Erwann Pecheux was part of a four-way pot to the turn and folded when facing a bet worth 1,050 and the other two players also mucked their cards, the pot was shipped to Stephan Zesiger.
Pierre Merlin was the initial raiser from under the gun and then bet the turn for 1,050. Sascha Olms called from the button and did so again for 2,150 on the river. Merlin showed and that ended up second best to the of the German.
Last but not least, Sarah Herzali sat down on the table of Mohsin Charania and faced a raise to 300. Herzali called out of the small blind and the two players checked through the flop. On the turn, Herzali check-called a bet of 400 by the preflop aggressor and the river was checked through again.
Herzali flashed and that was good enough to win the pot.
Poker and football fans around the world will get a kick out of this, as Team PokerStars SportsStar Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima - or Ronaldo for short - is here playing in the EPT Grand Final.
Ronaldo had a deep run in the 2015 PCA Main Event, finishing in 26th place for $42,180, but poker's been a game he loves for many, many years.
As a part of Team PokerStars, Ronaldo's playing this event and it's a given that he'll be taken lots of photos - on top of signing autographs - as the former football star is one of the most famous former athletes in the world.
Dubbed' the phenomenon' Ronaldo played 98 matches for the Brazilian national team, winning the World Cup in 2002 after defeating Germany in the finals. Ronaldo scored twice in the final and took home the Golden Boot as well. With 62 goals Ronaldo is the second highest scorer in Brazilian football history.
On the felt we just saw Ronaldo get into it right away, raising to 300 from the button. Both blinds made the call and the flop brought out on which the action was checked to the initial raiser. Ronaldo bet 400 and only the small blind called.
The turn brought the and now the small blind check-called 400. The completed the board and Ronaldo folded quickly after his opponent bet 1,300. After losing a little pot, Ronaldo sits just below the starting stack in the first level of the day.
Charlie Carrel and PokerStars Team Pro Jake Cody share the same table while one table over, Fabian Quoss has company in Artem Metalidi. A few further Germans are also in Day 1a including EPT11 Prague finalist Fabio Sperling.
The Spin & Go format has become quite popular on PokerStars and 121 players won their EPT Grand Final Main Event package through a special promotion for this game type. Iona Finkenrath was among them and the German told us he got the ticket by playing a €10 SNG while waiting in the break of a regular online tournament.
Ivan Freitez and Mohsin Charania are in today's field already and the latter already scooped a nice pot early on. With the board reading and around 2,800 in the pot, the action was checked to Charania in the cutoff and he bet 2,100. His opponent in the hijack eventually folded and the American dragged in the pot.
Steven van Zadelhoff had yet another deep run in the France Poker Series last night and finished in the top 100. Among the other EPT regulars already in are Faraz Jaka, Artem Metalidi and Govert Metaal.
Half an hour from now, at 12 p.m. local time, the next highlight of the 2016 PokerStars and Monte-Carlo® Casino EPT Grand Final awaits with Day 1a of the €5,300 EPT12 Main Event. The flagship series of the international poker circuit is returning to Monte-Carlo for the 11th time, only in Season 7 it was not on the schedule.
The number of participants thus far at the Monte Carlo Bay Resort have been promising with astonishing 1,261 entries in the €1,100 FPS Monaco Main Event, giving hope for another decent turnout. More than 315 players won their entry for the tournament through PokerStars and a big field is expected.
Defending champion is Adrian Mateos, one year ago the young Spaniard defeated a 564-entry strong field for a payday of €1,082,000. Day 1a and tomorrow's Day 1b feature a total of eight 75-minute levels with a 20-minute break every two levels and a dinner break after the end of level six. Bagging and tagging should take place just before midnight and the PokerNews live reporting team will be there to cover all the action until a winner is crowned on May 6th.
turn and folded when facing a bet worth 1,050 and the other two players also mucked their cards, the pot was shipped to Stephan Zesiger.
turn for 1,050. Sascha Olms called from the button and did so again for 2,150 on the 
river. Merlin showed 
and that ended up second best to the 
of the German.
turn, Herzali check-called a bet of 400 by the preflop aggressor and the 
river was checked through again.
and that was good enough to win the pot.
on which the action was checked to the initial raiser. Ronaldo bet 400 and only the small blind called.
and now the small blind check-called 400. The 
completed the board and Ronaldo folded quickly after his opponent bet 1,300. After losing a little pot, Ronaldo sits just below the starting stack in the first level of the day.
