Beevers wins GBPT

The Great British Poker Tour drew a strong, if small, field for its finale in Bristol over the weekend of 8-11 November, with top pro and Hendon Mobster Joe Beevers emerging victorious.

Amid a ceremony with Beefeaters and a Scottish piper at the Gala Casino, Beevers, nicknamed ‘The Elegance’, picked up a cheque for £87,500 and a trip to Las Vegas, after battling past 100 runners and a final table which included five pro players and local challengers.

Beevers said: “The GBPT is a fantastic series of events and having played in four of the regional tournaments, I’m delighted to have won the big one.

“I’ve been playing poker since way before it became popular and the GBPT is a chance to go back to the good old days. It’s the kind of tournament we enjoyed 15 years ago – with normal people playing in a normal casino with great organization and great staff. Everything was first class.

“The final table was like playing against friends because I knew five of them and now I’m looking forward to going to the Bellagio in and then coming back to defend my title next year.”

Local Bristol amateur Rob Akery finished runner-up, walking away with a cheque for £53,250 and a trip to Melbourne to play in the Aussie Millions. Rob said: “The GBPT is the first tournament I’ve entered and it’s a lot different to the online poker that I’m used to. There was definitely a tense atmosphere towards the end and I learnt a lot about how much patience really does pay off.

“My girlfriend Christina was with me, giving me her support, throughout the tournament and I will get her something nice with the winnings. I can’t wait to go to Australia now – it’ll be my first time there and I’m very excited. I’m happy to have ensured Bristol was represented and I’ll definitely be entering next year to try and go one step further and win it.”

Among the familiar faces at the event were 2006 WSOP Main Event winner Jamie Gold; EPT/ WPT winner Roland de Wolfe, as well as and GBPT Leaderboard winner John Bousfield.

There was also a strong finish from PokerPlayer’s own Mark ‘Shafty’ Stuart, who made the final table, but unfortunately not the TV table, and still finished in the money with £6,250 – a superb effort.

Hollywood star Jennifer Tilly, who at one stage looked all set to reach the final day, and ‘The Magician’ Antonio Esfandiari were knocked out consecutively by Barney Boatman, also of the Hendon Mob, who ended up finishing third overall and took away £36,500 as well as an EPT 2008 package.

The GBPT included five regional festivals taking in Edinburgh, Teesside, Nottingham, Bournemouth and Leeds, with the finalists qualifying for the Grand Final main event. Eddie Gaines (Edinburgh), Colin Pearson (Teesside), Lee Richardson (Leeds) and Steven Holden (Nottingham) were knocked out during their respective ‘day ones’ while Pete Singleton (Bournemouth), did enough to come back on Day 3 but too short-stacked, and falling early on.

Final results:
1. Joe Beevers, £87,500 and Bellagio Five Diamond Package
2. Rob Akery, £53,250 and Aussie Millions Package
3. Barny Boatman, £36,500 and EPT Package
4. Charalambos Xanthos, £22, 250 and GBPT 2008 Main Event Package
5. Roland De Wolfe, £16,000 and GBPT 2008 Main Event Package
6. Manuel Palanca, £11,000
7. Matt Tylar, £9,250
8. Neil Channing, £8,000
9. Mark Stuart, £6,250