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€880 Merit Poker Cup
Day 1a Completed
2026 Merit Poker Montenegro Championship
€880 Merit Poker Cup
Day: 1a
Event Info
2026 Merit Poker Montenegro Championship
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1a
Buy-in
€880
Prize Pool
€305,440
Total Entries
415
Level
28
Blinds
60,000 / 120,000
Ante
120,000
Entries
115
Players Left
17
Players Left 1 / 415
Filter
Level 15
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
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 Graeser’s shove with the nut flush draw on a heart-heavy flop. Graeser 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.
Level 15
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
718,000
193,000
|
193,000 |
|
||
|
691,000 | |
|
241,000
1,000
|
1,000 |
|
232,000
28,000
|
28,000 |
|
224,000 | |
|
||
|
220,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
162,000
58,000
|
58,000 |
|
153,000
17,000
|
17,000 |
|
138,000
62,000
|
62,000 |
|
118,000
102,000
|
102,000 |
|
115,000
65,000
|
65,000 |
|
99,000
9,000
|
9,000 |
|
89,000
111,000
|
111,000 |
|
68,000
272,000
|
272,000 |
|
66,000
6,000
|
6,000 |
|
63,000
7,000
|
7,000 |
|
54,000
16,000
|
16,000 |
Level 15
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
With 17 players remaining in Day 1a, the flight has come to an end.
Stay tuned for the chip counts and a recap of the day's action.
Level 15
: Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Jean-Baptiste Pano opened the hijack to 10,000 and Fabrizio Lo Carbo called in the cutoff. Bobby James called from the button. and Adam Graeser also came along from the big blind.
On the 5♥3♥6♠ flop, it checked to James, who led for 35,000. Graeser then ripped in his stack of around 160,000, and when it got back to James, he called.
Graeser exposed his cards but was told to quickly turn them back over, but as he was doing so, he heard the bad news from James.
"You have a problem with your hand," were the words of James to Graeser.
Adam Graeser: Q♥4♥ 
Bobby James: A♥7♥
Graeser did indeed have a problem with his hand, and it got worse for him when the 4♦ turn gave James a straight. Only a seven could keep Graeser alive, but instead the 3♦ rolled off, ending his run and bringing Day 1a to an end.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
691,000
231,000
|
231,000 |
|
Busted |
Level: 15
Blinds: 2,000/5,000
Ante: 5,000
Level 14
: Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
With around 30,000 in the pot on a 2♣9♦4♥ flop, Bobby James checked the big blind and then called a bet of 17,000 from Adam Graeser, who was in the hijack.
Both tapped the table when the 2♠ hit the turn, and James led for 34,000 on the 3♥ river. Graeser thought for around a minute before he eventually let it go.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
460,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
|
170,000
170,000
|
170,000 |
Level 14
: Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
525,000
165,000
|
165,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
400,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
|
|
260,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
|
240,000 | |
Level 14
: Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
With the field just one elimination away from the money, they are now hand-for-hand.
Level 14
: Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
Genrik Alekian had his stack of 38,000 in preflop, and was called by Bobby James and Adam Grueser.
James bet the 8♠4♠5♣ flop, and Grueser quickly folded.
Genrik Alekian: A♠Q♣
Bobby James: K♠9♠
Alekian was ahead, but needed to fade a lot of outs. The K♦ turn wasn't a card he wanted to see as James made top pair, which left Alekian with just a few outs. An 8♥ on the river was no help to him, and Alekian was out in 19th.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
350,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
Busted |
