2024 PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo

€2,200 FPS High Roller
Day: 1a
Event Info

2024 PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo

Final Results
Winner
Prize
€288,635
Event Info
Buy-in
€2,200
Prize Pool
€2,336,640
Entries
1,217
Level Info
Level
35
Blinds
200,000 / 400,000
Ante
400,000
Players Info - Day 1a
Entries
795
Players Left
118

€2,200 FPS High Roller

Day 1a Completed

Kamel Marzouk Leads Day 1a of the €2,200 FPS High Roller

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

Day 1a of the €2,200 PokerStars France Poker Series High Roller has concluded with two French at the top of the tree at Sporting Monte-Carlo. Kamel Marzouk heads the 118 players from this flight, having amassed a stack of 710,000. 795 have entered this flight, including reentries.

Following Marzouk in second place is Bruno Khalifa with 564,000, over a 100,000 less than his compatriot. Khalifa asserted himself as the chip leader towards the midpoint of the tournament, only to be eclipsed by Marzouk in the final levels. Marzouk's best live cash is $11,469 and Khalifa's is even less at $3,492, according to thehendonmob.com.

Rounding out the top three is Jon Vallinas with 525,000. The Spaniard currently in 3rd place will be looking to build on his 4th place finish for €41,300 in the €10,200 Mystery Bounty here at EPT Monte Carlo. Toni Kaukua sits in 4th place with 495,000. At EPT Paris this year, Kaukua achieved a 178th place finish for €4,440 along side a 23rd place finish in the €10,300 EPT High Roller for €36,100. Sitting in fifth is Javier Gomez with 483,000. Gomez is no stranger to deep runs here in Monte-Carlo, having finished 33rd for €19,850 in the €5,300 EPT Main Event last year.

End of Day 1a Top 10 Chip Counts

PlacePlayerCountryChip Count 
1Kamel MarzoukFrance710,000 
2Bruno KhalifaFrance564,000 
3Jon VallinasSpain525,000 
4Toni KaukuaFinland495,000 
5Javier GomezSpain483,000 
6Jamie DwanUnited Kingdom440,000 
7Mykhailo SezonenkoUkraine410,000 
8Ravi ShethUnited Kingdom408,000 
9Enis RouissiFrance408,000 
10Christian DresslerGermany391,000 

Other notables to bag a stack for Day 2 outside of the top 10 include Axel Hallay with 223,000, Felipe Boianovsky with 220,000, Ramiro Petrone with 214,000 and Ole Schemion with 210,000, and newly crowned EPT winner Antoine Labat.

Ravi Sheth
Ravi Sheth

Highlights

At one point, Ravi Sheth thought he was about to be stacked when he ran his deuces into the tens.

Simeon Naydenov found himself involved in a multiway all in scenario as a covered stack, yet managed to go runner runner to crack kings and queens.

Second in chips Khalifa always seemed to be on the right side of all in situations, coming out on top on numerous occasions to maintain is stack.

Day 2 is set to commence at 12 p.m. local time on Sunday, April 28th where a winner will be crowned by the end of the day. Players will be returning to blinds of 2,000/5,000 with a 5,000 big blind ante.

As always, PokerNews will be bringing you continued coverage of all the EPT Monte Carlo action from here at the Sporting Monte-Carlo.

Tags: Antoine LabatAxel HallayBruno KhalifaChristian DresslerEnis RouissiFelipe BoianovskyJamie DwanJavier GomezJon VallinasKamel MarzoukMykhailo SezonenkoOle SchemionRamiro PetroneRavi ShethSimeon NaydenovToni Kaukua

End of Day 1a Chip Counts (full)

