Welcome back to the PokerStars.net European Poker Tour Season 9 Prague Main Event. What began five days ago with a record 864 players is now down to the final 21. Everyone left in the field is guaranteed a €25,000 payday, but everyone is intent on tripling that by making the final table here today. If they do, they’ll earn at least €75,000 and be in contention for the €835,000 first-place prize.
The man best positioned to make the final table is chip leader Ben Warrington, who bagged up 2.618 million on Day 4, much of it courtesy of a fortunate double against Team PokerStars Pro Johnny Lodden. Close behind is David Boyaciyan, who you might know as last year’s runner-up. Boyaciyan’s consecutive deep runs is already impressive, but making back-to-back final tables would certainly be a tremendous accomplishment.
Another keen storyline to keep an eye on is that of the UK’s Roberto Romanello, who won the EPT7 Prague two years ago for €640,000. Romanello is not only looking to become the first ever repeat EPT champion, but also to capture the same title for the second time in three years. With that said, Romanello has his work cutout for himself as he begins the day on the short stack with 341,000.
Other players in contention include the aforementioned Lodden, Mark Herm, Jeff Sarwer, Mads Amot and Ramzi Jelassi. Who will be the next to add their name to the prestigious list? We won’t find out the answer today, but we’ll narrow it down to the final eight as play will continue until the final table is set.
EPT Prague Champions
Season
Entrants
Prizepool (EUR)
Winner
Prize (EUR)
4
555
€2,530,240
Arnaud Mattern
€708,400
5
570
€2,764,500
Salvatore Bonavena
€774,000
6
586
€2,842,100
Jan Skampa
€682,000
7
563
€2,730,550
Roberto Romanello
€640,000
8
722
€3,501,700
Martin Finger
€720,000
9
864
€4,190,400
???
€835,000
The final 21 players will return for Day 5 at 12:00 CEST, which is less than an hour from now. Join us then as we bring you all the latest and greatest from the richest tournament in Czech Republic history.
Roberto Romanello's bid for EPT history has come to an end on just the third hand of the day.
It happened when Mads Amot opened for 42,000 only to have Roberto Romanello, who won this very event two years ago in Season 7, shove from the big blind for 383,000. Amot made the call and Romanello discovered the bad new.
Showdown
Amot:
Romanello:
It was a bad spot for Romanello, and it only got worse on the flop. Amot hit a set and left Romanello drawing to running straight cards. Any hope of that disappeared when the dealer burned and turned the , leaving Romanello drawing dead. The was put out on the river for good measure, and Romanello exited in 21st place.
It might be a while before we see Jeff Sarwer on the EPT again. Getting so deep so many times only for the deck to turn against him seems to, understandably, take its toll on the Canadian.
His exit hand came after he four-bet all in for a little less than 500,000 from the big blind after an open to 50,000 from Mark Herm and a 100,000 three-bet from Aleh Plauski. Herm folded but Plauski called.
While Sergio Aido Espina was being eliminated on one of the outer tables, Jose Manuel Nadal Sordo was axed at the other.
We're not sure of the betting, but we do know it was blind-versus-blind and Sordo was all in for his last 200,000 or so from the big with and at risk against Mikhail Petrov, who held in the small blind.
It was a hand reminiscent of Espina's elimination, and like that hand the queens would hit a set as the flop came down . The turn meant Sordo could still win with a king on the river, but it wasn't in the cards as the blanked.
With that, Sordo exited in 16th place and the final 15 players will now combine to the final two tables.
Dany Parlafes has just been sent to the rail in 15th place after losing a huge coinflip with Sotirios Koutoupas.
Parlafes was under the gun and he raised to 50,000. To his immediate left was Koutoupas and he three-bet to 125,000. Koutoupas has been playing tightly and his rare three-bet forced folds from everyone at the table except Parlafes who went deep into the tank.
Parlafes stayed in the tank for almost 90 seconds before moving all-in for 958,000. Koutoupas called and put his Romanian opponent at risk.
Koutoupas:
Parlafes:
The flop was safe for Parlafes' queens, as was the turn. The river certainly wasn't safe because it improved Koutoupas to a hand-winning pair of king and eliminated Parlafes.
