“Dream Come True” as Industry Veteran Krakow Wins EPT Prague Main Event

Each winter, Matan Krakow makes it some extent to journey from his house in Israel to play within the PokerStars European Poker Tour Prague. It’s his favourite cease of the yr. It’s the place he first cashed in an EPT pageant practically fifteen years in the past. And as we speak, on the last desk of the 2025 EPT Prague Primary Occasion, it’s the place he loved his crowning achievement in a protracted profession within the poker trade.

Krakow spiked a flush on the river to defeat Turkey’s Bora Kurtulus heads up and seize the celebrated PokerStars Golden Shard trophy and €778,255 prime prize for prevailing over the 1,224-entry discipline.

“It’s extra thrilling than I can put into phrases. It’s a dream come true. It truly is,” the brand new champion stated with the gold-plated trophy by his facet and confetti strewn throughout the ground, taking within the scene that almost all poker gamers can solely dream of.

EPT Prague Last Desk Outcomes

*- denotes three-way deal

“A Pastime That I Love”

The win greater than doubled his earlier profession earnings on a poker resume that dates again to 2011. The 44-year-old Tel Aviv native first cashed right here in Prague in 2011, and completed 114th within the Primary Occasion in 2016. His greatest outcome on the EPT earlier than this week was 109th at EPT Malta in 2015.

Krakow, although, had taken a step again from taking part in professionally previously few years. He took a job because the poker supervisor at a web-based card room, nonetheless concerned within the trade however in a brand new, off-the-felt position. He additionally has expertise as a journalist, co-authoring Eli Elezra’s 2017 autobiography “Pulling the Set off.” His colleagues again house have been following alongside, and he joked afterward that they have been sending him messages about taking an excessive amount of time without work throughout his deep run this week.

“It’s turn out to be extra of a pastime, a pastime that I like.”

The previous poker professional nonetheless enjoys sitting down at a desk each likelihood that he will get. “In recent times, since I acquired married and had youngsters, I’ve had much less time. So it’s turn out to be extra of a pastime, a pastime that I like,” he stated.

Krakow’s victory as we speak was a monumental one for his house nation. Within the greater than twenty years of EPT historical past, only one Israeli participant had gained an EPT title, Uri Gilboa on the 2019 EPT Sochi. Krakow is now the second, and he hopes bringing the trophy again to Israel can function a shiny gentle for the nation, if even a small one.

“It’s wonderful. The nation goes by means of some laborious occasions, and I’m certain I introduced some folks pleasure with this win. I’m blissful to try this little bit,” he stated.

Last Day Motion

The finale started with seven gamers returning to the Hilton Lodge Prague to battle for the trophy. Kurtulus, the civil engineer who solely performs poker recreationally, held the chip lead with 12,325,000, whereas Krakow adopted in second place with 9,700,000.

Krakow acquired a lift on one of many first fingers of the day when he turned the nut straight in opposition to Traian Stanciu, climbing up previous 11,000,000. He quickly after took the chip lead in a pot in opposition to Kurtulus, hitting a pair of nines on the flop in opposition to Kurtulus’ pocket sixes.

Krakow and Kurtulus started to run away from the sector, at one level holding greater than two-thirds of the chips in play between them whereas their opponents tried to hold on and climb the cash ladder. Conor O’Driscoll started the day with simply eight huge blinds and located an early double-up, getting in his final 775,000 with ace-eight in opposition to Vitezslav Cech’s jack-ten and hitting two pair on the flop.

Krakow widened his lead over Kurtulus after turning a straight but once more to maneuver as much as 16,000,000. Simply earlier than the primary break, Stanciu and Paawan Bansal acquired in a preflop elevating battle that ended with Stanciu all in for two,300,000. He was on the precise facet of an final cooler, turning over two aces in opposition to Bansal’s pocket kings to double up and depart Bansal with 50,000, lower than a single huge blind.

Bansal was pressured all within the subsequent hand and doubled up in opposition to Krakow, however nonetheless got here again from the break with lower than a giant blind. He wasn’t the following to depart, nevertheless. On the primary hand of the following degree, Stanciu raised to 400,000 within the cutoff and Dimitrios Gkatzas three-bet to 850,000. Bansal folded his small blind, leaving himself with 50,000 but once more. Cech then known as for his final 675,000, and Stanciu reshoved. Gkatzas known as for his final 2,700,000 and confirmed the products, two aces, in opposition to Cech’s jacks and the queens of Stanciu. Gkatzas held on to scoop the pot and double up off Stanciu, whereas the native favourite Cech was despatched to the rail in seventh place.

