Stefan Cupic and Bobby James Set the Pace in Merit Poker Cup Day 1a
Day 1a of the €880 Merit Poker Cup played out inside the Merit Royal Splendid Casino in Budva as part of the Merit Poker Montenegro Championship, drawing 115 entries for the opening flight. After a full day of action, just 17 players survived the cut, all locking up a cash and a seat into Day 2.
Stefan Cupic emerged as the chip leader after an active session, bagging 718,000 to narrowly edge out Bobby James, who closed the day with 691,000. The pair finished well clear of the rest of the field, setting themselves up as the two stacks to watch heading into Day 2.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stefan Cupic | Montenegro | 718,000 | 144 |
| 2 | Bobby James | United Kingdom | 691,000 | 138 |
| 3 | Oleg Bystrenin | Russia | 241,000 | 48 |
| 4 | Ravil Rafikov | Russia | 232,000 | 46 |
| 5 | Fausto Tantillo | Italy | 224,000 | 45 |
| 6 | Vladimir Lappo | Belarus | 220,000 | 44 |
| 7 | Jean-Baptiste Pano | France | 162,000 | 32 |
| 8 | Fabrizio Lo Carbo | Italy | 153,000 | 31 |
| 9 | Mazalahedwa Bako | United Kingdom | 138,000 | 28 |
| 10 | Xiaozhe Liu | China | 118,000 | 24 |
Much of the late-day narrative revolved around the shared table of Cupic and James, where the two were involved in several of the most entertaining pots of the day. Their dynamic set the tone as blinds climbed and the field tightened, with neither player showing much interest in slowing down.
James also stayed in the mix through a series of timely confrontations, including a blind-versus-blind agreement between himself and Cupic that saw both players move all in without looking at their cards. The gamble paid off for James when he paired his queen on the river to score a double-up.
One of the turning points for Cupic came found a double through Oleg Bystrenin, rivering trips with king-seven to crack pocket aces and swing momentum firmly in his direction. The hand helped keep Cupic alive and allowed him to navigate his way into the chip lead.
As the bubble approached, the pace slowed down across the room. Petr Rudnev eliminated Katherina Aristotelos with ace-king, while Jean-Baptiste Pano sent Paul Grummitt to the rail in a preflop clash. Fabrizio Lo Carbo also picked up a healthy pot when his pocket queens held against Rashad Iskandarov's top pair.
The bubble finally burst at the hands of James, who called off Adam Grueser’s shove with the nut flush draw on a heart-heavy flop. Grueser was drawing thin and failed to improve, ending Day 1a and confirming the 17 players who will return with chips for Day 2.
All survivors from Day 1a will return on January 17 for Day 2, where they’ll be joined by players advancing from the remaining three starting flights. Day 1b gets underway tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. local time inside the Merit Royal Splendid Casino.
Stay locked in to PokerNews for full coverage from the €880 Merit Poker Cup as the Merit Poker Montenegro Championship continues in Budva.