The most predictable winner's photo of all time: Dzmitry Urbanovich

Poker has a habit of uncovering new sensations at intervals of about THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY FIVE DAYS. We've had Mike McDonald, Jason Mercier, Ole Schemion, Dan Colman and the like, while others like Steve O'Dwyer continue hot streaks year after year.

But for the past 12 months, there was a brand new wunderkind within the halls of the eu Poker Tour who could be the most sensational of all of them. Dzmitry Urbanovich won four events at EPT Malta last season, including a €25,000 High Roller, and finished second within the first two Super High Roller tournaments he played.

Now, not even a year since that breakout in Malta, Urbanovich is EPT Dublin Main Event champion. The €561,900 first prize takes his career winnings as regards to $5 million.

Dzmitry Urbanovich, ladies and gentlemen, is TWENTY YEARS old.

"It feels very good, very good," he said. "IT HAS BEEN an extended week."

Dzmitry Urbanovich: It's his EPT, we just live in it

This victory will rank a few of the most brilliant tournament displays of all time, with Urbanovich perhaps not putting a foot wrong ever since he joined the development within the late hours of Day 1. Within the final today, he began with an enormous stack, but lost a huge flip to seek out himself at the ropes with four players left.

Then, after clinging directly to get heads up, he overcame a five-to-one chip result in prevail just after 11pm local time. Urbanovich wasn't even feeling ONE HUNDRED PC -- he spent much of the primary level or so running to the toilet. But healthy or otherwise, Urbanovich truly does have the arena at his feet.

Dzmitry Urbanovich: The boy can play

It's impossible to move any longer on this eulogy without mentioning the player vanquished heads up by Urbanovich. Gilles Bernies was chip-leader on the end of Day 1 and was that huge leader too when only two players were left.

He was the person who had seemed in all probability to halt the irrepressible Urbanovich. But Bernies, playing at his first EPT event, couldn't quite recover from the line, and Urbanovich was there to pip him on the post. Bernies wins €349,800 and a huge collection of admirers.

Gilles Bernies: AN EXCELLENT debut

You can read the way it all played out in two versions: the hand-by-hand as-it-happened updates and the precis about an inch down this page.

The blow-by-blow account

There were only six players left when play got under way today, but nobody was expecting this one to be quick. Despite the one-man wrecking ball Urbanovich out in front, the stacks were remarkably deep for this stage of any tournament.

Here's how they lined up firstly of play:

Dzmitry Urbanovich, Poland, 5,125,000Patrick Clarke, Ireland, 4,300,000Kuljinder Sidhu , United Kingdom, 3,260,000Gilles Bernies, Germany, 2,735,000Iliodoros Kamatakis, Greece, 1,965,000Rhys Jones, United Kingdom, 740,000

Final table players (l-r): Ilioros Kamatakis, Gilles Bernies, Patrick Clarke, Rhys Jones, Dzmitry Urbanovich, Kuljinder Sidhu

The one exception to that rule was the stack in front of Rhys Jones. It was, by any standards, short. And he didn't take too long to seek out a hand worth getting it in with.

The only problem for Jones, whose hand was A♠9♥, was that Urbanovich had A♣T♣ and wasn't going to fold it. Jones did hit a nine at the board, but only after Urbanovich had already paired his ten. It meant Jones was first out today, sixth overall, earning €119,450.

Rhys Jones gets his coat

The most important battle at this stage developed between Patrick Clarke and Kully Sidhu, two medium-sized stacks. They need to really have just got a room. Clarke gave to Sidhu; Sidhu gave to Clarke. This sideshow a minimum of kept Urbanovich quiet.

However, Iliodoros Kamatakis couldn't be able to become involved and his stack was dwindling. When he found kings, he got minimal action, after which with growing frustration he got his stack in with pocket tens.

That was good for a double up through Sidhu's nines, but any momentum Kamatakis found soon evaporated. He picked up K♠9♠ under the gun and open raised. Bernies called with A♠Q♦ from one seat along and so they saw a flop that had something for either one of them: Q♠9♥5♦.

Maybe Kamatakis will live to regret his aggressive line -- betting, then three-bet shoving over Bernies' raise. But maybe he won't. Kamatakis had a ball in this tournament and, after a called from Bernies and a blank turn and river, he headed to the cage with a grin on his face.

He found €152,600 waiting there for him, the fifth-place prize.

Iliodoros Kamatakis: As worthy a fifth-placed finisher as any

Bernies' stack enjoyed an enormous boost after that coup, and the hand arrange what seemed sure to become the tournament-defining pot soon after.

Bernies, with on the subject of 4 million in his stack, was really the one player at that stage who would hurt Urbanovich. And he managed in truth to inflict probably the most significant wound he could.

He found A♠Q♠ within the small blind and opted to limp. Urbanovich, within the big blind, found 8♠8♥ and raised to 300,000. Bernies now sprung a trap, and three-bet to 905,000. But Urbanovich responded with a four-bet shove, covering Bernies.

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There have been a large number of talk all week in regards to the relative ability of Bernies. He came to Dublin for his first ever EPT event after qualifying online, and with out a huge choice of live results to his name. He also had a weird breathing pattern when enthusiastic about pots that led a couple of person to say they may get a read on him.

