It was a bold move by Dusk Till Dawn owner Rob Yong to put a £300,000 guarantee on the £3,000 UKIPT Nottingham High Roller event but, with 101 players entering that guarantee was just met. Many of the biggest names in UK poker – including Ben Vinson, Toby Lewis and Craig McCorkell – all took part, with 35 players making it through to Wednesday’s final day.
Only 13 of those 35 players made it into the money, Ben Vinson just sneaking in to earn a £6,050 payday. Other players cashing included top players Steve Warburton, David La Ronde and Matthew Davenport, showing the depth and quality of the field in this event. New Team PKR Pro Eleanor ‘Elz442’ Gudger had a great run too, making it all the way to third before busting for a £36,950 score. It’s the biggest cash of her burgeoning live poker career and she will be looking to keep the momentum up by playing in the UKIPT Nottingham main event next.
Eventually, it came down to Dave Shallow and Richard Kellett who, instead of playing it out heads-up for the title and prize money, instead elected to chop the cash down the middle and end the tournament right away. Shallow explained the reasoning behind the decision, ‘I’ve the utmost respect for my opponent, we’re still very deep and I’m pretty tired.’ Both players took home £68,000 and are likely to be in today’s Day 1B field for the main event, making their decision to avoid a late finish more understandable.
UKIPT Nottingham main event Day 1A
175 players entered yesterday in what will be the first of three Day Ones. 45 players survived the day’s play, including Sky Poker UKPC champion Alex Spencer (171,900 chips), Ben Vinson (180,100), Jake Cody (70,000) and Tom Middleton (87,500). Paraguayan Mauricio Baez is the overnight chip leader with a stack of 184,800 chips.
Some big names such as Simon Deadman and Matt Perrins crashed out but, because re-entries are allowed in this £1m guaranteed event, is it more than likely they will be back for another shot on Day 1B or Day 1C.
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