The poker world is gearing up for the return of EPT London next month, with the tour returning to the UK capital for the first time in eight years.
The record-breaking success of EPT Barcelona came alongside megastar footballers, power cuts and maybe the weirdest mystery bounty event ever seen!
There were so many epic moments in this year’s stop in Spain, we decided to count down the top five moments from the action inside Casino Barcelona.
5. Neymar Jumps in the €100,000 Super High Roller
After an exciting summer of poker in Las Vegas, with Neymar jumping into numerous WSOP events, the Brazilian football magician made an appearance at EPT Barcelona.
Just a day after scoring for Paris Saint-Germain, Neymar entered the €100,000 Super High Roller and battled against the likes of David Peters, Sergio Aido and eventual winner Mikita Badziakouski.
Moraes: “Neymar Doesn’t Play Poker for Money; He Just Wants to Win!”
Unfortunately for Neymar, despite bagging a top-10 stack after Day 1, he was unable to make the money. Will he be making an appearance at EPT London?
4. Lights Out!
The atmosphere at the EPT Barcelona final table was electric, and one of the most exciting we’ve seen for many years. And yet electricity was in short supply during a brief power outage during four-handed play.
As thunderstorms washed over Barcelona, lightning struck the venue cutting the power and halting play. All credit to the PokerStars LIVE production team, who got the show back underway with no action missed, but the incident added to what was already a chaotic Main Event final table.
3. Mystery Bounty Drama
At number 3 in our list is probably the weirdest, most intriguing mystery bounty situation we’ve ever seen. In the €1,650 Mystery Bounty, the €100K top bounty eluded all players, and was still in the chest when the final table was reached.
Darren Rabinowitz held six bounty tickets with only 13 envelopes available – but even with a near 50% chance of catching the biggest prize, the largest bounty he bagged was €10,000. Play continued until the final 3 players, who attempted to hash out a deal for the remaining bounty with their 4 bounties, and STILL no one was able to get their hands on the top prize.
Eventually, after play continued, an ICM deal was agreed to split the remaining bounties and prize, and the 100K was finally pulled after Mikolaj Zawadzki took down the event for his biggest ever live score.
Mikolaj Zawadzki Wins EPT Barcelona €1,650 Mystery Bounty (€95,418)
2. Record Breakers
Barcelona is always a popular stop on the European Poker Tour, and after a field of 749 players entered the EPT Barcelona Main Event on Day 1a, and with bumper fields expected in satellite tournaments for the event, it was always a matter of when and not if the record for the largest EPT Main Event would be broken.
And that record was smashed, breaking the 2019 record by some 306 entrants. And that’s without mentioning the Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event that finished earlier the same week, which with 6,313 entries broke the record for largest live poker tournament in EPT history.
1. Chip and a Chair
At number one on our list though, could only be one man. After falling to a single big blind with 6 players remaining, Italy’s Giuliano Bendinelli embarked on one of the most exhilarating comebacks we’ve seen at the poker table.
Powered by an electric rail, Bendinelli stormed back to take home the Main Event title, living up to the famous poker phrase “chip and a chair” and becoming the latest EPT champion.