RSSPokerStars EPT Berlin has drawn to a close, with Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee coming out on top, beating a 945 strong field at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Berlin.
The tournament was the subject of high drama on day four, as four men armed with a handgun and a machete burst in and made off with some of the tournament prize money. Exactly how much was taken is not yet known, though a statement released by the European Poker Tour stated that the amount was “substantially less” than the figures being reported in some quarters, which are as high as €800,000. No shots were fired and noone was seriously hurt.
The day began with 24 players remaining and the aim of playing down to a final table. American Kevin MacPhee sat on a narrow chip lead with 2,526,000 – marginally ahead of Dane Theo Jorgensen on 2,408,000. Just four players had been eliminated when the robbery took place and after a delay, play resumed, along with the domination of MacPhee who made the final table with a commanding 6,070,000 in chips; a lead of almost 1.4 million over London based Ketul Nathwani in second.
Also featuring at the final table was Ilari Tahkokallio, who had previously beaten MacPhee when heads up in last year’s EPT London £1,000 Pot Limit Hold’em/Omaha side event. Oddly enough, Ketul Nathwani was also at the final table of that event.
Nico Behling, who finished in third place in last week’s PokerStars Sunday Million, was first to leave the final table when he lost a coin flip holding AQ against pocket tens. He picked up €72,000 by way of consolation. Another flip accounted for Marko Neumann in seventh place, when he four-bet all in with AK, losing out to MacPhee’s pocket sevens. Neumann left €120,000 better off.
Englishman Ketul Nathwani was eventually taken out by MacPhee in fifth, when Nathwani’s A6 was dominated by A9. The board did its bit for the cameras by providing Nathwani with an open ended straight draw, but the river came blank.
When Frenchman Marc Inizan was eventually eliminated in third place for €350,000, the scene was set for a repeat of London, with just Ilari Tahkokallio and Kevin MacPhee remaining. The chip lead was firmly with MacPhee, but Tahkokallio battled back to take a 2.5 million lead, scooping a monster pot with two pair. He promptly surrendered the lead however, check-raising with a draw and missing.
MacPhee resumed his relentless pressure and quickly re-established an almost 2-1 chip lead. The contest ended when Tahkokallio re-raised all in with a gutshot draw, with MacPhee calling with a pair and an open ended straight draw. The turn card gave the Finnish player flush outs, but the river fell blank, sealing revenge and a memorable EPT title for MacPhee.
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