It's All Peachy: Wayne Peach Wins 888poker UKPL Luton Opening Voyage
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The first 888poker UK Poker League (UKPL) of 2026 has exploded into action in the poker hotbed that is Luton. The £250 Opening Voyage got the festival off to a flying start, with 318 entrants building a £66,460 prize pool. Wayne Peach received the lion's share of the pot, namely £15,650, after coming out on top on February 19.
Thirty-eight places were paid in the Opening Voyage. Among those who finished inside the money places were Robert Douras (20th - £640), Sam Acheampong (19th - £640), Calogero Morreale (11th - £910), and final table bubble boy Stefan Lazer (10th - £1,050).
£250 UKPL Luton Opening Voyage Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wayne Peach | £15,650 |
| 2 | Michael O'Brien | £10,450 |
| 3 | Mo Joian | £6,930 |
| 4 | Tony Ringe | £4,600 |
| 5 | Lucian Ilies | £3,150 |
| 6 | Angela Ramm | £2,280 |
| 7 | Adam Diamond | £1,780 |
| 8 | Connor Wallington | £1,450 |
| 9 | Joel Freedman | £1,210 |
It did not take long for the first finalist to bow out. Joel Freedman was down to a mere two big blinds when he shoved, if you can call it that, with jack-nine. Tony Ringe called with king-ten. Freedman flopped a nine and looked set for a much-needed double, but a ten on the river left him high and dry.
Eighth-place went to Connor Wallington after a clash with Peach left him void of chips. Wallington flopped top pair with his ace-ten and got his stack into the middle. However, Peach had flopped trips, which held to send Wallington home.
Adam Diamond may count himself unlucky with the situation that busted him in seventh. Michael O'Brien opened from the button, and Diamond's last six big blinds went into the pot from the big blind holding ace-ten of hearts. O'Brien snap-called and turned over pocket aces. A seven-high mostly black board was no help for the at-risk player, and the 2026 UKPL Luton Opening Voyage final table was suddenly down to six players.
Those six became five and an all-male affair after Angela Ramm was relieved of her chips. Ramm lost almost all of her stack after running pocket sixes into Peach's pocket aces. She was all-in from the big blind with only a quarter of a big blind, but her eight-six beat O'Brien's ace-king. Ramm then found ace-king in the small blind and was catapulted to four big blinds.
Any hopes of an epic comeback were dashed soon after when Ramm found herself all-in with ace-trey and against Lucien Ilies' ace-five. Ilies' five-kicker played, and Ramm was eliminated.
Ilies, who finished second in a similar tournament at the same casino 12 months ago, busted when his last seven big blinds found their way across the betting line, holding pocket tens, only to run into the pocket aces of O'Brien. The community cards were drama-free, and Ilies was gone.
Seasoned veteran Ringe was the next player to head to the cashier's desk. Down to 10 big blinds, Ringe moved all-in with pocket jacks, Mo Joian called with king-queen, and Ringe floped a set. However, instead of doubling, Ringe busted courtesy of Joian hitting running cards to improve to a set-busting Broadway straight!
Joian was the next to fall despite helping himself to Ringe's stack. Joian committed his stack with an eight-high flush draw and lost to Peach's jack-high. Peach and Joian's stacks were almost identical, but a count showed Peach had Jioan covered by a solitary 5,000 chip.
Peach headed into the head-to-head clash with O'Brien with a more than two-to-one chip advantage and with one hand on the trophy. O'Brien managed to level matters before forging a substantial lead for himself, but neither player could seem to shake off the other.
Peach doubled with pocket sevens against O'Brien's ace-queen and reclaimed the lead. The final hand saw O'Brien shove for slightly less than nine big blinds with eight-seven of hearts, and Peach called with jack-try of clubs. Peach's jack-kicker won him the pot and the tournament as the board ran queen-high.
Still to Come at the 888poker UKPL Luton Festival
February 20 is a busy day at UKPL Luton with a pair of £560 Main Event flights, a Main Event satellite, and Day 2 of the £1,100 High Roller all set to play out.
The festival wraps up over the weekend with the conclusion of the Main Event, the £220 KO Rumble, the £150 Seniors, and £200 Big Shot, before a $109 Online Mystery Bounty Closer takes place at 888poker on February 23 to bring the curtain down on the series.
