$2,200 Warmup
Day 3 Completed
2023 Merit Poker Western Series
$2,200 Warmup
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 3
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
102
Players Left
19
"John Doe" Leads By Large Margin After Day 3 of the $2,200 Warm Up
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Day 3 of the Merit Poker Western Series $2,200 Warm Up started with 102 players out of a total field of 523 and ended with just 19 after ten levels of play.
Leading the way by a large distance at the end of the night was the man who wishes only to be known as John Doe (9,800,000). He started to build his stack in the early parts of the day and would just continue to grow throughout to finish with over 3 million more than second place.
Maxime Chilaud is that player in second place as the Frenchman finished the day with 6,755,000, which is almost 2 million more than third, creating a dymanic where the top two stacks have some considerable distance between each other and also from the rest of the pack.
In third place after Day 3 was Russian player Vladislav Fedoseev who bagged up 4,550,000. Helmut Phung (3,900,000) and Recep Aydemir (3,245,000) would round out the top five counts.
Top 10 Chip Counts
| Position | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Doe | -- | 9,800,000 | 98 |
| 2 | Maxime Chilaud | France | 6,755,000 | 67 |
| 3 | Vladislav Fedoseev | Russia | 4,550,000 | 45 |
| 4 | Helmut Phung | Germany | 3,900,000 | 39 |
| 5 | Recep Aydemir | Turkey | 3,245,000 | 32 |
| 6 | Eli Saad | Lebanon | 2,660,000 | 26 |
| 7 | Andress Merheb | Lebanon | 2,600,000 | 26 |
| 8 | Valentin Tsoy | Uzbekistan | 2,570,000 | 25 |
| 9 | Halil Baybars | Turkey | 2,130,000 | 21 |
| 10 | Ryan Mandara | United Kingdom | 2,010,000 | 20 |
Behind the top five there are many players who are bunched together in chips, all within only a few chips of one another, which will make for an action-packed day of jostling for position on the final day tomorrow.
The day began with 102 and was steadily wilted down with eliminations until the money bubble where two players would be eliminated on the same hand at different tables to bring the field into the money. From there, the pace would stay consistent until after the final break. The eliminations would slow with Day 4 on the horizon and the play jumps becoming more significant where Nuri Hadioglu would become the last elimination of the night.
The remaining 19 players will hit the felt at 1 p.m. local time and play down to the $181,200 grand prize winner. Play will start at Level 27 with blinds at 50,000/100,000/100,000.
PokerNews will be on hand to cover every aspect of the action on Day 4.
End-of-Day Chip Counts
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
9,800,000 | 300,000 |
|
6,755,000 | 1,820,000 |
|
4,550,000 | 350,000 |
|
3,900,000 | 1,355,000 |
|
3,245,000 | 1,045,000 |
|
2,660,000 | 2,185,000 |
|
2,600,000 | 25,000 |
|
2,570,000 | 820,000 |
|
2,130,000 | -1,145,000 |
|
2,010,000 | 10,000 |
|
1,910,000 | 160,000 |
|
1,905,000 | 105,000 |
|
1,675,000 | -1,325,000 |
|
1,495,000 | 395,000 |
|
1,290,000 | 90,000 |
|
1,150,000 | -1,920,000 |
|
850,000 | -1,195,000 |
|
835,000 | -1,190,000 |
|
815,000 | 15,000 |
Mandara Flushes Hu For a Double
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
On one of the last hands of the night, Ryan Mandara moved all in for 955,000 from the cutoff, small blind David Hu reshoved, and big blind Yurk Bochkarev got out of the way.
Ryan Mandara: 
David Hu: 
Hu made top pair on the 
flop, but Mandara picked up a flush draw. He completed the draw on the 
turn, while the 
on the river was safe for him to secure the late double up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,000,000 | 925,000 |
|
|
1,800,000 |
Nuri Hadioglu Eliminated in 20th Place ($8,115)
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
From the small blind Nuri Hadioglu jammed and was called by Michele Guerrini in the big blind.
Michele Guerrini: 
Nuri Hadioglu: 
Guerrini was the one at risk as it the flop came 
. The turn was the and the river the 
to knock Hadioglu down to just 400,000.
The next hand Nuri Hadioglu shoved his five big blinds from the button and was called by Andress Merheb in the big blind.
Nuri Hadioglu: 
Andress Merheb:
The flop sent Hadioglu a lifeline as it came 
. The turn was the 
but the river was the to bust Hadioglu who threw up his hand in disgust and walked away.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,575,000 | 145,000 |
|
|
1,750,000 | 925,000 |
|
Busted |
Four More Hands
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Tournament officials have announced that play will last four more hands before players bag up their chips for the night.
Akin Guven Eliminated in 21st Place ($8,115)
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Akin Guven moved all in for around 800,000 from middle position and was called by chip leader John Doe in the cutoff.
Akin Guven: 
John Doe: 
Both players hit top pair on the 
flop, but Doe's king-kicker stayed in front. Guven was already standing up from his seat by the time the turn appeared, and his elimination was sealed on the river as Doe added more to his already massive stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
9,500,000 | 1,750,000 |
|
Busted |
Doe Gets Revenge on Guerrini
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Action was on the river with a board showing 
. The pot had about 600,000 in it. Michele Guerrini bet 350,000 and was instantly one-chip called by John Doe on the button.
Guerrini tabled king-high with the 
while Doe had the 
to take a chunky pot from Guerrini by calling a bluff, just as Guerrini had done to him a couple of levels ago.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
7,750,000 | 750,000 |
|
|
825,000 | -275,000 |
Mandara, Hadioglu Find Doubles
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Arie Kliper raised to 160,000, then called when Ryan Mandara moved all in for 920,000.
Ryan Mandara: A♠J♥
Arie Kliper: A♥10♠
The 2♥7♦9♥2♣8♦ board improved neither player and Mandara's jack-kicker played to earn him a double-up.
At the same time on the other outer table, Nuri Hadioglu was all in for 700,000 with A♦9♦ but needed help against Michele Guerrini's K♦K♠. The 3♦7♦J♠ flop gave him the nut flush draw, which he completed on the river as the board came Q♣5♦.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,900,000 | 825,000 |
|
|
1,400,000 | 550,000 |
|
|
1,100,000 | -800,000 |
|
|
800,000 | 100,000 |
Musa Genc Eliminated in 22nd Place ($7,275)
Level 26
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
David Hu raised to 125,000 from early position and was called by Arie Kliper. In the small blind, Musa Genc reraised all in for 850,000, Hu reshoved, and Kliper got out of the way.
Musa Genc: 
David Hu:
Both players picked up straight draws on the flop. The board ran out 
and Hu's kings stayed in front to eliminate Genc in 22nd place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,800,000 | -300,000 |
|
Busted |