The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) is presently in London for the primary leg of its 2026 tour. A number of occasions have topped their champions, together with the £2,500 No-Restrict Maintain’em Excessive Curler. Seventy-two gamers entered the combination, and Brandon Sheils emerged victorious, taking residence £49,560.
Sheils, a high-volume and in style grinder, entered 2026 filled with confidence, having loved his greatest yr by way of prize cash. In keeping with The Hendon Mob Database, the person from Birmingham amassed $696,389 final yr, a formidable sum, helped by his fifth-place end within the $5,000 No-Restrict Maintain’em 6-Handed occasion on the 2025 World Collection of Poker (WSOP).
This newest victory pushes Sheils’ reside earnings ever nearer to the $2.5 million mark.
£2,500 GUKPT London Excessive Curler Last Desk Outcomes
1Brandon Sheils£49,560
2Ryan Fronda£33,030
3Medhi Chaoui£22,030
4James Mitchell£15,260
5S.S.£11,320
6Conor O’Driscoll£8,500
7Bryan Taylor£6,610
8Adria Dalmau£5,820
9Keith Johnson£5,190
Solely the ultimate 9 gamers obtained a share of the £157,310 prize pool. Seasoned professional Keith Johnson was the primary participant to money after his ace-jack misplaced to the once-dominated ace-ten of James Mitchell, courtesy of a ten on the flop.
Spaniard Adria Dalmau bowed out in eighth place after a battle of the blinds did not go as deliberate. Conor O’Driscoll open-shoved from the small blind with the lowly ten-five, and Dalmau referred to as off his eight huge blind stack with ace-jack. Dalmau paired his ace, however O’Driscoll improved to journey tens on the river.
Subsequent to fall was Scotland’s Bryan Taylor, the champion of the GUKPT Edinburgh Major Occasion in October 2025. Taylro was down to 6 huge blinds when he pushed all-in with ace-eight. Sheils referred to as with king-ten and proceeded to spike a ten on the river to depart the Scotsman void of chips.
Eire’s O’Driscoll headed to the exits in sixth place and was the final participant to not obtain a five-figure payday. O’Driscoll wanted the luck of the Irish when his seven huge blind shove with ten-nine of diamonds was referred to as by Mitchell holding pocket tens. No such luck arrived, and O’Driscoll was gone.
A participant wishing to stay underneath the shroud of anonymity crashed out in fifth earlier than the damaging Mitchell fell foul of Sheils. Mitchell obtained his final 14 huge blinds into the center of the felt whereas holding ace-queen, just for Sheils to show up with the dominating ace-king. Sheils improved to journeys, and Mitchell headed to the cashier’s desk to gather £15,260 to go together with the £47,700 he scooped earlier within the week for triumphing within the inaugural G500 occasion.
The £2,500 GUKPT London Excessive Curler progressed to heads-up following the demise of Morocco’s Mehdi Chaoui. The Moroccan continued his spectacular vein of kind, one which noticed him win greater than $1.9 million in 2025 alone. Chaoui got here unstuck when he dedicated his final 6.5 huge blinds with queen-ten, which could not get there towards Ryan Fronda‘s ace-eight.
Grosvenor Poker Publicizes Thrilling NPL Updates Alongside Full 2026 Schedule
Heads-up pitted Sheils towards the veteran Fronda, the latter having cashed within the first-ever GUKPT season and now racking up a money within the twentieth season. Sadly for Fronda, he could not mark the event with a win, and needed to console himself with a £33,030 runner-up prize, the second-largest of his profession, after his king-eight didn’t beat Sheils’ ace-eight when it mattered.
Sheils instantly entered Day 1a of the £1,250 buy-in, £250,000 assured GUKPT London Major Occasion. The 83-strong crowd was whittled to solely 26 by the shut of play, and Sheils discovered himself close to the highest of the chip counts. He bagged and tagged 135,400, trailing solely Joseph Daring (187,000), Maximilian Sanders (162,500), and Longmao Fan (136,300).
Remaining 2026 GUKPT London Schedule
Matthew Pitt
Senior Editor
