by Mario Alfonsi | Published on Feb 7, 2012 | Updated on Feb 7, 2012
Vadzim Kursevich had come close several times before. But on Monday, he finally broke into the winner’s circle, winning the Main Event at the European Poker Tour Deauville. Kursevich battled for nearly 12 hours in order to secure the title, which came with a €875,000 prize. His road to the title ultimately began and ended with clashes against Frenchman Paul Guichard, who entered final table play as the chip leader.Early on in play, Kursevich – who entered the day in second place – won a huge hand by doubling through against Guichard. When his AK held up against Guichard’s AQ, Kursevich vaulted into the lead with over 7 million chips, while Guichard was left short stacked.Kursevich would continue dominating play during the hours to come. In fact, late in the day, he had actually managed do secure all of the 100,000 chip plaques in play – a sign of just how far ahead he was when the players had reached three-handed play.However, he wasn’t the only one improving his position. The 19-year-old Guichard also battled throughout the day, sticking around after seeming as though he’d be eliminated early in the day. And when the tournament was down to its final two players, it would be Guichard who stood in Kursevich’s way once more.Kursevich came into final table play as a huge favorite, holding about 23 million chips to Guichard’s three million. But Guichard hung tough, doubling through Kursevich twice to nearly draw even with the Belarusian.On the final hand, Kursevich moved all in on the turn with a double-gutshot straight and flush draw, while Guichard called immediately with a set of fives. With virtually all of the chips in play in the pot, Kursevich hit an eight for a straight to eliminate Guichard and win his first major title.While Kursevich had never won such a large event before, he had made two major final tables in the past year. Last year, Kursevich finished 3rd at EPT Berlin, while in the online poker world, he took fifth place in the World Championship of Online Poker. 6y3g51
