Congratulations to Davidi Kitai: Winner of EPT Berlin and €712,000
Davidi Kitai has become the first ever Belgian player to win an EPT after he defeated Andrew Chen in an epic heads up battle. We’ve used the word epic before this season to describe the many long heads up battles we’ve seen, but today we use it to describe the sheer quality of the poker on show. Many here have commented how they believe that the heads up battle here was the best of the season.
There were five-bet pre flop jams, check-raise river bluffs, three-bet three-street bluffs, and brave all-in river calls with marginal hands.
Kitai said on his victory, “I feel really great, it’s amazing. I never expected to beat this field.”
He was the first Belgian player to win a WSOP bracelet (2008 $2k PLH) and a WPT title (2011 LA Poker Classic Invitational), so becomes the fifth ever player to win Poker’s Triple Crown – although the WPT victory was an invitational. His victory here earned him a Shamballa bracelet worth more than €10,000, and a seat in the season-ending €100,000 free-roll Champions of Champions Event. Lynn Gilmartin spoke with Kitai table side after his win:
Chen was Tweeting back on day two (when he was very short stacked) that he had a feeling that he might bubble the event. Just a few days later and he has a cheque for €613,000 in his back pocket. Chen felt he didn’t play that well heads up but was not too disappointed as they had done a deal.
Here's how the final eight finished up:
| Position | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Davidi Kitai | €712,000 |
| 2 | Andrew Chen | €613,000 |
| 3 | [Removed:285] | €290,000 |
| 4 | Mario Puccini | €220,000 |
| 5 | Bahadir Kilickeser | €172,000 |
| 6 | Cesar Garcia | €133,000 |
| 7 | Marc Wright | €97,000 |
| 8 | Pratyush Buddiga | €72,000 |
Buddiga won the Skrill last longer as well so got his €5,000 buy-in back.
If today only whetted your appetite for more top level poker action then you don’t have to wait long at all. We move straight on to Monaco for the PokerStars and Monte-Carlo®Casino EPT Grand Final. Right off the bat at the festival on Monday the biggest ever buy-in tournament in Europe will be taking place. The PokerNews reporting team will be there to cover all the action from the €100,000 buy-in Super High-Roller event. Don’t worry about the €10,000 buy-in Main Event that starts just two days after that as we’ll have that one covered too.