Norwegian Teenager Becomes Poker Millionaire

A teenager from a country where it is illegal to play live poker for money has become an overnight millionaire and broken a string of records by winning the main event at the World Series of Poker in London.

Norwegian Annette Obrestad, 18, beat a string of professionals in a five-day £10,000 buy-in no-limit hold 'em event, winning a prize of £1 million, the biggest-ever single payday for a female player.

Live games for hard currency are banned in Norway and the few poker clubs that existed in Oslo were recently closed but Obrestad started playing five-card stud with her father and became a regular online at the age of 17.

She is well-known by her playing alias, Annette_15, but it seems her online playing days may soon come to an end because she has agreed a sponsorship deal with a poker site that will make her a regular on the live tournament circuit.

She said: "I never expected to win. I'm speechless. I really don't know what to say."

Obrestad and Londoner John Tabatabai, 22, were the last two players left at the table and her final hand of three sevens beat his two pair.

She also won a World Series of Poker bracelet, one of only 50 awarded each year.