The United Kingdom is a nation of gamblers, so is it any wonder that the small island boasts so many successful and popular poker tours? If you're looking for a live poker experience in Britain, then look no further than these delicious options:

The PokerStars European Poker Tour London (EPT) The biggest and most prestigious tournament on this list is the European Poker Tour London Main Event. At £5,300 it's not for the short of cash, but satellites run on PokerStars so you can win your way there. Unibet UKPT London Grand – London Poker Tournament will be held from 9th till 13th of December at the Aspers Casino Westfield Stratford City. The tournament features the Main Event with 6 legs and a guaranteed £100,000 in prize pool money. There are a handful of cardrooms around London, either in the form of a casino cardroom or a private member’s poker club. Check out this section to read and write reviews, and find out about cash game and tournament schedules. During December we are bringing the festive cheer to our poker room by giving our guests more chances to walk away with a cash prize every week. Omaha high hand. Each day in December Omaha players will be drawn a high card each hour, 11am to 10pm.

• The PokerStars UK and Ireland Poker Tour.
• The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour.
• The Genting Poker Series.
• The Amateur Poker Association and Tour.
• The PokerStars European Poker Tour London.

The PokerStars UK and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT)

Since its launch in December 2009 the UKIPT has been the UK's biggest televised poker tournament and the most highly-attended tour in the country.

What is it: One of PokerStars' many successful local tours, and inarguably one of the most well-run and successful poker tours in the country. It comes with a higher-than-average reg-to-fish ratio than most but the big fields give natural good value.

Money talks: Last year the events carried a typical buy-in of £1,100, up from the £770 of 2012. However, many events carried a guarantee of at least £500,000/€500,000 with Galway hosting a €1m guaranteed event. In 2020 the tour guarantees almost £2.5 million across five confirmed stops.

Are there satellites: Since the tour is sponsored by the world's largest online poker room there are naturally more satellites than you can shake a stick at - players can qualify for as little as £5.

The Latest Winners

• Aug 31 – 4 Sep, 2016
• London
• 335
• Stian Knutsen
• £42,500

• Oct 5 – 9, 2016
• Birmingham
• 244
• Ted Jackson-Spivack
• £35,000

• Nov 19-22, 2015
• Edinburgh
• 337
• David Gomez Morante
• £49,660

• Apr 12-20, 2015
• Nottingham
• 1,026
• Sam Mitten-Lawrence
• £182,000

The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT)

What do Neil Channing, James Mitchell, Jeff Kimber, and Sam Trickett have in common? They're all very successful UK pros who have made podium finishes in a GUKPT event.

What is it: The Grosvenor UK Poker Tour is one of the oldest running poker tours in the UK, and definitely one of the most successful. Anyone who's anyone in UK poker has played their fair share of these tournaments.

Money talks: The typical buy-in is £1,100 but there are many events with £550 entries - the cheapest is the Goliath in Coventry, which has a £120 buy-in and aims to break the European tournament attendance record in its upcoming event.

Are there satellites: Online, satellites are available via GrosvenorCasinos.com As the GUKPT travels the country to various locations you can usually find live satellites running ahead of the stop in your local casino.

The Genting Poker Series (GPS)

Though The Genting Poker Series is only a few years old this fledgling tour has already impressed and attracted some of UK poker's biggest names to its tables.

What is it: A small yet very well-attended and well-regarded series of tournaments in the UK that boasts winners such as Julian Thew and finalists like Ross Boatman.

Money talks: The usual buy-in for a GPS Main Event is £400. Side events carry smaller buy-ins.

Are there satellites: There's satellites running online via Genting's own online poker room - you can qualify to their Main Events for as little as £5.50 for some poker loyalty points.

The Amateur Poker Association and Tour (APAT)

Founded in 2006, the APAT now boasts over 20,000 members and is Europe's largest club for recreational poker players.

What is it: The Tour part of the APAT name is when they take their show on the road, with affordable yet professional tournaments across the country. Last year's Main Event carried a buy-in of just £82 but generated a £10,000 prize pool.

Money talks: Easily the most affordable tour on this list because it caters to recreational players - buy-ins range from just £30 to £100.

Are there satellites: They're thin on the ground, owing to the cheapness of the events. APAT do run an online poker room, though, so satellites to some larger events are usually available.

The PokerStars European Poker Tour London (EPT)

The biggest and most prestigious tournament on this list is the European Poker Tour London Main Event. At £5,300 it's not for the short of cash, but satellites run on PokerStars so you can win your way there.

