A Czech Blow, Irish Hope Shattered, and Bansal's Chip'n'Chair
The finale of the Prague EPT Main Event was slated for today, with the last 7 players returning to the televised table from a field of 1,224. The pace picked up immediately with major confrontations. The local audience lost a significant storyline when Vítězslav Čech placed 7th for €159,150 in a 3-way all-in, colliding with Stanciu holding Q s Q d and Gkatzas with A h A d, against Čech's J s J h.
Shortly after, Irish representative Conor O’Driscoll exited in 6th place, earning €206,900. At that moment, Paawan Bansal embodied the classic 'chip and a chair' tale, pulling off several double-ups despite being short-stacked, eventually finishing on 5th place for €269,000.
Fourth place went to Traian Stanciu (€349,650), who Krakow eliminated in a blind vs blind showdown, leaving only three players in the game. They summoned the floor, paused the tournament clock, and reviewed the financial mathematics. An agreement was reached: Krakow, Kurtulus, and Gkatzas divided guaranteed funds, leaving €74,655 and the PokerStars Golden Shard trophy for the winner.
Krakow Had the Final Word
After the deal, only prestige and the remaining €74,655 were at stake. The swift play saw Gkatzas collect a 3rd place finish with €574,600. This left Kurtulus and Krakow to battle in heads-up, with Krakow starting with 80bb and his opponent with 70bb.
Despite the deep stacks, everything concluded in an hour. Krakow stole the final moment—his winning hand, fondly remembered in Prague, was 7 d 6 d. With the 4 h K d 5 h on the flop, he went all-in, and Kurtulus, holding 8 h 8 d, called eagerly. The turn's A d gave the Israeli player a backdoor flush draw, sealed by the river's 4 d.
Matan Krakow thus became only the second Israeli champion of an EPT Main Event, taking home the legendary trophy and a prize of €778,255. Though defeated, Bora Kurtulus wasn't disappointed, pocketing €757,400.
Final Table Results:
| Position | Player | Country | Amount |
| 1 | Matan Krakow | Israel | €778,255* |
| 2 | Bora Kurtulus | Turkey | €757,400* |
| 3 | Dimitrios Gkatzas | Greece | €574,600* |
| 4 | Traian Stanciu | Romania | €349,650 |
| 5 | Paawan Bansal | India | €269,000 |
| 6 | Conor O’Driscoll | Ireland | €206,900 |
| 7 | Vitezslav Cech | Czech Republic | €159,150 |
Sources – YouTube, PokerNews, Flickr, PSlive
