Daryl McAleenan, originally from Drumaness and a resident of Castlewellan for 17 years, placed fourth at the Irish Open poker tournament. He won €250,500, his largest tournament prize to date.

The event began on March 26 with an entry fee of €1,150 open to all players. It spanned two and a half weeks, with day one events reducing thousands of entries. Day two occurred on April 4, day three on April 5, and the final on April 6.

McAleenan ended day one with 512,000 chips, third in his group, advancing him to day two. After day two, he held 2,300,000 chips in 42nd place. On day three, he reached fifth with 20,900,000 chips as 10 players remained.

The field exceeded 5,000 entries, with one quarter from Ireland, one quarter from the UK, and the rest international. Nine players reached the final table, where each guaranteed €40,000.

During final table play with five left, McAleenan went all-in against an Italian player and won the pot with a flush, cheered by 25 supporters from Ireland. The five players then agreed to a prize split and continued for the trophy.

Romanian Narcis Nedelcu won the tournament. McAleenan described reaching the final table as a lifetime achievement against top global competition.