Massimo Di Cicco Eliminated in 2nd Place (€445,000)
As the crowd closed in, all eyes were on the felt, patiently awaiting the hole cards to be revealed. "He was bluffing!" exclaimed the commentary team as Di Cicco showed for ace high and the gutshot draw. Bonavena, meanwhile, tabled for top pair.
The turn was close, but no cigar, and with Di Cicco in search of a five or an ace on the river, the missed by a country mile and sealed the deal for the start-of-day chip leader... Bonavena is the 2008 EPT Prague champion and the first-ever Italian EPT champion.
An emotional moment for all involved, but especially the winner who quickly draped himself in the white, red and green of his home nation.