$2,200 Warm Up
Day 2 Started
2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series
$2,200 Warm Up
Day: 2
Event Info
2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$1,188,640
Entries
646
Level
37
Blinds
400,000 / 800,000
Ante
800,000
Entries
279
Players Left
105
Players Left 1 / 646
Filter
(1)
The 2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series moves into Day 2 of the $2,200 Warm Up today at 12:30 p.m. local time, as the 241 survivors from the 472 entries in the completed opening flights merge inside the stunning Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino.
Leading the pack is Russia's Aren Bezhanyan, who bagged 647,000 chips on Day 1b. Giorgiy Skhulukhiya follows closely behind in second with 627,000. Hassan Nashar sits comfortably in fifth position right now with a stack of 496,500. All three will be looking to build on their dominance as the $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool inches closer to being shattered.
While Day 2 gets underway, the final turbo flight, Day 1d is still playing out. Late registration remains open until the end of Level 15, allowing last-minute entries and short stacks one final shot at building a stack before the field officially joins.
Current Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aren Bezhanyan | Russia | 647,000 | 259 |
| 2 | Giorgiy Skhulukhiya | Georgia | 627,000 | 251 |
| 3 | Ludovic Geilich | Scotland | 613,000 | 246 |
| 4 | Erdal Gulseven | Turkey | 621,500 | 249 |
| 5 | Hassan Nashar | Gambia | 496,500 | 199 |
| 6 | Alexey Savenkov | Russia | 524,000 | 210 |
| 7 | Aleksey Cherkasov | Russia | 480,500 | 193 |
| 8 | Miltiadis Kyriakides | Cyprus | 461,500 | 185 |
| 9 | Mikhail Zavoloka | Russia | 444,000 | 178 |
| 10 | Ran Ilani | Israel | 420,000 | 168 |
Day 2 resumes at Level 11 with blinds at 1,000/2,500 and a big blind ante of 2,500. Levels will remain 40 minutes throughout, with the day's schedule set to be confirmed shortly after cards are in the air. Once late registration closes at the end of Level 15, the prize pool and payouts will be finalized and announced.
Remaining Warm Up Schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 15 | Day 1d (Turbo) | 10:00 a.m. | 15 minutes |
| March 15 | Day 2 | 12:30 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| March 16 | Day 3 | 12:00 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| March 17 | Day 4 | 12:00 p.m. | 40 minutes |
Players will be looking to navigate the field today and position themselves for a deep run toward the six-figure top prize. Stay tuned to PokerNews for live updates, chip counts, and key hands as we move one step closer to crowning a champion.
Level: 11
Blinds: 1,500/2,500
Ante: 2,500
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Cards are in the air for Day 2 of the $2,200 Warm Up event.
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
On one of the first hands of Day 2, Elena Yasyuchenya opened from under the gun to 5,000 only to be met by three-bet to 15,000 from Akin Tuna in the next position. After it folded back to Yasyuchenya, she didn't take long to four-bet shove her stack of 61,000 into the middle. Tuna called, and the cards were revealed.
Elena Yasyuchenya: A♥K♠ 
Akin Tuna: Q♣Q♦
It was a classic flip that Yasyuchenya needed to win. The flop came down A♠5♠3♠ to propel Yasyuchenya into the lead with top pair. The 8♠ turn left Tuna drawing dead to Yasyuchenya's nut flush. The Q♥ river fell to give Tuna an unnecessary set, and Yasyuchenya got the perfect start to Day 2 of the Warm-Up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
130,000
67,500
|
67,500 |
|
85,000
53,500
|
53,500 |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Clement Michaud raised to 5,000 from the button before Mihai Niste three-bet to 17,000 out of the small blind. Michaud put in the call to see a flop.
Niste decided to check when the dealer fanned out the 10♦J♠9♦ flop. Michaud bet 12,000, which Niste called.
The 7♠ turn got checked through for the 5♦ to drop on the river. Niste checked again with roughly 44,500 remaining in his stack. Michaud thought about it for a few moments before he put Niste all in. Niste snap-called.
Michaud flipped up K♦K♣ for an overpair to the board, but was second best to the Q♦8♦ of Niste for a flopped straight that improved to a flush on the river. Nitse pulled in the pot and Michaud was left with crumbs.
Michaud was eliminated a few hands later.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
160,000
102,500
|
102,500 |
|
Busted |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
There was an early position raise to 7,500 with Hassan Nashar calling from the hijack and Cristinel Dumitru defending his big blind.
The action checked the Nashar on the 6♣6♦3♣ flop and he fired out 10,000. Only Dumitru called.
The flush completing J♣ landed on the turn and Dumitru check-called another bet of 10,000 from Nashar.
Dumitru checked for the last time on the 10♠ river and Nashar bet out for 15,000. Dumitru quickly called and was shown A♣2♣ by Nashar for a flush. Dumitru couldn't beat that, and Nashar added more chips to his already gigantic stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
600,000
103,500
|
103,500 |
|
45,000
51,000
|
51,000 |
Level: 12
Blinds: 1,500/2,500
Ante: 2,500
Level 12
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Mahdi Lotfalizaderhmehraba raised to 5,000 from the hijack with Zhao Cheng calling from the cutoff before George Tomescu squeezed it up to 24,500 from the big blind. Both Lotfalizaderhmehraba and Cheng called.
Three-ways to a flop of 9♦7♣8♠ which saw Tomescu check, Lotfalizaderhmehraba bet 25,000, and Cheng fold. Tomescu looked over at Lotfalizaderhmehraba's remaining 25,000 or so chips and check-shoved to put Lotfalizaderhmehraba all in. Lotfalizaderhmehraba called.
Mahdi Lotfalizaderhmehraba: 6♠6♥
George Tomescu: A♠K♠
Lotfalizaderhmehraba was slightly ahead with his pair of sixes, but he had fade the turn and the river to stay alive. The Q♦ turn didn't change anything, but the brutal A♣ on the river gave Tomescu the winner with a pair of aces, sending Lotfalizaderhmehraba to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
420,000
182,000
|
182,000 |
|
140,000
101,500
|
101,500 |
|
Busted |
Level 12
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
The plan today is to play 11 levels, which means the day will end once Level 21 has finished. There is no dinner break today.
