Grosvenor’s annual tournament behemoth, The Goliath, has more than lived up to its name by breaking another live attendance record.
Hopes were high heading into this year’s £150 Grosvenor Goliath. The small-stakes event delivered big value in 2022 by coming back strong after a COVID-induced hiatus. The target to beat this year was 10,236 entries and it was beaten in style.
The first of eight starting flights got underway on July 29 and, by the time registration closed on August 5, a record-breaking 11,493 entries had been collected. That figure continues the tradition of Grosvenor’s Goliath being the biggest live poker tournament outside of Las Vegas.
Grosvenor Goliath leaves giant impression
Shattering attendance records is nothing new for the team at Grosvenor Poker. Goliath has raised the bar ever since it stepped into the spotlight back in 2011. It’s made monumental strides since then and that’s resulted in this year’s final few sharing a £1.3 million prizepool.
For the 1,000 players who made it into the money, the prizepool meant a guaranteed return of £320. However, the Goliath is known for turning small investments into giant payouts, which is why everyone was eyeing up the top prize.
Unfortunately for 999 players, only one person could become the 2023 Grosvenor Goliath champion. That person was Alex Todd. The Englishman has been cashing in live events since 2014. However, up until Goliath’s August 6 finale, his biggest win £4,855.
♥️ GOLIATH 2023 ♥️
Thank you to everyone who turned up to the record-breaking Goliath which had 11,493 entries!
Well done to Alex Todd for winning the tournament and taking home £176,860! pic.twitter.com/EJ8c14RigD
— Grosvenor Poker (@GrosvenorPoker) August 10, 2023
The omens were positive though. Todd’s career-best result prior to the Goliath was fourth-place finish in the Irish Poker Tour’s London 300 in June 2023. Todd also cashed in the 2023 Irish Poker Open, so he no doubt had high hopes based on his form this year.
Those hopes turned into a real shot at glory as the field started to dwindle. Todd started Day 2 with 125,000 chips, which meant he was lost somewhere in the middle of the pack. However, he slowly emerged through the wreckage as players dusted off their stacks.
Alex Todd takes control and gets it done
Eventually, by the time Day 3 got underway on August 6, Todd had edged his way into contention. With the fourth biggest stack at the final table, he had the luxury of being able to wait for spots to make moves while those around him scrambled for chips.
2023 Grosvenor Goliath result
- Alex Todd – £176,860 ($226,944)*
- Richard Birchall – £80,000 ($102,654)*
- Yu-San Chan – £83,300 ($106,889)*
- Min Ji – £103,500 ($132,809)*
- Wayne Penford – £80,250 ($102,975)*
- Andrew Mackenzie – £75,000 ($96,238)*
- Nigel Brampton – £22,510 ($28,884)
- Peter Seager – £18,530 ($23,777)
- William Picot – £15,880 ($20,377)
*Denotes a deal
A deal was struck with six players left. That ensured everyone took home at least £75,000, but Todd wanted more. He secured the chip lead soon after the deal and never looked back.
Only Richard Birchall could stop him, but Todd was too strong on this occasion. A final all-in from Birchall with A-9 allowed Todd to call with pocket tens. The board couldn’t save Birchall and, with that, Alex Todd became the 2023 Grosvenor Goliath champion.
The £176,860 payout is Todd’s biggest to-date. More than that, his name will go down in history as the winner of the largest live poker tournament outside of Las Vegas.
