€1,650 Main Event Day 1cd | 2026 Merit Poker Montenegro Championship

Jan 21, 2026

Gerwig is Freerolling

Tim Baker

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

Three ways to a flop of 10♦7♥9♦ where Tim Gerwig checked from under the gun and Bogdan Jontulovic fired out a bet of 6,500 from middle position. Mutulu Eren called on the button, and Gerwig also came along with a call.

Gerwig led out for 12,300 on the 6♥ turn and was met by a raise to 40,000 from Jontulovic. Eren folded before Gerwig jammed for around 100,000. Jontulovic called with a little fewer chips and the cards were revealed.

Bogdan Jontulovic: 8♣8♠ All in
Tim Gerwig: 9♥8♥

Both players showed the same ten-high straight, but Gerwig was freerolling with his flush draw.

A blank arrived on the river, so Jontulovic and Gerwig chopped up the pot.

Tags: Bogdan Jontulovic Tim Gerwig

Jan 21, 2026

Filipovic Doubles Through Baitsou

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Tim Baker

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

With around 10,000 in the pot on a flop of 5♦9♠8♦ and after some betting and raising, Dragan Filipovic's remaining 54,800 got into the middle from the big blind, with Dzmitry Baitsou making the call out of the cutoff.

Dragan Filipovic: J♦7♥ All in
Dzmitry Baitsou: 9♥9♣

Baitsou was ahead with top set, but Filipovic had a straight draw with two cards to come.

Filipovic took the lead on the 6♦ turn by improving to a straight. Baitsou couldn't fill up on the 2♦ river as Filipovic improved further to a jack-high flush, and he doubled up.

Tags: Dragan Filipovic Dzmitry Baitsou

Jan 21, 2026

Selected Chip Counts

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Tim Baker

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

Level: 4

Blinds: 500/1,000

Ante: 1,000

Jan 21, 2026

First Break

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Tim Baker

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

The players are now on their first 15-minute break of the day.

Jan 21, 2026

Flashback: Nicolas Chouity Reigns In the Sweet Life of La Notte Degli Assi

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Tim Baker

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

After thirteen days of poker under the Mediterranean sun, the 2025 Merit Poker Dolce Vita Series crowned its final champion. Nicolas Chouity conquered a record-setting 1,023-entry field in the $3,300 La Notte Degli Assi, claiming the title, the trophy, and a career-boosting $460,000 payday inside the luxurious Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino.

The event generated a massive $2,823,480 prize pool, making it the largest Merit Poker tournament of 2025 in terms of both field size and prize pool.

Chouity began the final table as chip leader and never looked back, navigating a stacked lineup with experience, composure, and a little bit of luck. In the end, he overcame Hungary’s Richard Broda in a tough and tactical heads-up battle, marking a powerful return to the spotlight for one of Lebanon’s most accomplished players.

2025 La Notte Degli Assi Final Table Results

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Nicolas Chouity	Lebanon	$460,000
2	Richard Broda	Hungary	$307,000
3	"Ma"	France	$215,000
4	Mehmet Deniz	Turkey	$156,000
5	Aleksandr Razinkov	Russia	$115,000
6	Tommy G	San Marino	$95,000
7	Nebi Baysal	Turkey	$77,500
8	Viacheslav Balaev	Russia	$61,500
9	Adil Tlimisov	Russia	$46,280

Read the Full Recap Here

Jan 21, 2026

Kulyk Takes From Ercan

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Tim Baker

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

Mustafa Ercan raised from the hijack with Chan Abdurrezzak calling on the button and Artem Kulyk defending his big blind.

Kulyk led out for 2,200 on the 9♦8♠3♣ flop. Ercan and Abdurrezzak called.

A 3♥ came on the turn and all three players checked.

Kulyk led out for 5,500 on the J♦ river, and this time only Ercan called.

Kuly showed a rivered straight with 10♠7♠ and Ercan was forced to muck his cards.

Tags: Artem Kulyk Chan Abdurrezzak Mustafa Ercan

Jan 21, 2026

Jakovljevic Gains Some Chips With Top Pair

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Tim Baker

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

Javier Elorza checked first from the big blind on a flop of 8♠5♦J♣ and Giulio Gallo checked from under the gun. Velibor Jakovljevic bet 4,000 from the next seat and only Elorza called.

Elorza check-called another bet from Jakovljevic on the 3♠ turn, this time for 7,000.

The 2♦ river checked through and Jakovljevic took down the pot with J♦10♥ for a pair of jacks.

Tags: Giulio Gallo Javier Elorza Velibor Jakovljevic

Jan 21, 2026

Add PokerNews to Your Mobile Home Screen

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Tim Baker

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

The PokerNews desktop and mobile browser websites are as feature-rich as ever, so our tech gurus have decided to call time on the PokerNews mobile app.

Don't fret if you spend your time reading PokerNews articles and live tournament updates from your mobile device because adding PokerNews to your Android or iOS-powered device is simple. Doing so enables you to continue enjoying PokerNews in its glory, including seeing badges, using emojis, browsing famously easy-to-navigate pages, and getting closer to the action with MyStack.

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Level: 3

Blinds: 400/800

Ante: 800