Wexford man wins Celtic Poker Tour Grand Final

Mark Flanagon, from Wexford County, outlasted 216 players to win the Celtic Poker Tour Grand Final in Athlone last week.

For his win he earns €35,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to the Betfair Asian Poker Tour in Singapore.


"I thought I had no chance," said Flanagon, who's only been playing Texas Hold'em for a year. "I just wanted to make it through to the second day."

Going into the final table of 10 players though, Flanagon had the largest chip stack. Heads up play came down to him and Maurice McNamara, and after 12 minutes of play, Flanagon came out on top.

McNamara received €15,000 of the €100,000 prize pool for his second place finish.

Flanagon will get his next chance to prove himself in a poker tournament at the Asian Poker Tour. "I'm looking forward to seeing how I get on with the big fish in Singapore," he said. "If I can last an hour, I'll be pleased because I like to play an aggressive game."

The Celtic Poker Tour was created by Texas Hold'em enthusiasts Denis Alysbury and Mike Foley. The tour is sponsored by Betfair Poker, and has hosted more than 100 tournaments throughout Ireland over the past year.

More information about the tour can be found at www.celticpokertour.com

News Added: 19 September, 2006

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