Aces Propel Nikolao Angelou to Final Table Chip Lead on Day 3 of €1,150 Luxon Mystery Bounty
After eight levels of play on Day 3 of the €1,150 Luxon Mystery Bounty at the 2025 Irish Open, sponsored by PokerStars and Paddy Power Poker, the final table of eight players has been reached. They have survived a record-setting field of 1,222 entries and will come back tomorrow to the Royal Dublin Society to divide the biggest prizes of the €595,725 cash prize pool, with €102,600 being reserved for first place.
Leading the final table is Greek player Nikolaos Angelou, who found aces at least three times at the final two tables. The best starting hand in poker helped him gather a stack of 19,550,000 at the end of the day, nearly 100 big blinds when play resumes on the final day. Angelou was the overall chipleader after the starting flights and found himself at the top of the leaderboard once more after Day 3.
Angelou's lead is a sizable one, as the nearest contender is Yannick Jobin, who has less than half of Angelou's chips with 8,100,000. The podium is completed by regulars Nils Pudel and Fabian Rolli, who share third place as they both bagged 6,550,000 chips.
Longtime pro Tobias Peters doubled up three times in the last level of the night to make the final table with 5,200,000, while start-of-day chipleader Florian Duta knew a rough day and ended with 4,625,000, less than he started Day 3 with. Meanwhile, Ireland's last hope is Patrick Eagers, who sits in the middle of the pack with 6,450,000.
Final Table Seating and Chip Counts
| Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nikolaos Angelou | Greece | 19,550,000 | 98 |
| 2 | Yannick Jobin | Switzerland | 8,100,000 | 41 |
| 3 | Maksim Petrov | Estonia | 4,000,000 | 20 |
| 4 | Patrick Eagers | Ireland | 6,450,000 | 32 |
| 5 | Fabian Rolli | Switzerland | 6,550,000 | 33 |
| 6 | Florian Duta | Romania | 4,625,000 | 23 |
| 7 | Nils Pudel | Germany | 6,550,000 | 33 |
| 8 | Tobias Peters | Netherlands | 5,200,000 | 26 |
Day 3 Action
The day started with 30 hopefuls returning to the tables. Scottish grinder Robbie Bull was among the early casualties of the day, finishing in 26th for €2,560, and Robert Sherwood received the same amount for his 25th place, leaving three tables in play. Day 1d chipleader Yurii Zabrodotskyi's run ended in 24th, also picking up €2,560, while Angelou's rise in the counts started when he eliminated Adrian Ziemichod in 23rd for €2,940.
Mark Murphy delivered the sickest beat of the day when his pocket nines beat both the queens of Ruairi McLaughlin and the kings of Eduard Fechita, sending both home with €4,200 and setting the stage for the final two tables.
Murphy's meteoric rise seemed to continue when he busted Stephen Freeman in 15th for €5,040, but he got his pocket queens in against the aces of Angelou not much later in a huge preflop clash, ending his run in 12th, one spot higher than final American standing Terrance Reid, with both players being paid €6,060.
Angelou also coolered Philip Joyce (11th - €7,260) to the rail with aces against kings before Vasileios Zisis became the unofficial final table bubble in 10th place (€7,260).
The nine remaining players converged onto one table, with one elimination to go before the day would end. Peters started the final table as by far the shortest stack but doubled up three times in a row, leaving Ben Miller as the final elimination of the day, finishing in ninth place for €9,440 after losing ace-queen against the ace-king of Eagers.
The eight remaining players will return tomorrow, April 14, for the final day of the tournament. They have guaranteed themselves €12,280 from the cash prize pool, but all will be looking to win the Irish Open trophy and the six-figure payout that comes with it. There are still two five-figure bounties up for grabs as well, incentivizing plenty of action for all-in situations.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | €102,600 |
| 2 | €63,860 |
| 3 | €45,620 |
| 4 | €35,080 |
| 5 | €27,000 |
| 6 | €20,785 |
| 7 | €15,980 |
| 8 | €12,280 |
Day 4 will recommence at 1 p.m. local time, with one more hand to play in Level 32: 100,000/200,000 (200,000), after which the blinds will increase to 125,000/250,000 (250,000). Levels will remain 60 minutes long until the final three players have been reached or a deal has been agreed, at which point the clock will be reduced to 40 minutes. Day 4 is the final day of the tournament, so play will continue until a winner has been crowned.
Tune back in to PokerNews tomorrow to find out who will conquer the coveted Irish Open trophy and who will take home the big bounties still in play.