After being shut out in 2008, UK players got back in the World Series winner’s circle in a big way this year by winning gold in two events. In a year when the Scandies made very little noise, it was up to a couple of Brits to salvage European pride.

None other than Roland de Wolfe grabbed gold in the $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High-Low event, and he made history in the process (see page 46). Not only did the former poker journalist win a bracelet and a load of loot, but the victory made him only the second player ever to win the Triple Crown – an EPT title, WPT title and WSOP bracelet. A truly incredible achievement for the 29-year-old Londoner, and sometime he will have to tell us where he is hiding the horseshoe.

Lest anyone forget whom he was playing for, De Wolfe wore a colourful Union Jack across his shirt at the final table, proudly representing his home turf. Lifetime, it was his fourth WSOP final table.

De Wolfe won despite very little experience at Omaha/8, but he had a little help from his friends. “I got lots of advice from some English players, who helped me,” he said. “…Poker is alive and well in Britain.”

Now, Roland may be young, but he’s an old man compared to this year’s first bracelet winner, John-Paul “JP” Kelly of Aylesbury. Kelly took down the $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold’em event to become the first UK bracelet winner since Ram Vaswani of the Hendon Mob won the Limit Hold’em Shootout in 2007 (see page 48). 

Kelly’s only 23, but he’s already been playing seriously for five years and is a well-known online player. He burst on the live scene when he won seven tournaments in a 15-month span in 2005-2006. This was Kelly’s third try at the WSOP and second final table. 

After the win, JP said: “This has to be the highlight of my life, so far.” 

Note the “so far.” He knows, as I think we all do, that there is a lot more to come for these two young and gifted players.

And Roland feels these wins will be something to build on, for everyone: “I hope my win and John-Paul Kelly’s win will push the game over the line and continue to help the game grow in Britain.”