We missed the exact action, though we did hear Sotirios Koutoupas had flatted preflop from the big blind, but we do know that Marco Leonzio was just eliminated after getting his last 590,000 all in holding on a flop. Unfortunately for him, Koutoupas held for top set.
Leonzio was in bad shape, though the turn did give him some hope as either a nine or ace would give him a straight. The dealer burned one last time and put out the , the last card Leonzio would see in the 2012 PokerStars.net EPT Prague Main Event.
The last Team PokerStars Pro has been eliminated from the 2012 PokerStars.net EPT Prague Main Event as Johnny Lodden was just eliminated by last year's runner-up, David Boyaciyan.
It happened when Ramzi Jelassi opened for 60,000 from early position and cleared the field all the way to Lodden on the button. He had the short stack at the feature table, and he opted to commit his last 779,000. Boyaciyan was next to act in the small blind and put in a raise, which drove Jelassi from the hand.
Boyaciyan
Lodden
Lodden had a good hand, but he had run into the granddaddy of all hands as Boyaciyan woke up with aces. The flop wasn't all that exciting, but the turn was as it gave Lodden an open-ended straight draw. Much to the dismay of his fans back in Norway, the blanked on the river and Lodden was eliminated from the tournament in 13th place. Meanwhile, Boyaciyan took over the chip lead and is primed to make back-to-back EPT Prague Main Event final tables.
Andreas Berggren has been eliminated in a cruel blind-vs-blind confrontation.
A preflop raising war broke out between Berggren and Aleh Plauski that resulted in Berggren being all-in and a 3,676,000 pot being created! Berggren showed and was way in front of the of Plauski — but it would not stay that was for long.
The dealer put out the flop, gifting Plauski quad deuces — the second set of quads we have seen today! The turn and river completed the hand and Berggren headed to rail with an almighty bad beat story to tell his friends.
The final table is one player away from being set as Jorma Nuutinen has just been eliminated by David Boyaciyan.
It happened Aleh Plauski opened for 80,000 from early position and Nuutinen three-bet shoved for 530,000 from the small blind. David Boyaciyan then called from the big blind and Plauski got out of the way.
Showdown
Nuutinen:
Boyaciyan:
It was a bad spot for Nuutinen, and according to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, he had just a 23.73% chance of winning compared to Boyaciyan's 75.15%.
Nuutinen would watch those odds slowly drop to zero as the board ran out an unexciting . The Finnish player exited in 10th place, which means the final nine players will combine to one table.
It is all over folks, the EPT Prague main event final table is set. Mariusz Klosinski has just been eliminated and we are down to eight players.
The action folded around to Mariusz Klosinski in the small blind and the tournament's birthday boy raised to 80,000. Ramzi Jelassi was in the big blind and he three-bet to 240,000. Team PokerStars Pro Johnny Lodden commented on the live stream that he believed Jelassi must be strong because he would otherwise have called and used his superior position. How right Lodden wold turn out to be.
Klosinski reached for chips and four-bet to 490,000 only to see Jelassi take back his original bet and replace it with 740,000 worth of chips! Within moments Klosinski had six-bet shoved and Jelassi called.
Jelassi:
Klosinski:
Lodden was right! Jelassi was strong! Klosinski stood from the table as the dealer put out the flop, then the turn and finally the river. And with that Klosinski was eliminated and the final eight players of the EPT Prague main event were set.
flop. Amot hit a set and left Romanello drawing to running straight cards. Any hope of that disappeared when the dealer burned and turned the 
, leaving Romanello drawing dead. The 
was put out on the river for good measure, and Romanello exited in 21st place.
handing the Belarussian a straight.
and at risk against Mikhail Petrov, who held 
in the small blind.
. The 
turn meant Sordo could still win with a king on the river, but it wasn't in the cards as the 
turn. The 
, the last card Leonzio would see in the 2012 PokerStars.net EPT Prague Main Event.
flop wasn't all that exciting, but the 
blanked on the river and Lodden was eliminated from the tournament in 13th place. Meanwhile, Boyaciyan took over the chip lead and is primed to make back-to-back EPT Prague Main Event final tables.
flop, gifting Plauski quad deuces — the second set of quads we have seen today! The 
