This year’s European Poker Tour Barcelona continued to set new benchmarks in entry fields and prizes as the High Roller and Main events concluded over the weekend.
Taking the honours and the Euro 1.2 million first prize in the hotly contested Euro 5,300 buy-in Main Event was Sebastian Malec (21), a young Polish player who scored his first major live tournament win in besting a field of 1,785 competitors that generated a prize pool of Euro 8,657,250.
On the final day of the gruelling contest the final table formed, with German pro Uri Reichenstein out in front and Malec around the middle of the pack. Just over an hour later the first eliminations started, and at the four-handed stage Reichenstein, Malec, Adam Owen and Thomas De Rooij paused to discuss the possibilities of a chop.
Agreement proved elusive and the four resumed play until Reichenstein – holding a 10 million chip lead – faced Malec in the heads up.
It proved to be a five-hour marathon in which the lead changed at least three times as the pair battled on, with Malec keeping up a barrage of chatter through either nerves or perhaps in an attempt to unsettle his opponent.
In the end it was Malec who managed to survive a very evenly matched confrontation, sending Reichenstein home with a still impressive Euro 807,100 second prize.
Other final table cashes included:
Adam Owen Euro 646,250
Thomas De Rooij Euro 535,100
Zorlu Er Euro 431,550
Andreas Chalkiadakis Euro 330,290
Harcharan Dogra Dogra Euro 230,950
Pavel Plesuv Euro 165,950