Today the 326 surviving players from the starting flights in the PokerStars Festival Bucharest Main Event will return at 1 p.m. local time to continue their quest to take down the title and prize money.
The blinds will start at 800/1,600 with a running ante of 200. The overall chipleader is Stefan Fabian, who bagged up 279,400 at the end of Day 1b. Joining him will be Day 1a chipleader Tamas Kabatnic (236,300) and Day 1c chipleader Okan Gursan (127,500).
Levels today will be extended to 60 minutes for the remainder of the tournament. The payout and Day 2 seating will be announced on Friday before the start of Day 2.
Level
Small Blind
Big Blind
Ante
11
800
1,600
200
12
1,000
2,000
300
Break
13
1,200
2,400
400
14
1,500
3,000
500
Break
15
2,000
4,000
500
16
2,500
5,000
500
Break
17
3,000
6,000
1,000
18
4,000
8,000
1,000
Join PokerNews on Friday from 1 p.m. local time to follow the live updates and catch up with all the excitement from the JW Marriot Grand Hotel as we get closer to crowning the latest PokerStars Festival champion. At 8 p.m. local time, the €2,200 High Roller will start, which will also be covered by the PokerNews team on the floor.
A player opened from under the gun and it folded to overall chipleader Stefan Fabian in the cutoff. With some short stacks in late position Fabian, who started the day with over 150 big blinds, three-bet to 9,000. The blinds folded and after some consideration, so did the initial raiser.
Fabian's table is the next to break, so perhaps is looking to exert the pressure early on before being faced with a new table full of unknowns.
There was an almighty commotion at Table 4 and we headed over to find Ersoy Cagdas raking in a massive pot early in the second level of the day.
After he had finished stacking his chips (and it took some time!) he told us about what had happened.
A player had opened to 4,000 from early position and Cagdas called in the cutoff. The button called and Ciprian Paunescu three-bet to 15,000 from the small blind. The three other players in the hand called and they saw a flop.
Paunescu bet 30,000 on a flop of and Cagdas was the only caller.
The turn was the . This time Paunescu checked and Cagdas moved all in for 36,500, covering his opponent. Paunescu called.
Paunescu:
Cagdas:
Both players had turned full houses, with Paunecu's being higher. However, the river was the card that had caused such a ruckus, as it came the giving Cagdas quad jacks and leaving Paunescu short.
"How can I win tournaments, when I run like this!" exclaimed Paunescu, who immediately took a short break away from the table, perhaps to cool off after such a cooler.
Andreas Klatt, who enjoyed a stellar PokerStars Championship in Monte Carlo earlier this year, has been eliminated. We didn't manage to get the hand, but Klatt came into the day with 60,300 and his seat is now empty.
In Monte Carlo he won the PokerStars National Championship and then followed that up days later with a second place in the Main Event for a combined cash worth over €550,000. He also took down the MonteDam Swing leaderboard and a whole host of other prizes.
Lukasz Kubicki came into the day with a chipstack of just under 300,000, but he eliminated a player to boost his stack up over that mark.
According to him he raised suited from under the gun and another player three-bet him. Kubicki called.
The flop came rainbow, giving Kubicki a straight. His opponent continued and Kubicki just called. His opponent moved all in on the turn and Kubicki called.
His opponent ended up having Aces and was drawing dead. Kubicki added his opponent's chips to his stack and now sits with around 350,000.
Pictured on the left is Romania's Alexandry Anghel, who on Thursday night here at the JW Marriott Hotel in Bucharest took down the €170 MegaStack event for €15,440.
Was it through magic that he won it? And was it through magic that he somehow managed to make his spadie trophy hover in mid air as he posed for his winner's photo?
Find out more about the "magical" winner over on the PokerStars Blog.
Daniel Nietrzebka, who has had a stack well in excess of 400,000 since before the break, opened to 9,000 from early position and Andrei Taranu called in the next position.
The pair saw a flop of and Nietrzebka check-called a bet of 12,000. The turn was the and Nietrzebka checked again. Taranu bet 28,000 and Nietrzebka called.
The river was another three, the and Nietrzebka checked for a third time. Taranu bet 50,000 and after some consideration, Nietrzebka folded.
Big hands are part of tournament poker. In fact we see them day in day out. We're used to them. We're numb to the bad-beat. I mean, it helps that we don't have to be at the receiving end of them... but still, we've seen it all over the years.
But every once in a while, it's worth sharing a particularly brutal one to remind you that it's not just you who's always at the receiving end of them.
Find out here which hand the PokerStars Blog, in its infinite wisdom, has picked as the Hand of the Day from Day 2 of the PokerStars Festival Bucharest Main Event.
Paul Ciaca (l) can't bear to watch as Petre Ionescu (receiving massage) is all in
After half a dozen hands of hand-for-hand play, with two shortstacks doubling up, it folded to Paul Ciaca on the button who moved all in, covering both the small blind and the big blind.
The small blind folded but Petre Bogdan Ionescu called for his last 130,000. When the action at all other tables had finished the cards were turned over.
Ionescu:
Ciaca:
The flop came giving Ciaca the lead and meaning that Ionescu would require either an Ace or King to stay alive. The turn was the meaning that Ionescu now looked destined for survival.
As the gathered crowd shouted for sevens and eights, the dealer burned and dealt the on the river. Ionescu was eliminated with all remaining players guaranteed €1,770.
and both players checked. The turn was the 
and Gursan bet 12,000. Voinea called.
and this time Gursan checked. Voinea bet 29,000. Gursan quickly called but mucked when his opponent showed 
for top pair top kicker.
and Cagdas was the only caller.
. This time Paunescu checked and Cagdas moved all in for 36,500, covering his opponent. Paunescu called.
suited from under the gun and another player three-bet him. Kubicki called.
rainbow, giving Kubicki a straight. His opponent continued and Kubicki just called. His opponent moved all in on the 
turn and Kubicki called.
and Nietrzebka check-called a bet of 12,000. The turn was the 
and Nietrzebka checked again. Taranu bet 28,000 and Nietrzebka called.
and Nietrzebka checked for a third time. Taranu bet 50,000 and after some consideration, Nietrzebka folded.
giving Ciaca the lead and meaning that Ionescu would require either an Ace or King to stay alive. The turn was the 