On September 10th, the fifth season of the European Poker Tour kicks off with the EPT Barcelona Open. The €8,000+250 buy-in tournament will crown its champion on September 14th. The night before the tournament starts, some of the EPT’s storied names will gather at Opium Mar in Barcelona for the inaugural EPT Awards. A press release distributed by the online poker room describes how the evening will play out: “There will be seven EPT award categories, including two where the voting is open to the general public and all EPT accredited media. An expert panel of judges will preside over the remaining five categories.”
The World Poker Tour crowns a Player of the Year award at the conclusion of each season. The World Series of Poker also names a yearly stand-out for its summer set of Las Vegas tournaments. For the European Poker Tour, the EPT Awards will highlight who has made waves during one of the most distinctive tournament circuits on Earth. Here is a complete list of awards categories along with the nominees in each:
Best Newcomer
Trond Erik Eidsvig
Denes Kalo
Jason Mercier
Annette Obrestad
Mike McDonald
Best Performance
Jason Mercier
Julian Thew
Bertrand ‘ElkY’ Grospellier
Glen Chorny
Mike McDonald
Best Overseas Player
Tim Vance
Isaac Baron
Raymond Rahme
Danny Ryan
Mike McDonald
Best PokerStars Qualifier
Mike McDonald
Glen Chorny
Christian Harder
Isaac Baron
Danny Ryan
Player of the Year
Luca Pagano
Trond Erik Eidsvig
Johannes Straussman
Jan Heitman
Thierry Van der Berg
In addition, a Poker Writers Award and People’s Choice Award will be handed out, allowing the general public a chance to vote for their favorite EPT personality. Four judges make up the EPT panel; they include Lee Jones, who served as the Poker Room Manager at PokerStars and currently presides over the Customer Service Department of CardRunners, a popular poker training site. Also judging will be EPT founder and commentator John Duthrie, who became the first player ever to win $1 million in a live poker tournament in the PartyPoker Million. 2006 EPT London winner Victoria Coren will also serve as a judge for the EPT Awards. Finally, PokerNews Editor-in-Chief John Caldwell will preside.
The People’s Choice Award is open for voting on PokerStars’ website. In order to vote, a person needs to enter their full name, e-mail address, and the first and last name of the person nominated. Those who win awards will have set a precedent for success in Season V of the EPT:
EPT London
October 1-5, 2008
£5,200 + 200 buy-in
EPT Budapest
October 28 – November 1, 2008
€4,000 + 350 buy-in
EPT Polish Open
November 15-19, 2008
20,000 + 1,000 PLN buy-in
EPT Prague
December 9-13, 2008
€5,000 + €250 buy-in
PokerStars Caribbean Adventure
January 5-10, 2009
$7,800 + $200 buy-in
EPT Deauville
Dates are TBA
€5,000 + 300 buy-in
EPT Scandinavian Open
February 17-21, 2009
50,000 DKR + 2,250 buy-in
EPT German Open
March 10 – 14, 2009
€5,000 + 250 buy-in
EPT San Remo
April 18-23, 2009
€5,000 + 250 buy-in
EPT Grand Final Monte Carlo
April 28 – May 3, 2009
€10,000 + €600 buy-in