Wales Recapture World Amateur Team Championship

Fifty two players representing thirteen countries participated in the APAT WCOAP World Amateur Team Championship held over two days at Dusk Till Dawn and sponsored by DTD Poker.

The format, once again, called for players to play No Limit Hold Em and Pot Limit Omaha Sit N Go’s, Heads Up and then a Multi Table Event to determine the Championship.

Over the course of the first day the pace-setters were Italy, leading after the Sit N Go rounds and holding onto that lead in the face of a superb performance from the German and Republic of Ireland teams in the Heads Up Games.

At the other end of the table the England team suffered a disastrous start, with all four players elminated early in the first games before they recovered to a middle of the field position by virtue of scoring the most points in the Omaha Round.

At the end of the first day the leading positions were as follows

Italy – 55
Northern Ireland – 50
Germany – 49
Republic of Ireland – 49

The second day format saw a Sit & Go round followed by a 52 runner Multi Table Tournament. In the Sit & Go round the highest scoring performances came from Scotland, England and Germany, meaning that the German team took a narrow lead into the all important last round.

For the Multi Table Tournament, points began from 26th place up, and the imperative for the lower teams in the table was to ensure that they got as many of their four players in those points scoring positions as possible. Through the early stages the German team fell by the wayside, with all four of their team out before we hit the points. Conversely the Welsh, French and Portugese teams were climbing the table by virtue of their players going deep in the event.

By the time the final table had been reached the position had been turned on its head. Wales saw three of its team make the final table, and only France could catch them. When the final French player exited in 8th, a Welsh victory was assured, topped off by an individual victory for their player in the event.

For Wales this capped off an incredible treble having won the World Amateur Team Championship in 2010 and then the APAT Home International Championship at Newcastle in April.

The battle for the 2nd and 3rd places went to the wire, only resolved when the Portugese player lost Heads Up to mean they took the Championship Bronze, a point behind Silver Medalists France.

The full result was as follows:-

1st Wales – 112 £2,600
2nd France – 101 £1,600
3rd Portugal – 100 £1,000
Scotland – 96
Republic of Ireland – 94
Poland – 87
England – 85
USA – 76
Italy – 74
Spain – 72
Northern Ireland – 69
Germany – 68
Canada – 61