,000/20,000/2000 in about 20 minutes.

10:04pm--In lieu of any action to report, a couple of notes. Ram Vaswani's stack is not much to write home about. He's nearly reched double up or go home time. He did just win a decent pot off Gavin Griffin, but he's still short. Word on the street is that we'll be seeing the TV tables change during the next break, due to come in 17 minutes.

9:55pm--As the money jumps get more impressive, the action has tightened up a bit. The big swings and chip-pushing have backed off a bit. Only a matter of time, though.

9:36pm--PokerStars qualifier Gavin Griffin has taken half a million chips off Ram Vaswani. Ram led the raising and betting pre-flop, on the flop, and on the turn. It cost Ram an additional 200,000 on the river to see Griffin's aces.

9:15pm--And another one bites the dust. This time PokerStars qualifier Jan Veit, who has only been playing poker for a year, has gone in 14th place, collecting a tasty €49,770. He pushed with 7-7, was called by Kristian Kjondal with K-Q diamonds. The flop was a devastating - K-K-A, and the turn another A. Only a miracle third ace could save Jan. It was a 2 and he leaves the arena, but can be very proud of his performance. Just 13 players remain.

9:08pm--Erik Van Der Berg, on a roller coaster today, just doubled through Alex Kim. His pocket tens held up over Kim's overcards. Van Der Berg is now up to around 650,000.

9:07pm--Philip Hilm has been eliminated by David Peters. His A8 couldn't outrun Peters' A9. Hilm finishes in 15th place, earning €39,820.

9:00pm--Just back from the dinner break - and we lose two players straight away. First to go - and very unluckily - was Christian Neirinck, whose A-A was overtaken by Steve Jelinek of the UK, when a K hit the turn. All in pre-flop, it's the sort of bad beat that hits you in a stomach like a sledgehammer. That pot puts Jelinek well over the million chip mark.

No sooner had Christian left, than Denmark's Philip Hilm also left the room, busted out on the feature table. Details to follow.

So we are now down to 14 players, all hoping to make it to the last eight positions for tomorrow's final table. We are on level 20, with blinds at 8,000-16,000 and 2,000 running ante.

8:50pm--Now back from dinner break. We'll be starting at 8000/16000/2000.

All action below here was blind level: 6000/12000/1000

7:04pm--Andy Black from Ireland is back in the hunt with the leaders after doubling up against Holland's Eric Van Der Berg. Folded around to Andy in the small blind, who raises to 32,000. Eric instantly re-raises to 100,000, followed by an all in from Black for close on 450,000. Eric dwelled for a minute or two before calling. Andy slapped A-A in front of him, while the dejected Dutchman flipped over 8-8. He need to catch and third snowman, but the board of 10-2-Q-A-K sealed it. Eric, one time chip leader, is now looking vulnerable on just a couple of hundred thousand chips.

Play has now finished for a 90-minute dinner break, due to restart at 8.30pm local time. Also, chip counts have been updated on our chips page.

6:47pm--After another extended break to re-set at two tables, we're back to play for another 15 minutes before the dinner break. It gives us just a moment to mention Josh Prager, PokerStars qualifier. He's a man of some success, having cashed in both the Aussie Millions and the WSOP in the past. After taking a year off to see to his new baby, he's back on the scene and making a strong run here.


Josh Prager

6:28pm--Just moments after losing the big hand to Ram, Kristof went out, getting pocket queens all in against Andy Black and Ram Vaswani. On a Ac9c6h flop, Black bet out 100,000 and Ram raised to 300,000. Black folded in disgust and Ram turned up A4o to Kristof's pocket queens. Black didn't say what he folded, but didn't look at all happy to see Ram's little ace. No queen for Kristof and he is out in 17th place for 33,180. We're now down to 16 players and condensing to two tables.


