Will Davies is the latest owner of a Grosvenor United Kingdom Poker Tour trophy after beating Gary Banks, in heads-up action, to take the seventh leg in Luton.
Will Davies is a Grosvenor United Kingdom Poker Tour (GUKPT) Main Event champion. Davies topped a field of 226 entrants in the £1,090 buy-in event held at the Grosvenor Casino in Luton this weekend.
The cadence of crisp crunchy cash was a sound to behold for Davies. It was the largest career win by some distance. Davies returned for the third and final day settled in a claustrophobic looking 13/23 place. The experienced Richard Kellett was the chip leader.
When the final nine was crystallized Kellett still had that lead – and it was a big lead. It was Kellett’s third GUKPT final table. In 2013 he finished sixth in the Grand Final, in London, for £25,900, and in 2014 he finished fourth in the Manchester leg for £15,000. His best performance to date remains a runner-up finish against Dave Shallow in the 2014 United Kingdom & Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT) High Roller at Dusk till Dawn, picking up £68,000 after an even heads-up chop.
Kellett wasn’t the only player at the final table who had experienced this stage before. Carl Spicer finished third in Coventry, back in 2011, where he spent time in a quality final table that housed the likes of Julian Thew (1st), Richard Trigg (2nd), Stuart Rutter (5th) and Sam Grafton (9th).
There was also a former GUKPT champion at the final table. Martin Bader won the Main Event at The Vic, back in 2013, for £56,000. Chris Gordon was another final tablist with a decent track record. Gordon won the World Poker Tour (WPT) National Event in Aspers, earlier this year, for £22,500.
The favorite, Kellett, would fall in third place for £36,990. It is his best GUKPT performance to date, but given his once dominant position he will be disappointed not to go home with the trophy. Kellett jamming 15bb, with Q9, only to get looked up by Gary Banks holding KQ. A king and queen on the flop removing a dangerous opponent from the picture, and sending Banks into a heads-up spat with Davies holding a 3:1 chip advantage.
A cooler would make all of the difference during heads-up: Banks getting it in with AQ, and Davies waking up with KK to cripple his opponent. He was eliminated a few hands later T9
Final Table Results
1st. Will Davies – £65,550
2nd. Gary Banks – £42,950
3rd. Richard Kellett – £36,990
4th. Janis Peternieks – £17,600
5th. Chris Gordon – £12,250
6th. Ben Morrison – £8,800
7th. Martin Bader – £7,200
8th. Wai Yuen – £6,150
9th. Carl Spicer – £5,150
Other notables that cashed included former World Poker Tour (WPT) Johannesburg runner-up Jerome Bradpiece (14th).
The next GUKPT event will take place in the Las Vegas of the North, Blackpool, starting Nov 8.
