$2,200 Warmup
Day 4 Started
2023 Merit Poker Western Series
$2,200 Warmup
Day: 4
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 4
2023 Merit Poker Western Series
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$962,320
Entries
523
Level
36
Blinds
400,000 / 800,000
Ante
800,000
Entries
19
Players Left
1
Day 4 Seat Draw
| Table | Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Eli Saad | Lebanon | 2,660,000 | 27 |
| 1 | 2 | Vladislav Fedoseev | Russia | 4,550,000 | 46 |
| 1 | 3 | Evgenii Katymaev | Russia | 1,495,000 | 15 |
| 1 | 4 | Paul Browne | United Kingdom | 850,000 | 9 |
| 1 | 5 | Maxime Chilaud | France | 6,755,000 | 68 |
| 1 | 6 | Yury Bochkarev | Russia | 1,675,000 | 17 |
| 1 | 7 | Ryan Mandara | United Kingdom | 2,010,000 | 20 |
| Table | Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | David Hu | Netherlands | 1,905,000 | 19 |
| 2 | 2 | Valentin Tsoy | Uzbekistan | 2,570,000 | 26 |
| 2 | 3 | Andress Merheb | Lebanon | 2,600,000 | 26 |
| 2 | 4 | Recep Aydemir | Turkey | 3,245,000 | 32 |
| 2 | 5 | John Doe | n/a | 9,800,000 | 98 |
| 2 | 6 | Nikolay Fal | Russia | 835,000 | 8 |
| Table | Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 1 | Helmut Phung | Germany | 3,900,000 | 39 |
| 3 | 2 | Michael Allen | United Kingdom | 1,150,000 | 12 |
| 3 | 3 | Halil Baybars | Turkey | 2,130,000 | 21 |
| 3 | 4 | Michele Guerrini | Italy | 1,910,000 | 19 |
| 3 | 5 | Huseyin Akgul | Turkey | 1,290,000 | 13 |
| 3 | 6 | Arie Kliper | Israel | 815,000 | 8 |
Chilaud, Fedoseev, and Aydemir Chase the Mysterious "John Doe" on the Final Day of the $2,200 Warm Up
Today is the final day of the Merit Poker Western Series $2,200 Warm Up, and everyone is looking up at the “mystery man.”
The man known only as “John Doe” has a commanding lead over the remaining 19 players with 9,800,000. France’s Maxime Chilaud is in second place at 6,755,000, a comfortable stack in its own right but still more than 3,000,000 behind the chip leader. Chilaud is no stranger to success here at the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino. He won a high roller event here in November for $184,000 and will look to repeat that performance today.
Vladislav Fedoseev rounds out the top three at 4,550,000. The fun-loving and talkative Recep Aydemir is in fifth place with 3,245,000. British pros Ryan Mandara and Paul Browne have been near the top of the leaderboard since the start of the tournament and are both still in the hunt for the title; Mandara is in 10th place with 2,010,000, while Browne has his work cut out for him on a stack of 850,000, less than ten big blinds.
Day 4 chip counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Doe | n/a | 9,800,000 | 98 |
| 2 | Maxime Chilaud | France | 6,755,000 | 68 |
| 3 | Vladislav Fedoseev | Russia | 4,550,000 | 46 |
| 4 | Helmut Phung | Germany | 3,900,000 | 39 |
| 5 | Recep Aydemir | Turkey | 3,245,000 | 32 |
| 6 | Eli Saad | Lebanon | 2,660,000 | 27 |
| 7 | Andress Merheb | Lebanon | 2,600,000 | 26 |
| 8 | Valentin Tsoy | Uzbekistan | 2,570,000 | 26 |
| 9 | Halil Baybars | Turkey | 2,130,000 | 21 |
| 10 | Ryan Mandara | United Kingdom | 2,010,000 | 20 |
| 11 | Michele Guerrini | Italy | 1,910,000 | 19 |
| 12 | David Hu | Netherlands | 1,905,000 | 19 |
| 13 | Yury Bochkarev | Russia | 1,675,000 | 17 |
| 14 | Evgenii Katymaev | Russia | 1,495,000 | 15 |
| 15 | Huseyin Akgul | Turkey | 1,290,000 | 13 |
| 16 | Michael Allen | United Kingdom | 1,150,000 | 12 |
| 17 | Paul Browne | United Kingdom | 850,000 | 9 |
| 18 | Nikolay Fal | Russia | 835,000 | 8 |
| 19 | Arie Kliper | Israel | 815,000 | 8 |
The 19 survivors are all that is left from a starting field of 523 total entries. Everyone who has made it this far is guaranteed at least $8,115, but they'll all be chasing the top prize of $181,200 and the title of champion.
Day 4 begins at 1 p.m. local time will pick up on Level 27, with blinds at 50,000-100,000 and a 100,000 big blind ante. Once the final table is reached, it will be streamed live on a 30-minute delay on Merit Poker’s Facebook page and YouTube until a new champion is crowned.
PokerNews will be following all the action until there is only one player still standing after the ultimate gunfight in North Cyprus.
Shuffle Up and Deal
The remaining 19 players are in their seats and the final day of the $2,200 Warm Up is now underway.
Level: 27
Blinds: 50,000/100,000
Ante: 100,000
Nikolay Fal Eliminated in 19th Place ($8,115)
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
David Hu raised to 200,000 from under the gun before Nikolay Fal in the big blind reraised to 700,000, leaving himself only 30,000 behind. Hu then shoved to put Fal all in.
"I'm going to call. Just going to make sure," Fal said as he looked around at the other tables before throwing in his last chips.
Fal had 
and was in a coin flip against Hu's 
. The 
flop gave Hu top pair, and he held on through the 
turn and 
river to send Fal to the rail in 19th place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,800,000 | 895,000 |
|
Busted |
Kliper Holds On to Double
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Just before Nikolay Fal was eliminated on the other outer table, Huseyin Akgul shoved from the small blind and Arie Kliper called for his last 800,000.
Arie Kliper: 
Huseyin Akgul: 
The board ran out 
and Kliper's king-high stayed in front to earn him a double up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,600,000 | 785,000 |
|
350,000 | -940,000 |
Aydemir Picks Off the Chip Leader
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
In a blind versus blind battle, John Doe bet 125,000 on a 
board and was called by Recep Aydemir.
The turn came the and Doe continued for 390,000. Aydemir tanked for a moment before calling as Doe showed 
for a bluff.
Aydemir turned over 
for a pair of nines to take the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
9,200,000 | -600,000 |
|
3,500,000 | 255,000 |
Yury Bochkarev Eliminated in 18th Place ($9,325)
Level 27
: 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Vladislav Fedoreev raised to 200,000 from the hijack as action folded around to Yury Bochkarev in the big blind, who shoved all in for 1,575,000.
Fedoreev called with 
, while Bochkarev showed . The board ran out 
and Fedoreev won the pot with his ace-high to send Bochkarev to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
6,100,000 | |
|
Busted |
Huseyin Akgul Eliminated in 17th Place ($9,325)
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Huseyin Akgul moved all in for 375,000 from under the gun, Paul Browne reshoved for 800,000 in the cutoff, and the rest of the table got out of the way.
Huseyin Akgul: 
Paul Browne: 
Akgul made a pair on the 
board, but improved no further on the river to hit the rail in 17th place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,400,000 | 550,000 |
|
|
Busted |