button in SafariGus Hansen Bags a Million-Chip Stack After Day 1b of Estoril Poker Fest Main Event
While it took much longer than expected for the bubble to burst, Day 1b of the Estoril Poker Fest Main Event finally came to an end at Casino Estoril with 98 remaining players out of a field of 594 entries, more than double the number recorded on Day 1a. This brings the overall total to 878 entries ahead of Day 1c and Day 1d this Friday.
To find the chip leader, all eyes were initially on Andre Luis, who applied maximum pressure on the bubble. However, he doubled up Charles Pauly (97,000) several times and eventually ended the day with 905,000.
Yoann Surreau (573,000) also held a big stack during the final levels, but he found Gus Hansen on his way. "The Great Dan" hit a straight among other hands against Surreau and eventually surpassed him to bag the overall chip lead with 1,063,000.
The Winamax Team Pro is followed by Dylan Patanchon (970,000), an Expresso specialist who admitted he was “not used to playing this deep” but who embraced his role as chip leader throughout the end of the day.
Cedric Frantz (884,000) and Luis Paco complete the top five, with Paco bursting the bubble with pocket aces before bagging 857,000.
Day 1b Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gus Hansen | Denmark | 1,063,000 | 133 |
| 2 | Dylan Patanchon | France | 970,000 | 121 |
| 3 | Andre Luis | Portugal | 905,000 | 113 |
| 4 | Cedric Frantz | France | 884,000 | 111 |
| 5 | Luis Paco | Portugal | 857,000 | 107 |
| 6 | Felix Magneron | France | 705,000 | 88 |
| 7 | Omar Lakhdari | Algeria | 678,000 | 85 |
| 8 | Pedro Costa | Portugal | 615,000 | 77 |
| 9 | Yoann Surreau | France | 573,000 | 72 |
| 10 | Deividas Butnoras | Lithuania | 572,000 | 72 |
Alongside Hansen, his teammates Bruno Lopes (286,000), Romain Lewis (266,000), Pierre Calamusa (185,000), and Davidi Kitai (86,000) also advanced to Day 2 through Day 1b. That means only Leo Margets and local hero Joao Vieira will have to take another shot tomorrow after being eliminated today.
After finishing as the bubble boy on Day 1a, Omar Lakhdari came into Day 1b with an all-or-nothing approach. This time, it paid off, as he bagged 678,000 and remains in contention for yet another title after winning a €600 Main Event for €50,000 in France just a few weeks ago.
Marine Khamvongsa doubled up on the bubble with ace-queen before finishing with 468,000. Mikael Ifergan also found a crucial double-up with aces before the dinner break and bagged 459,000.
Other notable players advancing include Nolan Madene (193,000), Valentin Francois (115,000), Matthieu Rodriguez (36,000), and Lucia Martinez (67,000), while Julie Devin and Jose Ribeiro ended the day as the two shortest stacks with 26,000 each.
The Main Event continues this Friday, May 15, at noon local time with Day 1c, featuring 30-minute levels. It will be followed by the Day 1d Turbo at 7 p.m. local time with 15-minute levels. These two flights will be the final ones of the tournament before Saturday’s Day 2.
Once again today, the PokerNews live reporting team will be on the floor in Estoril to follow all the action!