Featuring a humble £200 buy-in, the Grosvenor Poker Goliath is arguably the centerpiece of the United Kingdom’s poker scene, drawing players from over the UK and the world.
The latest edition of the tournament was the most successful one. Despite an increase of a £50 on the buy-in, the event drew a record-breaking field of 11,749 entries to the Coventry Grosvenor Casino and built a mammoth £1,879,840 prize pool, making it the biggest Goliath ever and highlighting the continued growth of British poker.
After three days of intense play, Will Watkins emerged as the winner of the tournament and took home £166,070, following a nine-way chop. The runner-up Gilbert Black pocketed an impressive £175,575.
Quick Recap
The third and final day of the event saw 36 players in contention. Following a little over five hours of play, the Goliath reached its final table bubble, with Zhivko Zhikov going all-in and at risk with Big Slick against Black’s pocket nines and failed to connect on the board to make way for the final table.
Once the final table was reached, extensive deal negotiations took place. After several minutes, all the finalists agreed for an ICM chop and then played for the title and trophy. Chip leaders Black, Watkins and Ricketts all took six-figure payouts, while the rest locked up prizes between £55,580 and £91,655.
After losing the majority of his chip in a three-way all-in, James Brown was forced all in and lost it with nine-three to Rickett’s ace-ten to exit in ninth place. Ricketts then sent Lance Connolly to the rail in eighth place. Watkins’ ace-king then dominated Abalasei’s ace-deuce and brought the tournament to six-handed play. The next players to fall were James Hearty, Reece Ling and Ben Miller falling in sixth, fifth and fourth places, respectively.
Down to three-handed play, Watkins was the chip leader, and he became the bigger favourite when he busted Ricketts. The latter picked up ace-queen but ran into ace-king to exit in third place.
Watkins started the heads-up with more than a 5:1 chip lead, but Black scored two double-ups to quickly close the gap. The final hand saw Watkins with Ac Kc. Black defended with Qd 9c. He made two pair on the Qs Jc 9s flop, while Watkins had a straight draw. Black check-raised and was called. The turn brought As. The chips stacked in with Black slightly covered. The Js appeared on the river, giving Watkins a better two pair to secure the coveted title.
2024 Grosvenor Poker Goliath Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize (GBP) |
| 1 | Will Watkins | £166,070* |
| 2 | Gilbert Black | £175,575* |
| 3 | Steven Ricketts | £111,900* |
| 4 | Ben Miller | £55,580* |
| 5 | Reece Ling | £69,450* |
| 6 | James Hearty | $91,655* |
| 7 | Alexandru Abalasei | £76,462* |
| 8 | Lance Connolly | £64,150* |
| 9 | James Brown | £88,570* |
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Image Credit: Grosvenor Poker
