KK vs AA and the Start of Chaos
The final table had barely begun when a moment occurred that could break most players. Bansel finds himself with pocket kings in a showdown against pocket aces. It’s not just a cooler – it’s pure tournament brutality at the EPT final table. No miracle occurs; Bansel’s stack drops to the minimum, leaving him literally with just a chip and a chair. Nevertheless, he maintains his composure, humor, and perspective, knowing he can still survive.
The following minutes are among the toughest in tournament poker. With just a third of a big blind left, Bansel contemplates whether to risk the ante or wait for the next hand. Commentators openly admit there is no manual for such stacks. Every decision bears extreme weight because other short stacks are also in play. The payjumps are worth hundreds of thousands, adding more pressure to the situation.
A Ride That Changes the Entire Tournament
Then it begins. An all-in for a few chips. A win. Another all-in. Another win. From an absolute low, Bansel returns to the game, suddenly more than just the “dead man at the table.” From 50,000 chips, he climbs to 1.5 million over a few hands. Not through reckless gambling, but through patience and the fact that other players must play against each other. It’s a perfect example of why a short stack is never truly dead.
As others fall, Bansel continues. Surviving further flips, scoring more pay jumps, this player who “should have been out long ago” becomes one of the main stories of the final table. His journey ends in 5th place, but the way he got there overshadows even the battle for the title. From a third of a blind to a stable stack and the respect of the entire table. Representing “1.5 billion people,” as he says, he performs with great dignity.
The Toughest Folds of the Evening
The final table offers moments that define tournament poker better than any solver. The Czech home player faces a decision to fold pocket J s J h into a 3-bet, with only a few blinds behind. Not because the hand isn’t strong, but because ICM mathematics and approaching bustouts make folding theoretically correct.
The decision goes the other way. The Czech’s chips go in, but in the showdown, it’s a disaster with Q s Q d and A h A d against him. The aces hold, and for the Czech player, the tournament ends brutally, quickly, and without mercy.
Deal, Heads-Up, and the New EPT Prague Champion
After a 3-way deal and the elimination of Turkish player Gkatzas, the final moves to a heads-up between Matan Krakow and Bor Catulus. Both play aggressively, fearlessly, with a clear goal – to make history.
Though the heads-up was more than 70bb deep and the players had similar stacks, it concluded relatively swiftly. A flop of 4 h K d 5 h seals the deal with an all-in and call. Kurtulus leads with 8 h 8 d, but Krakow with 7 d 6 d stays in play. An ace on the turn increases Krakow's outs, giving him a 30% chance to win.
The river, a 4 d is one of those outs, deciding the fate of the Israeli player and ending the tournament. Matan Krakow becomes the winner of the EPT Prague 2025 Main Event, taking home €778,000, the trophy, and the prestigious title.
The final table in Prague wasn’t about perfect GTO decisions. It was about survival, psychology, ICM pressure, and the fact that sometimes all it takes is one chip and one chair to change the entire narrative. That's exactly why we watch these tournaments.
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Sources - YouTube, WSOP, PokerNews
