This season’s German Poker Days Festival at King’s Casino in Rozvadov came to an end, with a total of 1,930 entries registered for the €200,000 GTD Main Event. The tournament was a total success, exceeding its guarantee with more than €80,000, and a surprising final table deal determined Evyatan Dabush as the winner.
King’s Casino in Rozvadov, a small town in the Czech Republic, has once again become home to a large poker championship, the 2018 German Poker Days Festival. As it is located near the border with Germany, Rozvadov is the perfect destination for all German poker fans who want to experience the thrill and adrenaline of live tournaments. The Main Event of the festival saw a large number of players crossing the border and paying the €175 entry fee (€155 buy-in + €20 consumption fee). With a field of 1,930 entries, the tournament managed to collect a total prize pool of €284,192, which was split between the best players on Sunday.
The final day of the German Poker Days Main Event started with 488 players who qualified during the starting flights and would now compete for the 191 paid seats, offering minimum cash of €392. Spaniard Daniel Arribas held the chip lead with 735,000, but Bulgarian Martin Ivanov followed closely with a stack of 732,000. After hours of grinding, more than half of the entries were eliminated and went home empty-handed, while the players with the largest stacks had to settle with the 9th place (Arribas) and the less prestigious 77th position (Ivanov). And while Martin Ivanov received only €594, the chip leader banked a nice cash prize of €3,729.
At the end of the day, a little over €284,000 was distributed and more than €120,000 of the total prize pool was given to the last four finalists. To everyone’s surprise, they decided to strike a deal, although the winner seemed almost certain.
Evyatan Dabush Secures the Title with a Deal
The final day of the Main Event saw quick eliminations after players started with stacks of 50,000. Within several hours, the field was cut in half and in the evening, the final table was already set with nine players competing for the first-place prize of €50,456. Chip leader Daniel Arribas finished 9th, taking €3,729 in prize money, followed by Christopher Schulz from Germany who banked €4,831. The next player to leave the final table was Daniel Ortlieb (Germany) who received €6,801 for his 7th position, while the 6th in the tourney, Thierry Leonard from Belgium, took home €8,904.
The following elimination was a German player who registered with only a nickname in the Main Event. Finishing 5th, “Sheldon Cooper” received €11,908 and left four contenders for the title. Israeli player Evyatan Dabush held a massive chip lead, but despite that, he agreed on a deal with the other three poker pros remaining. Striking the deal, he secured the first place in the tournament but took a smaller prize. Instead of the €50,000 and over, determined for the champion, he settled for €41,199.
The others banked great amounts of cash after the deal – the fourth best player took €23,173. Known only by his poker name, König Ludwig, which means King Ludwig, he was the best German player in the tournament. Based on the chip count, Martin Baranec from Slovakia, came out 3rd and was rewarded €24,278, while Mikhail Filatov, a Rozvadov regular from the Czech Republic, claimed the second spot for €27,000 in prize money.
