The 2012 European Poker Awards took place at the famous Aviation Club de France honouring the best poker players from the European poker circuit for their exploits during the calendar year of 2011. The most prestigious of the awards was handed out to British pro Sam Trickett who walked away with the title of European Player of the Year.

Many thought Jake Cody would have scooped the top honour after the youngster completed the coveted Triple Crown of titles when he won the $25,000 Heads Up tournament at the World Series of Poker to add to his European Poker Tour Deauville and World Poker Tour London titles, but it in the end the judges voted for Trickett who had just completed the best year of his life as a professional poker player.

During 2011 Trickett won just shy of $4,600,000 in major live poker tournaments around the world. At the start of the year he took down the $100,000 challenge at the Aussie Millions for $1,525,000 and just days later he finished as runner-up to Erik Seidel in the $250,000 Super High Roller event for a further $1,400,000. Trickett then went on to make four more final tables, including one at the World Series of Poker Europe in Cannes and one of the final table appearances saw him win the Partouche Poker Tour Main Event for €1,000,000, his third seen-figure score of the year!

Other awards given out went to Andrey Pateychuk (rookie of the year), Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier (personality of the year), Ilari Sahamies (online player of the year) and Natalia Nikitina (Europe’s Leading Lady).