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$3,300 Main Event
Day 2 Completed
2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series
$3,300 Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
Buy-in
$3,300
Prize Pool
$2,431,560
Total Entries
881
Level
38
Blinds
400,000 / 800,000
Ante
800,000
Entries
572
Players Left
213
Players Left 1 / 881
Filter
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Day 2 of the $3,300 Main Event at the 2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series has come to a close inside the luxurious Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, and with it, a historical milestone has been reached. A total of 881 entries were tallied, making this the largest Main Event field ever recorded at a Carmen Series stop, and the second-largest in Merit Poker history.
That turnout generated a $2,431,560 prize pool, easily surpassing the $1,500,000 million guarantee. The eventual champion will take home a staggering $401,000 and the trophy, along with the bragging rights that come with conquering one of the toughest fields in Merit history.
After another full day of action, 213 players managed to survive the grind and book their seat for Day 3. Leading the way is Georgios Tsouloftas, who bagged the overall chip lead with 1,744,000, putting himself in prime position to add another Merit title to his resume. The Cypriot pro is no stranger to success at this venue, having won the Merit Mediterranean Poker Cup Main Event in 2022. With just shy of $2,000,000 in live tournament earnings, Tsouloftas brings the experience and pedigree needed to make another deep run here in Cyprus.
Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgios Tsouloftas | Cyprus | 1,744,000 | 291 |
| 2 | Atanas Malinov | Bulgaria | 1,661,000 | 277 |
| 3 | Andrii Novak | Ukraine | 1,444,000 | 241 |
| 4 | Yuan Xu | China | 1,369,000 | 228 |
| 5 | Andrija Cvetkovic | Croatia | 1,178,000 | 196 |
| 6 | Konstantin Voronin | Russia | 1,155,000 | 193 |
| 7 | Ludovic Geilich | United Kingdom | 1,146,000 | 191 |
| 8 | Anthony Khouzami | Lebanon | 1,138,000 | 190 |
| 9 | Ahmad Abdelhadi | United Kingdom | 1,094,000 | 182 |
| 10 | Kuljinder Sidhu | United Kingdom | 1,061,000 | 177 |
Atanas Malinov ended Day 2 second on the leaderboard, bagging an impressive 1,661,000, just a few big blinds shy of the overall chip lead. Malinov has already made a splash earlier in the series with a second-place finish in the Warm-Up event, and a seventh-place finish in the High Roller. Malinov carried that momentum into the Main Event, navigating Day 2 with a calm and composed presence that saw him steadily accumulate chips throughout the day.
Ukraine’s Andrii Novak held the chip lead for much of Day 2 and ultimately bagged an impressive 1,444,000, finishing the thirds in the overall counts. The well-known online poker wizard quietly built his stack throughout the day, with one of his biggest boosts coming after he soul-read an opponent and correctly called a river bluff shove holding just a weak top pair.
The defending champion Elie Farah saw his title defense come to an end in dramatic fashion on the final hand of Day 2. After calling a three-bet preflop, Farah found himself facing a massive bet on the flop from his opponent. Following a long pause, he put in the rest of his stack and was quickly snapped off, only to find himself well behind. With no help on the runout, Farah hit the rail in heartbreaking fashion just as the tournament clock ticked down to zero, marking a cruel end to his bid for back-to-back Main Event titles.
Unlike Farah, the other former Carmen Series Main Event champion is still firmly in the hunt. Maxime Chilaud, who captured this very title in 2023, bagged a stack of 133,000 at the close of Day 2 and will return with the chance to make another deep run. With one Main Event trophy already under his belt, Chilaud now has a real shot at making history as the first two-time Main Event champion at the Merit Poker Carmen Series.
Several familiar faces also found a bag to bring into Day 3. Two-time bracelet winner Boris Kolev (971,000) leads the way among them, followed by Fahredin Mustafov (749,000) and 2024 Gatsby Main Event champion Nichan Khorchidian (529,000). Also returning are Dmitry Gromov (460,000), Day 1d chip leader Axel Hallay (329,000), and Zhen Chen (221,000), all still in the hunt for the title.
