Cont Denies Eminoglu an Incredible 888poker UKPL Luton Double
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Poker stars turned out in force for the £560 buy-in 888poker UK Poker League (UKPL) Luton Main Event, but it was Horatiu Cont who will forever be known as the tournament's champion. Cont left 555 opponents in his wake as he reeled in a £56,700 top prize, essentially tripling his lifetime earnings.
Cont defeated popular grinder Yucel "Mad Turk" Eminoglu heads-up to capture the title, and to deny Eminoglu a remarkable double; Eminoglu triumphed in the £1,100 High Roller event last week for a £16,640 score.
The 556-strong field created a guarantee-busting £264,090 prize pool that the top 68 finishers shared. Among those who finished in the money places were Mariusz Czech, Jack Allen, Calogero Morreale, Dean Clay, Alex Todd, Jiaze Li, and Lorenc Boci.
Two 888poker ambassadors were present and correct with only two tables remaining. However, Josh Manley ran out of steam in 16th, and Nick Eastwood bowed out in 11th.
When an anonymous player crashed out in 10th, the final table was set.
888poker UKPL Luton Main Event Final Table Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Simon Wilson | 5,720,000 | 57 |
| 2 | Yucel Eminoglu | 5,185,000 | 52 |
| 3 | Christopher Day | 4,085,000 | 41 |
| 4 | Horatiu Cont | 2,840,000 | 28 |
| 5 | Brijesh Das | 2,340,000 | 23 |
| 6 | Bryan Taylor | 2,180,000 | 22 |
| 7 | Getnet Kassa | 1,430,000 | 14 |
| 8 | George Popa | 1,305,000 | 13 |
| 9 | David Debono | 695,000 | 7 |
It didn't take long for the first finalist to bow out of the UKPL Luton Main Event. Getnet Kassa found himself all-in with ace-jack for his last 12 big blinds and in a whole world of pain because Brijesh Das held the dominating ace-king. A king on the flop left Kassa drawing to running outs, but he was drawing dead on the turn.
Scottish grinder Bryan Taylor was the next player heading for the cashier's cage. Taylor, who won the GUKPT Edinburgh Main Event in October 2025, got his last 11 big blinds into the middle with pocket eights only for Simon Wilson's pocket jacks to melt those snowmen.
Seventh place went to David Debono, who was short-stacked from the start of the final table. Debono chose ace-seven as the hand to jam all-in for five big blinds. Unfortunately for Debono, Cont woke up with a pair of queens in the hole. The ladies held, and Debono busted, albeit with a career-best £6,500 to show for his deep run.
The final six became five when Das ran into a powerhouse pocket pair. Das moved all-in for 12 big blinds with ace-queen and needed some help from the community cards when Eminoglu called with pocket kings. The board ran out without an ace in sight, and Das busted.
Fifth place went to George Popa after a battle of the blinds with Wilson did not go to plan. Popa open-shoved from the small blind with nine-seven for his last seven big blinds. Such a move would win the blinds and ante often, but not this time because Wilson had been dealt ace-jack. Popa didn't connect with the board and was eliminated in fifth place for £12,200, a new high score for the Romanian.
Christopher Day has happy memories of playing at the Grosvenor G Casino in Luton, having won the £1,250 GUKPT Luton Main Event in 2023 for £88,150. He had to make do with a fourth-place finish and a £25,690 prize in this event. Down to only three big blinds, Day pinned his hopes on nine-eight, which lost to the ace-jack of Cont, who flopped an ace.
The dangerous Simon Wilson, the reigning Irish Open champion, was eliminated in third place, sending the UKPL Luton Main Event into the heads-up stage. Wilson's last action in this tournament was to look down at ace-ten and jam for 12 big blinds. Eminoglu looked him up with pocket jacks. Wilson paired his ten, but Eminoglu's fishhooks improved to a straight on the turn.
Cont held the narrowest of leads over Eminoglu going into heads-up. Cont's stack contained 14,025,000 chips to Eminoglu's 13,775,000. The final hand of the one-on-one battle saw Cont complete the small blind with ten-deuce of clubs, and Eminoglu check with king-six, with the king of clubs. A six-ace-eight all-club flop meant the chips were destined to go into the middle at some point, with Cont flopping a flush and Eminoglu holding a nut flush draw.
Eminoglu led out on the flop, and Cont called. Eminoglu then jammed 12 million chips into the 2,600,000 pot on the queen of diamonds turn, and Cont snapped him off. The river was a black, but it was the four of spades, busting Eminoglu in second-place for £38,060 and crowning Cont as the UKPL Luton Main Event champion, an accolade that came with a £56,700 payout.
888poker UKPL Luton Main Event Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Horatiu Cont | £56,700 |
| 2 | Yucel Eminoglu | £38,060 |
| 3 | Simon Wilson | £25,690 |
| 4 | Christopher Day | £17,540 |
| 5 | George Popa | £12,200 |
| 6 | Brijesh Das | £8,740 |
| 7 | David Debono | £6,500 |
| 8 | Bryan Taylor | £5,020 |
| 9 | Getnet Kassa | £4,010 |
888poker UKPL Luton Results
| Event | Entrants | Prize Pool | Champion | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £560 Main Event | 556 | £264,090 | Horatiu Cont | £56,700 |
| £1,100 High Roller | 49 | £50,000 | Yucel Eminoglu | £16,640 |
| £250 Opening Voyage | 318 | £66,460 | Simon Peach | £15m650 |
| £200 Big Shot | 104 | £17,290 | Jason Penman | £4,080 |
| £150 PLO | 126 | £15,570 | Andrei-Petrica Dusu | £3,973 |
| £150 Seniors | 39 | £4,870 | Barry Ferguson | £1,780 |
Next Up For 888poker LIVE Players
There isn't long to wait before the next 888poker LIVE event shuffles up and deals. 888poker LIVE Glasgow runs from March 12-22 at the Grosvenor Casino Merchant City in the heart of Glasgow, Scotland.
The schedule features tournaments such as the £250 buy-in, £ 100,000-guaranteed Mini Main, a £1,650 High Roller with £100,000 in guarantees, and the £888 buy-in Main Event, boasting a £250,000 guarantee on its prize pool.
Satellites for the 888poker LIVE Glasgow Main Event are available online at 888poker right now, plus there are dozens of seats guaranteed in the live satellites during the upcoming festival.
