Mega Poker Series Dublin Fails To Live Up To Name
September 16, 2015 2:01 pmThe Mega Poker Series (MPS) Dublin Main Event failed to live up to its name after just 70 players bought in to the €800 ($907) buy-in tournament. Mind you, it could have been much worse as Day 1A saw a mere seven people enter the event, which subsequently played down to two players before the action was stopped for the day. Luckily for organizers, Day 1B attracted a bigger field of 53, but ultimately the low turn out meant the prize pool offered was a paltry €48,385 ($53,976), with just nine final tablists seeing a return on their money.
The turn out was considered particularly disappointing, as the tournament came on the heels of the hugely popular Irish Poker Cup, and players were apparently told to expect at least 65 competitors on Day 1A of the MPS alone. Amongst the reasons suggested for the small field is a general lack of advertising and promotions, very few live satellites for the William Hill sponsored event, as well as an unattractive tournament structure with no prize pool guarantee.
That said, Fintan Gavin will still have fond memories of the tournament after capturing the title for €15,600, although that figure pales in comparison to the €792,000 ($ 1,129,750) he won after finishing runner-up at the 2008 EPT Barcelona Main Event. Following his latest triumph, the Irishman now boosts his live career earnings to $1,550,506.
On his way to victory, Fintan Gavin eliminated Aidan O’Reilly (7th), Francisco Hernandez (6th), and David Lappin (4th), before facing off against Scotland’s Andrew Leathem for the title. The deciding hand was eventually played with Gavin (9-9) calling Leathem’s all-in shove holding 8-6. The dealer then laid out a Q-9-5-4-2 board to consign Andrew Leathem to a runner-up finish worth €10,700, while Gavin was crowned the MPS Main Event champion.
Final Table Results:
1 Fintan Gavin €15,600
2 Andrew Leathem €10,700
3 Paul Turek €6,300
4 David Lappin €4,600
5 David O’Kelly €3,500
6 Francisco Hernandez €2,800
7 Aidan O’Reilly €2,200
8 Nabil Cardoso €1,685
9 Diego Benitez €1,000