€5,300 Main Event Day 1a | 2025 PokerStars EPT Barcelona

08-24-2025 16:09 UTC+2

A Quick Bonus for Markus

Maxime Taldir

Level 4 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

Markus Bonus raised from under the gun. Adam Martinsson and Julien Sitbon, both in the blinds, quickly called.

All three of them checked a flop of 4♣10♥3♦ almost all at once. Martisson was as quicker to check the J♦ turn where Sitbon bet 1,000.

Bonus immediately raised to 3,000 and both Martinsson and Sitbon snap-folded.

Player	Chips	Progress
Julien Sitbon	57,000 2,000	2,000
Markus Bonus	42,000 42,000	42,000
Adam Martinsson	12,000 12,000	12,000

Tags: Adam Martinsson Julien Sitbon Markus Bonus

08-24-2025 15:57 UTC+2

Prescott & Russell Straighten Out Each Other

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Connor Richards

Level 4 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

Mark Prescott opened to 1,100 on the button and Matthew Russell defended in the big blind.

Russell checked on the flop of 6♥2♦5♥ and Prescott checked back. Russell then bet 1,300 on the 3♠ turn and Prescott called.

Russell sized up to 2,300 on the 2♣ river and Prescott quickly raised to 6,000. Russell nearly tabled his hand as he didn't realize his opponent had raised.

"I have to see it," Russell said before calling.

Prescott tabled A♥4♠ for a straight, but Russell has the same straight with 8♠4♣ as the two chopped the pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Matthew Russell	50,000
Mark Prescott	45,000

Tags: Mark Prescott Matthew Russell

08-24-2025 15:49 UTC+2

Talboom Check-Raises Chelihi

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Connor Richards

Level 4 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

Rafik Chelihi raised in early position and Tom Talboom defended in the big blind.

Talboom checked on the flop of 4♥2♠8♥ and Chelihi continued for 1,500. Talboom check-raised to 5,200 and Chelihi called. Talboom then bet 4,500 on the 8♣ turn and Chelihi called.

Talboom checked on the 4♦ river and Chelihi bet 7,200. Talboom laid it down, which Chelihi said was the right move.

Player	Chips	Progress
Rafik Chelihi	65,000
Tom Talboom	25,400

Tags: Tom Talboom Rafik Chelihi

08-24-2025 15:42 UTC+2

Brice Takes a Small One From Reard

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Maxime Taldir

Level 4 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

Christopher Brice defended from the big blind after Alexandre Reard opened from the hijack.

Brice checked the K♠8♦K♣ flop, Reard continued for 600 and Brice called.

Reard fired a second barrel of 800 on the 2♥ turn, but Brice check-raised to 2,200. It didn't take long for Reard to fold.

Player	Chips	Progress
Christopher Brice	32,000 32,000	32,000
Alexandre Reard	27,500 27,500	27,500

Tags: Alexandre Reard Christopher Brice

08-24-2025 15:33 UTC+2

A Deuce is Enough for Aissani

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Maxime Taldir

Level 4 : Blinds 200/400, 400 ante

Omar Del Pino raised to 800 from the hijack, and Mohamed Aissani in the small blind called. Jose Ruiz Chacon in the big blind, however, raised to 3,500. He was called by both Del Pino and Aissani.

Ruiz Chacon continued for 3,000 on the K♥3♦2♣ flop. Del Pino folded, but Aissani check-called.

Both players checked the K♣ turn and the J♦ river, and Aissani flipped over A♥2♥ for two pair. Ruiz Chacon's cards went into the muck.

Player	Chips	Progress
Mohamed Aissani	56,000 56,000	56,000
Jose Ruiz Chacon	25,000
Omar Del Pino	18,600 18,600	18,600

Tags: Omar Del Pino Mohamed Aissani Jose Ruiz Chacon

Level: 4

Blinds: 200/400

Ante: 400

08-24-2025 15:19 UTC+2

European Champions Battling

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Maxime Taldir

Level 3 : Blinds 100/300, 300 ante

Simon Wiciak in the hijack opened to 600. He was called by Davidi Kitai to his left and by former football player Gerard Piqué in the big blind.

Both Piqué and Wiciak checked the 3♣J♦A♦ flop, but Kitai bet 900. Wiciak was the only one to call.

The 2023 EPT Barcelona champion then checked the 4♣ turn and folded to a bet of 2,700 from Kitai.

Player	Chips	Progress
Gerard Pique	30,000 2,500	2,500
Simon Wiciak	24,500 7,500	7,500

Davidi Kitai	20,500 20,500	20,500

Tags: Simon Wiciak Gerard Piqué Davidi Kitai

08-24-2025 15:19 UTC+2

Summer Reunion in Day 1A

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Connor Richards

Level 3 : Blinds 100/300, 300 ante

Three poker players who had career-defining runs earlier this summer in Las Vegas are back at it, now searching for an EPT Main Event title.

Leo Margets made history this summer as she became the first woman of poker's modern era to final table the WSOP Main Event, ultimately finishing in seventh place for $1.5 million. Margets is now building a stack in Day 1A, while the player who eliminated her, Kenny Hallaert, is doing the same after a deep run in the PokerStars Open Barcelona Main Event.

Meanwhile, fellow Main Event final tablist Adam Hendrix is also in the Day 1A field with double starting stack.

Player	Chips	Progress
Leo Margets	75,000 75,000	75,000
Adam Hendrix	60,000 5,000	5,000
Kenny Hallaert	45,000 45,000	45,000

Tags: Adam Hendrix Kenny Hallaert Leo Margets

08-24-2025 15:13 UTC+2

Nasreddine Caught Bluffing

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Maxime Taldir

Level 3 : Blinds 100/300, 300 ante

Three-way on a flop of 10♠8♥J♠, Gonzalo Gottlieb bet 1,800. He made the small blind fold, but last year's finalist Rania Nasreddine check-called from the big blind.

Gottlieb fired a second barrel of 3,500 on the 3♣ turn. Nasreddine check-called again, then led out for 8,800 on the 6♠ river.

Gottlieb eventually called with Q♥Q♠ and caught Nasreddine bluffing with K♦9♦.

Player	Chips	Progress
Gonzalo Gottlieb	54,000 54,000	54,000
Pedro Marques	19,000 19,000	19,000

Rania Nasreddine	17,000 13,100	13,100

Tags: Rania Nasreddine Gonzalo Gottlieb

08-24-2025 15:13 UTC+2

Some Updated Counts

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Connor Richards

Level 3 : Blinds 100/300, 300 ante

Player	Chips	Progress
Jack Sinclair	65,000 17,000	17,000
Julien Sitbon	55,000 23,000	23,000
Ankit Ahuja	45,000 13,000	13,000
Michael Wang	45,000 45,000	45,000
Kasey Mills	40,000 40,000	40,000
Brock Wilson	36,000 36,000	36,000
Daniel Rezaei	25,000 9,000	9,000