Wow!
Just Wow!
What a rollercoaster that was. After finding himself heads up, with a 7:1 chip deficit, Ireland’s Frank Grace scrapped and scraped his way back against Jorge Tello, to take down the Deaf Championships for 2026.
The event saw 224 entries in total — a truly remarkable increase on last year’s 29 — and generated a prize pool of €36,938.
It was all-out action from the off. Irish Open ambassador Darren Chow was an early faller, as the field thinned steadily throughout the day.
Reigning champ Starny Hoang, defended his title honourably, and looked to be making a charge for back-to-back wins — until his pocket kings were outdrawn by Tello’s eights.
The hand of the day was played out between Luca Brandani and Jose Banaco, ending in the most improbable run-out imaginable.
A phenomenal rail swelled throughout proceedings, with many having to stand on chairs in order to keep on top of the action.
Trello won his seat in a $CAD 200 satellite, organised by Irish Open ambassador Darren Chow, and had spent most of the day as the runaway chip leader — but try as he might, he could not prevent Grace’s inexorable comeback. The Canadian was magnanimous in defeat however, and joined Grace to celebrate in his winner’s photo.
