It's official: The 2014 Battle of Malta is the European Poker Award winner for low buy-in (under $2k) event of the year!
Awarded live during the ongoing EPT Malta festival tonight, Battle of Malta defeated co-nominees the Estrellas Poker Tour Barcelona Main Event, the Eureka Poker Tour Prague Main Event and the WPT500 at Dusk Till Dawn to take home the trophy.
With 1,447 entries and a €700,000 prize pool, the 2014 BOM smashed its own record for biggest poker tournament ever held on Malta and became the largest standalone event in Europe.
Bulgarian Antoan Katsarov won the BoM main event crown in an epic heads-up battle against local Alan James Brincat to earn €122,750.
Danzer, Jacobson, Salter Among Elite Winners
The 2015 European Poker Awards had a star-studded lineup of nominees in the house in Malta and, accordingly, an impressive group of winners emerged.
2014 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Martin Jacobson fittingly claimed the Tournament Performance of the Year, although he had to top Vicky Coren Mitchell's second career EPT title to do it.
Davidi Kitai, for his dazzling play in WSOP Event #15, and Dominik Panka, for his PCA Main Event run, were also nominated.
England's Jack Salter, a member of Team UK at the recent Global Poker Masters, earned the title of Breakout Player of the Year, topping George Danzer, Panka and fellow Team UK'er Oliver Price.
Danzer didn't go home empty-handed, however, as he took home one of the marquee awards of the evening in Poker's Best Ambassador.
The EPT Vienna Main Event won the award for Poker Event of the Year Over $2k Buy-in while EPTLive's Marc Convey won for Media Person of the Year.
The serial qualifier, Belgium's Pierre Neuville, was given the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Charitable Initiative of the Year was awarded to the very deserving REG charity founded by Phil Gruissem, Igor Kurganov and Liv Boeree.
Germany's Ole Schemion and England's Boeree took home the pre-determined awards for Male and Female Player of the Year, respectively.
The full list of 2014 European Poker Award winners:
- GPI Player of the Year: Ole Schemion
- GPI Female Player of the Year: Liv Boeree
- Poker's Best Ambassador: George Danzer
- Tournament Performance of the Year: Martin Jacobson, WSOP Main Event
- Breakout Player of the Year: Jack Salter
- Media Person of the Year: Marc Convey
- Event of the Year (Under $2k Buy-In): Battle of Malta
- Event of the Year (Over $2k Buy-In): EPT Vienna Main Event
- Innovation of the Year: Unibet Launches Own Gaming Platform
- Industry Person of the Year: Leon Tsoukernik, King's Casino
- Charitable Initiative of the Year: REG Charity
- Poker Media Content of the Year: Nosebleed Documentary
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Pierre Neuville
- Global Poker Masters Most Valuable Player: Giuliano Bendinelli, Team Italy
Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees for a spectacular year in European poker in 2014! See a list of the Best European Poker Sites here.
