Finland’s Tero Laurila has been crowned the 2024 Irish Open Main Event champion, taking the trophy and €292,685 after a three-way deal. Runner-up, Ireland’s Hiep Ninh, didn't get the silverware but took home the biggest payout of €335,636.
The €1,150 buy-in flagship event of the series attracted 3,233 entries, and produced a €3,152,175 prize pool to be shared among the top 480 finishers. That, as anyone without a degree in math could tell you, blew the €1,000,000 guarantee well and truly out of the water.
The Irish Open always attracts big names, and this year was no different. Defending champion David Docherty wouldn’t make the paid spots, nor would the likes of four-time WSOP bracelet winner Dominik Nitsche or PokerStars ambassador Parker Talbot. Talbot had already secured his big (and first) win earlier in the festival.
Dara O'Kearney and podcast co-host David Lappin cashed the Main EventIrish legend goes deep
When a three-way bustout burst the bubble, with the players sharing two min-cashes, there were plenty of locals still in the mix, including Chip Race podcast duo David Lappin and Dara O’Kearney.
They had to settle for 34th and 43rd respectively, with another Irish legend, Padraig Parkinson, taking 13th place, good for €24,660.
The final table saw three Irish flags, two English, and one each from Spain, Finland, Cyprus and Lithuania. For all of them, except Georgios Tsouloftas, a win would exceed their lifetime cashes.
The final table of a magnificent and record-breaking Irish OpenIt was Tsouloftas who made the early running, sending Adrian Thorne to the rail and hitting the chip lead, and shortly afterwards, an all-Irish battle saw Oliver Boyce, on the button, bounced by compatriot Ninh in the cut-off.
Oliver Boyce: 
Hiep Ninh: 
Having flatted Ninh’s opening raise, Boyce called the half-pot continuation bet on the 
flop.
Ninh bet pot on the 
turn, and Boyce, with an open-ender, shoved for a further five million. Ninh snapped it off with top pair and the river bricked.
That was enough to send Boyce packing, though the €109,820 cash was compensation enough to ease the pain.
When Tsouloftas fell in fourth spot, also to Ninh, it was time for the podium boys to discuss a deal. They agreed on the following:
- Hiep Ninh: €309,979
- Mark Johnston: €232,685
- Tero Laurila: €232,685
Hiep Ninh was the loudest player at the final table and almost talked his way to the titleThat left €60,000 on top for the winner, and an extra €25,657 for the runner-up. Back to the table they went, and Johnston soon fell in third, his pocket nines failing to hold up against Ninh’s 
.
Ninh held a decent lead heads-up, but a fantastic queen-high hero call saw his Finnish opponent switch positions, and after that, it didn’t take long for Laurila to finish things off. He did it in style as well, with quad queens. It was a spectacular end to a spectacular festival.
2024 Irish Open results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tero Laulila | €292,685* |
| 2 | Hiep Ninh | €335,636* |
| 3 | Mark Johnston | €232,685* |
| 4 | Giorgios Tsouloftas | €142,760 |
| 5 | Oliver Boyce | €109,820 |
| 6 | Stephen Groom | €84,480 |
| 7 | Vidmantas Beliauskas | €64,960 |
| 8 | Adrian Thorne | €49,960 |
| 9 | David Tous | €38,420 |
