by Mario Alfonsi | Published on Feb 26, 2012 | Updated on Feb 26, 2012
Mickey Petersen worked his way through a field of 299 players and a long heads-up battle to win the European Poker Tour Copenhagen Main Event. Petersen’s triumph marked his first major victory, and earned him a prize of just over 2.5 million Danish kroner – or a little under €340,000 at current exchange rates.EPT Copenhagen had reached the final table with a few big names still in contention. Perhaps the most famous player in the final eight was American pro Steve O’Dwyer, who had lead the tournament at one point in the early going and managed to work his way to the final table with a short stack. However, his run would end in 7th place, earning him 290,000 DKK (€39,000).Heading into the final table, Aage Ravn had grabbed the chip lead, and he remained a factor for some time. But as the table grew shorter, so did Ravn’s stack, and when a coin flip went against him, the Norwegian was eliminated in fourth place. Ravn took home a prize of 740,000 DKK (about €100,000).After Bjarke Hansen went out in third place (€135,000), Petersen still had to face a heads-up battle against Pierre Neuville. The two Team PokerStars settled in for a long fight, pitting the young Petersen against the veteran Neuville.But while the match would be long, it wasn’t filled with many dramatic moments. Petersen dominated the encounter, constantly putting Neuville to the question for his chips, only to see Neuville cautiously back down. Neuville battled back a few times, getting his chips in with hands to double up. However, this was generally happening when Neuville was already short stacked, meaning Petersen never appeared to be in serious trouble.After six hours of this cat and mouse game, Petersen managed to get the advantage in an all-in encounter, holding A5 against Neuville’s A4. The odds of a split pot were high, but a five on the river gave Petersen a pair and the win. Neuville took home a prize of 1.6 million DKK (€215,000).For Petersen, the victory more than doubled his career earnings. His previous biggest cash had come from a 4th place finish in the €5,000 event at the 2010 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo. 4h6d4f
