Sebastian Malec, Boris Angelov Chase History on Day 4 of the EPT Monte-Carlo Main Event
Among the 52 players returning today at noon local time for Day 4 of the PokerStars European Poker Tour Monte-Carlo Main Event are two who are eyeing their own piece of EPT history.
Sebastian Malec was just 21 when he won the EPT Barcelona Main Event in 2016 after qualifying online for €27. While the Polish pro has made a few runs on the circuit since then, his best shot at capturing a second title is here in Monte-Carlo as he enters the day third on the leaderboard with 1,684,000, trailing behind only Matthew Davenport (1,939,000) and Khossein Kokhestani (1,800,000). If he manages to defy the odds, Malec would become only the fourth player to win multiple live EPT titles, joining Victoria Coren Mitchell, Mikalai Pobal, and Mike Watson.
Day 4 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Davenport | United Kingdom | 1,939,000 | 162 |
| 2 | Khossein Kokhestani | Ukraine | 1,800,000 | 150 |
| 3 | Sebastian Malec | Poland | 1,684,000 | 140 |
| 4 | Valeriano Toledano | Spain | 1,582,000 | 132 |
| 5 | Julien Mariani | France | 1,400,000 | 117 |
| 6 | Fahredin Mustafov | Bulgaria | 1,386,000 | 116 |
| 7 | Jerome Sgorrano | Belgium | 1,115,000 | 93 |
| 8 | Georgios Karakousis | Greece | 1,110,000 | 93 |
| 9 | Malcolm Franchi | France | 1,012,000 | 84 |
| 10 | Sebastian Gaehl | Germany | 1,004,000 | 84 |
Boris Angelov also has his shot at redemption. A year ago here inside Sporting Monte-Carlo, Angelov had one hand already on the Golden Shard trophy before it was snatched away by Derk van Luijk after a marathon, six-hour heads-up duel. Angelov enters Day 4 with 686,000 as he seeks to become the ninth player in EPT history to make it to the final table of the same event in consecutive years, and just the third over the last decade along with Vladislav Naumov and Peter Jorgne.
Valeriano Toledano (1,582,000), Julien Mariani (1,400,000), and Fahredin Mustafov (1,386,000) also come into the day as big stacks as the final 52 players continue their journey to the final table. Other players still in the hunt include Georgios Karakousis (1,110,000), Malcolm Franchi (1,012,000), Jamil Wakil (912,000), Ari Engel (655,000), Mateusz Moolhuizen (586,000), Juan Pardo (580,000), Nacho Barbero (559,000), and Alexandros Kolonias (303,000).
The action on Day 4 picks up on the last 45 minutes of Level 20 with blinds of 6,000/12,000 and a 12,000 big blind ante. The remaining players have already locked up €17,150 for making it this far out of the 1,195-entry field, with a spot at the final table worth at least €118,150. The eventual champion takes home €1,000,000.
Play is scheduled to stop when they reach the final 16. PokerStars Live will be streaming the feature table on a 30-minute delay on their official YouTube channel.
Stay tuned as PokerNews provides all the action as the field whittles down towards the final table.