WPT Prague Latest; Lou Krieger Dies

WPT Prague

The WPT’s party in Prague welcomed 115 players yesterday and once the chip dancing had finished the player out in front was Pasi Heinanen.

The Finnish player bagged 193,800 chips in the final few levels of the day to overtake Shannon Shorrr (191,800) who’d been leading from the start.

Also enjoying a successful first flight was Pawel Brzeski (173,100), Sebastian Garrasi (143,900) and Oleksii Khoroshenin (129,800).

However, whenever a slew of talent starts the day it’s inevitable that the rail becomes littered with stars and those falling be the wayside yesterday included: Bryn Kenney, Jonathan Duhamel, Faraz Jaka and Ana Marquez (you can read our exclusive interview with Ana, here).

Being a re-entry event it’s likely many will reload their stacks today and take another shot at a WPT title.

Lou Krieger Passes

His writing inspired a generation of poker players, but in the last 24 hours Lou Krieger has sadly passed away.

The respected player and author had been an influential figure in the community for a number of years, but after battling with cancer for some time he finally died yesterday.

The news, which came via his Facebook page, shocked many who owed him a debt of gratitude to.

“It is my deepest regret to inform you that early this morning Lou’s fight against cancer ended. He fought courageously to the end with the same pride and dignity that carried him through his life. He wanted everyone to know that he did not go peacefully in his sleep but fighting like hell. He was surrounded by his family. We know he would want everyone to keep floppin’ aces. He will be missed by all that knew him. Poker has lost a star.”

Everyone at the Global Poker Index would like join the rest of the poker community in wishing Lou’s family and friends our deepest sympathies.

Genting’s Big Game

Genting Poker’s charitable Big Game took place last night and attracted its biggest ever field. The London based event welcomed 43 players all eager to do their bit for charity and bag some extra cash before Christmas.

A host of familiar faces made their way to the Fox Poker Club with their £1,000 buy-in to hand, including Barny Boatman, Chaz Chatta and James Akenhead.

Also in the mix and trying to fend off attacks from all sides was Genting Poker pro Daiva Baruskaite. The bold blonde had a £1,000 bounty on her head and soon became a target for every player in the room.

However, after multiple rounds of fire she managed to build up enough of a stack to make it to the final table. Shielding herself from the likes of Boatman and Akenhead, Daiva eventually found herself heads-up with Lee Taylor.

Having played through the night it was now 8:00 am and after some negotiations the two players decided to cut a deal which guaranteed them £14,000 each.

With only Daiva’s £1,000 bounty left to play for, Lee took control of the match before eliminating his opponent to become the official winner and £15,000 better off.