Kristof de Smedt

6:19pm--England's Ram Vaswani has won a huge pot against Kristof de Smedt, doubling through to more than 800,000. All the chips flew in on a flop of 9-8-2 - Ram had 8-8, Kristof 9-7. The turn was a 5 and the river 9 for Ram's full house. That pot leaves Kristof on just 100,000 or so.

6:12pm--Word from the TV table is that Marc Karam has just sent Dean Sanders, PokerStars FPP qualifier, to the rail after rivering a full house against Sanders flopped straight. Sanders leaves in 17th place, for 33,180. Down to 17 players. One more and we condense to two tables.

6:05pm--PokerStars has lost one of its remaining FPP qualifiers with Roi Elmaliah losing out when his K-2 failed to improve against Pete Giordano's 4-4. The flop of K-8-4 gave The Beat a set, and nothing changed after that. Roi picks up €33,000 for his 19th place - not bad considering he got here for free!


Roi Elmaliah

5:55pm--Man down! Norway's Lars Eidissen is out in 20th place after running his A-K hearts into PokerStars qualifier Josh Prager's 7-7. The board of J-2-4-6-4 sealed his fate. Andy Black, meanwhile, has just doubled up when his A-10 spades not only held up against Philip Hilm's A-9, but improved into a set. "I've got balls of steel," he said. "That's poker."

5:50pm--Roi Elmaliah has just doubled through against Pete "The Beat" Giordano. Roi, a PokerStars frequent player point qualifier from Israel, pushed his remaining 150,000 or so with his 3-3, called by Pete's A-Q diamonds. Race time - and Pete looked to have won it when the flop came A-9-9. Just as Roi was picking up his belongings, the 3 came on the turn for his boat. The river, a 4, kept him afloat. He's now up to 300,000.

5:35pm--Anthony Lellouche has been eliminated in 21st place after getting Q8o all-in against Alex Kim's AK. A K38-A-A board did him no good and he's cashing for 33,180.

5:18pm--Back from break with a new blind level and 21 players remaining. As a reminder, we're playing down to the final eight today. Those players will return tomorrow for the EPT Grand final televised final table.

Allaction below this line at blind level 5000/10000/1000

4:56pm--Boom, boom, boom. Just like that, we've lost three players. Phillip Hilm found a call with A6 suited in spdes after raising and then seeing two all-ins ahead of him. He ws up against 55 and JJ and, to his opponents' disgust, the dealer threw out an all-spade flop. Simon Johansson and another player Johannes Strassman were eliminated back to back.

At the same time, we lost Shane Reihill on the adjoining table, with 66 versus Josh Prager's AQ. Down to 21 players and on a 15 minute break.

4:47pm--Well, the two minutes it was supposed to take to condense tables has taken 20. It takes a while to re-set the TV table. We're now back underway with 24 players left.

4:30pm--As we condense down to three tables, I think it's worth pointing out, we still have four (FOUR!) PokerStars FPP freeroll winners alive in the Grand Final. Roi Emaliah, Kristof de Smedt, Dean Sanders, and Jan Veit are all here on 100% freerolls. Their ROI is already pretty sweet.


Dean Sanders


Jan Veit

4:26pm--Christopher Ulsrud has just been eliminated after his top pair top kicker was bested by Steve Jelenik's two pair. Ulsrud finishes in 25th place.

4:03pm--Alex Kim, PokerStars qualifier from Philly, is having an odd week. He arrived in Monte Carlo just fine. His luggage did not. Not sure how he's survived, but I think it's a good thing PokerStars provided all its qualifiers with a new wardrobe of PokerStars gear upon their arrival. Kim also finished yesterday in sixth place with more than half a million chips. While he just lost about 150,000 to Andy Black (Black turned trip aces and Kim had to lay down his hand...not sure what it was), Kim is playing a really strong game and has a good shot at the final table.



3:59pm--Conrad reports from the TV table that PokerStars qualifier Roi Emaliah, who is being sweated by his charming girlfriend Frankie, just doubled through Philip Him with pocket aces.

