2015 GUKPT Blackpool Kicks Off; IPO Limerick Starts Today
Rain, scattered thunderstorms and a “high” of nine degrees Celsius may not be the sort of weather that has people rushing to the seaside town of Blackpool, but if you head to the Grosvenor Casino on the promenade, you’ll discover there are quite a few people who have made the trip.
Once inside, protected from the precipitation, you’ll discover scores of poker players exchanging £1,090 for the chance to become a 2015 Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) champion, the final opportunity to do so before the Grand Final in a fortnight.
The first of two starting flights took place on Thursday afternoon and saw a good turnout for a Day 1a, with 82 entries processed. Exactly 50 of those players bust over the course of nine hour-long levels, leaving 32 players to bag their chips ready for a return to the felt on Saturday.
Only one player broke through the 100,000 chip barrier, that player being Yusuf Erdam. An impressive chip count of 138,200 sees Erdam claim the title of overnight chip leader and his start stands him in good stead for a deep run.
Athir Ali, who finished 10th in the GUKPT Luton Main Event in September 2015, finished his time at the tables with 99,100 chips, with Joseph Graham ending the night with 89,900 chips.
Other top poker talent to progress to Day include Mitchell Johnson (85,400), Steve Warburton (81,000), Andrew Hulme (75,400), Jamie O’Connor (55,700), Haresh Thaker (50,400), Andy Taylor (48,400), Mark McCluskey (38,900), Harry Zammit (34,600) and Ben Dobson (33,800).
2015 GUKPT Blackpool Main Event Day 1a Top 10 Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yusuf Erdam | 138,200 |
| 2 | Athir Ali | 99,100 |
| 3 | Joseph Graham | 89,900 |
| 4 | Mitchell Johnson | 85,400 |
| 5 | Steve Warburton | 81,000 |
| 6 | Andrew Hulme | 75,400 |
| 7 | Matt Taylor | 70,900 |
| 8 | Jamie O’Connor | 55,700 |
| 9 | Barry Grime | 53,300 |
| 10 | Terry Owens | 53,100 |
Day 1b commences at 1:00 pm on Friday and should see upwards of 150 players buying in.
Full Tilt International Poker Open Limerick Starts Today
The latest leg of the Full Tilt International Poker Open (IPO) takes place in Limerick today and runs through to Sunday 15th November at Timeout Casino And Card Club, Limerick.
Kicking off the weekend festival is the eagerly anticipated $218+$32 buy-in IPO Limerick Main Event that sees players sit down with a generous helping of 25,000 tournament chips and play to 30-minute levels. Should they manage to burn through their starting stack, players can re-enter twice more on Day 1a and then the same again on Saturday’s Day 1b.
As is usually the case at these festivals, there is a trio of side events to jump into should the quest for Main Event glory not go to plan. The full schedule is below:
| Date | Time | Tournament |
|---|---|---|
| Fri 13 Nov | 4:00 pm | $218+$32 IPO Limerick Main Event Day 1a |
| Fri 13 Nov | 10:00 pm | €50+€10 NL Hold’em Turbo |
| Sat 14 Nov | 2:00 pm | $218+$32 IPO Limerick Main Event Day 1b |
| Sat 14 Nov | 8:00 pm | €100+€10 NL Hold’em Bounty Turbo |
| Sun 15 Nov | 12:00 pm | Main Event Final |
| Sun 15 Nov | 1:00 pm | €100+€10 NL Hold’em Turbo Deepstack |
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