Seat 3: Jani Sointula, Finland - 769,000
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Sointula is a familiar figure on the world poker circuit, and not just for his mane of blond hair that stretches down his back (which he has been growing since 2003), but for a tournament resume going back more than eight years, with big results from around the world.
Tallinn is a poignant venue for Sointula, whose first cash, and first tournament win, was here in 2003, the year he took up the game. Back then Sointula won the Baltic Open Championship, a title worth €3,240. Now he stands poised for a first prize of €275,000.
A little more than a year later, after playing the first ever EPT in Barcelona, Sointula made his breakthrough, winning the Monte Carlo Millions, with more results following. He finished runner-up in the 2006 WPT Paris main event and last season came second in the EPT London High Roller. To date he has nearly $1.8 million in live tournament winnings.
This is Sointula’s first EPT main event final, something he is proud to have achieved after four days of solid play. “For the first three days I didn’t lose any pots, my stack growing all the time,” said Sointula. “I made a bad all-in today against Jeff [Sarwer] but if I hit the flop, I hit it.”