€1,100 Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event
Day 1e Completed
2023 PokerStars EPT Barcelona
€1,100 Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event
Day: 1e
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1e
2023 PokerStars EPT Barcelona
Buy-in
€1,100
Prize Pool
€7,102,080
Entries
7,398
Level
42
Blinds
1,000,000 / 2,000,000
Ante
2,000,000
Entries
1,467
Players Left
219
Smadga Leads, Spragg Advances After Day 1e of Estrellas Main Event
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
The biggest starting flight so far of the €1,100 Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event at the 2023 PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona wrapped up late tonight with 220 players remaining of the 1,467 runners who registered the Day 1e flight. Leading those remaining players is Israel's Avihai Smadga, who scored back-to-back eliminations to burst the money bubble and end the day.
Other players who found bags on Day 1e include PokerStars ambassadors Benjamin Spragg and Ramon Colillas, along with Adam Hendrix who is after another big score in Barcelona after finishing runner-up in the 2019 €1,100 EPT National for $384,231. They will join the few hundred players who bagged the first four starting flights, as well as those who find bags in the 1f, 1g and 1h flights.
End of Day 1e Top Ten Chip Counts
| RANK | NAME | COUNTRY | CHIP COUNT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avihai Smadga | Israel | 983,000 | |
| 2 | Emmanuel Lopez | Argentina | 829,000 | |
| 3 | James Akenhead | United Kingdom | 804,000 | |
| 4 | Oleksii Natoptanyi | Ukraine | 781,000 | |
| 5 | Nabil Benchaouch | France | 729,000 | |
| 6 | Vasyl Laba | Ukraine | 671,000 | |
| 7 | Marcos Antolin | Spain | 570,000 | |
| 8 | Byeolram Yu | South Korea | 561,000 | |
| 9 | Andrej Desset | Slovakia | 557,000 | |
| 10 | Sandro Pitzanti | Netherlands | 531,000 |
As the biggest of the four starting flights that have taken place so far, there was no shortage of action across the more than 12 hours of play on Day 1e.
The notable hands came early as Timur Margolin scored a double knockout when his Broadway held up against the flush draw of Eugen Pop and the top two pair of Deddi Or-Paz.
A few levels later, EPT villain Will Kassouf had a bluff picked off by Ramiro Gonzalez, who called with ace-high on a double paired board to beat out Kassouf's queen-high.
Kassouf wasn't the only recognizable face in the massive Day 1e field as PokerStars ambassador Alejandro Lococo was in contention before bowing out late in the evening with top pair against the two pair of Gabriel Nobrega.
Other notable players who were in the Day 1e field include PokerStars online pro Sebastian Huber, Britain's David Docherty and American pro Jason Wheeler.
Day 2 action will pick up on August 25 at noon local time. Before that, Days 1g and 1h will take place on August 24 and will follow a similar structure as previous flights.
Stay tuned as the PokerNews team will be back tomorrow for continued coverage of the Estrellas Main Event action here on the Barcelona coast. Check out the EPT Barcelona live reporting hub in the meantime.
End of Day 1e Chip Counts (full)
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
983,000 | |
|
||
|
829,000
829,000
|
829,000 |
|
804,000
804,000
|
804,000 |
|
781,000
481,000
|
481,000 |
|
729,000
729,000
|
729,000 |
|
671,000
371,000
|
371,000 |
|
570,000
570,000
|
570,000 |
|
561,000
561,000
|
561,000 |
|
557,000
486,000
|
486,000 |
|
531,000
31,000
|
31,000 |
|
524,000
524,000
|
524,000 |
|
515,000
515,000
|
515,000 |
|
508,000
508,000
|
508,000 |
|
|
478,000
478,000
|
478,000 |
|
469,000
149,000
|
149,000 |
|
465,000
465,000
|
465,000 |
|
464,000
464,000
|
464,000 |
|
459,000
459,000
|
459,000 |
|
450,000
-20,000
|
-20,000 |
|
445,000
445,000
|
445,000 |
|
427,000
212,000
|
212,000 |
|
425,000
215,000
|
215,000 |
|
422,000
12,000
|
12,000 |
|
|
398,000
148,000
|
148,000 |
|
390,000
390,000
|
390,000 |
Day 1e Has Ended
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Day 1e has ended with 219 players advancing to Day 2. Stay tuned for a full recap of the day's action.
Smadga Cracks Aces to Score Back to Back Knock Outs on the Bubble
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Herve Mary, in the big blind, found himself all in and at risk for his last 137,000 against Avihai Smadga, in the middle position.
Herve Mary: A♠A♦
Avihai Smadga: 9♠5♠
The board ran out 6♣7♣9♥5♣3♦. Smadga cracked aces to score back-to-back eliminations and burst the bubble.
Meanwhile, at another table, Antoine Labat was forced all in from the big blind against Alessio Cesare across the table.
Antoine Labat: 4♣2♦
Alessio Cesare: A♣Q♥
The French crusher couldn't pull ahead and was eliminated as the board ran out 7♣10♦8♠9♦8♥. The two bubble boys will split a minimum cash.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
983,000
233,000
|
233,000 |
|
|
||
|
275,000
275,000
|
275,000 |
|
Busted | |
|
Busted | |
Macchiarelli Soft Bubbles
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Luciano Macchiarelli was all in and at risk for around 130,000 against table chip leader Avihai Smadga.
Luciano Macchiarelli: A♣8♦
Avihai Smadga: K♥10♦
Smadga took the lead as the flop landed 2♣4♥10♣ to pair his ten, but the 8♣ turn gave Macchiarelli plenty of hope with a pair and flush draw. Unfortunately for him, the river brought a brick with the 9♠ to mark his elimination on the soft money bubble.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
750,000
290,500
|
290,500 |
|
|
||
|
|
Busted | |
Hand for Hand
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
With 222 players remaining and 220 spots getting paid and making it through to Day 2, play is now hand for hand.
Garces Coolers Mohajerani to Stay Alive
Level 18
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Nabil Benchaouch opened to 19,000 from middle position and Farhad Mohajerani three-bet to 55,000 from the next seat before Fernando Garces four-bet jammed a stack of 110,000 behind him. Benchaouch folded and Mohajerani called with a bigger stack.
Fernando Garces: A♥A♠
Farhad Mohajerani: K♣K♥
Garces was on the right end of the cooler and stayed alive on the soft bubble as the board ran out 7♠2♦2♥6♦J♠.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
250,000 | |
|
55,000 |
Level: 18
Blinds: 4,000/8,000
Ante: 8,000
Domination Rotation for Gicovanu
Level 17
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
Marius Gicovanu opened from early position to 13,000, Salvatore Camarda three-bet to 39,000 and Gicovanu moved all in for 215,000. Camarda called.
Marius Gicovanu: A♥Q♥
Salvatore Camarda: A♦K♠
The board ran out 10♣9♣7♠3♣Q♠. A rivered queen saved Gicovanu's tournament life as the bubble looms.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
205,000
-275,000
|
-275,000 |
|
44,000 |