$2,200 Warmup
Day 2 Completed
2023 Merit Poker Retro Series
$2,200 Warmup
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
2023 Merit Poker Retro Series
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$1,488,560
Entries
809
Level
34
Blinds
250,000 / 500,000
Ante
500,000
Entries
641
Players Left
156
Erdal Gulseven Chipleader Of Day 2
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
After the completion of Level 16, Day 2 of the Merit Poker Retro Series $2,200 Warm Up at the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino came to an end. A total of 809 entries were registered in this tournament, generating a $1,488,560 prize pool which is far above the guarantee of $1,000,000.
Among these 809 entrants, 156 players put chips in their bags on Day 2 and qualified for Day 3. And it's Erdal Gulseven who finished the day as chip leader. Ahead of a big stack all day long, he ended Day 2 with 1,408,000 chips. "Am I the chip leader?", asked Michael Allen when he was writing down "1,232,000 chips" on his bag. Unfortunately for him, he isn't the one in the lead. But still, he'll come back on Day 3 with more than 150 blinds.
Top 10 Of Day 2
| Rank | Name | Country | Chip Count | Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Erdal Gulseven | Turkey | 1,408,000 | 176 |
| 2 | Giorgiy Skhulukhiya | Georgia | 1,291,000 | 161 |
| 3 | Hadi Khadra | Lebanon | 1,247,000 | 156 |
| 4 | Michael Allen | United Kingdom | 1,232,000 | 154 |
| 5 | Fahredin Mustafov | Bulgaria | 1,200,000 | 150 |
| 6 | Murat Cakir | Turkey | 1,183,000 | 148 |
| 7 | Fedor Dedelov | Russia | 1,164,000 | 146 |
| 8 | Fausto Tantillo | Italy | 1,130,000 | 141 |
| 9 | Kasparas Klezys | Lithuania | 1,125,000 | 141 |
| 10 | Roman Gadzhiev | Russia | 1,097,000 | 137 |
The chip leader at the beginning of the day, Roman Gadzhiev still has a big stack of 1,097,000 chips. This is the same for EPT and WPT champion Andrey Pateychuk (1,072 ,000). After he reentered on Day 2, the 2023 Merit Poker Carmen Series champion Maxime Chilaud also secured a stack above average (773,000). Players like Danut Chisu (540,000) or Volodymyr Drokin (534,000) will come back on Day 3 with slightly fewer chips.
On the contrary, last year's Merit Poker Retro Series $2,200 Warm Up runner-up Mehdi Chaoui fought with a small stack during the last levels. But he qualified with 119,000 chips, and can still try to reach the final table for the second consecutive time.
Players remaining will come back on Thursday, August 10th, at noon for Day 3. Their first goal will be to be in the money, as 98 players will get paid. Once the bubble bursts, it’s on to the final table.
PokerNews will be following all the action as players chase the title and top prize.
End Of Day 2 Chip Count (full)
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,408,000
308,000
|
308,000 |
|
||
|
1,291,000
1,291,000
|
1,291,000 |
|
1,247,000
881,000
|
881,000 |
|
1,232,000
542,000
|
542,000 |
|
||
|
1,200,000
1,016,000
|
1,016,000 |
|
1,183,000
1,183,000
|
1,183,000 |
|
1,164,000
164,000
|
164,000 |
|
1,130,000
1,014,000
|
1,014,000 |
|
1,125,000
916,000
|
916,000 |
|
1,097,000
297,000
|
297,000 |
|
||
|
1,072,000
768,000
|
768,000 |
|
||
|
1,071,000
221,000
|
221,000 |
|
1,052,000
660,000
|
660,000 |
|
1,024,000
861,500
|
861,500 |
|
1,002,000
-198,000
|
-198,000 |
|
977,000
977,000
|
977,000 |
|
977,000
312,000
|
312,000 |
|
964,000
964,000
|
964,000 |
|
962,000
112,000
|
112,000 |
|
960,000
960,000
|
960,000 |
|
956,000
201,000
|
201,000 |
|
953,000
953,000
|
953,000 |
|
946,000
760,000
|
760,000 |
|
928,000
773,000
|
773,000 |
|
879,000
249,000
|
249,000 |
End Of Day 2
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Bags have been brought to the tables which ended their last hand. Day 2 is now over, and the 156 players remaining will come back on Day 3.
Stay tuned for the chip counts and the recap on PokerNews !
"You Have The Ace ?"
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
"Koko", under the gun, decided to limp, as did Gilles Simon seated on his left. With very little or almost nothing added to the pot, the players in the blinds completed to see the flop 10♦7♣Q♦.
On this first street, all three players in action checked to Simon, who bet 8,000. The blinds folded at this point, but not Koko, who chose to call. And on the turn 7♦, both players checked.
"Do you have the ace?" Koko asked when the A♥ landed on the river. And before receiving an answer, Koko bet 54,000 chips. "I don't think you have the ace," remarked Simon before eventually making the call. However, he could only muck his cards as Koko revealed K♦4♦ for a flush.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
297,000
87,500
|
87,500 |
|
||
Sanz Wins His Flip
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
After an open to 18,000 by a player in an early position, Adrien Sanz in the middle position moved all-in for 119,000 chips. All the other players folded to the initial raiser, who called.
Adrien Sanz: A♦K♣
Opponent: Q♣Q♠
Sanz hit an ace directly on the flop 7♥4♦A♣. The turn 2♥ and the river 8♣ didn't change anything, and Sanz secured a double-up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
260,000
260,000
|
260,000 |
Sibgatova And Franco Doubles Through Chilaud
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
At her table, Alisa Sibgatova was very nervous as she was all in for almost 200,000 chips against Maxime Chilaud.
Alisa Sibgatova: J♠J♥
Maxime Chilaud: A♣Q♥
Sibgatova was clearly relieved when she hit trips on 3♣J♣10♣6♦5♦. She doubled up to 420,000 chips. A few hands later, Sonny Franco found himself at risk against Chilaud. He doubled too, but stayed short with less than 10 big blinds.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
470,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
420,000
295,000
|
295,000 |
|
78,000
-122,000
|
-122,000 |
Level: 16
Blinds: 4,000/8,000
Ante: 8,000
Lybaert Out Of The Tournament
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
Bogdan-Andrei Munteanu opened to 14,000 from middle position and was called once. Then on the button, Bart Lybaert moved all in for 141,000 chips. Munteanu made the call, while the third player folded.
Bart Lybaert: A♣J♦
Bogdan-Andrei Munteanu: A♥K♠
In a difficult situation, Lybaert was ready to stand up and leave. He just waited a few seconds, hoping for a jack. However, the dealer revealed a 10♥A♦2♣3♣3♠ board that didn't bring any help for him.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
500,000
500,000
|
500,000 |
|
Busted |
Karoui Beaten By Two Pairs
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
A player on the button opened to 13,000, and Moncef Karoui defended from the big blind.
On the flop A♠A♥J♥, the button continued with a bet of 8,000. Karoui, who had checked, looked at his cards and kept calling.
The 2♦ came on the turn, but didn't change anything as both players checked. There could be more action on the river 6♠. But Karoui and his opponent checked once more.
Karoui showed Q♠10♥ for a missed straight draw and seemed to know he lost this hand. But he was surprised to see 6♣2♣ in his opponent's hands, who had two pairs.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
630,000
341,000
|
341,000 |