They say records are meant to be broken, and that was certainly the case here at the 2025 Irish Poker Open. Flight 1d saw a staggering 1,841 entrants take to the tables here at the Royal Dublin Society. €1,150 Main Event record was shattered today, with the vast majority of the tournament floor was taken up with players hoping to make Day 2 to catch a slice of the whopping €4,434,300 prizepool, with tables being opened in the adjacent second hall and on the balconies upstairs.
The total eclipses last years busiest flight (1c) by a total of 382 entrants and an increase the previous editions prizepool of €1,282,125.
Michael Rolt bagged the biggest on this record breaking day, claiming a stack of a whopping 765,000. Rolt has cashed nine times so far this year and has occupied all three podium places across those nine cashes. Rolt plays predominantly in England but has cashed numerous times across Europe. He will be looking to claim his first cash in Ireland with a deep run in this Main Event.
Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Rolt | United Kingdom | 765,000 | 255 |
| 2 | David Pollock | Ireland | 572,500 | 191 |
| 3 | Timothy Chung | Hong Kong | 555,500 | 185 |
| 4 | Gonzalo Veiga | Spain | 555,000 | 185 |
| 5 | Brais Gonzalez | Spain | 552,500 | 184 |
| 6 | Jean Dumartin | France | 501,000 | 167 |
| 7 | Benjamin Teston | United States | 479,000 | 160 |
| 8 | Michael Harrison | United Kingdom | 472,000 | 157 |
| 9 | Brendan Lynch | 470,000 | 157 | |
| 10 | Mircea Flutur | Romania | 457,500 | 153 |
David Pollock secured second place, bagging 572,500 for his effort, gaining his place at the table via a PokerStars Qualifier. The Irishman's biggest top two biggest scores came here in Dublin, a positive omen for the days ahead. He finished 2nd for €130,500 in the 2014 installment of the €2,250 Irish Poker Open Main Event and claimed another 2nd place for €107,010 in the €1,100 UKIPT Main Event. Maybe this time he could go one step further and take home the trophy? H
In third is another PokerStars Qualifier, Timothy Chung. He secured a stack of 555,000. Chung has been in good form this series having already secured two solid cashes: fifth in the €1,150 Pot Limit Omaha 8 Max for €14,900 and fourth in the € 350 2-7 Triple Draw Championship for €3,270. He cashes three times at the series last year and he will be hoping he can get one more and another deep run in this Main Event.
Notables who will be joining from this flight include Georgios Tsouloftas (392,000) Jon Kyte (390,000), Marcelo Bonanata (375,000), Klemens Roiter (285,000) and PokerStars Ambassador Benjamin Bruneteaux (214,500).
Play will resume at 12 p.m. local time with the blinds at 2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 big blind ante. Levels will increase in duration from 45-minutes to one hour.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continued coverage of this record breaking Main Event from here in Ireland's capital city.