Level 16 : Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Kamel Marzouk fr
Kamel Marzouk
710,000
696,000
696,000
Profile photo of Bruno Khalifa fr
Bruno Khalifa
564,000
-1,000
-1,000
Profile photo of Jon Vallinas es
Jon Vallinas
525,000
480,500
480,500
Profile photo of Toni Kaukua fi
Toni Kaukua
495,000
141,000
141,000
Profile photo of Javier Gomez es
Javier Gomez
483,000
483,000
483,000
Profile photo of Jamie Dwan gb
Jamie Dwan
440,000
275,000
275,000
Profile photo of Mykhailo Sezonenko ua
Mykhailo Sezonenko
410,000
320,000
320,000
Profile photo of Enis Rouissi fr
Enis Rouissi
408,000
158,000
158,000
Profile photo of Ravi Sheth gb
Ravi Sheth
408,000
150,000
150,000
Profile photo of Christian Dressler de
Christian Dressler
391,000
391,000
391,000
Profile photo of Florian Ribouchon fr
Florian Ribouchon
389,000
389,000
389,000
Profile photo of Theo Degrave fr
Theo Degrave
357,000
137,000
137,000
Profile photo of Mohammad Nakdali es
Mohammad Nakdali
345,000
170,000
170,000
Profile photo of Eric Sfez fr
Eric Sfez
343,000
93,000
93,000
Profile photo of Demosthenes Kiriopoulos ca
Demosthenes Kiriopoulos
341,000
-69,000
-69,000
Profile photo of Cristiano Guerra it
Cristiano Guerra
340,000
340,000
340,000
Profile photo of Liangce Ni cn
Liangce Ni
333,000
-37,000
-37,000
Profile photo of Jun Beum Chun
Jun Beum Chun
329,000
154,000
154,000
Profile photo of Milos Skrbic rs
Milos Skrbic
322,000
263,500
263,500
Profile photo of Philippe Le Touche fr
Philippe Le Touche
317,000
166,000
166,000
Profile photo of Javier Fernandez es
Javier Fernandez
315,000
315,000
315,000
Profile photo of Taran Parmar ca
Taran Parmar
313,000
59,500
59,500
Profile photo of Sokratis Linaras gr
Sokratis Linaras
306,000
21,000
21,000
Profile photo of Mikhail Nikolaev lv
Mikhail Nikolaev
305,000
221,000
221,000
Profile photo of Pascal Peraldi fr
Pascal Peraldi
297,000

Read full

Smolko Bubbles With Queens vs. Kings

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

Pascal Peraldi opened in early position to 25,000 and made the call when Ilya Smolko moved all in for his last 100,000 in the big blind.

Ilya Smolko: QQx
Pascal Peraldi: KK

Smolko was in danger from the start, but the 1082 flop provided some additional flush outs. The 4x turn and 10x river were bricks, as Perdaldi held to eliminate Smolko on the bubble.

The remaining 118 players are all in the money.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Pascal Peraldi fr
Pascal Peraldi
297,000
297,000
297,000
Profile photo of Ilya Smolko il
Ilya Smolko
Busted

Tags: Ilya SmolkoPascal Peraldi

Zapatero Claims Dzhura's Stack

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

Action was picked up with Yevhen Dzhura all in and at risk for around 65,000 versus the covering stack of Javier Gomez Zapatero.

Yevhen Dzhura: JJ All in
Javier Gomez Zapatero: A6

The K102 flop was good for Dzhura's jacks, as was the 9 turn. However the A sent Dzhura to the rail just shy of the bubble. Ramiro Petrone rubbed Zapatero's jumper seemingly to gain some of his luck.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Javier Gomez Zapatero es
Javier Gomez Zapatero
275,000
275,000
275,000
Profile photo of Yevhen Dzhura ua
Yevhen Dzhura
Busted

Tags: Yevhen DzhuraJavier Gomez ZapateroRamiro Petrone

Don't Miss Out on These Five Epic Activities at EPT Monte Carlo

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

The 2024 PokerStars European Poker Tour Monte Carlo is fast approaching, kicking off on April 24. The EPT has been visiting Monte Carlo for years, and this year's edition has the potential to be the most memorable yet, with a large number of participants expected. The exclusive principality on the Mediterranean Sea is sure to attract poker players from far and wide this spring.

However, as always, EPTs are not just about poker. The EPT will provide a full range of activities for players and their guests, ensuring that there is always something to do, whether you are at the poker table or not.

Read the full article here