At precisely 2.38am this morning, Peter Wigglesworth of Reading became the Black Belt London Live II Champion when he toppled Michael Yiannikkou heads-up to capture the coveted title.
After a brief battle, the two remaining players decided to split the prize pool down the middle, meaning both left with $16,000 in their back pocket. However, with the silverware still on the line, it was Wigglesworth who ultimately triumphed, his Kc-Qh holding firm against Yiannikkou's Qs-8s all in on the flop of an Ks-4h-8h-7s-Jc board.
Wigglesworth, a 46-year old semi-pro currently residing in Ascot, was quick to praise his heads-up opponent, commenting, "He did all the work for me. I just had a good run of cards near the end," before adding, "My first live result was actually in last year's event. I finished 15th but felt I should have made the final table, so was determined to do better this time around."
After selling out just under a week prior to kick-off, Black Belt Poker extended the field to enable a whopping 414 poker fanatics to embark on the Grosvenor Victoria Casino on Edgware Road. Both pros and amateurs alike stumped up the $250+25 fee, meaning that recreational players were given the opportunity to face the likes of Ross Boatman, Luke Schwartz and EPT/WPT winner Jake Cody.
Black Belt Poker also supplied 20 bounties, all of whom had a price-tag of up to $250 on their heads, as well as a chocolate Bounty Bar to award their assassin. On three occasions a bounty eliminated a fellow bounty, and James Mitchell took particular delight in ending the tournament life of friend and bracelet winner James Dempsey.
The best value, however, undoubtedly came in the added money, whereby up to 20% more was paid out to those who made the money. As a Blue Belt, fourth place finisher Gavin Hall received an extra $1,200 on top of his $6,000, as well as $250 for eliminating bounty Adam Stoneham. He therefore left with $7,450.
In total, 72 players made the money, of which included Marty Smyth, Sam Razavi and last year's finalist Hugo Martin, who just missed out on repeating that feat when he bubbled the final table in 10th. Heading into the final table, it was Gareth Alder who held the chip lead, a near one million ahead of his nearest competitor.
However, when the dust had settled and smoke cleared, it was the self-declared "old school style" of Wigglesworth which reigned supreme, his patient approach paying dividends and enabling him to echo the achievement of last year's victor Paul Pham. Black Belt Richard Ashby was on hand to present the trophy.
"It was a really long day and I do find it quite tiring," concluded Wigglesworth. "It's definitely become a young player's game, but I have a strategy and it seems to be working. I love these tournaments; the structure's great. If Black Belt Poker had more, I'd play every one."
1st Peter Wigglesworth -- $16,020 ($16,000)
2nd Michael Yiannikkou -- $16,020 ($16,000)
3rd Gareth Alder -- $9,600 ($8,000)
4th Gavin Hall -- $7,450 ($6,000)
5th Andy Nguyen -- $4,500 ($4,500)
6th Raj Rughwani -- $3,520 ($3,500)
7th Louis Manson -- $2,850 ($2,750)
8th Stephen Power -- $2,250 ($2,250)
9th Seth Webber -- $2,000 ($2,000)
(Prize in brackets is standard payout without bonuses)
Bounty Eliminations:
Nik Persaud by Bharat Harshad Joshi
Jake Cody by Sean Bolden
Trevor Ingman by Mike Ellis
Richard Ashby by Robert Angood
Jamie Burland by Nicolas Irving
Mike Ellis by Andrew Youens
JP Kelly by Raj Rughwani
Paul Pham by Rupom Pal
James Dempsey by James Mitchell
Luke Schwartz by Ciaran Corbett
James Keys by Jerome Bradpiece
Surinder Sunar by Constantine Paparestis
Jerome Bradpiece by Matthew Heap
Neil Channing by Tony Adderley
Ross Boatman by Dean Aldred
Alex Rousso by Jemma-Louise Pateman
James Mitchell by Philip Chan
Marty Smyth by Michael Yiannikkou
Sam Razavi by Peter Wigglesworth
Adam Stoneham by Gavin Hall
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