The last leg of the Latin American Poker Tour began today in Punta del Este, Uruguay.  The inaugural event features a three-day, $2,700 buy-in, no-limit hold’em event.  Previously, the tour stopped in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where 314 entrants battled it out to grab the $223,000 first place prize. Julien Nuijten of the Netherlands was the victor in that, the first stop of the LAPT.  Next, the tour stopped in San Jose, Costa Rica, where Valdemar Kwaysser took down a field of 398 entrants to win approximately $274,000. 

The Uruguay event will mark the completion of the first year of the tour–a smashing success. The tour has shown similar numbers as other PokerStars sponsored tours such as the European Poker Tour and the Asian Pacific Poker Tour.