For a couple of years now, the live tournament schedule in December has been very tightly packed, with several major festivals happening at the same time. Opinions on this issue differ, but many agree that this hurts the poker economy as players can’t be at two places at the same time.
Yet, recent reports coming from the 2025 EPT Prague festival seem to indicate that there is no reason for concern. Over in the Czech capital, the €1,100 Eureka Main Event managed to break attendance record once again, with a grand total of 4,732 entries.
This made it the largest tournament in the event’s 13-year history, showing once again that the interest for live poker is an at all time high and there are more than enough players to fill those seats, even with three major festivals happening simultaneously.
Massive Prize Pool a Big Attraction
It’s not every day that a €1k tournament ends up with a multi-million prize pool. The Eureka Main Event in Prague offered over €4.5 million up for grabs, and that alone continues to attract players to these tournaments.
While winning a tournament with almost five thousand players is by no means an easy feat, most players, pros and recs alike, love being in a position to have a shot at it. At least if you run good and win your flips, your reward will be something to remember.
No one knows this better than the Bulgarian pro Martin Tsvetanov who was the last man standing in this year’s tournament. Outlasting the massive field, he picked up €449,034 for his efforts, recording by far the biggest score of his career.
The runner-up, Austria’s Gerald Karlic, pocketed €396,086, while everyone who made it to the final table took home at least €48k.
EPT Prague Main Event Going Strong
One could think that the Eureka Main Event posted strong numbers due to its low buy-in, but the EPT Prague Main Event is breaking the last year’s record, too, with over 1,360 entries compared to last year’s 1,285.
Given the fact the EPT Main Event has a buy-in of €5,300, it’s clear that some pros have picked Prague as their go-to destination over WSOP Paradise and WPT World Championship at the Wynn.
That said, for those strongest of spirits, there will still be enough time to hop on a plane and head over to one of the other two destinations, depending on how they do at the EPT and what their schedule looks like.
This type of adventure certainly requires some fortitude, and it can get expensive, but for true grinders with comfortable bankrolls, it is also a great opportunity that they want to take full advantage of.
Being the festival that kicked off December proceedings, the final stop of the 2024 European Poker Tour is going very strong. The WPT Prime Championship at the Wynn did not disappoint, either, although numbers are not up to last year’s levels.
It will be interesting to see how things develop in coming days and if other major events, namely the WSOP Paradise Super Main Event and the WPT World Championship will meet the expectations of organizers and the poker world in terms of numbers.
