$2,200 Warm Up
Day 1bc Started
2025 Merit Poker Western Series
$2,200 Warm Up
Day: 1bc
Event Info
2025 Merit Poker Western Series
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1bc
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$921,840
Entries
501
Level
35
Blinds
250,000 / 500,000
Ante
500,000
Entries
223
Players Left
150
Players Left 1 / 501
Filter
(1)
The 2025 Merit Poker Western Series resumes today with Day 1b of the $2,200 Warm Up, ready to welcome a fresh batch of hopefuls inside the stunning Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino. With a massive $1,000,000 guarantee up for grabs, the atmosphere is set for another action-packed day as players aim to stack chips and survive another ten 40-minute levels.
Following a fast-paced Day 1a that saw Kazakhstan’s Azamat Tulepbergenov bag the chip lead with a commanding 637,000 chips, expectations are high for today's flight to bring even more fireworks. The leaderboard is already stacked with top talent, and today's runners will be looking to outdraw the current leaders to earn their own spot near the top of the counts.
Current Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Azamat Tulepbergenov | Kazakhstan | 637,000 |
| 2 | Adlan Vikayev | Kazakhstan | 472,000 |
| 3 | Arian Kashani | Iran | 421,500 |
| 4 | Nikolay Ponomarev | Russia | 371,000 |
| 5 | Robbie Schiffbauer | United States | 340,000 |
| 6 | Mario Fata | France | 336,500 |
| 7 | Kianoosh Matin | Iran | 326,000 |
| 8 | Andrey Golubev | Russia | 310,500 |
| 9 | Danielle Noja | Lebanon | 251,500 |
| 10 | Tom Verbruggen | Netherlands | 230,500 |
Familiar faces and new challengers alike will saddle up for Day 1b, but they'll need both patience and precision to make it through this critical stage of the tournament. With two more starting flights — including a turbo Day 1d — still to come, there are plenty of opportunities to build a stack, but the time to strike is now.
There’s still oodles of time for players to join the action, with late registration open until the end of Level 15. But only those who can outmaneuver the competition will have a shot at riding into Day 2 with a chip stack big enough to make a deep run in this massive guaranteed event.
Remaining Schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 15 | Day 1b | 12:00 pm | 40 minutes |
| January 15 | Day 1c | 9:00 pm | 25 minutes |
| January 16 | Day 1d | 10:00 am | 15 minutes |
| January 16 | Day 2 | 12:30 pm | 40 minutes |
| January 17 | Day 3 | 12:00 pm | 40 minutes |
| January 18 | Day 4 | 12:00 pm | 40 minutes |
For those who can’t make it into Day 1b, the faster-paced Day 1c kicks off at 9 p.m., featuring a 25-minute blind structure. The final chance to enter the Warm Up will be tomorrow morning with Day 1d, a turbo flight starting at 10 a.m. that wraps up just before Day 2 gets underway.
Stay tuned to PokerNews to find out who will emerge from today's flight as the series continues to heat up!
Level: 1
Blinds: 200/500
Ante: 500
Level 1
: Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
Day 1b of the $2,200 Warm Up is underway!
Level 1
: Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
100,000 | |
|
||
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
Level 1
: Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
There were already around 35,000 chips in the middle on a full board 2♣6♠9♦8♠A♣ when Charbel Daou fired a small bet of 5,500. Anton Danilov had the decision and after thinking for a while, he flicked in the call.
Daou then showed A♦2♦ for two pair, and Danilov mucked.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
120,000
120,000
|
120,000 |
|
80,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
Level 1
: Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
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Level 1
: Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
With around 12,000 chips in the middle on a board of J♣4♥7♣7♦, Aibek Kozhomzharov had 3,000 chips in front of him from the button and Daniel Wong had made it 11,000 out of the big blind. Berzan Temiz called from the hijack, and Kozhomzharov made the call.
A J♦ on the river double-paired the board and all three players tapped the table where Wong showed 9♣6♣ for a busted flush draw. Temiz flipped 9♦9♠ for a pair of nines, but Kozhomzharov had the winner holding A♥7♥ for a full house.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
125,000
125,000
|
125,000 |
|
80,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
|
80,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
Level: 2
Blinds: 300/600
Ante: 600
Level 2
: Blinds 300/600, 600 ante
With around 20,000 chips in the middle on a board of 6♠9♣9♠3♦, Gerard Carbo Santamaria fired out 13,400 from the big blind and Adam Wagner called in the hijack.
A 6♥ on the river put two pair on board, which drew a check out of Santamaria. Wagner then thought for some time before he threw out 10,100, which sent Santamaria into the tank. After mulling it over for a while, Santamaria elected to call.
Wagner quickly tabled 8♠8♣, but Santamaria flipped 10♣10♦ for a bigger pair to take down the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
130,000 | |
|
|
65,000
35,000
|
35,000 |
