PokerStars qualifier Alex Wice has taken over the chip lead with a stonking 565,000 after he knocked out Vincent Dalet in a huge pot.
According to player/blogger Claus Nielsen, Wice opened to 7,000 with one caller before Dalet reraised to about 18,000. Wice who plays with almost no dwelling time at all during betting, snap-reraised to 39,000 and the player in the middle folded.
Dalet now pushed all-in and Wice instantly called with dominating . No nine came on the board and the behatted Canadian is the new chip leader.
Table 4 is an interesting table. You have Praz Bansi on the table cradling a very healthy stack courtesy of a Tom Macdonald gift late yesterday. Last years Pokerstars.net Online Qualifier of the Year Pierre Neuville is also seated at the table. The chip leader on the table is Mathew Frankland, here are a few sample hands from the table as it has been developing.
Frankland bets 6,500 from early position and Henri Layani calls behind. The flop is and Frankland checked to Layani who bet 7,500 to take the pot down.
Pokerstars player Olivier Busquet raised to 7,000 in early position and Damien Rony moved all-in resulting in a fold from Busquet.
Neuville raised on the button making it 6,500 to play and Frankland three-bet from the small bet making it 17,200 and Neuville called. The flop was and Frankland checked to Neuville who also checked. The turn was the and Frankland bet 15,200 and Neuville folded.
We arrived to find the board reading and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier betting out a whopping 76,600 into an already large pot. His opponent, one Igal Botbol, thought about it for some time and then announced a call, but mucked and dejectedly counted out out the requisite chips when ElkY showed him pocket threes for a full house.
The Star has Crafted his stack into more than 300,000.
Vincent Dalet raised, and then called the shove from Team PokerStars Pro Salvatore Bonavena. Bonavena was well ahead preflop but was an underdog after the flop, and he soon hit the rail short of the money.
We arrived to find over 70,000 in the pot by the river of the board and Nikolay Losev was betting out 38,000. Bansi himself tanked up for a long, long time before dropping the call across the line very suddenly, as though he was afraid he might change his mind. Duly he was rewarded as Losev turned over for a flush draw that never came in, and Bansi's was good to pick up the pot.
At around 275,000, Bansi is looking in excellent shape to score his first ever EPT cash.
Alan Hvedehave shoved under the gun for around 22,000 and to his immediate left Bruno Fitoussi flat-called, leaving himself just 50,000 behind. Franck Henri Kalfon called on the button too, and they saw a flop. Hvedehave was already standing and looking very unhappy about the whole thing.
The flop came down and Fitoussi checked, but Kalfon promptly bet 20,000, forcing Fitoussi into an extended period in the tank. He mumbled and gesticulated, and eventually he folded - and was rewarded when Kalfon, now heads up with Hvedehave, turned over a monster.
Hvedehave:
Kalfon:
Turn:
River:
Hvedehave hit the rail, and Kalfon picked up the pot, putting him up to around 200,000. Fitoussi meanwhile is now languishing in the tournament danger zone.
Team Pokerstar Pros Matthias de Meulder and Juan Manuel Pastor have found themselves on the same table and lets hope they are not superstitious because it is table 13.
13 seems to be a prominent number because the person who found himself in 13th place going into this day was Philip Jacobsen and he too is sat on this table.
Here is some of the early action from that table.
The action folds around to de Meulder on the button and he moves all-in and takes the blinds and antes which these days equate to 6,900. Then de Meulder opens from the late position a few hands later and receives a call from Jean Bernard Bot in the big blind. The flop was and both players checked. The turn was the and again both players checked. Finally, on the river which was a there was a bet and it was by de Meulder and it was tiny as he made it 4,500 and Jean Bernard Bot called. De Meulder tabled pocket Kings and Jean Bernard Bot mucked his hand.
De Meulder is again involved in the action when he raises to 7,300 from early position. Benjamin Pollack moved all-in for 45,000 and Lucien Cohen also moved all-in and he had Pollack covered. De Meulder folded and Pollack doubled up when his pocket tens dodged the ace and the king of his opponent.
Welcome to the Casino Barriere in Deauville for Day 3 of the Main Event at the Pokerstars.net EPT.
Winning a major poker tournament is all about making those little baby steps and today the next baby step for 205 people is to make it into the money. To take that step they must squeeze into the final 128 places which means 77 people will be leaving empty handed.
Swedish poker player and Pokerstars.net online qualifier, David Sonelin is leading the event with 438,900 chips but there are ten other players who are over the 300,000 chip mark. These include Frenchman Fabrice Soulier who had a fantastic year in 2010 winning nearly $1 million in tournament winnings. Soulier will be hoping to start off 2011 in the same manner and to keep the trophy on home soil.
Four of the top ten places at the moment are owned by players who have qualified for this tournament online at Pokerstars.net proving how profitable those satellites can be.
Also in the field and hoping to make an impression today are Team Pokerstars Pros Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Thomas Bichon, Juan Manuel Pastor, Matthias de Meulder and Salvatore Bonavena. We also have a 2010 EPT Champion in the field in the shape of Kent Lundmark who won the event in Barcelona just a few short months ago.
The action will be starting at noon so stick to these pages for all of the best coverage.
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dominating 
. No nine came on the board and the behatted Canadian is the new chip leader.
and Frankland checked to Layani who bet 7,500 to take the pot down.
and Frankland checked to Neuville who also checked. The turn was the 
and Frankland bet 15,200 and Neuville folded.
board and Nikolay Losev was betting out 38,000. Bansi himself tanked up for a long, long time before dropping the call across the line very suddenly, as though he was afraid he might change his mind. Duly he was rewarded as Losev turned over 
was good to pick up the pot.
and again both players checked. Finally, on the river which was a 