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The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) is set to make its 21st visit to Blackpool for the penultimate leg of its 2026 season, with more than £500,000 guaranteed across the festival. Running from October 30 to November 8 at the Grosvenor Casino on the South Promenade, the series features a £1,250 buy-in Main Event carrying a £250,000 guarantee.
The festival opens with a £125 No-Limit Hold’em GUKPT Warm-Up on the evening of October 31, followed the next day by the final edition of the Kav Cup. Created by Rick Gilby in memory of British poker player Derek Kavanagh, the £40+£20 event has raised over £84,000 for charity to date, with organizers hoping this last staging pushes the total past £100,000.
The rest of the schedule follows the tour’s familiar structure, including a £250 Mini Main, a £1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller, a £1,650 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller, and the £550 GUKPT Cup ahead of the flagship Main Event.
Konstantinos “Kostas” Patsourakis enters as the defending champion after winning the 2025 edition, which drew 270 entrants and a £289,560 prize pool. He defeated Scotland’s Liam McMurray heads-up for £67,990, adding to his earlier GUKPT Leeds title from 2023.
Other notable 2025 winners included Harry Sandford, who claimed the £1,650 High Roller for £36,810, and Gilbert Black, who turned a £250 buy-in into £30,100 by winning the Mini Main. Past Blackpool Main Event champions include Priyan de Mel, Simon Deadman, and Ludovic Geilich among others.
Players can also qualify through online satellites at GGPoker and Grosvenor Poker starting at just £1. Thanks to a partnership between the two platforms, anyone winning a Main Event seat online or buying in via GGPoker will receive a 10% cash boost on their winnings.
