Mark Johnston Takes Down the Dublin Poker Festival ACOP Main Event

Northern Eire’s Mark Johnston is comparatively new to the stay poker scene, however you’ll by no means suppose so in the event you checked out his outcomes. Since recording his first Hendon Mob flag in September 2023, Johnston has racked up 21 cashes, together with seven closing tables. His twenty first in-the-money end was a powerful victory within the €350 Amaetur Championship Of Poker (ACOP) on the WPT World Dublin Poker Pageant.

Johnston shot to fame in March 2024 when he entered the €1,150 Irish Open Predominant Occasion for the primary time. A couple of days after parting firm with €1,150, Johnston completed third from a 3,233-strong discipline and banked €232,685. He cashed within the 2025 Irish Open Predominant Occasion and has now recorded his first stay victory within the Emerald Isle’s capital. He certain enjoys enjoying in Dublin.

WPT World Dublin Poker Pageant ACOP Predominant Occasion Closing Desk Outcomes

The €350 ACOP Predominant Occasion had a €100,000 assure, however in the end awarded €212,294 after 706 gamers purchased in. The highest 95 finishers made the cash, with a min-cash of €630 and a steadily growing high prize of €31,000.

Greek grinder Panagiotis Kostopanagitis was the primary of the 9 finalists to be relieved of their stack. Matthew Blayney and Irish Poker Tour common John Fannon adopted swimsuit earlier than David Lyons busted in sixth place for a career-best €8,450.

Lithuania’s Karolis Mikalauskas’ solely money earlier than this occasion was a runner-up end in a €25 buy-in match in Dublin again in March 2016. He can now boast of a €10,850 prize after securing solely his second money in a decade.

Fourth place and €13,690 went to Dutchman Sander Smit, who completed third on this occasion in 2017 for €15,714.

The ultimate trio of surviving gamers struck a deal that primarily eliminated the final remaining pay jumps. That deal meant Paudie Cusack collected €25,000 for his third-place end, the second-largest haul of his profession.

Johnston and Robert McGuirk locked horns and butted heads within the one-on-one part of the 2026 ACOP Predominant Occasion. Johnston acquired the job carried out, his arms on a relatively fetching championship belt, and a €31,000 high prize. McGuirk helped himself to a €27,250 concolsation prize.

The Dublin Poker Pageant continues till March 1, with everybody’s consideration now fixated on the €700 buy-in, €200,000 guaranted European Deepstack Poker Championship. Day 1a begins at midday on February 26, with Day 1b shuffling up and dealing on the identical time on February 27. Day 2 begins at 12:00 p.m.GMT on February 28, and the third and closing day’s play additionally kicks off at midday, however on March 1.

When this match was held in March 2025, it had a €570 buy-in. A discipline of 515 entrants created a €251,060 prize pool, of which an nameless Irish participant claimed €43,980 after rising victoriously.

In 2024, Tomas Geleziunas got here out on high and banked €43,993 of the €227,663 prize pool.

Matthew Pitt hails from Leeds, West Yorkshire, in the UK, and has labored within the poker business since 2008, and labored for PokerNews since 2010. In September 2010, he grew to become the editor of PokerNews. Matthew stepped away from stay reporting duties in 2015, and now concentrates on his position of Senior Editor for the PokerNews.