$10,400 Merit Millions
Day 1b Completed
2025 Merit Millions
$10,400 Merit Millions
Day: 1b
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1b
2025 Merit Millions
Buy-in
$10,400
Prize Pool
$1,950,400
Entries
212
Level
28
Blinds
600,000 / 1,200,000
Ante
1,200,000
Entries
30
Players Left
17
Level 8
: Blinds 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
Day 1b of the $10,400 Merit Millions Event has concluded inside the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa, with 17 players from 30 entries making it through to Day 2. These survivors will join the 34 players who advanced from Day 1a, all aiming for the $1,000,000 guaranteed first-place prize.
Emerging as the Day 1b chip leader is Daniel Shademanpour, who bagged 3,175,000 chips. His stack grew significantly in the penultimate level when he doubled up through Krasimir Yankov with Big Slick, positioning him as one of the biggest stacks of the day. Shademanpour will be looking to carry his momentum into Day 2 as he aims to secure a deep run in the event.
Day 1b Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Shademanpour | Iran | 3,175,000 | 159 |
| 2 | Jan Petersen | Denmark | 2,890,000 | 145 |
| 3 | Joseph Haddad | United Arab Emirates | 2,370,000 | 119 |
| 4 | Konstantin Voronin | Russia | 2,125,000 | 106 |
| 5 | Onur Ozgur | Turkey | 2,110,000 | 106 |
| 6 | Damir Zhugralin | Kazakhstan | 2,015,000 | 101 |
| 7 | Giorgiy Skhuluhiya | Georgia | 1,985,000 | 99 |
| 8 | Chady Ojeil | Lebanon | 1,935,000 | 97 |
| 9 | Abdullah Alajmi | Kuwait | 1,860,000 | 93 |
| 10 | Antoine Hasbani | Lebanon | 1,795,000 | 90 |
Following closely behind Shademanpour with 2,890,000 chips is Denmark’s Jan Petersen. Petersen's day was highlighted by a key elimination of the dangerous Dmitry Gromov where he found himself on the right side of a battle of premium pocket pairs. Later, Petersen flopped a set of deuces in a multi-way pot, extracting three streets of value from Abdullah Alajmi, which further boosted his stack.
Joseph Haddad is third on the leaderboard with 2,370,000 chips, a portion of which came from a correct hero-call on Mehdi Chaoui’s river bluff shove while holding pocket jacks. In fourth place is Konstantin Voronin, who ended up with 2,125,000 chips after the counts were finalized. Voronin had already bagged a stack from Day 1a, but he has now more than doubled it for Day 2. Will he look to build an even bigger stack during Day 1c or 1d?
Some other familiar faces advancing to the second stage of the tournament include Damir Zhugralin (2,015,000), Giorgiy Skhuluhiya (1,985,000), Chady Ojeil (1,935,000), Andrei Boghean (1,505,000), and short-stacked Johnny Lodden (585,000).
Tomorrow, Day 1c of the $10,400 Merit Millions Event kicks off at 1 p.m., following the same structure as the previous flights and giving players another shot at securing a place in Day 2. Later in the evening, Day 1d will start at 8 p.m. and feature a turbo structure with 30-minute levels, offering a faster-paced option for those looking for one last chance to build a stack. So far, with two of the four opening flights completed, 51 players have secured their spot for Day 2 out of a total of 97 entries.
Remaining Merit Millions Event Schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 11 | Day 1c | 1 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| April 11 | Day 1d | 8 p.m. | 30 minutes |
| April 12 | Day 2 | 12 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| April 13 | Day 3 | 12 p.m. | 60 minutes |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for live updates, chip counts, and all the key hands as the action unfolds. With the stakes rising and the pressure mounting, you won’t want to miss a moment of the drama!
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
3,175,000
275,000
|
275,000 |
|
||
|
2,890,000
710,000
|
710,000 |
|
2,370,000
270,000
|
270,000 |
|
2,125,000
1,325,000
|
1,325,000 |
|
2,110,000
310,000
|
310,000 |
|
2,015,000
315,000
|
315,000 |
|
1,985,000
85,000
|
85,000 |
|
1,935,000
635,000
|
635,000 |
|
1,860,000
440,000
|
440,000 |
|
1,795,000
395,000
|
395,000 |
|
1,695,000
295,000
|
295,000 |
|
1,505,000
495,000
|
495,000 |
|
1,205,000
635,000
|
635,000 |
|
1,100,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
|
1,030,000
270,000
|
270,000 |
|
605,000
245,000
|
245,000 |
|
585,000
415,000
|
415,000 |
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
The remaining players are now bagging up their chips and Day 1b has concluded.
Stay tuned for the full chip counts of the survivors and a recap of the day's action.
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
Arriving at the table to see the board showed 3♣10♣Q♥10♠3♦ and Mehdi Chaoui had shoved for roughly 330,000. The action was on Joseph Haddad, who after thinking for quite some time made the call.
Mehdi Chaoui: Kx9x 
Joseph Haddad: J♣J♠
Haddad took down the pot and sent Chaoui to the rail, as he picked off the bluff with two jacks.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,100,000
900,000
|
900,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
After his impressive victory in last night's one-day $3,300 #DeepStack tournament, where he took home $32,040, Mehdi Chaoui is back in action in the Merit Millions Event. Currently sitting with a stack of 1,300,000, Chaoui will be looking to build on the success and confidence from his recent win and continue his strong run here at the 2025 Merit Poker Classic Millions festival.
With his eyes set on the $1,000,000 grand prize, he’ll be hoping to be the last player standing come Sunday.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,300,000 |
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
The floor has announced that four more hands will be played before the players bag up for the day.
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
Chady Ojeil came in with a raise to 30,000 with Josef Vogel calling from the next position and Daniel Shademanpour defending his big blind.
Shademanpour and Ojeil checked to Bogel on the J♦9♣7♥ flop and he fired out 60,000. Only Shademanpour called.
The 9♦ turn and 10♦ river got checked down by both players and Shademanpour took down the pot with 9♠8♠ for a straight.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,900,000
1,600,000
|
1,600,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
1,300,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
800,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
Level 8
: 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante
Onur Ozgur raised to 45,000 from the small blind and Abdullah Alajmi defended out of the big blind.
The Q♠Q♦5♦ flop checked through for the 9♦ to land on the turn. Ozgur bet 25,000 and Alajmi called.
The Q♣ dropped on the river and Ozgur fired 100,000. Alajmi instantly called, and Ozgur showed K♣K♦ for queens full of kings. Alajmi showed the K♥9♠ for a lower boat and Ozgur won the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,300,000
1,000,000
|
1,000,000 |
|
|
1,800,000
400,000
|
400,000 |
Level: 8
Blinds: 10,000/15,000
Ante: 15,000
