The GBP 3,000 World Poker Tour UK main event concluded over the weekend in victory for 21-year-old Lithuanian player Matas Cimbolas, who took home GBP 200,000 after besting Ben Warrington from the UK.
Cimbolas entered the final table as chip leader, a position he was able to maintain for much of the action. He faced a final table of mostly Brit players that included Tamer Kamel, Phillip Mighall and Patrick Leonard, all from the UK and Antoine Saout from France after three tough days of quality poker at the Dusk Til Dawn venue.
Third placed Tamer Kamel put up a brave fight to keep the three-handed stage going for a stressful two and a half hours, but in the end he was eliminated, leaving the final battle to Warrington and Cimbolas.
Going into the heads up stage with Brit Ben Warrington, Cimbolas started well but then suffered his biggest challenge, with a declining chip stack that at one point saw him at a 6 to 1 advantage against a skilled opponent who had up to that point sent every other final table player home.
However, he was able to hang in and then regain supremacy to take the main prize and a free seat package to the championships. Warrington’s runner up prize was worth GBP 140,000.