Inaugural EPT Online Champion Crowned, As David Laka Wins $143,567
It was by no means an easy tournament to win, but David Laka was the last player standing in the first ever PokerStars EPT World Championship. The competition lasted for well over six hours, but Laka finally made his breakthrough as the clock got nearer to the seventh hour. There will always be a place in the history books for Laka after the success, as it meant that he was the first ever EPT World Online Champion.
Laka cut a delighted figure when he picked up the prestigious EPT Trophy, and his success was also rewarded with prize money of $143,567. It was a nervy end to the competition, as Laka needed to hold off the pressure from Pascal Lefrancois to win the event in the heads-up round. It was undoubtedly a huge success amongst players, as there were 87 unique players involved throughout the event, which also saw 44 players re-enter the competition. The sheer number of players involved meant that there was a total prize fund of $655,000.
David Laka Continues Excellent Returns
The event was all about the Spaniard, as he has now taken his career earnings to over $1.6 million. However, this was the first win since he was victorious at an event in Prague two years ago. It was also the biggest win that he has had during his career, as he picked up $143,567 in prize money. The only other player to pick up more than $100,000 was Pascal Lefrancois, who claimed $111,234 for finishing in second place. The Canadian would have certainly still been pleased with his performance during the event.
The final table was packed full of talent, with many names still in contention for the biggest prizes being names that poker fans from around the world being names that fans would have been aware of. Artem Vezhenkov finished in third in the standings, and he took home $86,183. He finished one higher than his Russian compatriot Vyacheslav Buldygin, who finished in fourth and claimed $66,774 in prize money for his competitive performance throughout the event.
Remainder Of The Leaderboard
Croatian player ‘Zufo16’ was next in the rankings, as he finished in fifth and claimed $51,736. That was a place higher than the highest ranked American player in the competition, which was Jon VanVleet. VanVleet finished in sixth and claimed $40,085 for his excellent performance. The only other American to finish in the top seven was Chris Oliver, who ended the competition a place below VanVleet. He took home $31,057 for his performance.
The final day of the event was a packed occasion full of drama, with a number of talented players crashing out before the final table. Laszlo Bujtas was among those players to fall before the final table, while Sergi Reixach, Fedor Holz and Christian Rudolph also crashed out of contention before the competition heated up. However, the event was all about the performance of Laka, as the Spaniard raised his performance in the final rounds of the event to take home the biggest prize.