James Rann Wins Top Prize At UKIPT London
It was a big weekend in the United Kingdom for poker fans, as one of the biggest events on the UK calendar was played out over the weekend. Many fans see it as the crown jewel of the poker events that are staged across the channel, and there was a famous success in the competition for British star James Rann.
Many fans would have been delighted to see the event back on the calendar, as the PokerStars sponsored event returned for the first time in over five years. It was also staged at the illustrious Hippodrome Casino in London, making it one of the grandest events on the poker scene in Europe this year.
Rann Claims Famous Win
It was a very competitive event over the weekend, as the illustrious competition attracted a field of over 640 players in total. The UKIPT London Main Event saw a prize pool of £619,200 up for grabs for the players involved, with the majority of that being cut between the top three players on the final leaderboard. They were headed by James Rann, who was in excellent form throughout the competition over the weekend.
Rann eventually picked up the success after the ICM deal was struck between the top three players in the standings. The deal was cut when the Brit had his smallest stack of the day, but he was able to get back on top to ensure that he finished with the biggest profit. He eventually sealed the deal with a final hand of Ace and Six in clubs. It was a famous return to MTT games after focusing purely on cash games for the previous seven years.
That change in direction appeared to be the fight decision, as he was able to claim a first live victory in that type of game on European soil, and continued his excellent form at the UKIPT Main Event, as he previously cashed out in the Edinburgh event back in 2010. Rann’s victory saw him pick up returns of £85,569, which was significantly more than any other player on the final table.
Remaining Players In Action
The final three-way deal in the closing stages also involved Lukas Dimsa and Rickie Vedhara. However, the other two players dropped their game after the deal, which meant that they needed to settle for second and third in the standings. Dimsa finished second overall, and won returns of £80,282. Vedhara was just a place further back, as he finished third for £80,204.
The front three won much higher returns from the event, as the next best was Joshua Boulton, who finished in fourth for £40,960. Other players on the final table including Alexios Zervos, Julien Sitbon and Kully Sidu, who finished in final positions of fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively. Lorenc Boci was down in eighth, as he won £14,341, while the final player to make it onto the final table in the poker competition was Antoine Saout, who finished ninth for £11,028.