PartyPoker.com Irish Poker Championship Underway Tonight
2nd January 2009
The focus of the poker world is on Galway in Ireland for the next few days as the first major tournament of 2009, the €2,000 buy-in (9% withheld) PartyPoker.com Irish Poker Championship http://www.partypokeripc.com, gets underway after 6pm GMT TONIGHT.
The event runs until January 4, 2009 at the Radisson SAS Hotel. Coverage of the main event will be televised on RTÉ and then distributed internationally. The event is organized by Pokerevents.ie, with the coverage produced by Winmedia Ireland Ltd. Live reporting of the event can be found at: http://www.partypokeripc.com
Irish poker is in the ascendancy after the Emerald Isle’s domination of the Poker Million and the top four who did their country so proud are all in attendance in Galway. Marty Smyth, Eoghan O’Dea, Ciaran O’Leary and Liam Flood join a fantastic line-up that also includes Donnacha O’Dea, Padraig Parkinson, Scott Gray, Ciaran O’Leary, Dave Callaghan, Roy Brindley, Tony Cascarino, Rory Liffey, John Magill and last year’s champion Jude Ainsworth.
There is also a big international contingent in Galway in search of victory and a good craic including ‘Ambassador of Poker’ Mike Sexton, Kenna James, Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott, Benjamin Kang, Surinder Sunar, Mad Marty Wilson, Julian Gardner, Sam Trickett, John Kabbaj, Michael Greco, Marc Goodwin, Paul Jackson, Mickey Wernick, Alan Vinson and 2008 Irish Open champion Neil Channing. France will be represented by Claude Cohen and Veronique Gourdon, Poland by television presenter and boxing champion Agnieszka Rylik, while Spain’s challenge is led by Leo Margets and PartyPoker.com Women’s World Open II star May Maceiras.
Another player taking part will be Meath’s Jay Renehan, who was crowned the winner of special PartyPoker.com Irish Poker Championship Tour league leaderboard. Recent EPT Barcelona runner-up and Galway casino owner Fintan Gavin finished second, with Michael Graydon third. The Tour started on the 1st August at the Eglinton Casino in Galway and concluded with its eighth stop on Saturday 13th December at the Red Cow Hotel in Dublin. For more information on the Tour and the results see: http://www.partypokeripc.com.
Also in attendance are 16 online qualifiers who won packages for the main event on PartyPoker.com. The package was worth $5,000, including the $2,800 buy-in, $1,000 spending money and accommodation in a luxury hotel. A large contingent qualified for only $3!!! Last night a lively player’s party welcomed everybody to Galway – someone forgot to tell the Irish that it was New Year’s Eve the night before!
Last year’s champion was Galway’s Jude Ainsworth, with the runner-up Mick McCool from Nottingham in the UK. In addition to the main event there are a number of good value side events taking place.
See http://www.pokerevents.ie/ipc/IPC2009/tabid/210/Default.aspx for more information.
On Sunday 4th January at 9pm there will be a special charity event ‘Poker for the Homeless,’ where a percentage from each buy-in goes to worthy charities in Dublin and Galway.
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