The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) made its second stop of the season in Manchester, hosted by the Grosvenor Casino Bury New Road. The £1,250 Main Event highlighted the series, which saw Vincent Meli emerge victorious, claiming the title and £83,897 in winnings after beating a field of 426 entries.
Meli’s victory in Manchester is the latest in a series of remarkable achievements, marking his fourth significant cash in just a few months. His recent hot streak includes a triumph at the UKIPT Nottingham Finale last November for £159,325, his career-best result to date. Following this, Meli secured a ninth-place finish at the EPT Prague Main Event for €95,000 and a third-place finish at the first leg of the UKIPT series in London for £58,690. With this latest win, Meli’s live tournament winnings are now approaching the $800,000 mark, according to the Hendon Mob.
2024 GUKPT Manchester Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
| 1st | Vincent Meli | £83,897 |
| 2nd | Tom Laghzaoui | £72,710 |
| 3rd | Jamie Brown | £64,243 |
| 4th | Paul Trotter | £31,300 |
| 5th | Lee Tatters | £21,300 |
| 6th | Bin Fu | £15,000 |
| 7th | Dean Hutchison | £12,000 |
| 8th | James Parker | £10,400 |
| 9th | Robert Douras | £8,800 |
2024 GUKPT Manchester Final Table Action
The Main Event attracted a competitive field of 426 entries through the first three Day 1 flights, generating a prize pool of £454,000. 139 players started Day 2, and the field played down to the final 19, with James Parker leading into the last day.
As the final table commenced, Meli had already secured the chip lead while Parker struggled, becoming one of the shortest stacks. Action on the final table started immediately, with Rob Douras exiting in ninth place after he put all hopes into a straight and flush draw, pushing all-in against Lee Tatters’ pocket Kings. The board offered no help, leaving Douras with two big blinds, dissipating soon after.
Parker, struggling from the start as one of the shortest stacks, found an opportunity to double up with ace-deuce but was unfortunate to run into Vincent Meli’s pocket nines. The board offered no assistance to Parker, who exited the tournament in eighth place, taking home £10,400.
Dean Hutchinson’s journey ended in seventh place when his ace-five clashed with Tom Laghzaoui’s ace-king. Bin Fu’s tournament run concluded in sixth place, going all-in with queen-jack, only to be called by Meli’s ace-six. Lee Tatters found a glimmer of hope with an ace in the big blind and called off with ace-three, but it was not enough against Laghzaoui’s ace-ten. Without any help from the board, Tatters was eliminated in fifth place, earning £21,300.
When Paul Trotter was eliminated in fourth, the remaining three players struck a deal that saw Meli take the largest share of £80,895, while Laghzaoui and Jamie Brown secured £72,700 and £64,240, respectively. With £3,000 and the trophy still up for grabs, play continued.
The power ranking hasn’t changed much during this play, with Meli extending his lead by the minute. Brown’s tournament life ended when he went all-in with nine-seven suited against Laghzaoui’s ace-eight, with an ace on the turn confirming his exit.
With a double-up before the hand, Laghzaoui was only trailing with 3.7 million chips against Meli’s 5 million. The final hand was quite a setup as both players flopped top pair queens, but Meli’s superior kicker, a jack against Laghzaoui’s three, proved decisive.
Meli check-raised the flop, bet the turn, and went all-in on the river. After a few minutes, Tom Laghzaoui made a reluctant call, only to discover he was outkicked, and Meli was celebrating another great result as he was crowned the 2024 GUKPT Manchester champion.
The GUKPT now moves on to Coventry for the series’ only UK Poker Open in the 2024 schedule, running from February 23 to March 3.