Day 3 resumes at 12:00 p.m. local time with blinds at 3,000/6,000 and a 6,000 big blind ante. Of the remaining players, only 119 will make the money, meaning the pressure will be on early as the bubble looms just ahead. With a minimum payout of $4,545 on the line, the first goal for everyone returning will be to survive the early levels and secure a spot in the money.
$3,300 Main Event Payouts
Stay tuned to PokerNews for live updates, chip counts, and all the action as the 2025 Merit Poker Carmen Series Main Event heats up!
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Day 2 comes to an end and it looks like Georgios Tsouloftas is sitting on top of the pack.
Stay tuned for the full counts and a recap of the day's action.
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
The defending champion has been dethroned in brutal fashion — and with just seconds to spare.
On the final hand of Day 2, Elie Farah opened from the cutoff to 10,000 and faced a three-bet to 40,000 from Fredrico Senno in the big blind. Farah called to see a flop of 3♠A♦Q♦, where the real drama began. After some thought, Farah checked, and Senno dropped a bet of 100,000 into the pot, putting Farah to the test for his remaining stack of around 160,000.
“Will you show?” Farah asked, met only with silence. After a long pause and a shrug, he pushed his chips in — only to get snap-called.
Elie Farah: A♠10♣ 
Fredrico Senno: A♣K♦
Farah was way, way behind and needed a lot of help if he wanted to survive and have a shot at defending his crown. Unfortunately, the runout of 2♠7♣ offered no salvation, and with that, Farah’s title defense came to an end — right as the tournament clock hit zero.
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
On one of the last hands of the day, Andrii Novak raised the button to 11,000, with Mircea Flutur defending out of the big blind.
Flutur checked the action over to Novak on the 3♦3♣6♠ flop and he fired out a continuation-bet of 9,000. Flutur stuck around with a call.
The 2♥ landed on the turn and Flutur checked. Novak fired a second barrel of 47,000, forcing Flutur to fold instantly.
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Timur Mukhamedaminov was in a great position to boost his stack late in the day but a brutal river card had other ideas.
Mukhamedaminov held A♥J♠ and was flipping against a player in the blinds, who had around 130,000 in his stack.
A flop of 7♥6♣10♦ kept the pocket nines in the lead but Mukhamedaminov turned a jack when the J♣ dropped. However, the 8♦ river gave his opponent a straight. and snatched the pot away at the last moment.
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
The clock has been stopped with 15 minutes remaining and the floor have announced that three more hands will be played before the players bag up.
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
With 881 entries recorded in the record-breaking $3,300 Carmen Series Main Event, the prize pool totaled $2,431,560, and 119 players will be paid. A min-cash is worth $4,545, while the eventual champion will walk away with $401,000.
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $401,000 | 16-18 | $22,400 |
| 2 | $265,000 | 19-21 | $20,135 |
| 3 | $185,250 | 22-24 | $17,930 |
| 4 | $132,100 | 25-26 | $15,730 |
| 5 | $99,050 | 27-35 | $13,545 |
| 6 | $80,500 | 36-44 | $11,840 |
| 7 | $65,700 | 45-53 | $10,140 |
| 8 | $52,200 | 54-63 | $8,690 |
| 9 | $39,600 | 64-72 | $7,710 |
| 10-12 | $32,000 | 73-81 | $6,735 |
| 13-15 | $25,800 | 82-89 | $6,005 |
| 16-18 | $22,400 | 90-99 | $5,275 |
| 19-21 | $20,135 | 100-119 | $4,545 |
Level 16
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Maxime Chilaud just had his entire stack in the middle, but managed to earn himself a crucial pot as the day starts to wind down.
The full board read J♥J♣5♦5♥7♦ and with around 60,000 in the pot, Chilaud had 62,000 out in front of him. Lyudmil Ivanov was the man with the decision but after some thought he elected to fold, and Chilaud was awarded the pot.
Chilaud won the inaugural Carmen Series Main Event back in 2023, taking home $376,800. He remains one of only two players to have captured the coveted title, with Elie Farah being the other.
