Tomas Jozonis was all in from early position for 461,000 against Krasimir Neychev sitting in the next seat across, who had him covered as players flipped their cards.
Tomas Jozonis: A♦K♣
Krasimir Neychev: Q♥Q♦
It was the most classic of poker races. The board ran out 3♦6♠8♠6♣7♦ and Neychev held with his pocket queens. After a slow couple of orbits, Jozonis was eliminated on the stone bubble. The rest of the players are in the money.
Gregoire Auzoux limped in from the small blind and Adrian Mateos checked his option in the big blind.
Auzoux took the lead for 20,000 on the J♥8♣6♣ flop. Mateos called.
The 2♠ turn saw Auzoux size up to 65,000. Mateos was undeterred.
The A♥ river saw Auzoux move all in for Mateos’ effective stack of 178,000, leaving himself just 16,000 behind the line. Mateos went deep into the tank for several minutes before finding a huge hero call for his tournament life.
Adrian Mateos: 6♦5♣
Gregoire Auzoux: 10♥7♥
Mateos correctly called for his tournament life on the soft bubble with just fourth pair, earning him a crucial double-up.
Aren Bezhanyan raised to 30,000 from under the gun and Mikalai Vaskaboinikau defended in the big blind.
The 3♣J♠A♣ flop saw Vaskaboinikau play in flow. Bezhanyan bet out 30,000 and Vaskaboinikau check-raised to 125,000. Bezhanyan called.
The A♦ turn saw Vaskaboinikau size up to 200,000. Bezhanyan tanked before moving all in for, what looked to be, 350,000. Vaskaboinikau called.
Aren Bezhanyan: A♠10♠
Mikalai Vaskaboinikau: A♥K♥
Both players turned trips, but Vaskaboinikau's kicker still played on the 7♥ river, sending Bezhanyan to the rail. With this pot, Vaskaboinikau encroached on the two million chip mark, easily solidifying himself as the largest stack in the room.
The total prize pool in the $10,200 NLHE event is $843,900. The top 11 places are to be paid, with the min-cash worth $21,100. The eventual winner is set to walk away with $237,700.
The pot had grown to 72,000 with two players looking at flop of 6♠K♠7♥.
Roman Hrabec, in middle position, checked the action to Ren Lin, in the cutoff. Lin bet out a small wager of 10,000 and Hrabec responded with a raise to 40,000. Lin called.
Hrabec slowed down on the J♠ turn. Lin quickly moved all in for Hrabec's effective stack of 135,000, sending Hrabec into the tank.
Hrabec burnt through several time banks before finally making the fold.
The PokerStars European Poker Tour Cyprus at the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa continues today with the conclusion of the final high-stakes event on the roster; the $10,200 No Limit Hold'em.
A total of 64 entrants tried their luck on the felt last night, but after ten swift levels in this fast-paced structure, just 34 progressed to Day 2. With registration still open until the start of play today, more sharks are expected to surface in a last attempt to claim a trophy this series.
As the dust settled, Farid Jattin claimed the overall chip lead after accumulating a stack of 477,000. Jattin is tailed by none other than Adrian Mateos whose stack of 425,000 has once again earned him a top stop amongst the best and brightest in the game.
Top Ten Chip Counts:
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Farid Jattin
Colombia
477,000
95
2
Adrian Mateos
Spain
425,000
85
3
Nikita Kuznetsov
Russia
406,000
81
4
Mikalai Vaskaboinikau
Belarus
364,000
73
5
Fahredin Mustafov
Bulgaria
360,000
72
6
Marius Kudzmanas
Lithuania
286,000
57
7
Simone Andrian
Italy
286,000
57
8
Gregoire Auzoux
France
254,000
51
9
Aren Bezhanyan
Armenia
254,000
51
10
Peng Chen
China
250,000
50
Mikalai Vaskaboinikau is still in the mix for Day 2, with a top-ten stack of 364,000. Vaskaboinikau is already having an unbelievable run here in Northern Cyprus, having taken down the $50,000 Super High Roller for $601,397 and will be sure to have his eyes firmly set on his second EPT title of the week.
Mikalai Vaskaboinikau
Play will recommence today, October 20th, at noon local time. The restart will be on Level 11 with blinds at 2,000/5,000 with a 5,000 big blind ante. The remaining players will battle it out until just one remains with scheduled breaks, including a dinner break, left to the discretion of the floor as the day progresses.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be back to bring you coverage of the $10,200 No Limit Hold'em until a winner is crowned, so stay tuned.
