Hakim Zoufri Triumphs at MCOP Main Event for €275,608

The 2016 Master Classics of Poker took place at the Holland Casino Amsterdam from the 12th to 26th of November, with the tournament series featuring 25 events. The action culminated at the weekend with the MCOP main event, and following four days of play it was Hakim Zoufri who would eventually claim the title and the trophy for €275,608 ($294,661).
The €4,250 MCOP main event proved a popular affair, with 356 players entering to create a prize pool worth €1,409,760. The final table of nine was then reached on Day 3, but after Hakim Zoufri and Fabio Sperling reached the heads-ups stage at 2am and subsequently battled it out for an hour, the casino shut, thus forcing them to return to the arena for an impromptu Day 4.
Thirty minutes is all it would then take before the deciding hand was played with Sperling (A-Q) raising preflop, and Zoufri reraising holding pocket sevens, before calling Sperling’s subsequent all-in shove. The 3-6-K-9-4 then sealed the deal, with Fabio Sperling locking up $197,597 for his runner-up finish. Meanwhile, Hakim Zoufri received top honors, and now joins a pantheon of previous Master Classic of Poker champions which includes Ole Schemion, Ram Vaswani, Noah Boeken, and Robert Mizrachi.
Final Table Results:
1: Hakim Zoufri (Neth) $294,661
2: Fabio Sperling (Ger) $197,597
3: Ivan Arbatsky (Kaz) $137,006
4: Juha Helppi (Fin) $98,421
5: Stefan Fabian (Rom) $73,250
6: Samuli Sipila (Fin) $56,219
7: Michiel Brosky (Neth) $44,312
8: Rashed Zade (Neth) $35,721
9: Charlie Carrel (UK) $29,240
Throughout the 2016 Master Classics of Poker’s 15 day run, a total of 3,595 entries was recorded resulting in roughly €4 million ($4.26 million) in prize money. Next up on the Dutch live poker scene is the Dom Classics, that will be held in Utrecht at the start of 2017.
The Netherlands has a vibrant poker scene, and currently heading the country’s ‘All Time Money List’ is Marcel Luske, a 63 year-old pro with $4,409,615 in winnings dating back to 1999. He is followed by Jorryt van Hoof in secondd place with $4,383,165, and then Pieter De-Korver ($4,083,445), Rob Hollink ($3,383,422), and Ruben Visser ($2,422,229).