A 22-year-old Polish online PokerStars qualifier Daniel Panka upset all the form books and created a nail-biting final beating Mike McDonald in a challenging three-hour heads up ending off a grueling 16-hour final table at the 2014 European Poker Tour PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event.
Isaac Haxton commentating at the event said he was “confident we were watching the play of one of the true anonymous greats of the online world transferring his talent to the bricks and mortar environment”.
“Obviously, I’m an internet player,” Panka told PokerStars. “I started playing live tournaments last year. Every day I sat down at the table, I was a little bit nervous, but then all that pressure came off. It’s weird, but I didn’t feel too much pressure. I was very confident in my game.”
Following a three-way deal between Panka, Isaac Baron and Mike McDonald, Panka went on to take $1 423 096 in prize money, the trophy and the title.
“My mind and body concentrated on being a rock, a statue,” Panka said following his impressively cool performance. “I can’t dance with joy. I’m still in that mindset that I have to be concentrating.”
Final table ended up:
Dominik Panka $1 423 096
Mike McDonald $1 064 865
Isaac Baron $1 207 599
Madis Muur $581 040
Daniel Gamez $447 040
Shyam Srinivasan $328 020
Pascal Lefrancois $242 020
Fabian Ortiz $173 220