The Poker Ireland Awards 2008

Gary Clarke, 22/12/08 | Print this article

As judged by Gary Clarke

On-line Poker Site of the Year

For those who attended either the Irish Poker festival in Killarney or the Irish onslaught on the Poker Million in London or even the WSOP with Ladbrokes in Vegas, then you will know you are dealing with a top site. What has put Ladbrokes ahead of the posse this year is it’s willingness to spend money on their players over and over again. The show they put on in Kerry this year was the most impressive of the year on the Irish stage. The show put on by the Ladbrokes team at the WSOP was second to none on a world stage. The site then finished off with the poker bash of the year at the Poker Million in December. All this and the $500,000 added on-line LEOCOP festival last November make Ladbrokes site of the year by a distance.

Winner: Ladbrokes

Contribution to Irish Poker

The end of 2008 sees the end of the road for one of Irish poker’s most loved staff members. Duke Houghton has left the poker industry to go travel the world. He will be missed by the many who he has connected with over the past number of years. His colleagues liked him, the punters liked him and overall you would be hard pressed to find a bad word against him. Having fronted the Merrion, the Sporting Emporium and most recently the Jackpot, he has become a stalwart of the Irish Poker scene. His jovial nature is a welcome change from the grumps you will find continually in poker. His warm and kind nature will be missed from the poker clubs in Dublin. Bon Voyage Duke!

Winner: Duke Houghton

Future Star

Expect to see Pauric McBrearty’s name making the poker headlines in 2009. Having spun up a decent bankroll on-line he has every chance to step it up a gear in the coming 12 months. He has the potential to make an impact on live tournaments thanks to his solid game play which allows for few poor decisions. Those who read the poker theory section of boards will recognise that ‘Digiman’ has as solid a game as any of Ireland’s up and coming players. This grinding on-line pays dividends not just from winnings and rakeback but also from the experience thats gained from simply playing lots of hands. He has the focus, he has the drive and most importantly has the commitment to become a top player.

Winner: Pauric McBrearty

Player of the Year

2008 saw the crowning of the most successful Irish poker player to date. This Belfast man has captured the imagination of the Irish poker community like no other before him with success after success. This former Irish Open winner will never forget the year 2008 thanks to three major tournament win since January 1st. The first came in late April as he landed the Party Poker World Open IV. In a memorable victory against the freshly crowned Irish Open winner of 2008 Neil Channing, this title would prove a vital prep run before the summer pilgrimage to Las Vegas for the WSOP. An excursion he will never forget.

As the crowd sang like the football match we had never been to, this player delivered the most poignant moment of the year in a hot Summer’s morning in Vegas. A World Cup atmosphere at the World Series of Poker was a moment to behold for all that attended. It cannot be described any other way. It was a celebration of Irish Poker and it was a celebration of an extra special man. A WSOP bracelet win is surely the most desired prize in poker and to land it in a $10,000 World Championship event is the stuff of dreams. 2008 saw the crowning of an Irish World Champion in perhaps the nation’s favourite discipline of Poker, pot limit omaha. 

After this momentous win it would prove impossible for any other person to win player of the year. However the Ulster man was not done yet. There was still one title than continued to ellude him. Having final tabled the TV event of the year twice, he was determined to make it three times lucky in 2008. After all this was his year. After coasting through a tough semi final, he was only 5 places away from finally capturing the one that got away. Not even ten hands into the final and he was down to two big blinds and all seemed lost. What unfolded was another vintage performance. A comeback that Lazarus would be proud of. He battled back all the way to the front when incredibly the screen showed he was chip leader. He then defeated Eoghan O Dea at the finish in what proved to be the tournament of the year for Irish poker.

He is successful, he is talented, he is modest and he is likeable, he is a true champion and this year he has become a legend of Irish Poker. He has done us proud in 2008 and all credit to him. We may never see a year like it for an Irish Poker player so lets celebrate it. Marty Smyth you are an inspiration for all of us. Congratulations on a wonderful year.

Winner: Marty Smyth

Performance of the year

(This award was voted for by readers of the rag2gar blog)

There was perhaps only ever going to be one winner of this poll. This is because there was only one truly stand-out achievement of the year in Irish poker. Marty Smyth’s win was a lot more than a piece of Jewellery. The bracelet represented a celebration within Irish poker and celebrate we did! Marty Smyth is a man of the people and he was running for us against the world on June 29. With a landslide victory and 85% of the votes this was a performance to remember. Like Ireland winning the Euro vision song contest all those years ago, this was a win that meant something to all Irish poker players.

With both Marty Smyth and Tom Hanlon on the final table, hopes were high for Team Ireland going into the Vegas final table showdown. With Tom Hanlon knocked out in 7th, Smyth delivered not for the first (or last) time against the tide and landed an historic win for himself and the onlooking Irish crowd both in Vegas and afar. A WSOP bracelet is a title which is recognised on a world stage. The final table was like the Olympics of poker, having two of our own competing in it was rather special. To then have the winner, in one of the three most lucrative events of the entire series, is certainly the performance of the year. It was one of the greatest performances in Irish poker period. A1.

Winner: Marty Smyth’s bracelet win in the PLO World Championship June 29th

Gary Clarke can be contacted at gary.clarke@pokerireland.ie

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