David Kozma: In the world of poker, Liechtenstein isn’t typically the first name that comes to mind. With a population of roughly 39,000 residents, it’s not a place you’d expect to find a bustling poker scene. Karim Frick, the country’s all-time leading money winner, has earnings totaling just $83,595 according to the Hendon Mob database. However, over the past week, Liechtenstein has emerged as a surprising hotspot for poker enthusiasts as the WPT Prime descended upon the Grand Casino Liechtenstein.
The WPT Prime Liechtenstein Main Event, including re-entries, attracted a staggering 1,664 participants, a remarkable 4.21% of the nation’s entire population. To put this in perspective, if a similar tournament took place in the United States, we’d be talking about an event with nearly 14 million entrants. Liechtenstein may be small, but when it comes to poker, it made a big splash.
The field predominantly consisted of Italian and Swiss players, with six out of the final nine hailing from one of these two neighboring countries. However, it was a Hungarian player, David Kozma, who emerged victorious, claiming the lion’s share of the prize pool, which amounted to $300,541, including a coveted $10,400 seat into the WPT World Championship in Las Vegas.
Let’s take a closer look at the final table results
WPT Prime Liechtenstein Final Table Results
- **David Kozma** (Hungary) – CHF 268,340 ($300,541)
- **Marc Sen** (Switzerland) – CHF 172,500 ($193,200)
- **Lukas Pazma** (Slovakia) – CHF 128,000 ($143,360)
- **Alessandro Pichierri** (Italy) – CHF 95,800 ($107,296)
- **Carlos Henningsen** (Canada) – CHF 72,300 ($80,976)
- **Faton Berisha** (Switzerland) – CHF 55,200 ($61,824)
- **Thomas Hofmann** (Switzerland) – CHF 42,500 ($47,600)
- **Salih Atac** (Italy) – CHF 33,000 ($36,960)
- **Guodong Yang** (Italy) – CHF 25,900 ($29,008)
The final day of the WPT Prime Liechtenstein event began with 11 players vying for the title, but the action quickly reduced the field to a final table of nine. Kozma, with a commanding chip lead, capitalized on his advantage in the early stages of the final table.
The first casualty came in the form of Guodong Yang, who pushed all-in with ace-jack but ran into the king-queen of Faton Berisha. A king on the flop sealed Yang’s fate, sending him to the rail.
Shortly thereafter, Salih Atac found himself all-in with ace-trey of spades against Alessandro Pichierri’s pocket queens. Unfortunately for Atac, Pichierri flopped a set, leaving him with no room for a comeback.
The final table continued to shrink, with Thomas Hofmann losing a crucial coinflip against Marc Sen. Hofmann’s pocket nines fell victim to Sen’s ace-king, sealing his elimination.
As the average stack size reduced, the pressure intensified, and every decision became critical. Lukas Berisha went all-in with ace-seven, only to be dominated by Lukas Pazma’s ace-king. Despite both players pairing their ace on the flop, Berisha couldn’t find the necessary cards to survive.
Next to exit was Canada’s Carlos Henningsen, who ran into Pichierri’s pocket tens while holding ace-king. The board failed to deliver any help to Henningsen, and he hit the rail.
The cruel twist of fate struck Alessandro Pichierri when he and Kozma both went all-in with king-jack. Kozma held the jack of spades, completing a flush to eliminate Pichierri from the tournament.
Lukas Pazma’s journey ended in third place, setting the stage for the heads-up battle between David Kozma and Marc Sen. Sen held a narrow lead at the start, but Kozma’s pocket tens proved to be the winning hand that propelled him to victory.
After 220 hands of intense play, Kozma emerged as the champion of WPT Prime Liechtenstein. As the poker world shifts its focus to the next stop on the WPT Prime Circuit in Madrid, there’s no doubt that Liechtenstein has left its mark as an unexpected poker destination.
Stay tuned for more exciting poker action as the WPT Prime series continues, offering players the chance to win their way into the prestigious WPT World Championship in Las Vegas with a jaw-dropping $40 million guarantee on the line. Don’t miss out on the thrilling poker action, and who knows, you might just become the next poker sensation to emerge from the unlikeliest of places.
