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Updates from the final table, level 30 of EPT Prague, brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Marc “The Conv” Convey, Howard Swains and Simon Young.

Latest chip counts are on the chip count page. The EPT tournament structure can be found on the EPT tournament structure page. Full details of the payout structure and prizewinners so far are on the payout structure and prizewinners page.

Click through for full profiles of the final table players.
Previous coverage today: Level 25 | Level 26 | Level 27 | Level 28 | Level 29

Blinds:
Level 30: 60,000-120,000 (15,000 ante)

8.35pm: Heads up chips

Jan Skampa: 9,810,000
Eyal Avitan: 7,760,000

8.30pm: Last hand of the level
Eyal Avitan makes it 310,000 on the button and Jan Skampa called. The flop came Qâ™  5♦ Q♥ . Skampa checked and Avitan made it another 325,000. Call. The turn, a J♥ was checked by both. On the 4♦ river both checked again. Avitan showed 7â™  7♥ . Skampa was about to turn over his cards then saw he was beaten, grinned instead and mucked. That’s the level over.

8.25pm: Quick multiple choice
Three hands pass by, each featuring a raise by Jan Skampa. Does Eyal Avitan:
A) Fold face up
B) Fold face down
C) Move all in
The answer is C. No wait it’s A. I meant A.

8.20pm: Big pot for Skampa
A big chunk of Eyal Avitan’s chips go to Jan Skampa’s side of the table, and the stacks are more or less evening out. Avitan made it 310,000 from the small blind, but Skampa re-popped to 870,000. Avitan called.

On the 6♠ 8♣ J♦ flop, Skampa moved in 875,000, and again that was called. The A♦ turn did not slow Skampa down one bit. Oh no. Instead, he led for 1,525,000, and that was too much for Avitan, who folded.

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Jan Skampa

8.10pm: Passive until the river
Eyal Avitan limped and Jan Skampa checked his option to see a 8♥ 6♦ A♥ flop. Check-check. 9♠ came on the turn. Check-check. 6♠ came on the river and Skampa led for 205,000. Avitan called. Skampa could only muster 5♦ 3♦ . Avitan took the pot with K♦ 7♣ for king high.

A shout out to the tournament official Alen Babic who is so vain that he needs bribing by a mention in this blog to continue calling the action to the dwindling crowd. Babic is the urchin on the left.

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Alen Babic, left, and Thomas Kremser

8.05pm: And on
This continues in a massively cagey fashion. Another few hands:

a) Eyal Avitan limps from the button/small blind and Skampa checks his option. The flop is 8♥ J♣ 10♦ which both players check. The turn is 9♠ . Check, check. The river is A♣ and Skampa bets 130,000. Avitan folds.
b) Skampa raises to 270,000 from the small blind/button and Avitan calls. The flop comes 3♦ Q♥ 2♣ and Avitan checks. Skampa bets 280,000. Fold.
c) Avitan limps from the button/small blind. Skampa checks. The flop comes Q♥ K♦ 10♠ and Skampa checks. Avitan bets and Skampa folds.

The most controversial aspects of that series is the use of alphabetical letters and brackets instead of numbers. More extravagance. But the way we sometimes described it as “button/small blind” and sometimes “small blind/button” was also quite bewitching.

7.55pm: More for Skampa
Nice pot for Skampa, this. He made it 270,000 pre-flop and got a call from Avitan. On the J♦ 8♣ 5â™  flop, Avitan checked and then called Skampa’s 280,000 bet. Both then checked the 7♣ turn, but on the 3♣ Avitan tried his luck with 375,000. Skampa was having none of that, however, and reached for a meaty re-raise to 1,175,000. Avitan let it go.

7.50pm: Deep thought
Eyal Avitan raised it to 360,000 from the button and Jan Skampa called from the big blind to see a J♦ Q♠ 5♠ flop. No slowing down for Avitan as he led for a hefty 825,000. Skampa thought for a bit but folded.

7.40pm: Cagey stuff
There’s absolutely nothing from the early stages of heads up play to suggest this one will be over anytime soon. Here are four hands as examples:

I – Jan Skampa raised to 270,000; Eyal Avitan re-raised to 945,000. Fold.
II – Avitan made up the big blind, Skampa checked and the flop came 9â™  Kâ™  K♦ . Avitan checked, Skampa bet 200,000. Avitan folded.
III – Skampa called from the button, Avitan checked. The flop came 2♣ 7♥ 2♦ and despite that being a wonderful hand for seven-deuce, a bet of 280,000 from Skampa took it.
IV – Again an unraised pot and a flop of 9â™  4â™  A♥ . Avitan checked, Skampa bet 130,000. Fold.

The most controversial aspect of all that is the choice of Roman numerals in this write up. We’re nothing if not flamboyant.

7.35pm: Slow start to heads-up play
It’s all been a bit timid at the start of heads-up. On this one, Jan Skampa makes it 270,000 from the small blind, and Avitan calls. They see a K♣ Kâ™  Qâ™  flop and both check. They go on to check the 10♣ turn and 7♥ river as well. Skampa has A♦ 3â™  , and ace high is good enough to take this one.

7.26pm: He’s got bluffs in him
The first heads-up hand of any significance: Jan Skampa raised it up to 220,000 from the button and Eyal Avitan called from the big blind. Both players checked the flop so the board read J♣ 9♥ 10♠ 4♦ at the turn. Avitan led for 325,000. Call. Avitan then led for 625,000 on the 2♥ river and was called again. Avitan tabled A♥ 8♠ for ace-high but Skampa had two-pair with J♥ 4♥ and scooped the pot.

7.20pm: And we’re back again
After a short pause play resumes heads up between Eyal Avitan and Jan Skampa.

7.15pm: Stefan Mattson out in third, winning €255,000
First hand after the break and there was something distinctly pre-meditated about this. Eyal Avitan, on the button, raised to 375,000 and Stefan Mattsson couldn’t move his chips forward fast enough. He was all in for his last 1,475,000. Avitan took a couple of moments, but called and Mattsson’s tournament was in the balance – although he was in pretty good shape.

Avitan: J♦ 10♥
Mattsson: Q♦ 10♠

The flop, though, changed things. It came 7â™  9â™  8â™  and the flopped straight vaulted Avitan into the lead. But Mattsson had outs – he did have a straight flush draw after all – and any spade or any jack would send the pot his way.

However, the 3♣ 6♣ turn and river meant only one thing: Avitan’s fingers pointed skyward in celebration. Mattsson out in third.

7.10pm: Back for more three-way action
After a quick ten-minute break, we’re back for level 30. The chips look like this:

Eyal Avitain, Israel, 9,830,000
Jan Skampa, Czech Republic, 6,265,000
Stefan Mattsson, Sweden, 1,475,000

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