Only one hand later, Krakow opened to 400,000, and Kurtulus and O’Driscoll known as within the blinds. O’Driscoll shoved for 800,000 on the flop and Krakow folded, however Kurtulus snap-called with journey aces in opposition to O’Driscoll’s flush draw. O’Driscoll didn’t enhance, and the Twitch streamer was eradicated in sixth place.

Bansal, who had laddered up greater than €100,000 over the earlier two fingers, doubled up with ace-queen in opposition to Gkatzas’ ace-four, then picked up two fives to beat Krakow’s ace-four as he climbed all the way in which as much as 1,550,000, good for seven huge blinds that should’ve appeared like 70.

A misclick helped Kurtulus retake the chip lead from Krakow. After calling a wager of 1,000,000 from Krakow on the flip, Kurtulus checked the river and thought Krakow checked again. He turned over a pair of sixes earlier than Krakow had an opportunity to behave. Krakow, realizing what Kurtulus had, then wager 1,500,000 and Kurtulus known as. Krakow might solely present ace-high for a bluff, and Kurtulus chipped up above 17,000,000. “That is essentially the most enjoyable last desk I’ve performed,” Bansal stated.

“That is essentially the most enjoyable last desk I’ve performed.”

Bansal’s chip-and-a-chair fairy story, although, was to not be, as Stanciu gained a race with two fours in opposition to his king-nine to depart Bansal quick but once more. He was pressured all in from the large blind a number of fingers later as three opponents joined in. Kurtulus ended up rivering a flush to win the pot, sending Bansal, the primary India native to make an EPT last desk, to the rail in fifth place.

Kurtulus then fired all three streets with simply ace-high, forcing Stanciu off a pair of nines because the Romanian was left with simply 700,000. Stanciu then known as off his final 400,000 within the huge blind a number of fingers later with six-four, however Krakow remained within the lead with king-high to bust Stanciu in fourth place.

And Then They Have been Three

The three remaining gamers agreed to a deal, Kurtulus taking €757,400 because the chip chief, whereas Krakow locked up €703,600 and Gkatzas €574,600. That left €74,655 and the trophy on the desk to play for.

Gkatzas was left quick when he known as Krakow’s 1,900,000 wager on the river with two pair, however Krakow confirmed journey jacks to win the pot. Gkatzas then shoved for two,375,000 from the small blind with king-deuce and Kurtulus known as with ace-eight. Gkatzas couldn’t catch up, and final yr’s 14th-place finisher was eradicated in third place in his second straight deep run at EPT Prague.

Krakow had a slim 19,150,000 to 17,525,000 lead over Kurtulus at first of heads-up play. He shortly prolonged his lead by hero-calling a wager of two,000,000 on the river with simply ace-high as Kurtulus might solely present ten-high. Kurtulus was knocked all the way down to lower than 10,000,000 after calling for two,500,000 on the river with a pair of sixes, however Krakow confirmed two pair.

Kurtulus inched nearer by firing three streets with a pair of tens. Krakow missed straight and flush attracts, and was pressured to give up the pot. He nonetheless held a 24,400,000 to 12,280,000 chip lead when Kurtulus requested to take a smoke break.

On the primary hand again, Krakow opened to 600,000 on the button, Kurtulus three-bet to 2,300,000, and Krakow known as. The flop got here king-high and Kurtulus continued for 4,000,000. Krakow then moved all in, and Kurtulus took little time calling off his final 11,100,000 with pocket eights. Krakow had a straight draw and picked up extra outs with a flush draw on the flip. The river gave him his flush, and the trophy was his.

The 54-year-old Kurtulus, who got here into the occasion with lower than $60,000 in profession earnings and admitted that the deep run by means of the Primary Occasion left him exhausted, employed his personal distinctive type on the last desk. Krakow was left with nothing however reward for his opponent after their heads-up duel. “Tremendous good man. Robust opponent. He was capable of make hero calls in opposition to me, like 3 times. I used to be getting pissed off,” Krakow stated.

“Nice participant. I needed to get fortunate on the final hand.”

Regardless of the numerous rating and history-making triumph, Krakow doesn’t see his life within the recreation altering all that a lot. He’s nonetheless going again to the workplace. “I don’t suppose it’s going to change, however I don’t know. Let’s see what occurs,” he stated.