The poker world is rife with big tournament action in December all around the globe. From WSOP Paradise in The Bahamas, to WPT World Championship at the Wynn in Las Vegas and the oldest of the bunch – EPT Prague in Czechia. Today, we’ll take a closer look at the series, which kicked off on December 4th.
EPT Prague History
EPT Prague is one of the oldest stops on the European Poker Tour (EPT) calendar as it dates back to 2007, just three years after the EPT made its debut in 2004. It has been held in December every year since then apart from a two-year Covid hiatus, with the Prague event returning in 2022.
Thanks to this storied history, EPT Prague has become a staple of many poker players’ schedules. While many players who play this series come from Europe, there are plenty who come in from the rest of the world as well.
Prime Location
EPT Prague is held at the Hilton Prague hotel which is a great location in the center of the city and not very far away from many of the best sites in the beautiful historical city. You are only about a 15-minute walk away from the main town square, the famous Prague astronomical clock, and the Saint Charles Bridge, which is arguably the most picturesque bridge in all of Europe.
This prime location is attractive to players who like to go out and do some things while on poker trips when they have some free time. It is not like some other poker tournament locations around the world, where the poker is actually quite secluded from everything and you must make a big effort to go do any activities.
EPT Prague In 2024
But how about the poker itself? Well the 2024 version of EPT Prague is set to be just as grand as any previous year with a robust and exciting schedule of play.
It runs from December 4th to the 15th and will have several key events. Let’s take a glance at the most anticipated ones.
- The kickoff event is the €1,100 Eureka Main Event, which is projected to have well over 2,000 players. This tournament has six opening flights (Days 1A through 1F) and will be one of the largest prizepools of the series.
- The €10,200 Mystery Bounty Event, as well as lower buy-in Mystery Bounty tournaments that cost €1,650 and €3,000.
- Plenty of large buy-in events for the high rollers. From multiple €20,000 to €25,000 events and all the way up to the €50,000 Super High Roller, which is the crown jewel of the series as far as the largest buy-in.
- The premier event is the €5,300 EPT Prague Main Event, which starts on Monday December 9th. It features two starting flights as players will need to survive six days of action. The Main Event wraps up on December 15th, the final day of the series.
Last Time Here
Prague’s event comes off the back of EPT Barcelona in September, where Stephen Song won €1.3million.
But last time the EPT was in Prague in 2023, the Main Event gathered 1,285 entries to make a prizepool of €6,101,300. If that sounds like a pie you’d like a slice of, check out some of the best online poker bonuses to boost your winnings.
The champion ended up being Irishman Padraig O’Neill, who took home the seven-figure score of €1,030,000 after he overcame the final day monster chip lead of Norway’s Jon Kyte, who had to settle for second place and a runner-up prize of €643,000.
Nine unique countries were represented at the nine-man final table, which re-affirms just how popular this tournament series is to players from all corners of the world.
The 2024 version of EPT Prague will be a fun one and stay tuned as we will have updates of everything that goes down on the felt in the Czechia capital city.
| Place | Player | Prize (EUR) | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Padraig O'Neill | €1,030,000 | Ireland |
| 2 | Jon Kyte | €643,000 | Norway |
| 3 | Umberto Ruggeri | €459,240 | Italy |
| 4 | Cheng Zhao | €353,240 | China |
| 5 | Adam Wagner | €271,660 | Czechia |
| 6 | Grigorii Rodin | €209,000 | Russia |
| 7 | Govert Metaal | €160,750 | Netherlands |
| 8 | Marle Spragg | €123,600 | United States |
| 9 | Vincent Meli | €95,000 | France |