By Hayley Robinson

TV presenter and model Liv Boeree hopes to win £2.2million after making it through to the finals of a poker competition.

The 25-year-old, from Milstead, won just over £1million in the preliminary round of the European Poker Tournament after beating 22-year-old Swedish pro Jakob Carlsson last week.

The pretty astrophysics graduate only started playing poker four years ago after competing in a reality TV show about poker. She used to follow the EPT circuit as a TV presenter but says she always dreamed about playing. She won her seat in the San Remo Main Event in a €500 live satellite at the casino and is only the third woman to win an EPT since the tour began in 2004.

She said: "Winning a major event is exactly what I’ve been working towards. I went round to all the EPTs as a host but all I was thinking was: ‘I want to play.’ I have been working very hard on my game but I can’t believe I have won. I’m over the moon, absolutely over the moon."

The finals, which are currently taking place at Le Sporting venue at the Monte Carlo Bay Hotel, run until April 30.