The number of poker players who've won the triple crown (EPT, WPT and WSOP title) is a pretty small group. And this weekend, Belgian poker pro David Kitai found himself joining this little fraternity after taking down the 2012 EPT Berlin Main Event along with $941,488. With the win, Kitai also made history by becoming the first Belgian to capture an EPT title.

Chance Encounter

Days before his monumental victory, David Kitai ran into Canadian grinder Andrew Chen at the Berlin airport. The chance meeting continued as they shared a cab to the Hyatt Hotel. Little did the players know, but they would be facing off heads-up for the prestigious EPT Berlin title just a short while later.

Both players navigated through a tough 745-player field before meeting each other to decide the Main Event. Chen had the chip advantage as both players entered the heads-up matchup. However, his small lead would mean little with both players showing extreme aggression at the table. Following a number of check-raises, all-in river moves, and re-raises, Kitai finally rivered a 5 with his Ks-5s combo to beat Chen and his K-J(o) hand.

Triple Crown Club

The 2012 EPT Berlin Main Event victory goes nicely with Kitai's 2008 WSOP $2,000 Pot Limit Omaha bracelet ($244,583) and 2011 WPT Celebrity Invitational ($100,000) title. More importantly, it puts him in a select group of players who've won an EPT, WPT and WSOP event. Kitai's triple crown predecessors include Gavin Griffin, Roland de Wolfe, Jake Cody and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier.

After adding the aforementioned $941,488 to his career winnings, David Kitai has now earned $2,715,654 in live tournaments. The huge EPT Berlin win also furthers his lead over Kevin Vandersmissen ($1,454,550) as the all-time leader in Belgian poker winnings.