Kaarel Lepik wins Unibet Open

Last week, we were all excited for Unibet's latest poker competition that took place in the Danish capital Copenhagen. The Unibet Open Copenhagen did not disappoint. In fact, the opposite was the case, given that Estonian player, Kaarel Lepik took everyone by surprise. He won, beating Faroe Island player Sigurd Carlsson and numerous other high-profile poker aces.

Excitement until the end

The 2017 Unibet Open saw 402 players competing against one another in front of a world audience via live stream. By Sunday, the competition had whittled down to a battle field of 13 top players.

The final day of the 2017 Unibet Open, with a buy-in of €1,100, took place this Sunday, after numerous tiresome days. On numerous occasions, players had to be convinced that a break, some food and water was needed to continue strongly. The top-notch food was enjoyed at the impressive Radisson Blue, host of the Unibet event.

The final table included some high-profile names that dropped off as time passed. Peter Harkes of the Netherlands was the last to go before the heads-up battle between Lepik and Carlsson ensued. In the final stages, which lasted three and a half hours, it looked as if Lepik was going to lose out on winning the event. Lepik was at the brink of defeat, not just once but numerous times. He then fought his way back to take the crown at the 2017 Unibet Open.

Lepik's win means more than cash

Lepik won €75,996 in this year's Unibet event. Sure, we are jealous. Winning the Unibet Open, however, also reaffirmed Lepik's place within pro poker. He beat Harkes who had won the Unibet event in 2011 in Riga and had been performing strongly in recent months. Lepik also showed great fighting spirit by evening out his stacks despite Carlsson's lead.

Aside from Lepik, one other player stuck out within the male dominated round at the Unibet Open. Monica Vaka, the Norwegian pro, made it onto the top table but lost out due to a series of unfortunate events, coming in 7th with prize money of €11,826. Not only was Vaka the last woman standing, she was also seven months pregnant!

Get ready for Bucharest

Next up in this year's poker calendar is the Unibet Open that takes place in Bucharest in late November and early December. Unibet has yet to disclose a location for the Bucharest Open 2017 but the excitement is already building.

Unibet offers poker enthusiast three routes to qualify: First, players need to register on Unibet, deposit funds and download the free Unibet poker client. Next, players can join Unibet Open Qualifying Satellites or can opt to buy-in directly. To buy-in, players simply have to pay a fee (which for the Copenhagen event stood at €1,100) and receive their seat. Unibet also offers packages that include a seat in the main event and accommodation and hospitality for the player and his guest.

The latter option - while relatively expensive - is particularly popular with professional players, given that their chances of coming home with money in excess of the fee are high. Yet, playing a Unibet poker event against the pros can be an exciting, if not profitable, treat for any poker fan out there!

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