Our second West Midlands Regional Final was played at Star City in Birmingham. The usual eight players would qualify for the National Final and would also walk away with a share of £1,000.

Last season’s champion, Ross Brummell, was absent from the tournament so a new champion would be crowned. Last season’s runner-up, Dusan Porubsky, was in attendance as he looked to go one place better than last time.

Last season’s Team Event winners, the Bell Inn in Coventry, were going for back to back wins. However, their challenge came to an abrupt end as soon as Neil George was eliminated in 133rd place. The venue did enjoy some success on the day with Kieran Walker being one of our 10 finalists and earning a National Final seat. But the day’s Team Event winners came in the shape of the Syndicate in Stoke-on-Trent who were represented by Stephen Jinks, Paul Woolrich and Dave Woolrich.

Our West Midlands final table was made up of…

Seat 1: Paul Abbott – Hilly House, Dudley (80,000)
Seat 2: Gary Smith – George & Dragon, Broughton Astley (80,000)
Seat 3: Diana Van Dyk – Royal Oak, Gloucester (130,000)
Seat 4: Jenni Olden – National Hunt, Cheltenham (190,000)
Seat 5: John Malpass – Journey’s End, Yardley (23,000)
Seat 6: Kieran Walker – Bell Inn, Coventry (208,000)
Seat 7: Nick Kearney – Phantom Coach, Coventry (23,000)
Seat 8: Dusan Porubsky – Wyggeston, Burton-upon-Trent (60,000)
Seat 9: Darren Cotterell – Masons Arms, Solihull (70,000)
Seat 10: Janet Tulloch – Beggars Bush, Birmingham (26,000)

Our two short stacks were the first two players out in 9th & 10th place respectively, which also meant missing out on National Final qualification. Last season’s runner-up, Dusan Porubsky, started well as he pushed on for the finish line. Kieran Walker had a final table to forget, after starting as the chip leader he quickly busted in 7th place which only just earned him a National Final seat. Janet Tulloch continued the unpredictability of this final table as she grew her stack big enough to finish in 3rd place for £100. This brought Dusan Porubsky and Darren Cotterell together to contest the West Midlands title. Porubsky had the best of it with A-2 as the chips went into the middle, with Cotterell needing help holding 7-6. A final board of 3QJ K Q gave Dusan the victory, the victory he came so close to last season. Congratulations Dusan!

Cash Prize Winners
1. Dusan Porubsky – Wyggeston, Burton-upon-Trent
2. Darren Cotterell – Masons Arms, Solihull
3. Janet Tulloch – Beggars Bush, Birmingham
4. Jenni Olden – National Hunt, Cheltenham
5. Gary Smith – George & Dragon, Broughton Astley
6. Paul Abbott – Hilly House, Dudley
7. Kieran Walker – Bell Inn, Coventry
8. Diana Van Dyk – Royal Oak, Gloucester

National Final Qualifiers
Dusan Porubsky
Darren Cotterell
Janet Tulloch
Jenni Olden
Gary Smith
Paul Abbott
Kieran Walker
Diana Van Dyk

Team Winners
Syndicate, Stoke-on-Trent