What is it: The aforementioned Main Event is just part of the annual EPT festivities in London, as the tour comes with dozens of side events in the £100 - £3,000 range.

Live Poker Tournaments London Today Show

Money talks: As mentioned, the EPT is not for those with a small bankroll. The buy in for Main Even is £5000. There are smaller events in beforehand, which run from £100 to £3000.

Are there satellites: To the Main Event, yes. Side events generally don't have satellites running, but some of them are relatively low buy-ins.

Related Guides

Poker players in London have plenty of options when it comes to live games, and many of the 23 london casinos offer some kind of poker action. As well as the casinos, there is also a growing trend of pubs and snooker halls running low stake social games.

But where is the best place to play poker in London? Our writers, who are no strangers to the felt, have come up with this handy guide:

Live Poker Tournaments London Today News

'The Vic' - The Grosvenor Victoria

150-162 Edgware Road, London, W2 2DT

Located about a five minute walk from Edgeware Road tube station, The Grosvenor Victoria (affectionately referred to as 'The Vic') is the undisputed daddy of London poker. The card room is located upstairs and is by far the largest in the capital.

Part of the Grosvenor group of casinos, players must register before entering the casino. Registration is free and is done once for the entire group, not per casino. If you originally registered at a different Grosvenor, you will need to swap your current membership card at the desk for one that can be used in the card room.

Cash games run 24 hours a day and blinds start at just £1-£1. Whilst the rake at these levels may seem eye wateringly high compared to online games, they are actually the best low-stake rates in town - 10% capped at £5. At the £1-£2 level the rake drops to 5% with a £10 cap, and for games of £2-£5 and over the rake is taken as a half-hourly fee.

As well as cash games, The Vic run tournaments every evening with an additional afternoon game at the weekends. It is also the home to many large poker events such as the GUKPT, the EPT and the WHUP.

Regular players can try and make it into the monthly top 100 (based on number of active days) to win a seat in the loyalty freeroll and have a stab at the £40k+ pot.

See The Vic's UK Casino Guide Listing

'The Empire' - The Casino At The Empire

5-6 Leicester Square, London, WC2H 7NA

Live Poker Tournaments London Today Youtube

The Empire is located slap bang on Leicester Square in the former ballroom of the Empire Cinema and for a short while held the title of largest casino in London. The poker room is among the nicest we've ever seen - primarily because of the incredibly comfortable reclining leather chairs, which makes a huge difference at the end of a long session.

Registration is not required at this casino as The Empire operate a walk-in policy, but there are advantages to becoming a member, mainly through the accumulation of loyalty points as you play.

Cash games start at £1-£2 with a 5% rake (£10 cap) and go upwards from there. The Empire is also the only brick and mortar casino we know of in central London to offer a bad beat jackpot - which is paid out if a hand of four twos or greater loses. At time of writing this jackpot was over £55,000 and has previous reached nearly a quarter of a million pounds (£222,335).

Regular players can also participate in the cash race - where the top 45 players (based on playing time) compete to win a share of the Cash Race pot. In addition to this, all players earn points whilst playing cash games, which can be spent in the bar or restaurant.

The folks at the Empire certainly have asperations for tournaments, but their players seem more interested in the cash games than anything else. The 4pm scheduled start times for their daily tournaments probably aren't doing them any favours either, though this is most likely because they want the tables back to use in the evening cash games.

Live Poker Tournaments London Today Live

See The Empire's UK Casino Guide Listing

'The Fox' - The Fox Poker Club [Now Closed]

93-107 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 5DY

Located on Shaftsbury Avenue, and a stones throw from Leicester Square, China Town and Soho, the Fox has an enviable location. It is, however, a members only club which means you have to pay a £10 joining fee and do a bit of paper work before you can hit the tables.

The Fox runs cash games 24 hours a day, although the volume and availability of games is far less than that of The Vic. The real reason people come to the fox are the tournaments, which are held three times a day. Whilst some poker rooms struggle to find players for their tournaments, The Fox struggle to find enough seats for the players who want to participate.

The games are dealer dealt and entries costs are normally between £10 and £250 plus a £5 registration fee (or 10% of the entry, whichever is greater). Most tournaments are in the wallet friendly £20 - £40 range and attract a lot of regulars.

See The Fox's UK Casino Guide Listing