button in SafariTwo Flights Down, Two to Go in the $5,500 Merit Poker Main Event
Another busy day awaits inside the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa as the penultimate starting flight of the $5,500 Merit Poker Main Event plays out at the Merit Poker Noir Series from 12 p.m. local time. With two starting flights now done, the tournament has already attracted 444 entries, as players continue their quest for a share of the $3,000,000 guaranteed prize pool.
So far, 66 players have punched their tickets to Day 2, while plenty of familiar names have already begun to emerge near the top of the leaderboard. The man leading for the moment is the Russian Federation's Dmitrii Nazarov, who bagged a huge 2,025,000 after bursting the bubble to top the Day 1b field. Nazarov is closely followed by Aren Bezhanyan, who finished the same flight with 1,945,000.
Current Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dmitrii Nazarov | Russian Federation | 2,025,000 |
| 2 | Aren Bezhanyan | Armenia | 1,945,000 |
| 3 | Timur Margolin | Israel | 1,760,000 |
| 4 | Joris Ruijs | Netherlands | 1,560,000 |
| 5 | Jay O'leary | United Kingdom | 1,525,000 |
| 6 | Alexander Sokolovsky | Serbia | 1,500,000 |
| 7 | Dmitrii Kravchenko | Ukraine | 1,495,000 |
| 8 | Gilles Simon | Netherlands | 1,490,000 |
| 9 | Or Suliman | Israel | 1,360,000 |
| 10 | Merijn van Rooij | Netherlands | 1,355,000 |
Day 1a chip leader Timur Margolin (1,760,000) currently occupies the final place on the podium, while Joris Ruijs (1,560,000), Jay O'Leary (1,525,000), Alexander Sokolovsky (1,500,000), and Dmitrii Kravchenko (1,495,000) all have big stacks. Rounding out the current top ten are Gilles Simon (1,490,000), Or Suliman (1,360,000), and Merijn van Rooij (1,355,000).
Players in Day 1c will begin with a starting stack of 100,000 and play 30-minute levels, with those fortunate enough to survive booking their places in Day 2 and locking up a min-cash in the process. For everyone else, there will still be one final opportunity to join them, as the turbo Day 1d flight gets underway later this evening at 6 p.m. with levels reduced to 25 minutes.
Remaining Main Event Schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 4 | Day 1c | 12 p.m. | 30 minutes |
| August 4 | Day 1d | 6 p.m. | 25 minutes |
| August 5 | Day 2 | 12 p.m. | 60 minutes |
| August 6 | Final Day | 12 p.m. | 60 minutes |
Never Miss a Moment with MyPlayers on PokerNews
Stay closer than ever to the action with MyPlayers. This brand new, free feature on PokerNews puts your favorite poker players front and center. Whether you're keeping tabs on poker's biggest stars or following a friend grinding their way through a Day 2, MyPlayers delivers real-time updates tailored just for you.
No subscriptions, no paywalls, just the hands, chip counts, and bustouts that matter most. It’s simple: log in, search for any player in our live coverage, hit the star, and they’ll be added to your personalized MyPlayers list. You’ll see their progress across all live-reported events, with chip counts and updates pinned right where you need them at the top.
From railbirds to backers, MyPlayers is the smarter way to stay connected to the game.
PokerNews will continue to provide live coverage from the Merit Poker Noir Series, bringing you all the latest updates as the $5,500 Main Event continues to unfold.