It was a home soil triumph in the Irish Poker Open Main Event in Dublin last night, with Simon Wilson fighting off a strong challenge to bag the title and €600,000 top prize.
Five opening flights over four days attracted a whopping 4,562 entries, each paying €1150 to build a €4,447,950 prize pool, with six 6-figure payouts up top and a host of others ensured of a decent payday.
In the money
The bubble burst in a haze of uncertainty, Christian Marek’s exit hand unrecorded but the good news being that the Austrian will receive a free entry into next year’s Main Event.
There were plenty of notables who made it to the paid spots:
- Vanessa Kade (514th/€1960)
- Caitlin Comeskey (489th/€2270)
- David Lappin (296th/€2980)
- Katie Swift (86th/€7200)
- Daniel Smiljkovic (46th/€9500)
Aces versus Aces
Hopes of an Irish winner were reasonably high when two players made it to the final table, Wilson’s cause helped by the following KO of Charles Whitehouse in 16th spot…
Wilson: A♦ A♣
Whitehouse: A♠ A♥
Flop: J♦ Q♦ 8♦
Whitehouse check-shoved the flop only to receive the bad news… he was all-in and at risk. The river flushed his title hopes away…
Turn: J♠
River: 6♦
Joe O’Donaill was first to leave the final table, his pocket nines only good for that spot when he ran into Georgios Skarparis’ kings, and Romania’s Robert Fluereci followed him to the rail in 8th.
€100k locked up
When Panteleimon Pontos fell in 7th spot, it meant the remaining six had locked up €100k and that’s what Brandon Harris left with, his top pair shove on the flop outkicked by Wilson’s better hand.
The rising blinds saw Karim and Skarparis forced into action, the end results going against them, and that left three players vying for the title – Lithuania’s Ignotas Kirsis, Italy’s Umberto Ruggieri, and Ireland’s own Simon Wilson.
Double-ups and chopped pots ensued but Kirsis finally found himself in a race for his life, but his 5♠ 5♥ was outflopped by Wilson’s K♦ 9♠ to leave us heads-up for the title and over €900k in cash.
The 3rd place podium finish at the @Irish_PokerOpen went to Ignotas Kirsis in the early hours of the morning. He walks away from the record-breaking event with €225,000. 👏 pic.twitter.com/5p2WHvhFV5
— PokerStars LIVE (@PokerStarsLIVE) April 22, 2025
The heads-up battle was short-lived when Umberto’s open was shoved on by Wilson, the call quickly coming…
Ruggeri: A♥ 10♣
Wilson: 6♦ 5♦
Flop: 3♥ 7♠ 6♣
Turn: K♣
River: 2♠
That flopped pair was enough to give Wilson the win, the 22-year-old Ashbourne man picking up €600,000, more than enough to see him through the final year of college he has planned.
Final results
| 1 | Simon Wilson | Ireland | €600,000 |
| 2 | Umberto Ruggieri | Italy | €316,000 |
| 3 | Ignotas Kirsis | Lithuania | €225,000 |
| 4 | Georgios Skarparis | Cyprus | €170,000 |
| 5 | Michel Karim | Sweden | €130,000 |
| 6 | Brandon Harris | UK | €100,000 |
| 7 | Panteleimon Pontos | Greece | €77,500 |
| 8 | Robert Fluereci | Romania | €59,030 |
| 9 | Joe O’Donaill | Ireland | €45,800 |
“To win besides my friends and family with my Mum and Dad watching at home – I can’t describe it,” he told reporters afterwards, adding: “I will be going back to college in September, I deferred my final year this year and my mother would kill me if I didn’t go back and I have to graduate next May. I study Economics and Business at Trinity.”
Before that, Wilson has plans to play the WSOP in Vegas and his new bankroll should see him alright for a crack at a different Main Event appearance.
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