€2,200 FPS High Roller Day 1b | 2023 PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo

04-29-2023 16:55 UTC+2

Fast and Furious Action Inbound on Day 1b of the €2,200 FPS High Roller

Frank Visser

The 2023 edition of the traditional PokerStars EPT presented by Monte-Carlo Casino® stop is well underway. A staple of the schedule, the €2,200 France Poker Series (FPS) High Roller, is set to have its second flight start at 6 p.m. local time.

Earlier in the series, the €1,100 FPS Main Event broke records by attracting 2,138 entries. The High Roller event is aspiring to set a new all-time high as well. Last year’s FPS High Roller at EPT Monte Carlo attracted 861 runners, but the edition at 2023 EPT Paris has the current attendance record of 910 players.

With Day 1a already having 776 registrations at the time of writing, and late registration still open until 9 p.m., this iteration of the prestigious event is on its way to raising the bar even higher. Both Day 1a and Day 1b have the option for unlimited reentries.

All levels on Day 1b will last 20 minutes; half of Day 1a’s are 40-minutes. The turbo-like structure is bound to guarantee plenty of fast action as the field plays down to approximately 15%. The players can enjoy 20-minute breaks every five to six levels, and late registration is open for the first ten levels.

All players who make Day 2 will guarantee themselves a part of the prize pool, as it starts in the money. Play will resume Sunday at 1 p.m. local time and a winner will be crowned at the end of the day.

Stay tuned to PokerNews as the live reporting team provides all the poker action of the FPS High Roller from start to finish and be sure to check out the other iconic tournaments reported on from idyllic Monaco over at the EPT Monte Carlo Tournament Hub.

04-29-2023 18:30 UTC+2

O'Neill's River Raise Catches Magnus Off Guard

Frank Visser

Level 1 : Blinds 100/200, 200 ante

There was 5,500 in the middle and cutoff Philippe Magnus added 2,300 more to that on a board of 2♣5♥Q♠6♥. Jack O'Neill was on the button and made the call.

The pair saw the Q♦ river appear and Magnus upped the ante to 3,500. O'Neill was evidently pleased with the river, as he put out a raise to 10,000. Magnus did not deem his hand worthy of that amount and quickly folded.

Player	Chips	Progress
Jack O'Neill	38,500 38,500	38,500
Philippe Magnus	21,500 21,500	21,500

Tags: Jack O'Neill Philippe Magnus

04-29-2023 19:06 UTC+2

Ghassan Goes for the Hero Call

Frank Visser

Level 3 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

The river had already arrived when the action was caught. There were 16,000 chips in the middle and the board read 6♠7♥3♥10♦J♥. Ibrahim Ghassan sat in the under-the-gun position and checked to David Sitbon in the next seat over. Sitbon fired out a big bet of 12,000 and Ghassan went into the tank.

Eventually, he came up with a call, leading Sitbon to shake his head and reluctantly show the table the failed bluff with A♦9♦. Ghassan showed his K♠10♠ for nothing but a middle pair on this straighty, flushy board. A formidable call to rake in this big pot in the early levels of the tournament.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ibrahim Ghassan	46,000 46,000	46,000
David Sitbon	17,500 17,500	17,500

Tags: David Sitbon Ibrahim Ghassan

04-29-2023 20:31 UTC+2

Chisu Chips Up

Frank Visser

Level 6 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

Roman Samoylov opened to 1,600 from early position and received calls from his neighbor Danut Chisu, button Sylwester Fortuna, and the blinds Aviv Meiri and Nicolas Gely.

The flop came down 8♠A♦10♦ and it checked to the preflop aggressor, who continuation-bet for 4,000. Chisu was the only caller as the rest of the players got out of the way.

The 8♣ was checked by both remaining players before Samoylov fired a whopping 13,000 on the 9♣ river. Chisu jammed all in for 17,000 more and Samoylov sighed while he put in the extra chips.

Chisu showed 10♣10♥ for a full house and Samoylov threw his cards into the muck. However, at the request of the table, the dealer retrieved the 6♠7♣ of Samoylov, who rivered a straight.

As an aside, Will Kassouf was also spotted at this table, apparently having won his ticket in a satellite.

Player	Chips	Progress
Danut Chisu	50,800 50,800	50,800
Will Kassouf	30,000 30,000	30,000
Sylwester Fortuna	28,000 28,000	28,000
Roman Samoylov	7,000 7,000	7,000

Tags: Aviv Meiri Danut Chisu Nicolas Gely Roman Samoylov Sylwester Fortuna Will Kassouf

04-29-2023 21:04 UTC+2

Ju Bluffs his Button

Frank Visser

Level 8 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

With 13,500 in the middle and a flop of 6♠5♥7♥ on the table, Samuel Ju was on the button and bet 3,000 after a check from Benoit Albiges in the small blind. Albiges obliged with a call and the pair saw a turn of 2♠.

Albiges checked once more and Ju now fired for 5,500. Again, Albiges put in the same amount for a call. On the 2♣ river Ju completed his triple barrel by betting 7,500 chips. For the third time, Albiges check-called.

Ju immediately mucked his cards as he did not want to show his bluff. Meanwhile, Albiges has more than doubled the starting stack of 30,000.

Player	Chips	Progress
Benoit Albiges	67,500
Samuel Ju	17,500 -12,500	-12,500

Tags: Benoit Albiges Samuel Ju

04-29-2023 21:17 UTC+2

Bleck Is Building a Stack

Frank Visser

Level 8 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

Igor Kotyk raised to 2,000 from under the gun and got called by Peter Bleck in the cutoff and Alexis Nicolai in the big blind. The flop fanned out 6♠3♦5♦ and all players opted to check.

