Katie Swift's Journey to Second Place at GUKPT Luton Inspires Women in Poker
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This week, Grosvenor Poker Pro Katie Swift came within touching distance of history. She narrowly missed out on becoming the first female winner of a Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) title when she finished second in the GUKPT Luton Main Event.
Now reflecting on her deep run, Swift said she's on cloud nine and has been inundated with messages of support after her deep run.
"I can't stop smiling!" Swift told PokerNews. Initially, I was disappointed not to close it out, get the win, and take the title, but I played my absolute heart out and battled hard! I’m delighted and very proud of my performance.
"But there wasn't only one winner this weekend. I may not have lifted the trophy or clinched that title, but I won, too! I added three hours of heads-up experience to my resumé. I improved my confidence and ability. I won the respect and support of so many people. Not forgetting the £49,300 I profited too! I may not be the champion, but I definitely won!"
Final Table Performance
Swift said that throughout the final table, she had to play smart, with chip leaders positioned directly to her left. But she knew the best way to secure a spot heads-up was to navigate the action and force them to play against each other.
"Unfortunately, playing some powerful poker wasn’t enough to take it down"
Making it to heads-up, and staring a 6:1 chip deficit in the face, Swift managed to close the gap significantly but wasn't able to secure victory.
"Unfortunately, playing some powerful poker wasn’t enough to take it down. Sadly, I just couldn’t hold in a couple of critical hands or win my all-ins or flips. Twice the title was in touching distance but savagely taken!"
Throughout the final table, and especially in heads-up, Swift said she remained focused and tried to remain composed to give herself the best opportunity to win.
"Seb was a well-deserved champion," she said. "His poker skills shone from start to finish, and he was a proper class act."
2024 GUKPT Luton Main Event Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seb Crane | £66,000 |
| 2 | Katie Swift | £49,300 |
| 3 | Dean Wilson | £34,040 |
| 4 | Luke Porter | £22,640 |
| 5 | Callum Gordon | £15,750 |
| 6 | Ali Abdulzahra | £11,550 |
| 7 | Thomas Clack | £9,170 |
| 8 | Stefan Voudouri | £7,950 |
| 9 | Abdul Ahmed | £6,900 |
Encouraging Women to Follow in Her Footsteps
After the event, Swift said that she's been overwhelmed with support, kind messages and compliments about her play, especially coming so close to creating history as the first female player to ever win a GUKPT Main Event title.
"I can't thank everyone enough, to be honest. I hope to have another opportunity at winning [a GUKPT title], but I also hope other females are given more credit when playing this game, as a direct result of how I played.
"I would always encourage anyone and everyone to learn to play poker. Poker teaches so many skill sets that can be transferred and applied to every aspect of life, too. It’s invaluable, not to mention so much fun!"
Over the last few years, Swift says she's noticed the female presence in poker growing. From Facebook and WhatsApp groups, to weekly women-only tournaments on Grosvenor Poker, the strength of women's poker is increasing all the time.
The next stop for Swift is the Malta Poker Festival next month, with Grosvenor running MPF Ladies Package satellites online from this week. #TeamGrosvenor is planning on taking a team of women to Malta for the first time ever.
"This has been a long time in the making and shows again the power of persistence and never giving up!" said Swift.
