ESTONIA FIRST TO BOOK PLACE AT 2013 ENC

The Estonia team

The 2013 European Nations Cup will have a distinctly central European feel to it next spring following the qualifying event in Vienna, Austria this past weekend.

In a slightly changed format, six teams advanced to the finals in London, led by winners of the qualifying event, Estonia, who narrowly claimed top spot against neighbors Lithuania.

The Estonian Poker Federation’s team scored 131,980 points, just 510 more than Lithuania who settled for second place. Serbia, Poland, Hungary and Bosnia Herzegovina will make up the other places, with the full results below:

1. Estonia, 131,980 points
2. Lithuania, 131,470
3. Serbia, 127,560
4. Poland, 127,350
5. Hungary, 125,900
6. Bosnia, 124,600

7. Macedonia, 124,310
8. Latvia, 121,160
9. Cyprus, 114,120
10. Belarus, 109,020
11. Austria, 101,320
12. Czech Republic, 101,210

The event, staged at Montesino in the Austrian capital and hosted by the Austrian Poker Sport Federation, was played using Match Poker, a variation of hold’em pioneered by IFP which uses the same order of cards at all tables.

Every player in each seat receives the same cards as his fellow competitors in that seat position on other tables. It cuts out luck and maximizes the skill element, with the result of each hand going on to determine their finishing position.

It’s an innovative way of reducing random chance, where the quality of the cards a player receives does not influence their chance to win the tournament. It means the most skilful teams will compete in London next year.

The Estonia team, made up of Kolk Marko, Järvsoo Katti, Reinas Marek, Sibold Laur, Olop Herli and Limonova Kelly, will now plan ahead to then, with further details of their triumph to emerge in the coming weeks.

Congratulations to all the teams who took part. See you all in March.