But despite the obvious trappings of a rank amateur, Bernies played with an enormous amount of guile, and plenty of other commentators believed his entire backstory to be a bluff. It was this type of hand that gave weight to the latter argument. Bernies called all in.

Gilles Bernies is all in

His courage was rewarded with the A♥ at the turn and no river re-draw from Urbanovich. This large pot relegated Urbanovich back a number of the mortals and catapulted Bernies right into a commanding four-handed chip lead.

As the rest four played for a few hours, the structure shallowed out the tournament a lot. Bernies continued to build, but all of Clarke, Sidhu and Urbanovich returned for Level 30 with stacks of fewer than 30 big blinds.

And both Clarke and Sidhu would go no further.

First, Clarke found A♣2♦ and shoved for two million. Bernies awoke with Q♠Q♥ and there has been a queen within the window. Clarke couldn't catch up after that blow, despite two clubs at the flop and another at the turn.

Clarke, the last remaining Irishmen on this tournament, had an enormous and vocal rail, bellowing for the fourth club to look at the river. However it never came. He headed out in fourth, pocketing €193,650.

Patrick Clarke: Last home hope

Clarke did Ireland proud

Bernies had already established himself as a juggernaut at this final table, but knocking out two players in consecutive hands isn't something we see fairly often. But that was Bernies' next trick.

No sooner had Clarke wandered away than Sidhu found himself traipsing within the same direction when he called all in with A♥6♥ after Bernies shoved with 5♣5♥.

The board was totally blank and Sidhu, an eighth-placed finisher in London a few years ago, went searching for €250,300 this time. "Come on, let's get you drunk," a Sidhu supporter said at the rail. Sidhu seemed open to the idea.

Kully Sidhu says goodbye

So that left two: the 20-year-old "veteran", Urbanovich, and the whole rookie, Bernies. The latter, however, had that huge chip lead, the most productive a part of 15 million against Urbanovich's 3 million.

Preparing for the overall between Gilles Bernies and Dzmitry Urbanovich

Urbanovich has seen so much in his short career, including a short-stack comeback heads up for an incredible title. It wasn't him who did it, but it surely. was Erik Seidel, who gave Urbanovich a lesson in Monaco to take down a €100,000 Super High Roller title.

And it seems that Urbanovich is a quick learner because he pulled off something similar here. First, he flopped a straight with T♠9♣ and got the utmost when Bernies flopped middle pair. (Urbanovich raised the flop, bet the turn and shoved the river.)

The Urbanovich was waiting within the wings with middle pair and a flush draw when Bernies bluff-jammed four high. Bernies battled back, doubling with A♥8♦ against Urbanovich's A♠J♠ when he flopped an eight and Urbanovich missed a flush draw.

Gilles Bernies: Power poker

This was removed from over. The pair traded blows and Bernies managed to haul himself back into the lead with a chain of small pots. However there then followed the hand that was the defining event.

Bernies had a horny decent lead then he limped with 6♦4♦ and Urbanovich checked his option. They saw a flop of A♠A♦2♦.

Of course, nobody may have expected Urbanovich to test with an ace, but that's exactly what had happened. Urbanovich was sitting with A♣3♠.

Bernies, however, had the flush draw and was still interested, so called Urbanovich's 150,000 tickle. The T♠ came at the turn and this time Bernies got aggressive. He raised to fourteen. million after Urbanovich fired 415,000.

Urbanovich wasn't going to take this lying down and three-bet to 2.4 million, which committed him. Bernies shoved, Urbanovich called and needed to fade a diamond.

Actually, he didn't. There has been a diamond at the river. However the T♦ filled Urbanovich's boat and put him way ahead. He had slightly greater than 12.5 million, with Bernies at 5.5 million.

Bernies by this point seemed spent. He admitted to anyone who chatted to him that he was finding it tough to conquer his nerves. The heavy breathing, he said, was not an act. (AN ASPECT point: when Urbanovich first played against Bernies yesterday, he was the one player to ask, "Are you all right?")

Today, Urbanovich had slightly changed his tune. "IT IS NOT to easy to perceive [how he] plays," he said of Bernies. "Wth play like that, y'know? I mean, he's really too slow. Way too slow, than it will be."

Sensing a beaten opponent, Urbanovich did his best to maintain the pressure on, making his decisions almost instantaneously and keeping Bernies outside of any comfort zone. Eventually, with Bernies at the ropes, Urbanovich found pocket kings and a short-stacked opponent willing to move the distance.

If Dzmitry Urbanovich has kings, there's only going to be one winner. That much is plain. We're entering an entire new era, an era during which Dzmitry Urbanovich is the king.

***

EPT Dublin Main EventDates: February 14-20, 2016Buy in: €5,300Players: 605Prize pool: €2,934,250

1 - Dzmitry Urbanovich (Poland) €561,9002 - Gilles Bernies (Germany) €349,8003 - Kully Sidhu (UK) €250,3004 - Patrick Clarke (Ireland) €193,6505 - Iliodoros Kamatakis (Greece) €152,6006 - Rhys Jones (UK) €119,4507 - Alexandre Meylan (Switzerland) €88,3008 - Ivan Banic (Croatia) €60,750

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Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: European Poker Tour]