With the Grosvenor United Kingdom Poker Tour (GUKPT) Grand Final just around the corner, one man who will be full of confidence when he takes his seat will be Richard ‘The Claimeer’ Trigg, after walking away with the GUKPT title and £53,000 in prize money after his recent victory in Blackpool.
It was a case of ‘about time’ after Trigg has racked up a 3rd place finish in Newcastle in 2007, a 12th place finish in Blackpool in 2009 and a runner-up spot in Coventry back in 2011. It also comes on the back of a runner-up spot at the Dusk Till Dawn (DTD) Monte Carlo this year.
“I really wanted to win this one. A few times recently I have got to three handed, or heads up, chopped, and then switched off. This time I really wanted the trophy and knuckled down to play hard, whereas the guy I played heads up; his mates just wanted to go out and party because he had done his job. I knew that from the first moment a card was dealt and was so sure I would win.”
For a long time the GUKPT was seen as the tour de force in UK poker, but that domination has been challenged with the introduction of the Genting Poker Series (GPS) and the United Kingdom & Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT). Looking through the eyes of Trigg, how has the GUKPT changed over the years?
“The fields are smaller, that’s without a doubt. It’s the same tour but there are better players these days. Back in the day there was no {Simon} Deadman, Ben Jackson and even the likes of {John} Eames didn’t play them. Now there are a lot of young players coming through, who are of a decent standard, that are not the best players in the world, but a lot better than the fish. If you look back at some of the results in the early days you can see that a lot of the fish have just vanished from the tour.”
The Blackpool stop was a re-entry event. There were 35 re-entries with players allowed up to four bullets, with Trigg himself paying for two. Surely this makes it even more difficult to win a GUKPT event, with the best players in the game almost certain to make it through to second day of action.
“I think it’s pretty bad for the game overall, because all the good players get through to Day 2. You can have four bullets so anyone who is good, crushes online or is staked would all get through to Day 2. Even the fish that can afford it won’t be able to after a few years of this. I re-entered and so I wouldn’t have been sitting here talking to you if it wasn’t for the rule. But it does create bigger prize pools and they have a guarantee now so that’s also great.
“It’s a good tour. I just hope they get better venues. Blackpool and Luton are always busy but the rest of them are not that great. Blackpool might not be pretty to look at but everyone goes. The locals are a good crowd and it’s nostalgic for people living in the UK. It has a lot of history. I used to play in the Northern Lights Festival competitions back in 2005 and I am really happy to have won there.”
With the major European fields also showing signs of reduction, doesn’t this then mean that the local UK £1k events are more likely to be heavily laden with some of the best talent in the game?
‘The games are getting so tough. I have struggled online and a lot of people I know who are really good are just leaving the game, because they just don’t have the money anymore, so I feel really bad for the fish on these tours.
“I have heard a lot of stories about how people are doing stuff that is getting them in jail just to try and get poker funds. When you have one score in poker it’s easy to think that you are just getting unlucky if you don’t continue to win. They can’t think logically. That they just got lucky once and the other results are a representation of their standard. It’s expensive traveling around playing the £1k’s.
“The EPT’s are really expensive. Even if you do them as frugally as possible it’s just so expensive to travel and live on the European tour. A few people have run bad throughout a long period of time and it just catches up with you.”
From the outside in it looks like 2013 has been one of the Trigg’s best years, but the representation that the media pours out doesn’t necessarily mirror real life. How has Trigg been doing of late?
“I have been going through a really bad time online. Blackpool just barely covers it. It’s also not just about the money. It’s morale as well. I really needed a morale boost and Blackpool has given me that now.
“Online poker is 95% of my game, so when you look at Hendon Mob it looks like I am running good, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. I have been on a massive confidence downer. I knew what it was, and once I got my head down it would return. I made six final tables last night and think I have turned the corner.
“Sometimes you just need that big win. It can be a really lonely game otherwise.”
The GUKPT Grand Final will take place 18-24th November at the Vic and it carries a £400,000 guarantee.
Blackpool GUKPT Final Table Results
1st – Richard Trigg – £53,000*
2nd – John Haigh – £53,000*
3rd – John Miller – £27,600
4th – Caicai Huang – £16,400
5th – Kyle Hendry – £12,400
6th – Majid Khan – £10,200
7th – Kev Steele – £7,900
8th – Adam Forsyth – £6,200
9th – Dan Pope – £4,600
*Indicates a deal
