Irish Team Wins European Team Championship
On November 1st and 2nd the Amateur Professional Association Tour European Team Championship took place in Brighton England. The event was held at the Grosvenor Casino and teams from England, Scotland, Wales, Germany, France, Hungary, Netherlands and Ireland competing.
Each player on the teams had to pay GBP 100 to enter the competition. Each team was selected by non-playing captains and many players are ranked in the APAT national rankings. Blue Square, an APAT sponsor, added GBP 2,000 to the prize pool so the total won was over GBP 5,000. The top three teams would also receive medals.
The Ireland team finished in third place at the end of the first day in both single table and heads-up tournament play. However they dominated the final day and won the tournament. Members of the Ireland team are: Pat O-Callahan, John Murray, Colin O’Prey, Brendan Byrne and non-playing captain Len Collin.
Len Collin commented: "The championship is an amateur event but our participation was for pride and country more than prize money. Paddy Power Poker is a name synonymous with Irish Poker and it's a credit to them that they would consider such sponsorship. The European Team Championship is a new event but it will grow, as APAT has fifteen thousand members and the Russians, Austrians, Spanish and Italians are all expected to field teams next time. Ireland will be back to defend their title and I can't wait!"
Top Three Finishers:
1st Ireland 67 points: GBP 2,600, Championship Cup and Gold Medals
2nd Scotland 51 points: GBP 1,600 and Silver medals
3rd Germany 44 points: GBP 1,000 and Bronze medal