Petar Kalev Cruises to Chip Lead on Day 2 of EPT Prague €1,650 PokerStars Open Main Event
Day 2 of the €1,650 PokerStars Open Main Event at the 2025 PokerStars European Poker Tour Prague saw 454 players return to the Hilton Hotel Prague, all of whom had secured an in-the-money finish from the 3,024 entries made throughout the starting flights. Some of the massive €4,354,560 prize pool has already been distributed among them as at the end of the seven levels of play, only 96 found a bag to remain in contention for the eye-watering first-place prize of €583,000.
The biggest bag of them all belonged to Petar Kalev, with the Bulgarian native ending the evening on a stack of 2,550,000 after being among the top counts for nearly the entire day, worth over 100 big blinds when the tournament resumes December 7. Norwegian mixed game aficionado Thor Morstoel proved his two-card prowess as he gathered 2,360,000 on Day 2, while hometown player Vitezslav Cech rounds out the podium with 2,205,000 in chips.
PS Open Main Event Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Day 3 Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Petar Kalev | Bulgaria | 2,550,000 | 102 |
| 2 | Thor Morstoel | Norway | 2,360,000 | 94 |
| 3 | Vitezslav Cech | Czechia | 2,205,000 | 88 |
| 4 | Radoslav Stoyanov | Bulgaria | 2,200,000 | 88 |
| 5 | Antoine Berruel | France | 2,165,000 | 87 |
| 6 | Borja Urrea | Spain | 2,115,000 | 85 |
| 7 | Iraklis Manikaros | Greece | 2,090,000 | 84 |
| 8 | Marcin Lesniewski | Poland | 2,015,000 | 81 |
| 9 | Simon Lofberg | Sweden | 1,835,000 | 73 |
| 10 | Jerome Besselievre | France | 1,830,000 | 73 |
Kalev already has two six-figure scores at PokerStars events, with his eighth-place finish at the 2023 PSPC earning him his largest-ever cash with $621,300. The winner of that event, Aliaksandr Shylko, also made it through today with 645,000 in chips.
Other PokerStars Live champions who are hunting for another title include recent PS Open Malta winner Scott Margereson (1,660,000). Tomasz Brzezinski, who won the prestigious EPT Main Event at the same stop, had a productive day as well, as he amassed a stack of 1,525,000, and he will be joined on Day 3 by fellow EPT champions Aliaksei Boika (1,035,000) and Grzegorz Glowny (720,000).
Meanwhile, many notables were among the casualties of Day 2. A small selection includes Sylvain Loosli (400th - €2,820), Aleksandr Shevliakov (343rd - €3,260), Barny Boatman (225th - €3,760), and Gerard Rubiralta (138th - €5,740), the last of whom gained some valuable points to extend his lead on the PokerStars Live medium leaderboard.
Those who have made it to Day 3 will return at noon local time tomorrow, Sunday, December 7, for the penultimate day of the tournament. They have all secured a payout of €6,620 for making it this far, with five-figure payouts awaiting the top 55. An exact plan for Day 3 has not yet been announced, but a long day seems to be in the cards as the PS Open will reach the business end of things.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €583,000 | 14-15 | €28,780 |
| 2 | €364,000 | 16-17 | €24,020 |
| 3 | €260,000 | 18-20 | €20,260 |
| 4 | €200,000 | 21-23 | €17,620 |
| 5 | €154,000 | 24-27 | €15,320 |
| 6 | €118,380 | 28-31 | €13,340 |
| 7 | €91,000 | 32-39 | €11,620 |
| 8 | €69,980 | 40-55 | €10,120 |
| 9 | €53,820 | 56-71 | €8,780 |
| 10-11 | €41,420 | 72-95 | €7,640 |
| 12-13 | €34,520 | 96 | €6,620 |
PokerNews will be back on the floor to live report Day 3 of the PS Open from start to finish, so tune back in tomorrow for more action from EPT Prague.