Mark Flanagan, 40 from co. Wexford in Ireland, saw off 216 players to win the Celtic Poker Tour (CPT) Grand Final in Athlone.

Normally he's busy running a road haulage business or looking after his five children but he finds time to play poker once a week. He has only been playing Texas Hold'em for a year.

In the final showdown, second placed Maurice McNamara raised Flanagan's big blind. The response from Flanagan was a well considered ‘all-in' holding JQ. It was enough to beat McNamara's J10. McNamara made €15,000 in second place.

From a tournament prize pool of €100,000, Flanagan netted €35,000 and a package to the Betfair Asian Poker Tour (BAPT), the first ever poker event in Singapore.

“I thought I had no chance,” he said, “I just wanted to make it through to the second day.

“I'm looking forward to seeing how I get on with the big fish in Singapore. If I can last an hour I'll be pleased because I like to play an aggressive game.”