Rising Star Sinead Priestley Takes Down the 888poker UKPL Luton Opening Voyage
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It is quite fitting that today is International Women's Day and PokerNews is writing up a recap about a victory by one of the United Kingdom's rising stars, Sinead Priestley.
Anyone who follows British poker knows that Priestley has been knocking on the door in live events over the past 12 months. On March 7, Priestley got the job done in the 888poker UK Poker League (UKPL) Luton Opening Voyage event and turned £250 into £17,865.
The Opening Voyage attracted 399 entries and paid 50 place. Matthew Davenport, Priestley's fiancé, was the first player to bust inside the money place. Priestley and Davenport are shaping up to be quite the poker power couple in the UK.
A min-cash weighed in at £475, but the least any of the eight finalists could win increased to £1,960.
UKPL Luton Opening Voyage Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sinead Priestley | £17,865 |
| 2 | Enea Soumpasi | £13,275 |
| 3 | Ryan Seary | £9,065 |
| 4 | Catalin Dumitrascu | £5,920 |
| 5 | Tim Chung | £4,005 |
| 6 | Ciaran McCullagh | £2,835 |
| 7 | Richard Ashby | £2,250 |
| 8 | George Popa | £1,960 |
Priestley sat down at the final table with the chip lead in tow, but victory was far from a forgone conclusion, not least because Tim Chung and Richard "Chufty" Ashby were present and correct.
Everyone laddered a place when George Popa committed his last 12 big blinds with king-queen of hearts only to run into the pocket aces of Ryan Seary. Another ace landed on the top, and then the turn, resulting in death by quads for Popa.
The final table waters became less shark-infested with the untimely demise of Ashby. Ashby's last six big blinds went into the middle holding king-six against the jack-ten of clubs in Seary's hand. The river was a king, but it was the king of clubs, which completed Seary's flush and confirmed Ashby's demise.
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A cruel run-out ended Ciaran McCullagh's participation at the Grosvenor G Casino in Luton. McCullagh was all in for 12 big blinds with pocket nines, and Enea Soumpasi looked him up with ace-jack. The nines looked to have held unt lth board double paired with kings and tens, counterfeiting McCullagh's hand.
Soumpasi was responsible for sending Chung to the showers in fifth place. Chung jammed with king-jack of diamonds for nine big blinds, and Soumpasi had one of the easier calls of his career with pocket queens. The board provided no drama this time around, and Chung was gone.
Catalin Dumitrascu was the next finalist to feel the wrath of Soumpasi. Dumitrascu's tournament life hinged on his pocket tens remaining good against Soumpasi's ace-seven. Unfortunately for Dumitrascu, an ace appeared on the flop, and that was it.
Priestely claimed her first scalp of the final table, Seary's. Seary got his last nine big blinds into the middle of the felt with king-queen, and Priestley's dominating ace-king sent him to the rail.
The final hand of the £250 Opening Voyage saw Priestley four-bet shove with pocket jacks, and Soumpasi make the call with ace-three. A queen-high run-out resigned Soumpasi to a £13,275 consolation prize and gifted Priestly the victory, trophy, and £17,865 in prize money.
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The Latest in a Long Line of Top Results For Priestley
Priestley has dozens of cashes on her Hendon Mob profile dating back to 2014. However, Priestley has kicked on to another level over the past few years, starting with a runner-up finish in the £170 London Deepstack, which earned her a career-best £20,000 in May 2019.
In 2023, Priestley finished sixth in the £550 GUKPT Cup in Leeds, cashed in both the €550 Colossus and €550 Closer at the World Series of Poker Europe before putting together a deep run in the $3,300 Merit Poker Gangster Series Main Event.
Priestley has started 2024 how she ended 2023. A tenth place finish in the £250 Mini Main Event and a cash in the £1,250 Main Event at GUKPT Manchester followed by a fourth-place finish in the £200 Closer at UKPL Coventry. Now Priestley has a trophy and outright victory in a major live event, which is likely to be the first of many.