The turn was the 10♦ and Nicolai led out for 3,200. Kotyk got out of the way, but Bleck quickly threw in some calling chips. On the 7♠ river, Nicolai increased his bet to 7,800 and Bleck looked agonized as he was thinking about his decision.

Almost putting in the chips several times, he eventually asked for an exact count of the bet. When he received it, he paid the amount due, seemingly expecting to lose. However, Nicolai instantly mucked his cards and Bleck got a surprising, but welcome, win.

Bleck is now among the chip leaders in the room, playing over three times starting stack.

Player	Chips	Progress
Peter Bleck	93,500 93,500	93,500
Igor Kotyk	17,500 17,500	17,500
Alexis Nicolai	15,000 15,000	15,000

Tags: Igor Kotyk Peter Bleck

04-29-2023 21:53 UTC+2

Okada Wins Huge Without Showdown

Frank Visser

Level 10 : Blinds 600/1,200, 1,200 ante

A gigantic 35,000 had gathered in the middle preflop, courtesy of three players. The flop J♣10♣6♣ was dealt and big blind blind Luca Guglielmoni checked, as did Ken Okada in early and Seyed Saeed Sajadian in middle position.

The turn fell a fourth club in the form of the 7♣ and Guglielmoni checked again. Okada put out a bet of 15,000 and this was enough to let the other two players pass their hands to the dealer.

Okada is sitting on an impressive stack of just over four starting stacks in the final minutes of the reentry period.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ken Okada	123,000 123,000	123,000
Seyed Saeed Sajadian	39,500 39,500	39,500
Luca Guglielmoni	34,300 34,300	34,300

Tags: Ken Okada Luca Guglielmoni Seyed Saeed Sajadian

04-29-2023 22:33 UTC+2

Leonzio Plays Blind, Busts Hallay in his First Hand

Frank Visser

Level 11 : Blinds 1,000/1,500, 1,500 ante

Axel Hallay just sat down at the end of late registration with a fresh stack of 30,000. He made the raise to 3,000 from under the gun before Marco Leonzio made it 6,000 to go, claiming to not have seen his cards yet. The action folded to Will Kassouf in the small blind, who smooth-called.

''If you've got it, you got it,'' exclaimed Hallay before he put the rest of his chips in. ''He's using my line!'' Kassouf responded. While the two were bantering away, Leonzio made the call. Meanwhile, Kassouf had lost interest in the pot and mucked his hand.

Axel Hallay: A♣Q♦
Marco Leonzio: K♥6♠

Leonzio had not lied, he was indeed playing blind and put 30,000 chips at risk without looking at his cards. While the flop of 7♠9♥7♦ was dealt Hallay stated, ''A king will come on the river.'' The 5♦ was a safe turn and the river also made Hallay's prediction fail to come true. However, the 6♦ still gave Leonzio the best hand as he was the only one to make a pair.

Leonzio stood up and celebrated while the whole table had a good laugh about the situation. Leonzio added another starting stack to his already towering stack and is now playing triple the average.

Player	Chips	Progress
Marco Leonzio	150,000 150,000	150,000
Will Kassouf	130,500 100,500	100,500
Axel Hallay	Busted

Tags: Marco Leonzio Will Kassouf

04-29-2023 23:34 UTC+2

Kassouf Scoops Four-Bet Pot for Chip Lead

Frank Visser

Level 14 : Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante

The action was caught on the flop, but Will Kassouf was kind enough to tell PokerNews how the preflop action went down.

Apparently, Marco Leonzio raised to 6,000 without looking at his cards, as he had been doing, and Kassouf made it 21,000 to go. Leonzio responded with a four-bet to 42,000 and Kassouf made the call.

The flop was spread as 5♥A♥K♥ and Leonzio shipped in his above-average 120,000 stack in the middle. Kassouf commentated on the alcohol consumption of his opponent before ''giving him a spin'' and making the call with the covering stack.

Marco Leonzio: 8♥4♠
Will Kassouf: A♠5♠

Kassouf needed to fade hearts to scoop the huge pot. He begged the dealer for black cards and the universe must have been listening as the 7♠ and 4♣ completed the board.

Leonzio left the tournament area while Kassouf stacked all of his newly acquired chips. He is now playing near ten starting stacks and is far and above the rest of the field.

Player	Chips	Progress
Will Kassouf	290,000 159,500	159,500
Marco Leonzio	Busted

Tags: Marco Leonzio Will Kassouf

04-30-2023 00:08 UTC+2

Okamoto Busts Kassouf in Huge Clash

Frank Visser

Level 16 : Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante

The action was caught on the river on a completed board of 8♦J♣6♦5♥Q♠. The pot had already grown to a huge size before Will Kassouf put in his final 75,000 from the small blind. Shiina Okamoto was in the big blind and verbally committed to a call.

Kassouf said ''You're good'', as he tabled his 10♣8♠ for a pair turned into a bluff. Okamoto showed Q♣J♦ for the rivered two pair and scooped the gargantuan pot to add to her already impressive stack. ''I shouldn't play with good players'', Kassouf stated while he left the tables in good spirits.

Some 30 minutes after claiming the chip lead himself, Kassouf passed it over to Okamoto. Playing six times the average, she has made great strides so far on Day 1b of the €2,200 FPS High Roller.

Player	Chips	Progress
Shiina Okamoto	680,000 680,000	680,000

Will Kassouf	Busted

Tags: Shiina Okamoto Will Kassouf