$2,200 Warm Up
Day 2 Started
2025 Merit Poker Western Series
$2,200 Warm Up
Day: 2
Event Info
2025 Merit Poker Western Series
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$921,840
Entries
501
Level
35
Blinds
250,000 / 500,000
Ante
500,000
Entries
375
Players Left
38
Players Left 1 / 501
Filter
(1)
The 2025 Merit Poker Western Series rides into Day 2 of the $2,200 Warm Up today at 12:30 p.m., with the survivors from all four starting flights finally merging for the first time inside the Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino.
Leading the charge is Luke Marsh, who stormed through Day 1b to bag an impressive 971,500 chips — around quadruple the average stack. Marsh will be looking to maintain his position at the top of the counts as the tournament heats up and the $1,000,000 guarantee gets closer to being smashed.
While Day 2 is set to kick off, there’s still action on the horizon with Day 1d — a fast-paced turbo flight — currently underway. Late registration remains open until the end of Level 15, so there’s still time for new players to throw their hats into the ring and for short stacks to take one last shot at glory.
Current Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luke Marsh | United Kingdom | 971,500 | 389 |
| 2 | Ashraf Akeh | Canada | 718,500 | 287 |
| 3 | Azamat Tulepbergenov | Kazakhstan | 637,000 | 255 |
| 4 | Edward Quinn | United Kingdom | 575,000 | 230 |
| 5 | Adlan Vikayev | Kazakhstan | 472,000 | 189 |
| 6 | Soraya Estrada | Spain | 440,000 | 176 |
| 7 | Danut Chisu | Romania | 430,000 | 172 |
| 8 | Arian Kashani | Iran | 421,500 | 169 |
| 9 | Dmitry Gromov | Russia | 420,500 | 168 |
| 10 | Tulica Iani | Romania | 414,500 | 166 |
Players starting Day 2 will face 40-minute blind levels, and with a field now surpassing 300 entries, today promises to deliver high-stakes drama as the race for the $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool continues. By the end of the day, the field will thin considerably, leaving only the strongest and savviest contenders to fight on for a shot at the title.
Remaining Schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for all the live updates as Day 2 gets underway, and the Warm Up showdown rolls toward an exciting finish!
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
Very early on, Edgar Yamin got his stack of around 30,000 into the middle and was put at risk by Antoine Hasbani.
Edgar Yamin: A♥2♦ 
Antoine Hasbani: 4♦4♥
Yamin didn't seem confident and was already on his feet as the 5♦6♥10♣ flop was fanned across the table. More headway was made towards the exit on the K♥ turn, and Yamin didn't even stick around to see the J♣ drop on the river.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
115,000
32,000
|
32,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Fabio Peluso raised to 6,000 from early position with Philip Joyce and Stojan Vazic calling out of the blinds.
The flop of J♥5♦2♦ was checked to Peluso and he put out a bet of 7,000, which only Joyce called out of the small blind.
The 10♦ on the turn checked through for the 4♥ to fall on the river. Joyce led out for 9,500 and Peluso quickly called.
Joyce flipped over A♦10♣ for a pair of tens and was second best to the K♣J♦ of Peluso for top pair.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
250,000
10,000
|
10,000 |
|
205,000
10,500
|
10,500 |
|
||
|
165,000
32,500
|
32,500 |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Joseph Sabe made it 8,000 to go from the small blind and Damir Gabdullin called in the big blind.
They went to a flop of A♠4♥J♥ where Sabe continued fora bet of 5,000, and Gabdullin called to see a K♦ drop on the turn. Again, Sabe fired 5,000, and Gabdullin then raised to 17,000. After a while, Sabe called.
A 9♦ completed the runout and after Sabe checked, Gabdullin shoved, and Sabe quickly called for the remainder of his stack.
Sabe showed he had rivered two pair with A♥9♣, and Gabdullin's hand was quickly mucked.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
200,000
103,000
|
103,000 |
|
105,000
59,000
|
59,000 |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Nikolay Fal had raised preflop and Danielle Noja defended out of the big blind.
Noja checked to Fal on the A♠2♦4♦ flop and Fal put out a continuation-bet of 3,500, which Noja called.
The Q♣ hit the turn and Noja checked again. Fal bet 14,500 with roughly 25,000 behind and was met by a check-shove from Noja. Fal snap-folded and Noja showed he had the goods with 5♥3♥ for the flopped nuts.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
290,000
38,500
|
38,500 |
|
|
25,000
11,500
|
11,500 |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
On a full board of 3♥2♠3♦6♥9♦, there were around 150,000 chips in the pot when Edward Quinn moved all in from the small blind, which gave Andrei Spataru a decision for his stack of just less than 200,000.
After thinking it over for quite some time, Spataru elected to muck, and Quinn returned his cards to the dealer at lightning speed as he raked in the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
650,000
75,000
|
75,000 |
|
190,000
82,000
|
82,000 |
Level 11
: Blinds 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Walter Treccarichi opened to 8,000 from the hijack with only Omer Nemutlu calling out of the big blind.
The flop came down K♦9♠2♠ and Nemutlu check-called a bet of 7,000 from Treccarichi.
The two players checked upon seeing the 9♥ turn and the 5♠ came on the river. Nemutlu led out for 37,000 and this forced a quick fold from Treccarichi.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
200,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
|
150,000
9,500
|
9,500 |
