The PokerStars European Poker Tour Prague Main Event began today in the function suite of the Hilton Prague, with 219 players basically ponying up EUR5,250 each, for their chance to win what has become one of the most popular stops of the EPT schedule.

The first of the two official starting days attracted quite a few well known players to the Czech tables including Julian Thew, Marcel Luske, Katja Thater and Shaun Deeb, who made headlines recently by announcing he would soon be retiring from poker despite being a consistent high performer both live and online.  Though Deeb may have announced he was done with poker, today poker seemed to be saying it was done with him, as he busted quickly within the first two levels of play.

Players who had a bit more success than Deeb included Marcin Horecki, J.P. Kelly, Luske, Thater and Marc Gork, who took third at the EPT Dortmund last season and ended Day 1a with the chip lead of the remaining 119 players.

For more information on the PokerStars EPT Prague event visit www.europeanpokertour.com, or check out the PokerStars blog for highlights and chip counts straight from the Czech Capital.


Story by Mark Anderson