$3,300 Main Event
Day 1b Completed
2023 Merit Poker Carmen Series
$3,300 Main Event
Day: 1b
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1b
2023 Merit Poker Carmen Series
Buy-in
$3,300
Prize Pool
$2,111,400
Entries
765
Level
36
Blinds
300,000 / 600,000
Ante
600,000
Entries
218
Players Left
108
Late Night Set Over Set Propels Vitalii Pankov to the Top of the Day 1b Leaderboard at the Merit Poker Carmen Series Main Event
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
Vitalii Pankov waited until nearly the last moment to make his big jump up the leaderboard on Day 1b of the Merit Poker Carmen Series $3,300 Main Event.
In the last level of the day, Pankov eliminated Georges Hanna in a set-over-set cooler to win a more than 300,000-chip pot. That massive pot allowed Pankov to finish atop the Day 1b chip counts with 585,000.
Right behind him is Ran Koller, who was the beneficiary of his own cooler late in the night. Koller had trip aces with a king-kicker, knocking out Florian Duta who only had a nine-kicker. Koller ended up with 558,500. Other big stacks include Maxime Chilaud (522,000), Eduard Barsegian (398,500), who’s already made two final table runs so far this series, Selahaddin Bedir (386,000), and Alexandru Papazian (332,000).
Day 1b Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vitalii Pankov | 585,000 | 234 |
| 2 | Andrei Kaigorodtcev | 558,500 | 223 |
| 3 | Ran Koller | 558,500 | 223 |
| 4 | Maxime Chilaud | 522,000 | 209 |
| 5 | Toni Kaukua | 504,000 | 202 |
| 6 | Asaf Groofi | 400,000 | 160 |
| 7 | Eduard Barsegian | 398,500 | 159 |
| 8 | Selahaddin Bedir | 386,000 | 154 |
| 9 | Seref Dursun Anar | 367,000 | 147 |
| 10 | Naji Tanuri | 363,500 | 145 |
Further down the leaderboard are Mihai Niste (246,500), Warmup champion Arie Kliper (235,500), and Fahredin Mustafov (213,000). Gabi Livshitz ended the night with only 76,000 (and a lot of pain, as he wrote on his chip bag). Joining Hanna and Duta on the rail were Warmup fourth-place finisher Julien Loire, UFC veteran Terence Etim, and Jason Wheeler.
A total of 218 players joined the field on Day 1b, bringing the number of entries through two starting flights to 450. Just 108 remain, joining the 106 from yesterday’s opening flight into Day 2 on March 31. There are still two more starting flights: Day 1c tomorrow at noon local time, and a turbo Day 1d at 7 p.m. tomorrow night.
Players can also still register through the end of Level 13 on Day 2. And, with unlimited reentries allowed, the Main Event field is surely going to get more massive until registration closes.
Stay tuned as PokerNews follows the action the rest of the way here at the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino in North Cyprus.
End-of-Day Chip Counts (full)
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
585,000 | 60,000 |
|
558,500 | 58,500 |
|
558,500 | 33,500 |
|
522,000 | 292,000 |
|
504,000 | 104,000 |
|
400,000 | 50,000 |
|
398,500 | 28,500 |
|
386,000 | -4,000 |
|
367,000 | -18,000 |
|
363,500 | -21,500 |
|
359,000 | |
|
352,000 | 287,000 |
|
346,500 | |
|
344,000 | -36,000 |
|
332,000 | 17,000 |
|
332,000 | 117,000 |
|
331,000 | |
|
|
318,500 | |
|
317,000 | 87,000 |
|
313,500 | 43,500 |
|
305,000 | |
|
290,500 | 60,500 |
|
285,000 | |
|
|
281,000 | 51,000 |
|
281,000 |
Three More Hands
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
Tournament officials announced that players will see three more hands before Day 1b comes to a close and they bag up for the night.
Stefanov Sends Dziubdziela Into the Tank
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
On a board of 
, Milen Stefanov bet 50,000 from the button and Marcin Dziubdziela called in middle position, creating a pot of around 150,000 heading to the 
river.
Dziubdziela checked over to Stefanov, and he moved all in. Dziubdziela, with 93,000 remaining, tanked for several minutes before he sent his cards into the muck.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
260,000 | |
|
93,000 |
Set Over Set Spells the End For Hanna
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
Heads-up on a flop of 
, Georges Hanna bet 23,000 from under the gun, then called for his last 160,000 when big blind Vitalii Pankov put him all in.
Georges Hanna: 
Vitalii Pankov: 
Hanna had picked a good spot to get his money in, but found out the bad news when Pankov turned over a higher set. Down to one out to avoid being sent to the rail, Hanna watched as the 
and 
came on the turn and river to seal his fate.
Hanna sat stunned in his seat for a few moments before getting up to make his exit. "Did I make a mistake," he asked tablemate Boris Kolev on his way out.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
525,000 | 225,000 |
|
Busted |
Other Top Stacks in the Room
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
500,000 | 100,000 |
|
|
390,000 | 280,000 |
|
|
370,000 | -10,000 |
|
|
350,000 | -70,000 |
Koller Puts a Massive Cooler on Duta
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
With around 65,000 in the pot on a board of 
, Ran Koller bet enough from the button to put small blind Florian Duta all in.
Duta, with 65,000 remaining, tanked for a few moments before he called. Koller opened up 
for trip aces and Duta tossed his into the muck before making his exit in the last level of the night.
Koller has now eclipsed 500,000 chips and is contending for the tournament chip lead.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
525,000 | 255,000 |
|
Busted |
Farah Can't Get a Bluff Through Aksoy
Level 9
: Blinds 1,000/2,500, 2,500 ante
Tinay Aksoy three-bet to 20,000 from the cutoff and Elie Farah called in the hijack.
The flop came 
and Aksoy continued for 10,000. Farah called and both players checked the turn.
Farah led out for 19,000 on the river and Aksoy quickly called. Farah immediately mucked his hand, allowing Aksoy to take the pot without a showdown.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
380,000 | |
|
125,000 | -95,000 |
Level: 9
Blinds: 1,000/2,500
Ante: 2,500