Liechtenstein isn’t frequently the first place that comes to mind when discussing poker. It’s not the kind of place you’d expect to find a booming poker scene, with only about 39,000 people living there. According to the Hendon Mob database, Karim Frick, the nation’s all-time leading money winner, has only earned a total of $83,595 so far. However, since the WPT Prime arrived at the Grand Casino Liechtenstein last week, Liechtenstein has become a surprising hotspot for poker fans.
With re-entries, the WPT Prime Liechtenstein Main Event attracted 1,664 players, or an astounding 4.21% of the country’s population. For comparison, if a competition like this were held in the United States, there would be close to 14 million participants. Even though Liechtenstein is a tiny country, it has made a big impression in the poker world.
The majority of the field was comprised of players from Italy and Switzerland, and six of the top nine were citizens of one of these two nearby nations. David Kozma, a player from Hungary, won the tournament and took home the majority of the $300,541 prize money, which included a prized $10,400 seat in the WPT World Championship in Las Vegas.
Let’s examine the outcomes from the final table in more detail:
The top finisher at the WPT Prime Liechtenstein final table was David Kozma (Hungary), who earned CHF 268,340 ($300,541).
- Marc Sen (Switzerland) $193,200 (CHF 172,500)
- Lukas Pazma (Slovakia), who received CHF 128,000 ($143,360).
- **Alessandro Pichierri** (Italy) – CHF 107 296
- Carlos Henningsen (Canada) – CHF 72,300 (or $80,976)
Sixth place goes to **Faton Berisha** (Switzerland) for CHF 55,200 ($61,824)
- Thomas Hofmann (Switzerland) – CHF 42,500 (approximately $47,000)
- Salih Atac (Italy) CHF 33,000 ($36,960)
- Guodong Yang (Italy) received CHF 25,900 ($29,008).
There were eleven competitors in the WPT Prime Liechtenstein event on the final day, but the action quickly shrunk the field to a final table of nine. In the early stages of the final table, Kozma took advantage of his commanding chip advantage.
Guodong Yang, who went all-in with ace-jack but ran into the king-queen of Faton Berisha, became the first victim. Yang’s fate was sealed by a king on the flop, which sent him to the rail.
Alessandro Pichierri had pocket queens when Salih Atac found himself all-in with an ace-trey of spades. Pichierri misplayed a set, which unfortunately prevented Atac from mounting a comeback.
As Thomas Hofmann lost to Marc Sen in a crucial coin flip, the number of players at the final table kept getting smaller. Sen’s ace-king defeated Hofmann’s pocket nines, eliminating him.
The pressure increased as the average stack size decreased, and each choice became crucial. Lukas Pazma’s ace-king defeated Lukas Berisha’s all-in hand of an ace-seven. Berisha was unable to find the right combination of cards to survive despite both players pairing their aces on the flop.
Carlos Henningsen of Canada, who was the next to leave, ran into Pichierri’s pocket tens while holding an ace-king. Henningsen hit the rail because the board was unable to assist him.
When Alessandro Pichierri and Kozma both bet everything on king-jack, cruel fate struck. Kozma completed a flush with the jack of spades while holding the hand, eliminating Pichierri from the competition.
When Lukas Pazma’s journey came to an end in third place, David Kozma and Marc Sen engaged in a heads-up competition. At first, Sen had a slight advantage, but Kozma’s pocket tens turned out to be the pot-winning hand that gave him the victory.
Kozma won the WPT Prime Liechtenstein tournament after 220 hands of tense competition. There is no doubt that Liechtenstein has made a lasting impression as an unexpected poker destination as the poker world shifts its attention to the following stop on the WPT Prime Circuit in Madrid.
As the WPT Prime series goes on, expect more action-packed poker as players compete for a chance to advance to the prestigious WPT World Championship in Las Vegas, where a mind-blowing $40 million guarantee is on the line. Don’t miss out on the exciting poker action; you never know; you might end up being the next poker sensation to appear out of nowhere.
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