It has been (and will be) a busy week on the international poker stage. The PokerStars Latin American Poker Tour brought poker and Carnival time together in Sao Paulo, Brazil, starting last Friday; the final table of eight playing today to find the last winner of the season. 

Meanwhile, in the more tranquil setting of the United Kingdom Poker Tour in Galway, Ireland, the last nine players will also return today for their finale, just in time for the European Poker Tour main event in Copenhagen to begin.

For fans of the game it made for an entertaining week, following the action online and pressing refresh every few minutes for the latest news. For those looking at things with a more analytical slant, the two events, separated by nearly 10,000 kilometres of ocean, have both served as useful reminders of how skilful this game really is; two Canadians in particular making the point perfectly. 

Few inside the game need a reminder as to who Daniel Negreanu is, and those that do can content themselves with a long look through the Canadian’s tournament Palmares. Negreanu will be part of today’s final table in Sao Paulo, the first player to reach finals on the LAPT, APPT and EPT. For the record, since his first live cash in 1997, Negreanu has notched up more than 40 major finals. 

Meanwhile Nick Abou Risk appears on the line up for the Galway final. The Canadian would not claim to rival Negreanu for stature, but can claim to be the first player to win two events on the UKIPT, winning in Edinburgh in season one, and in Galway in season two. The defending champion could make it three today. 

Luck you say? If he does win Abou Risk will be pulling off a 63,256,968 to one shot.