Pedro Marques, Zak VanKeuren and Patrik Jaros Claim Big Victories

From Europe to Las Vegas, we saw several players win big with Pedro Marques, Patrik Jaros, and Zak VanKeuren shining brighter with massive wins. Pedro Marques emerged victorious in the 2024 EPT Prague Main Event, while Zak VanKeuren outlasted over 9,000 players to claim the coveted WPT Prime Championship title. Here is a look at their wins, along with the victory of Patrik Jaros.

Pedro Marques Triumphs in the 2024 EPT Prague Main Event

Portugal’s Pedro Marques, an EPT regular, etched his name in the EPT history books by winning the Poker Stars 2024 EPT Prague‘s record-breaking €5,300 buy-in Main Event for a payday of €963,450. With over 20 years of poker experience, this was Marques’ first-ever Main Event victory, boosting his career earnings past $5.7 million.   

The €5,300 buy-in PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Prague Main Event attracted a record-breaking 1,458 entrants across two starting flights. Of the 1,458 entrants, 216 players claimed a share of the massive €7,071,300 prize pool, with the final nine players securing six-figure payouts. The final six players returned for Day 6, competing for the PokerStars trophy and the coveted first-place prize.   

South Korea’s Jaehyung Park finished on the podium, securing €512,100 for his third-place finish. Paul Runcan held a commanding 36:7 chip advantage over Marques at the start of heads-up play. Marques called for his tournament life, doubling up and narrowing the chip gap. After an hour of play, both players agreed to a heads-up deal, splitting the remaining payouts.

With the deal in place, Marques seized the momentum, reversing the role. Marques soon sealed the victory when the final hand arrived. Runcan jammed with queen-jack, and Marques called with king-queen. Marques connected a king on the flop to clinch the EPT trophy and a payout of €963,450*. Runcan had to settle for the €900,000* runner-up prize.

2024 EPT Prague Main Event Final Table Payouts

Patrik Jaros Wins the €10,300 EPT Prague High Roller

Patrik Jaros kept the high roller trophy on home soil, winning the €10,300 buy-in EPT High Roller at the 2024 EPT Prague for a career-best payday of €573,500. Jaros earlier won the €5,200 PLO Event in the series and followed that up with his high roller victory. 

The €10,300 buy-in attracted 289 entrants, building up a total prize pool of €2,803,300. As the field whittled, 39 players made it into the money. Jaros faced the 2024 Merit Poker Gatsby Gala Series Champion Nichan Khorchidian in the heads-up with a three-to-one chip advantage. 

Jaros easily locked up the victory when he rivered a straight on the board with his queen-ten against Khorchidian’s king pair. Khorchidian ended up in the runner-up place and smashed his previous career-best payday of $307,7200 for an impressive €358,400. 

€10,300 EPT Prague High Roller Final Table Payouts

Zak VanKeuren Secures 2024 WPT Prime Las Vegas Championship 

Online bracelet winner Zak Vankeuren made his mark in live poker by winning the 2024 World Poker Tour (WPT) Prime Championship at the Wynn Las Vegas. The online player earned a career-high prize of $1,162,350 from the massive $9.4 million prize pool.

The $1,100 buy-in World Poker Tour Prime Championship at the Wynn Las Vegas attracted a gigantic field of 9,670 across four flights, crushing the $5 million guarantee and generating a prize pool of $9,379,900. That substantial prize pool was paid out to 1,206 players, with all locking up at least $1,940. Numerous WPT regulars, prime champions, and team pros competed in the event, but in the end, it was amateur Zachary Vankeuren who outlasted them all. 

Vankeuren entered the heads-up with a 3:1 chip lead over pro James Casement and took only two hands to claim the title. On the final hand of the tournament, Casement shoved with king-jack, only to be met with the ace-king of Vankeuren. The board brought a king on the flop, and while both players spiked their king, it was Vankeuren who sealed the victory with his kicker. Casement was eliminated in 2nd place and was awarded an impressive $759,890 for his efforts. 

2024 WPT Prime Championship Final Table Payouts

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