€5,200 PLO Opener
Day 1b Started
2025 PLO Grand Slam
€5,200 PLO Opener
Day: 1b
Event Info
2025 PLO Grand Slam
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1b
Buy-in
€5,200
Prize Pool
€1,057,500
Entries
225
Level
26
Blinds
150,000 / 300,000
Ante
300,000
Entries
93
Players Left
21
Players Left 1 / 225
Filter
(1)
The €5,200 Opener of Diamond Poker Series' second PLO Grand Slam is on track to reach its massive €1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. Yesterday, Day 1a attracted 106 entries to Arena Casino Tirana, about half of what is needed to reach the guarantee.
For those not lucky enough to be among the 21 survivors of the first flight, the second and final Day 1 will begin today at 4 p.m. local time. However, with late registration not closing until the second level of Day 2, there will be nothing to worry about if Day 1b does not reach the seven-figure guarantee.
All who register today will be chasing Day 1a's leader Youness Barakat, who led throughout nearly the entire day the day to end up with a massive pile of 3,389,000 chips, almost 17 times the starting stack. Nino Pansier followed closely with a stack of 3,281,000, while bracelet winners Ronald Keijzer and Elie Nakache also found their way into the top ten.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Day 2 Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Youness Barakat | Italy | 3,389,000 | 282 |
| 2 | Nino Pansier | Netherlands | 3,281,000 | 273 |
| 3 | Harry Casagrande | Austria | 2,435,000 | 203 |
| 4 | Ronald Keijzer | Netherlands | 1,569,000 | 131 |
| 5 | Leonid Yanovski | Israel | 1,546,000 | 129 |
| 6 | Bernard Larabi | Hungary | 1,175,000 | 98 |
| 7 | Marco Di Persio | Italy | 1,011,000 | 84 |
| 8 | Spyridon Valakos | Greece | 1,004,000 | 84 |
| 9 | Elie Nakache | France | 909,000 | 76 |
| 10 | Andrew Ige | United States | 690,000 | 58 |
The players who register today will start over again with 200,000 chips, although there is a 10 percent bonus for players who register before the start of play and a five percent bonus for those who enter or reenter during the first level. Play will begin with blinds at 500/1,000 with a 1,000 big blind ante, and players will have unlimited reentries available until the day ends after Level 11: 6,000/12,000 with a 12,000 big blind ante.
All levels will be 45 minutes in length, with two 15-minute breaks sprinkled throughout the day and a 45-minute dinner break after Level 5, around 8 p.m. local time.
€5,200 PLO Opener Day 1b Structure
| Level | Duration (min) | Small Blind | Big Blind | Big Blind Ante |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 45 | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| 2 | 45 | 1,000 | 1,500 | 1,500 |
| 3 | 45 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| Break | 15 | |||
| 4 | 45 | 1,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 |
| 5 | 45 | 1,500 | 3,000 | 3,000 |
| Break | 45 | |||
| 6 | 45 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 |
| 7 | 45 | 2,000 | 5,000 | 5,000 |
| 8 | 45 | 3,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 |
| Break | 15 | |||
| 9 | 45 | 4,000 | 8,000 | 8,000 |
| 10 | 45 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 |
| 11 | 45 | 6,000 | 12,000 | 12,000 |
Another exhilarating day of Omaha is in the cards for Day 1b, so stick to PokerNews to not miss any of the four-card action.
Level: 1
Blinds: 500/1,000
Ante: 1,000
Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
With 24 players on the clock, the dealers have been instructed to get cards in the air for Day 1b of the €5,200 Opener.
Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
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Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
Diamond Poker Series Ambassador Max Kruse is Among the first couple of dozen players seated.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
||
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
|
||
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
||
|
220,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
In a pot worth 22,500, Fabian Riebau-Schmithals checked from under the gun to Daniel Tordjman in the cutoff. Tordjman made a bet of 12,000 on the 2♦10♠3♥ flop, which Riebau-Schmithals called.
Tordjman then sized up to 40,000 on the Q♦ turn, to which Riebau-Schmithals swiftly folded.
A couple of hands later, Tordjman was seen betting a pot-sized 50,000 on a completed board of 3♣5♣7♠J♠7♦. His opponent again was Riebau-Schmithals, who check-folded once more after some deliberation.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
270,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
|
170,000 | |
|
||
Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
Joachim Haraldstad and Tomas Ribeiro were tangling in a pot of 23,500 when Haraldstad bet the pot from the small blind on a turn of 6♥2♦Q♠10♠. Ribeiro cut out a call and put it in the middle before the 4♦ river completed the board.
Haraldstad sized down to 21,000 but still received a quick fold from his opponent and took down the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
235,000
15,000
|
15,000 |
|
180,000
180,000
|
180,000 |
|
|
||
Level 1
: Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante
Gergo Nagy three-bet to 18,500 from early position, getting a call from "Megas" in the cutoff. Espen Myrmo then four-bet jammed for his remaining 32,500, after which Nagy five-bet to 116,500.
"Just tell me what I need to put in," "Megas" told the dealer before quickly putting in a call.
The rest of the chips flew in on the 6♦3♠4♣ flop, with "Megas" being the at-risk player with a stack of 115,000.
Espen Myrmo: A♣J♦10♥7♣ 
"Megas": 10♦10♣9♦6♣
Gergo Nagy: A♠A♦Q♦J♠
Nagy's Aces were ahead, but both players had outs after the 5♣ turn. The Q♠ river helped neither of them, however, and Nagy scooped up the pot. He knocked out both opponents in the first level and ended up with over 500 big blinds.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
517,000
517,000
|
517,000 |
|
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted |
Level: 2
Blinds: 1,000/1,500
Ante: 1,500