3:50pm--Ben Calinnan has been eliminated from the TV table with 9hTh. He went up against Marc Karam's QQ. Many of you might remember, Karam made the final table here last year. He, like Erik Van Der Berg, seems set on making this event his to win.

In other news, Ram Vaswani was set to double up. He held 65o to Gavin Griffin's A5. The flop was 4-J-6. All the money went in on the turn, a seven. Ram held held a pair and open-ender. Griffin called with his open-ender. A three on river chopped the pot.

3:47pm--Conrad reports from the TV table that Marc Karam has just doubled up against Andy Black with JJ vs Black's AK. Five blanks for Black on the board and Karam is back in action.

3:46pm--Erik Van Der Berg has just doubled through Anthony Lellouche with QQ vs 88.

3:39pm--Alright, details for the last hand. Jacob Larsson held AK suited in diamonds to Simon Johansson's 88 and Josh Prager's JT. They were all-in pre-flop. The board ran out T23-6-x. Prager doubled up, Johansson won the side pot with his eights, and PokerStars FPP qualifier Jacob Larsson exited in 27th place, earning 26,550 euros.


Jacob Larsson

3:35pm--We're down to 26 as a big three-way all-in (88 vs. AK vs JT with the JT winning the main pot and 88 winning the side) went off on Table 1. Details to come.

3:25pm--News from Conrad at the TV table, Roi Emaliah, FPP qualifier from Israel went all in with A10, his first move of the day. Andy Black called with A6. No help for Black and Emaliah doubles up.

3:16pm--Down to 27 with the departure of PokerStars qualifier Herman Zango of Costa Rica. He got it in versus Erik Van Der Berg (a man who seems determined to make this HIS tournament). Zango held AT suited in diamonds to Van Der Berg's AQ of clubs. The flop came Q-J-J with one diamond. The turn is the eight of diamonds, giving Zango a flush draw. Two of spades on the river and Zango is gone in 28th place, earning 26,550 euros.

3:11pm--We're back from the break and the color-up (bye-bye 100 chips). Twenty-eight players remain.

All updates below this were at Blind Level 4000/8000/800

2:56pm--We're on a break with 28 players remaining. We'll be coming back to more expensive poker at the 5000/10000/1000 level.

2:46pm--Down to 28 as Josh Arieh has busted off the TV table. He got all his chips in with 99 vs. Philip Hilm's JT. Unsure of the pre-flop action, but Hilm finished off with a straight to send Arieh packing. My buddy Conrad from PokerStars is behind the scenes and says Arieh was earlier crippled by Hilm when Hilm held AA to Arieh's K3.

2:43pm--Kristof de Smedt has just knocked out Richard Waters with AK vs. AJ. We're down to 29.

2:40pm--We've lost Romania's Cristinel Dumitru. We're unsure what he hald but on a flop of K-7-9, Erik Van Der Berg checked and Dumitru checked. The turn was a jack and Van Der Berg bet out 28,000. Dumitru called. The river was another nine. Van Der Berg bet enough to put Dumitru all-in. Dumitru called and Van Der Berg showed JJ for the turned set and rivered full house.

2:36pm--The only table we have a hard time covering here is the one featured for televison. However, you don't have to miss any of the action between Andy Black and Josh Arieh. Just check out EPT Live for live streaming coverage and expert commentary.

2:31pm--David Mobbs, who started the day as one of the shorter stacks, has been eliminated in 32nd place.

2:27pm--It will be FPP qualifier vs. FPP qualifier today as Jacob Larsson and Kristof de Smedt are sitting at the same table. Both of these guys are on a freeroll here and already guaranteed more than 25,000 euros.


Kristof de Smedt


Jacob Larsson

2:08pm--After a very short delay, we're underway for Day 4 of the European Poker Tour Grand Final. Thirty-two players remain with 35 minutes left in this level.

The above reports are provided by the writers of the PokerStars Poker Blog, Brad Willis, Simon Young, and Ed Ramshaw, with loads of research support by Mad Harper.