₽77,000 EPT National | 2019 PokerStars EPT Sochi

03-24-2019 14:04 UTC+3

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya Eliminated in 7th Place (RUB 1,295,000/$19,425)

Will Shillibier

Level 28 : 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya open-shoved for 650,000. It folded to Daniil Lukin in the big blind who called.

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya:
Daniil Lukin:

There was a king on the flop but the ace gave Lukin the lead. The turn and river didn't help Skhulukhiya who was eliminated in 7th place after a rollercoaster day.

Having started second in chips, he overtook Yury Masliankou in the chip lead but after losing queens against the ace-king of Alexandr Sergutin, he slowly slipped down the chip counts and will have to settle with RUB 1,295,000 ($19,425) for his efforts.

Player	Chips	Progress
Daniil Lukin	3,450,000 650,000	650,000
Giorgiy Skhulukhiya	Busted

Tags: Alexandr Sergutin Daniil Lukin Yury Masliankou Giorgiy Skhulukhiya

03-24-2019 13:48 UTC+3

Skhulukhiya Doubles Through Bilokur

Will Shillibier

Level 28 : 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya's chip stack had slipped underneath the one million mark and he open-jammed for 935,000 from middle position.

It folded around to Leonid Bilokur in the big blind who called.

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya:
Leonid Bilokur:

The board ran out with Skhulukhiya's kings holding to double up and leave Bilokur with around 11 big blinds.

Player	Chips	Progress
Giorgiy Skhulukhiya	1,900,000 600,000	600,000
Leonid Bilokur	860,000 -890,000	-890,000

Tags: Giorgiy Skhulukhiya Leonid Bilokur

03-24-2019 13:10 UTC+3

Lukin Doubles Through Sergutin

Will Shillibier

Level 28 : 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante

Daniil Lukin opened to 150,000 and Alexandr Sergutin three-bet to 400,000. Lukin then four-bet all in for 1,485,000 and Sergutin called.

Daniil Lukin:
Alexandr Sergutin:

There was an ace on the flop of and the runout meant Lukin doubled to around average with seven players still remaining.

Player	Chips	Progress
Alexandr Sergutin	4,000,000 -1,550,000	-1,550,000
Daniil Lukin	2,980,000 1,490,000	1,490,000

Tags: Alexandr Sergutin Daniil Lukin

03-24-2019 12:50 UTC+3

Sergutin Scores Big Double Through Skhulukhiya

Will Shillibier

Level 27 : 30,000/60,000, 60,000 ante

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya opened to 125,000 on the button and Alexandr Sergutin three-bet to 475,000 from the button.

Yury Masliankou folded his big blind and Skhulukhiya four-bet to 1,125,000. Sergutin five-bet all in for 2,565,000 and Skhulukhiya snap-called, slamming his chips into the middle.

Giorgiy Skhulukhiya:
Alexandr Sergutin:

Skhulukhiya looked set to soar back into the chip lead after the flop came . The turn was the but the river kept Sergutin alive as he doubled to over five million.

Player	Chips	Progress
Alexandr Sergutin	5,250,000 2,575,000	2,575,000
Giorgiy Skhulukhiya	2,600,000 -2,120,000	-2,120,000

Tags: Alexandr Sergutin Giorgiy Skhulukhiya

03-24-2019 12:26 UTC+3

Sarkis Karabadzhakyan Eliminated in 8th Place (RUB 889,000/$13,335)

Will Shillibier

Level 27 : 30,000/60,000, 60,000 ante

Sarkis Karabadzhakyan moved all in from under the gun for 520,000. Alexandr Sergutin moved all in over the top and the remaining players folded.

Sarkis Karabadzhakyan:
Alexandr Sergutin:

The flop came giving both players a set. The turn was the and the river the meaning Karabadzhakyan, who came into the day as the short stack, became the first elimination of the final day.

The seven remaining players are all guaranteed RUB 1,295,000 ($19,425).

Player	Chips	Progress
Alexandr Sergutin	2,525,000 540,000	540,000
Sarkis Karabadzhakyan	Busted

Tags: Alexandr Sergutin Sarkis Karabadzhakyan

03-24-2019 10:28 UTC+3

Eight Remain, But Who Will Win EPT National?

Will Shillibier

Yury Masliankou is just seven eliminations away from becoming the second non-Russian to win the EPT Sochi National. The Belarussian picked up the chip lead late on Day 2 after clashing with Georgiy Skhulukhiya, who is second in chips, and held onto it as he heads into the final day as the clear chip leader.

Twelve months since Czech player Matous Houzvicek clinched the title, Masliankou will be eyeing the RUB 9,137,000 ($139,755) payout for first prize but several players stand in his way.

Here's how the final eight players stack up:

Seat	Name	Country	Chip Count	Big Blinds
1	Yury Masliankou	Belarus	5,260,000	105
2	Kartik Ved	India	1,385,000	28
3	Leonid Bilokur	Russia	3,210,000	64
4	Daniil Lukin	Russia	2,595,000	52
5	Andrey Lukyanov	Russia	2,380,000	48
6	Sarkis Karabadzhakyan	Russia	670,000	13
7	Giorgiy Skhulukhiya	Russia	4,145,000	83
8	Alexandr Sergutin	Russia	1,985,000	40

As you can see, there's clear water between Masliankou and Skhulukhiya at the top of the counts, with another gap back to former chip leader Leonid Bilokur (3,210,000).

Last year, Bilokur finished 55th in the EPT Sochi Main Event, and with over $3.5m in lifetime earnings, he would crack the Russian all-time top 10 list with a win today.

Then follows Daniil Lukin (2,595,000) and Day 1a chip leader Andrey Lukyanov (2,380,000). Lukyanov finished Day 1a with a shade of 544,000 and is positioned comfortably with an average stack in the middle of the pack.

After Lukyanov, Alexandr Sergutin sits with 40 big blinds and is by no means a short stack at this final table. The final two players are Indian Kartik Ved (1,385,000) and Sarkis Karabadzhakyan (670,000). With 28 and 13 big blinds respectively, these two will focus on good starts to get them back into contention as the blinds steadily increase.

Play will resume in Level 27 (30,000/60,000) and play down to a winner. Here's a reminder of the remaining payouts:

Position	Payout (CSU)	Payout (RUB)	Payout (USD)
1	CSU 133,100	RUB 9,317,000	$139,755
2	CSU 81,500	RUB 5,705,000	$85,575
3	CSU 58,100	RUB 4,067,000	$61,005
4	CSU 43,700	RUB 3,059,000	$45,885
5	CSU 34,400	RUB 2,408,000	$36,120
6	CSU 25,800	RUB 1,806,000	$27,090
7	CSU 18,500	RUB 1,295,000	$19,425
8	CSU 12,700	RUB 889,000	$13,335