Poker News

An online qualifier named N A Risk has won the UK and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT) Edinburgh Main Event and pocketed £50,000.

The aptly-named Canadian dominated the £500+50 event at the Corn Exchange and also wins a £5,250 entry into the European Poker Tour London, the season finale to the UKIPT.

Nick Abou Risk spent most of the tournament near the top of the leaderboard and went into the 8-handed final table as chip leader.

And the 25-year-old, who lives in Dublin, saw off the last remaining survivors from the 400 entrants to take nearly a quarter of the £200,500 prize pool.

Afterwards, Risk credited British poker babe Liv Boeree with giving him the confidence to win. 

He said: "I had a good feeling on that first day and was talking through a lot of hands with Liv.

"Realising that she had some respect for my game gave me a lot of confidence and I started stealing a lot more blinds.”

He added that winning the tournament felt ‘surreal’ and that he would be using his winnings to take his wife on a luxury trip.

For the first time ever at a UKIPT event the final table boasted two women. But both Mary Martin and Suzanne Pyefinch were quickly eliminated, taking home £4,800 and £6,300.

After another three hours, six eventually became five when Max Silver lost out to Luke Marsh, walking away with £8,200 for his weekend's work.

Richard Chadwick was next out. After losing the vast majority of his chips to Lithuanian Mantis Puidokas, he delighted his supporters by doubling up three times in quick succession, but at the fourth attempt he fell short and was eliminated by Luke Marsh.

The elimination of Joeri Zandvliet in fourth place ensured that Edinburgh would not crown a two-time UKIPT winner and with three players remaining, it only took half an hour before Marsh bust in third for £17,600.

That left a heads-up battle between Risk and Puidokas. It lasted only 20 minutes when, after Puidokas had briefly taken the chip lead, Risk wrestled it back and won nine consecutive hands to land the trophy.

The next stop in the UKIPT is the Irish final at the Burlington Hotel in Dublin on September 9-12. The €560 Main Event has a massive €250,000 guaranteed prize pool.

UKIPT Edinburgh: Final Table results

1. Nick Abou Risk, Canada, qualifier, £50,000
2. Mantas Puidokas, Lithuania, £27,700
3. Luke Marsh, UK, £17,600
4. Joeri Zandvliet, Netherlands, qualifier, £13,100
5. Richard Chadwick, UK, £10,300
6. Max Silver, UK, £8,200
7. Suzanne Pyefinch, UK, qualifier, £6,300
8. Mary Martin, UK, £4,800