2024 GUKPT Heads to the Seaside Town of Blackpool
The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) launched in 2007 and is still going strong today. Now in its 18th season, the popular tour has visited dozens of cities across the United Kingdom, with the seaside town of Blackpool ever-present throughout its existence.
Blackpool is famous for its pleasure beach, "The Big One" rollercoaster, and being a haven for stag dos and hen parties. But for a week each year – twice per year since 2023 – Blackpool attracts poker players from far and wide because the GUKPT is in town.
Past GUKPT Blackpool Main Event Champions
Ireland's Paul Bracken took down the inaugural GUKPT Blackpool Main Event in November 2007, outlasting 352 opponents in the £1,050 buy-in tournament; yes, £50 fees representing less than 5% of the buy-in used to be a thing 18 years ago! Bracken returned home with £109,700, which remained the largest first-place prize awarded at GUKPT Blackpool until Jamie Clossick helped himself to £109,000 in November 2022.
Plenty of stellar names have returned from GUKPT Blackpool with the winner's trophy under one arm and a bankroll-boosting score under the other. They include Simon Deadman, Rich Trigg, Tom Middleton, and Yiannis Liperis.
GUKPT Blackpool has always been the penultimate leg of the tour, serving as the warm-up for the season-ending GUKPT Grand Final. Grosvenor Casinos mixed things up in 2023, adding a second Blackpool stop to the schedule.
Lin Chen won the March edition for £65,310, while Ian Gascoigne, who finished sixth in this tournament in 2012, was crowned GUKPT Blackpool champion in the November 2023 edition.
Full 2024 GUKPT Blackpool Schedule
The latest GUKPT Blackpool Main Event features a trio of flights, with Day 1C, played to a turbo blind structure. Day 1A commences at 12:00 p.m. on March 14, Day 1B at the same time on March 15, and Day 1C also on March 15 but at the later time of 9:00 p.m.
Of course, there is much more to the 2024 GUKPT Blackpool stop than the £1,250 buy-in Main Event. During the festival, head to the Grosvenor G Casino in Blackpool to find tournaments such as the £1,650 High Roller, £200 No-Limit Hold'em Turbo, and the popular £550 GUKPT Cup.
Stay tuned to PokerNews to discover which player adds their name to the ever-growing list of GUKPT Blackpool Main Event champions.
