Seat 1: Emmett Mullin, Ireland (PokerStars Qualifier) – 1,620,000

Emmett Mullin hails from Omagh in Northern Ireland and won his Galway seat in an €55 satellite on PokerStars.  The 26 year old says that this stop isn’t his first UKIPT (he came 20^th in Dublin in 2011) and won’t be his last – he has already qualified for the next leg in Nottingham in April.

Seat 2: Nick Abou Risk, Canada (PokerStars Player) – 627,000

What more can be said about soft-spoken golden boy of the UKIPT, Nick Abou Risk?  The Canadian has already won two UKIPT Main Events, and sees making his third final table (in a field of 698) as “defending” his Galway title.  Having racked up over £100,000 in live tournament winnings from this tour alone, Risk has proven that the mix of ability and run-good is a potent one.  Returning with 16 big blinds 9-handed, he knew his options might be limited but he is as keen as ever to challenge the final table as he has done before.

Seat 3: Richard Haile, United Kingdom (PokerStars Qualifier) – 312,000

Richard Haile is no stranger to the UKIPT, having finished a respectable 9^th on the Season 2 Leaderboard cashing four times along the way.  He qualified for this Main Event in a €33 rebuy satellite but has been playing live (and racking up results) since 2008.  Haile’s hometown is Louth in Lincolnshire, but he’s played all around the UK and Ireland as well as picking up €11,236 for a 10^th place finish at a WSOPE side event in Cannes last year.

Seat 4: Craig Burke, Ireland – 1,167,000

Craig Burke hails from Cork and alternates working as a plumber with periods of enthusiasm for poker which have resulted in a stretch of professional play but ultimately appear “every few months, when I get the itch again.”  Burke won his seat in a live satellite here in Galway and has already bested his previous highest placing on the UKIPT (19^th in Edinburgh, 2010).  His highest live result to date was €12,000 in Waterford that same year, but making the top 7 in this event would overtake that record.

Seat 5: Joe Roberts, United Kingdom (PokerStars Qualifier) – 1,802,000

Joe Roberts played every stop on the UKIPT Season 2 except Galway, and first time is the charm, apparently.  The young risk consultant has enjoyed both the atmosphere and social life in Galway and his rise to the final table.  Roberts qualified online in a €33 1R/A satellite and plans to play every stop on Season 3, having tasted victory in a Nottingham side even and grown keen to take down his first Main Event.

Seat 6: John Willoughby – 2,046,000

John Willoughby is a 21 year old student from Dublin who qualified for the UKIPT Galway Main Event via a PokerStars €50 1R/A satellite online.  Although he doesn’t play many live events, he has got a qualifier’s eye on “a couple of EPTs…”  This final table appearance represents his first foray into the deep stages of a live main event, although he has cashed in several disciplines including the Blind Man’s Bluff World Championship in 2011!

Seat 7: Aleksandras Rusinovas, Lithuania (PokerStars Qualifier) – 877,000

Aleksandras Rusinovas qualified via a €33 satellite on PokerStars and is making his first UKIPT final table on his second try (he finished 13^th in Brighton in Season 1).  The Lithuanian student attends Mykolas Romeris University where he studies psychology but plans to make it to Nottinham in April and further UKIPT legs if he does well in Galway.

Seat 8: Ronan Gilligan, Ireland (PokerStars Qualifier) -1,556,000

Ronan Gilligan is the sole Galway resident making its final table.  He won three seats in online satellites but needed only one to reach the final table where he looks to top his best result to date – a runner-up finish at UKIPT Dublin Season 1 which netted him €43,400.  He followed that result with a 3^rd place finish at WPT Dublin and is no stranger to the pressures of a live final.  He is looking forward to a full season of UKIPT tournaments (especially the Irish events).