The 16 players who return on Day 5 of the €5,300 2022 PokerStars and Barcelona©Casino European Poker Tour Main Event at noon local time will all have one goal in common: make it to the final table.
The player with the best chance to do so is Michael Pinto. The Dutch native was on the fortunate end of a number of big hands on Day 4, including a one-outer on the river to crack aces, busting a player set over set, picking up aces over jacks in a nearly 8,000,000 chip pot, and kings over queens. He’ll take the chip lead into the final two tables with 11,090,000, having already far surpassed his career earnings of $18,295.
Kayhan Mokri of Norway has been on a fairytale journey through this record-shattering field of 2,294. He was the chip leader after Day 2, third after Day 3, and is now in second with 10,620,000. Patrik Jaros is in third place with 10,350,000. The three of them control nearly half the chips in play, with no player within 3,000,000 of them.
Day 5 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
| 1 | Michael Pinto | Netherlands | 11,090,000 | 139 |
| 2 | Kayhan Mokri | Norway | 10,620,000 | 133 |
| 3 | Patrik Jaros | Czech Republic | 10,350,000 | 129 |
| 4 | Scott Margereson | United Kingdom | 7,185,000 | 90 |
| 5 | Giuliano Bendinelli | Italy | 5,885,000 | 74 |
| 6 | Fabiano Kovalski | Brazil | 4,540,000 | 57 |
| 7 | Mateus Endo | Brazil | 3,825,000 | 48 |
| 8 | Valentin Cristea | Romania | 3,205,000 | 40 |
| 9 | Paul Fischill | Austria | 2,290,000 | 29 |
| 10 | Bruno Pega | Argentina | 1,995,000 | 25 |
| 11 | Maher Nouira | Tunisia | 1,745,000 | 22 |
| 12 | Jack Salter | United Kingdom | 1,660,000 | 21 |
| 13 | Peterson Machado | Brazil | 1,290,000 | 16 |
| 14 | Jimmy Guerrero | France | 1,160,000 | 15 |
| 15 | Tigran Harutyunyan | Armenia | 1,065,000 | 13 |
| 16 | Lucas Silva Rocha | Brazil | 1,045,000 | 13 |
Further down the leaderboard are a number of accomplished pros seeking to track them down and set themselves up for a run at the final table. Scott Margereson scored a double knockout near the end of Day 4 to rocket up the counts and bring 7,185,000 into the day.
His fellow British pro Jack Salter is the most accomplished player remaining in the field, with more than $8.5 million in career live earnings. It’s been eight years since Salter finished runner-up to Antonio Buonanno at EPT Monte Carlo after one of the longest and most grueling heads-up duels in EPT history. He hasn’t been back at an EPT final table since but could change that today as he’ll unbag 1,660,000 when play resumes.
Italy’s Giuliano Bendinelli (5,885,000), Fabiano Kovalski of Brazil (4,540,000), and Frenchman Jimmy Guerrero (1,160,000), who finished third in Monte Carlo in 2016, are also still in the hunt.
Play will resume with 80:24 left on the clock in Level 28, with blinds at 40,000/80,000 and an 80,000 big blind ante. The remaining players are already guaranteed €67,790, with everyone at the final table earning at least €198,000 before one lucky player walks away with the €1,714,000 top prize and title of EPT Barcelona Main Event champion.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be on hand providing updates as what was once the largest EPT field in history gets whittled down to the final table.
Tags:
Bruno PegaFabiano KovalskiGiuliano BendinelliJack SalterJimmy GuerreroKayhan MokriLucas Silva RochaMaher NouiraMateus EndoMichael PintoPatrik JarosPaul FischillPeterson MachadoScott MargeresonTigran HarutyunyanValentin-Marius Cristea
and Pega threw in a bet of 60,000 that Cristea called.
and was checked through to the 
river. Pega fired another bet of 130,000 and Cristea called.
for threes full of fours and Cristea mucked.
