Will Davies Wins 2015 GUKPT Luton Main Event

Almost three months ago, Will Davies, 23, quit his job to become a full-time poker professional and at that time the UK man had around $62,000 in live tournament earnings to his name. That decision has now already proved fruitful, and last Sunday he took down the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) Luton Main Event for an impressive £65,550 ($100,997), after which he commented:
“It’s a pretty amazing feeling, I have been playing full-time for two months and to win a massive event like this on probably the most prestigious and highly respected tour like the GUKPT is a huge confidence boost as well as a boost to the bank roll!”
The £1,090 GUKPT Luton Main Event saw a total of 226 players turn up to the Grosvenor Casino in Luton to create a prize pool worth £226,000 ($348,212). On the third day of action, Davies then entered the final table as the third lowest stack at the table, but soon improved his position by eliminating Wai Yuen in 8th (£6,150), followed by Chris Gordon in 5th (£12,250), and Janis Peternieks in 4th (£17,600).
Gary Banks (K-Q) subsequently called Richard Kellett’s (Q-9) short-stacked preflop shove, and after the board rolled out K-Q-4-3-3, Kellett was sent to the rail in 3rd (£36,990), leaving Banks and Davies to battle it out for the title.
At the beginning of heads-up, Banks held a 3.15m to 1.35m chip advantage over Davies, but after losing an A-Q versus K-K encounter, Banks was reduced to a short-stack when the deciding hand was played. Moving all-in holding 10-9, Banks got a call from Davies with A-10, and after the dealer laid out an A-10-7-7-6 board, Gary Banks had to settle for a runner-up finish worth £42,950, while Will Davies was crowned the champion.
“I really enjoy the GUKPT tour for the social aspect and how well run it is! It was even more special to win in my local casino where I play most of my poker,” commented Davies.
Final Table Results:
1 Will Davies £65,550
2 Gary Banks £42,950
3 Richard Kellett £36,990
4 Janis Peternieks £17,600
5 Chris Gordon £12,250
6 Ben Morrison £8,800
7 Martin Bader £7,200
8 Wai Yuen £6,150
9 Carl Spicer £5,150