Mizrachi Leads Field into Day 2 of $10,400 GG Million$ at Onyx SHRS Cyprus
The inaugural 2025 Onyx Super High Roller Series Cyprus presented by Onyx Club is off to a blistering start, with the $10,400 GG Million$ drawing some of poker’s biggest names to the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa.
After two full starting flights and a late-night turbo, 510 entries have been logged, having a slight overlay on the $5,000,000 guarantee but still sets up a huge Day 2.
World Series of Poker Main Event champion Michael Mizrachi continues to ride one of the most dominant summers in recent memory, bagging the overall chip lead with 1,547,000 in Day 1b. The four-time Poker Players Championship winner surged to the top after a final-level cooler that saw his pocket kings hold and improve to a full house against the pocket jacks of Aram Oganyan.
Allen Sets the Early Pace in Day 1a
The festival’s opening flight on August 9 brought in 229 entries, with 41 players surviving the 15 levels of play.
Britain’s Michael Allen led the pack, ending with 1,430,000 after a consistent day that saw him outlast a field packed with high-stakes regulars.
Roman Stoika (1,200,000) finished second in chips after an early double with pocket kings, while Norway’s Sondre Stormyr (1,111,000) rounded out the top three.
Day 1a also saw deep runs from Christopher Puetz (1,047,000), Weiran Pu (1,026,000), and Gilles Simon (812,000).
Notables like Jesse Lonis (750,000) and Matthew Wantman (292,000) also advanced, while Artur Martirosian and Changyang Liu were among the early casualties.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Allen | United Kingdom | 1,430,000 | 89 |
| 2 | Roman Stoika | Russia | 1,200,000 | 75 |
| 3 | Sondre Stormyr | Norway | 1,111,000 | 69 |
| 4 | Christopher Puetz | Germany | 1,047,000 | 65 |
| 5 | Weiran Pu | China | 1,026,000 | 64 |
| 6 | Moussa Ahmad | Lebanon | 869,000 | 54 |
| 7 | Robert Burlacu | Romania | 865,000 | 54 |
| 8 | Ivan Zabiiakin | Russia | 852,000 | 53 |
| 9 | Gilles Simon | Netherlands | 812,000 | 51 |
| 10 | Philip Joyce | United Kingdom | 779,000 | 49 |
Mizrachi’s Momentum Rolls On
Day 1b brought 202 more hopefuls to the felt, including a rare sight in tournament poker, five members of the Mizrachi family competing together. Michael, fresh off his Main Event victory and Poker Hall of Fame induction, took centre stage, bagging the biggest stack of the series so far.
Hassan Nashar (1,393,000) and Aren Bezhanyan (1,356,000) joined Mizrachi near the top of the counts, while Turkey’s Orhan Ates (1,000,000) and Austria’s Armin Rezaei (823,000) also ended with healthy stacks. Eric Mizrachi advanced alongside his brother, while Robert and Paul Mizrachi fell short before the bagging stage.
By the end of the session, 33 more players had secured their seats in Day 2.
Day 1b Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Mizrachi | United States | 1,547,000 | 97 |
| 2 | Hassan Nashar | Guinea-Bissau | 1,393,000 | 87 |
| 3 | Aren Bezhanyan | Armenia | 1,356,000 | 85 |
| 4 | Dafishh | 1,001,000 | 63 | |
| 5 | Orhan Ates | Turkey | 1,000,000 | 63 |
| 6 | Hao Tian | China | 966,000 | 60 |
| 7 | Timothy Chung | Hong Kong | 847,000 | 53 |
| 8 | Armin Rezaei | Austria | 823,000 | 51 |
| 9 | Raoul Kanme | Netherlands | 767,000 | 48 |
| 10 | Kenar | Turkey | 672,000 | 42 |
A last-chance turbo flight also ran alongside Day 1b. This saw 23 more players qualify for Day 2, bringing the total returning field to 97. Manuel Fritz topped the turbo counts with 980,000, joining an already stacked list of contenders.
The Race to the Money Begins on Day 2
When cards go in the air at 12 p.m. local time today (2 a.m. ET/10 a.m BST/11 a.m. CEST), those 97 players will return for Day 2 of the $10,400 GG Million$, all chasing a share of the multimillion-dollar prize pool. Blinds will resume at 8,000/16,000 with a big blind ante, and levels will now stretch to 50 minutes.
Joining Mizrachi and Allen at the top of the leaderboard is Nashar, with Bezhanyan, Stoika, Stormyr, and Putz also inside the top ten. The Day 1 Turbo chip leader Fritz, Lonis, Boris Kolev (572,000), Leon Sturm (451,000), Aliaksei Boika (418,000), Ren Lin (312,000), and 2025 Hall of Famer Nick Schulman (314,000) are also still in the hunt.
Prize Pool & Payouts
The top 76 players will lock up the $17,000 min-cash, with the six-figure prizes coming in when eight players remain. The eventual champion will walk away with $1,000,000 with the runner-up banking $650,000.
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,000,000 | 10-11 | $68,000 |
| 2 | $650,000 | 12-13 | $55,000 |
| 3 | $415,000 | 14-17 | $45,000 |
| 4 | $292,000 | 18-20 | $38,000 |
| 5 | $212,000 | 21-27 | $32,000 |
| 6 | $160,000 | 28-34 | $27,000 |
| 7 | $127,000 | 35-41 | $23,000 |
| 8 | $102,000 | 42-55 | $20,000 |
| 9 | $85,000 | 56-76 | $17,000 |
To see all the action, make sure to head to the PokerNews live reporting page for Day 2 of the $10,400 GG Million$
Top Ten Chip Counts Going into Day 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Mizrachi | United States | 1,547,000 | 97 |
| 2 | Michael Allen | United Kingdom | 1,430,000 | 89 |
| 3 | Hassan Nashar | Guinea-Bissau | 1,393,000 | 87 |
| 4 | Aren Bezhanyan | Armenia | 1,356,000 | 85 |
| 5 | Roman Stoika | Russia | 1,200,000 | 75 |
| 6 | Sondre Stormyr | Norway | 1,111,000 | 69 |
| 7 | Christopher Puetz | Germany | 1,047,000 | 65 |
| 8 | Weiran Pu | China | 1,026,000 | 64 |
| 9 | Dafishh | 1,001,000 | 63 | |
| 10 | Orhan Ates | Turkey | 1,000,000 | 63 |
