November Nine Player Focus: Peter Eastgate

The online pro is looking to become the youngest ME champ of all-time...

By Simon Hopper 16th July 2008

"It's more like Gus Hansen is the first Peter Eastgate."

If Peter Eastgate were to win the 2008 Main Event he would become the youngest champion in the history of the tournament and the Dane certainly has a fighting chance of making that happen come November.

November Nine Facts:
Peter Eastgate

Age: 22
Location: Odense, Denmark
Chip Count: 18,375,000
Chip Position: 4 of 9
Betting Odds: 11/2
Total Live Winnings: $63,324
Sponsor: PokerStars
More Info: Wiki

The 22 year-old could surpass Phil Hellmuth’s 1989 victory (he was just 24) and currently sits 4th in chips on 18,375,000. Not bad for someone that’s only been playing the game for three years. Eastgate said he broke even in his first year but it’s fair to say he will be considerably in profit for 2008.

Hailing from Odense (the same town as Halfrek, though Danish bloggers insist they are not the same person), he has an association with Ladbrokes Poker (though has been wearing PokerStars gear) and is primarily an online player.

In fact, he is regarded as one of the top internet pros in Denmark, where he specialises in short-handed and heads-up high limit cash games ($200/$400 levels).

Missed the WSOP? Never mind - get yourself over to the Irish Open for as little as five bux:


He has had a couple of promising offline showings recently, however, most notably finishing 9th in the 2007 Irish Open for $46,714. In February he also made the money in the EPT Scandinavian Open (hosted in his home country), busting in 32nd for $16,610.

UK fans may recognise him from two appearances in the Poker Million heats, finishing 2nd in October 2006 & 3rd in November ’07 (he failed to qualify from both). Whatever happens in November, Eastgate will leap into the Denmark all-time top 10 money list, being guaranteed a minimum of $900,670 for a 9th place finish.

Fellow Danish pro Jacob Rasmussen was asked before the 10-man bubble if Peter Eastgate was the next Gus Hansen. He replied: “Not really. It's more like Gus Hansen is the first Peter Eastgate.” If his volatile style takes him to ME glory, Hansen may well have a genuine star to contend with.

More November Nine Player Profiles:
Dennis Phillips, 53, Missouri, 26,295,000
Ivan Demidov, 27, Russia, 24,400,000
Scott Montgomery, 26, Canada, 19,690,000
Peter Eastgate, 22, Denmark, 18,375,000
Ylon Schwartz, 38, New York, 12,525,000
Darus Suharto, 39, Canada, 12,520,000
David Rheem, 28, California, 10,230,000
Craig Marquis, 23, Texas, 10,210,000
Kelly Kim, 31, California, 2,620,000

 

16/07/08

Eastgate could become the youngest Main Event winner of all-time.