Read all about the World Poker Tour Festa Al Lago - who was there, what did they play for and who got to take home almost $900K in prize money.
The World Poker Tour (WPT) Festa Al Lago event was all set to see some of the biggest names in poker grace the world stage. The likes of Daniel Negreanu, Scotty Nguyen and even veteran Doyle Brunson were all a part of the show piece but it was 22 year old poker prodigy, Randall Flowers, who stole the show.
At just 20 years of age, Flowers broke the record for being the youngest player to capture a WPT title with victory in Barcelona. This week he went one step further by securing a second World Poker Tour title, seeing off 335 entrants to become the youngest ever double WPT title winner.
Hosted at the Bellagio Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, the event was electric. With the buy-in at $10,000 it was only those who are serious about their poker who turned up. Some of poker's biggest names entered and many fell early, including the established faces mentioned above who all fell before Day 3 finished.
Online pro Jason Koon and Andy Frankenberger fought the good fight for the big guns but it was the raw talent of Randall Flowers that caught everyone's imagination. He battled well throughout the tournament keeping his play tight but also showing he was willing to take the gamble to go toe to toe. This was summed up when he matched Andy Frankenberger's call of all in with a modest 10-10. Fortunately for him, Frankenberger only had a 5-5 but it was a call that showed the courage this youngster has got.
Randall Flowers walked away with a cool $831,500 from a prize pool that hit the $3.2m mark. It was a fantastic win for Flowers and has etched his name into the minds of poker players around the world. This was an event that was set to profile some of the hottest talents from live gaming and online gaming. Randall Flowers gate crashed the party. The table finalists that included Michael Benvenuti, Noah Schwartz, Jason Koon, Andy Frankenberger and Skip Wilson could only stand back and watch as Flowers swept all competition aside. It would be a bitter man to deny admitting that Flowers deserved this one though.
