It’s funny how one small twist of fate can lead to a €550,500 victory in the Irish Open. Such was the case with 22-year-old Niall Smyth, who needed a chain reaction of events to spark what would turn into the victory of his life.
It all started when Smyth’s girlfriend Kim Madigan was telling him about how she bets once a year on the English Grand National. After Smyth placed a €20 bet, his horse “Ballabriggs” won the event, and he earned €200 for picking the right pony. Now €200 richer, the young Irishman took the money and deposited it into an online poker site so that he could play for an Irish Open seat.
Luck struck Smyth a second time when he managed to win a €3,500 Irish Open seat along with hotel accommodations through his €200 bankroll. Good fortune continued to shine upon Smyth as he ran through a 615-player field towards the final opponent – Surinder Sunar. Smyth had better than a 2-1 chip advantage going into the heads-up match, and despite some fierce resistance from Sunar, he was able to finish the tournament and collect a €550k prize.
Besides all of the stars aligning just right for Smyth to be at this tournament, another crazy thing is that he only had €30,400 in total cashes heading into this life-changing experience. Sure €30,400 is pretty solid for the average player – especially at age 22 – but it’s a pretty big leap to go from this to an Irish Open victory.
