After leading the European Poker Tour stop in Deauville, France for the last two days, it wouldn’t have been out of the question for Greece’s Sotirios Koutoupas to succumb to the pressure and come up a bit short. There was no stopping the Greek powerhouse, however, as he stormed his way to the latest EPT championship in denying Eugene Katchalov his place with poker’s Triple Crown winners.
Saturday after started with Koutoupas holding nearly a three million chip lead over Katchalov, with the rest of the pack – Brits Harry Law, Eli Heath and Oliver Price, France’s lone surviving hope Anthony Lerust and Russia’s Rustem Muratov – tightly grouped behind him. The lone Italian at the table, Carlo de Benedittis, was on an extremely short stack but he was able to stick around to see another player depart before he did.
Koutoupas continually showed his willingness to put his chips in action and it resulted in an unlikely elimination. After Koutoupas raised the pot, Lerust pushed his million chip stack to the center and Koutoupas didn’t waste any time making the call. Lerust had the goods to go to battle with his pocket Aces way ahead of Koutoupas’ K-Q, but it seemed the board was deemed to go against him. The 9-10-8 flop brought Koutoupas a gunshot straight option, but now he was down to a Jack or runner-runner cards to give him the hand. Sure enough, a King came on the turn and a Queen stunningly appeared on the river to give Koutoupas the hand and further his lead.
Koutoupas would then take out de Benedittis in seventh place before he settled back to watch the carnage. Price crippled Muratov after the Russian pushed his stack with pocket fives against Price’s pocket Queens, but he wouldn’t go without a fight. Muratov found a quadruple-up against Law before entering a hand before a pivotal hand that left several players worse for wear.
Muratov moved all in once again after his quadruple up and Price put out an isolation bet, which didn’t do what he wanted as Law and Katchalov called. On a 4-8-10 flop, Price bet into the side pot and only Katchalov stuck around to see another eight on the turn, which both players checked. On the four river, Price fired out a 320K bet that Katchalov called fairly quickly. He would muck his cards just as quick (K-10) when Price showed an A-8 for trips to take the side pot and the main in eliminating Muratov’s 6-5.
With five players remaining, Katchalov was now the short stack, but he got a big double against Law when his pocket tens outlasted Law’s A-J on an eight high board. Then Koutoupas would step back into the fray, battling with Law in a pot where neither man was going away. Law would eventually get his chips to the center with pocket Aces and Koutoupas, once again, was behind with his A♥ K♥. The flop ended it all, coming down 5♥ 6♥ 7♥ to give Koutoupas the nut flush. When the board failed to pair on the turn, Law was out in fifth place and Koutoupas continued to blast through the field.
Koutoupas would eliminate Heath in fourth place, outflopping Heath’s A-J with K-J on an J-10-Q-7-3 board, then dumped Price from the final table in a hand where he actually led from the start, K-Q versus Price’s K-9. Down to heads up play, Koutoupas held over 15 million in chips to Katchalov’s paltry 5 million.
Katchalov fought the good fight over the two hour heads up match, but he never was able to garner much traction against Koutoupas and cut his lead. On the final hand, Koutoupas opened up the action for 200K and Katchalov three bet the pot to 500K. Undaunted, Koutoupas moved all in and Katchalov called, tabling Big Slick against Koutoupas’ baby Ace, A-3. Although he had the pre-flop edge, the 3-3-5 flop changed the fortunes in favor of Koutoupas. A deuce on the turn brought a sweat, but a Queen on the river ended the tournament in favor of Greece’s first-ever EPT champion, Sotirios Koutoupas.
1. Sotirios Koutoupas, €614,000
2. Eugene Katchalov, €379,500
3. Oliver Price, €271,200
4. Eli Heath, €207,800
5. Harry Law, €164,600
6. Rustem Muratov, €128,200
7. Carlo de Benedittis, €93,000
8. Anthony Lerust, €63,900
