Peter Jorgne on verge of joining EPT’s impressive back-to-back list
If he makes the final six, Sweden's Peter Jorgne will become the eighth player in EPT history to go back-to-back with top-eight finishes in the same EPT event.
Poker might not have winning stretches as dominant as Roger Federer in tennis (24 consecutive finals wins) or Michael Phelps in swimming (23 golds out of a possible 23 across 16 years and five Olympic games). But in poker’s modern era, we’ve certainly seen some incredible back-to-back feats.
Greg Merson’s World Series of Poker (WSOP) in 2012 springs to mind. On July 3 that year, the American registered the prestigious $10,000 6-Handed event and beat out 474 runners to win it for $1.13 million two days later. He then jumped straight into the $10,000 WSOP Main Event and went all the way in that one too, battling through 6,598 players to win $8.5 million.
The European Poker Tour (EPT) Online Main Events throughout the Covid pandemic also jump out. Sweden’s “WhatIfGod” won the first edition in November 2020 for a staggering $1.02 million, then won the same event a year later for another $363,641.
But what about back-to-back performances in live editions of the EPT? How many players have pulled off the unprecedented and made back-to-back final tables in the same EPT Main Events?
Thanks to PokerStars Media Coordinator Jan Kores, we know the answer. Seven players have battled their way to the finales of back-to-back events in the tour’s 21-year history, and right now we’ve got a player on the verge of becoming the eighth.
Sweden’s Peter Jorgne finished runner-up in the inaugural EPT Paris Main Event one year ago, and at the time of writing, he’s just four eliminations away from going back to back.
If he can do it, he’ll join some illustrious company. Let’s review the seven other players who made back-to-back EPT final tables in consecutive events.
MARC KARAM
Canada’s Marc Karam was the first
EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final (Season 2, 2006): 4th – €195,000
EPT3 Monte Carlo Grand Final (Season 3, 2007): 2nd – €1,061,820
Canada’s Marc Karam was the first to do it – in the Grand Final no less. To date, Karam has $2.4 million in live earnings.
ANTHONY LELLOUCHE
Lellouche still plays regularly and was here at EPT Paris 2024
EPT London (Season 4, 2007): 6th – £97,843
EPT London (Season 5, 2008): 8th – £81,569
Anthony Lellouche has an incredible EPT record, not only going back-to-back in London but also making two other EPT Main Event final tables: Sanremo in 2008 (2nd for €505,000) and Deauville in 2019 (2nd for €150,000).
RASMUS NIELSEN
A fresh-faced Rasmus Neilsen
EPT Copenhagen (Season 4, 2007): 4th – DKr 1,560,394 ($307,285)
EPT Copenhagen (Season 5, 2008): 5th – DKr 1,064,493 ($182,369)
Rasmul Nielsen was on fire when he made his second consecutive EPT Copenhagen final table. That same year the Danish player was runner-up in a WSOP event for $389,557.
MIKE “TIMEX” MCDONALD
A very young Mike McDonald qualified for and won EPT Dortmund
EPT Dortmund (Season 4, 2007): 1st – €933,600
EPT Dortmund (Season 5, 2008): 5th – €197,000
At just 18, Mike McDonald became the youngest ever winner on the EPT in 2007 with his victory in Dortmund. The online whiz might have got stick from the old guard (and Jamie Gold) but McDonald proved himself the following year too, and went on to become one of the game’s super high rollers.
DAVID BOYACIYAN
Two Prague runs for David Boyaciyan
EPT Prague (Season 8, 2011): 2nd – €535,000
EPT Prague (Season 9, 2012): 3rd – €310,000
The Netherlands’ David Boyaciyan was in incredible form through 2011 and 2012, not only going back-to-back in Prague but also enjoying multiple six-figure scores at the Masters Classics of Poker in Amsterdam.
STEVE O’DWYER
O’Dwyer has won more than $40 million in live tournaments alone
EPT London (Season 8, 2011): 2nd – £465,000
EPT London (Season 9, 2012): 5th – £146,000
It’s a testament to Steve O’Dwyer’s unbelievable career that going back to back in London Main Events is just a blip on his $40+ million résumé. Seriously, go to his Hendon Mob and arrange his results by ‘Place’ – his list of tournament wins is staggering.
VLADISLAV NAUMOV
Naumov celebrates a double-up
EPT Sochi 2020: 6th – ₽ 3,929,100 ($50,267)
EPT Sochi 2021: 2nd – ₽ 14,957,600 ($197,537)
The most recent player to accomplish the back-to-back is Russia’s Vladislav Naumov, who achieved it on home soil in Sochi.
Will Peter Jorgne join the list? Follow the action from the EPT Paris Main Event to find out.
Thanks as always to Jan Kores for his research.
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