888LIVE London has crowned its first champion of the Crazy 8 festival, with Gaverin Warner winning the £500 Crazy 8 Opening Event for £22,430 after a four-way final-table deal. The event drew 279 entrants and built a £119,270 prize pool, with the top 33 finishers in the money. For Warner, it was a breakthrough: the article reporting the result describes it as his first five-figure score, coming shortly after a fourth-place finish in a £300 Main Event Travel Open at the GUKPT Goliath festival for £29,330.
Beyond the result, this tournament is a good opportunity to talk about something every live tournament player eventually faces: the final-table deal. Four players paused the clock, agreed to alter the payouts and then played on for the title. Here is what happened, how the deal changed the money, and how to think about deals in your own events.
The Result: Warner Beats Sun Heads-Up
The £500 Opening Event ran as part of 888LIVE London's October stop, a festival that runs through October 18. After the final table was whittled down, Warner finished ahead of Zhenzhe Sun in the heads-up battle and took the trophy.
Here is the final table, noting that the top four prizes reflect the four-way deal:
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gaverin Warner | £22,430* |
| 2 | Zhenzhe Sun | £15,080* |
| 3 | P.S. | £18,610* |
| 4 | Cush Berlyn | £12,040* |
| 5 | Christopher Day | £5,840 |
| 6 | Ka Wing Pun | £4,290 |
| 7 | Sooraj Sairam | £3,380 |
| 8 | Lee French | £2,790 |
| 9 | Kieran Collins | £2,370 |
*Prizes reflect a four-way deal. The third-place finisher, listed as P.S., is an anonymous player. The prize for the third-place finisher is higher than the runner-up's in this table because of how the deal was structured, which we explain below.
Kieran Collins busted in ninth, followed by Lee French (eighth), Sooraj Sairam (seventh), Ka Wing Pun (sixth) and Christopher Day (fifth). Day's finish was notable because he had also made the fourth-place spot in the 888 UKPL Luton Main Event in February.
The Four-Way Deal Explained
After Day's elimination, the remaining four players paused the clock and agreed to a deal that altered the original payouts. The player who benefited most was Cush Berlyn, who busted fourth. Berlyn has been on a run in the UK circuit, having reached three other final tables in the past month and recently winning the GUKPT Leeds Main Event for £43,490.
Deals in poker tournaments are common, and they typically do one of two things: redistribute prize money according to a formula based on chip stacks and remaining prizes, or lock in a minimum payout for each player while leaving a portion for the winner. The details of this particular deal were not published beyond the final payouts, but the outcome tells a story. Zhenzhe Sun, who was heads-up runner-up, received a consolation figure of £15,080, while P.S., who finished third, received £18,610. That ordering looks unusual, and it is consistent with a deal where the prize money was divided by chip counts at the time the deal was made, rather than by finishing position.
Players commonly agree that the winner will receive the title but the money has already been set. In many chops, a small amount, sometimes called "the bonus," is left on the table to play for. We do not know whether that was the case here, so we treat the figures reported as the final payouts.
Why Players Make Deals
There are a number of reasons why four players at a final table might choose to chop:
- Variance reduction. At £500 buy-in level, an extra £5,000 can matter, and a guaranteed amount is attractive compared with the risk of finishing fourth for the lowest prize.
- Short stacks. Short stacks benefit most from a deal that gives them more than the straight payout ladder would, as their chance of winning the title is small.
- Time. Final tables can run long, and a deal can bring the finish forward.
- Dealing with pay jumps. When prizes jump steeply, ICM-based deals can smooth the risk across all players.
For big stacks, the calculus is different. A big stack typically has more to gain from playing on, so it will want a deal that rewards chip lead. The key insight is that deals are negotiated, and the player who understands the numbers has the advantage.
How to Calculate a Fair Deal
Most deals use one of three models:
- Chip chop: prizes divided in proportion to chip counts. It is simple, but it favours big stacks.
- ICM chop: prizes divided based on the Independent Chip Model, which accounts for the fact that chips do not have linear value. Our what is ICM page explains how it works.
- Hybrid or "save" deals: each player takes a minimum amount, and the rest is divided by chips or ICM.
Online calculators are widely used at live final tables. If you are in a situation to make a deal, make sure you know your ICM value before agreeing. For help with the math behind equity and decision-making, our poker odds calculator and what is equity guides are useful starting points.
Warner's Rise on the UK Circuit
Warner's trajectory is a nice reminder that UK poker has plenty of depth. His earlier result in the GUKPT Goliath festival, a £29,330 fourth-place finish in a £300 Main Event Travel Open, showed he was capable of going deep in big fields. The Crazy 8 win adds a title to his résumé. Berlyn's run is also worth noting: after the GUKPT Leeds Main Event win for £43,490, he has appeared at multiple final tables within a month, a demonstration of consistency that is rarely luck alone.
The Rest of the 888LIVE London Schedule
The Opening Event is only the first of many. A £250 Turbo Dash saw Mark Smith outlast 63 opponents and beat Mohsen Khalifpour heads-up for £6,210 from a £19,000 prize pool. Looking ahead, the festival schedule includes:
- £340 Mini Main Event with a £100,000 guarantee. Day 1a on October 11 drew 89 entries including re-entries, with 16 advancing. Tomas Dailidonis led with 351,000, followed by Matthew Foulkes (250,500) and Simon Lousky (199,000).
- £1,250 888LIVE Main Event with a £250,000 guarantee. Day 1A starts October 15 at 1 p.m., Day 1B on October 16 at 12 p.m., a Day 1C turbo on October 16 at 8 p.m., Day 2 on October 17 and Day 3 on October 18.
- £2,000 High Roller with a £100,000 guarantee, Day 1 on October 14 and Day 2 on October 15.
- £550 The Dragon with a £50,000 guarantee, October 17-18.
- Other events, including a £250 PLO, a £330 PLO Bounty, a £220 MND Charity Event and a £220 888LIVE Closer.
If you are planning to attend, you can compare this festival with others on our tournaments page and check the WSOP schedule for bigger international events.
What This Means for Players
The Crazy 8 opener offers some practical lessons:
- Know the numbers before you chop. Calculate ICM equity and understand how much you are giving up or gaining.
- Be wary of table talk. A deal is a negotiation; you do not have to accept the first proposal.
- Stay level-headed. Whatever the deal, you still need to finish the tournament. Remember that the title and trophy often remain on the line even if the money is settled.
- Study your decisions. If you want to improve at final tables, learn about tilt and how to avoid emotional mistakes under pressure.
Players who enjoy UK festivals can also look at the comparison between online poker and live poker to decide how to mix formats. For online play, consider reading about Americas Cardroom or BetOnline if you are in a region where those sites accept players.
Key Takeaways
- Gaverin Warner won the £500 Crazy 8 Opening Event for £22,430 after a four-way deal.
- The event had 279 entrants and a £119,270 prize pool, with 33 places paid.
- Cush Berlyn, who busted fourth, benefited the most from the deal and continues a strong run of results.
- Learning how ICM-based deals work can save you thousands over a poker career.
The 888LIVE London festival runs through October 18, with the £1,250 Main Event and its £250,000 guarantee the headline attraction.