In a battle of players from Romania, Cosmin Balan was the player at risk for 33,500 and up against Nicolae Hotoleanu.
Cosmin Balan: 
Nicolae Hotoleanu: 
The pair held and made a straight on the 
board for Balan to double with his short stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
180,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
70,000
70,000
|
70,000 |
Finland's Joni Liimatta pushed all-in with the superior stack out of the small blind and
Serdar Demircan called all-in for the 23,500 he had left behind.
Serdar Demircan: 
Joni Liimatta: 
"Just let me win one all-in please," Demircan bemoaned his previous run-bad at the table. The wish was granted thanks to the 
board as he stuck around with a double.
"Hey Oliver, I finally won an all-in," he joked as Oliver Said walked over to see what had happened.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
190,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
||
|
50,000
7,000
|
7,000 |
|
40,000
28,000
|
28,000 |
Dylan Kirstein and Alexis Longhe had already battled back and forth on their previous table. They were then moved and ended up next to each other on the new table, once more tangling on numerous occasions.
The latest hand brought them to the 
river. With 24,000 in the middle, Kirstein bet 5,000 and Longhe raised to 15,000. Serdar Demircan was about to call the clock on Kirstein, who then folded that very second.
Longhe tabled his 
for just a pair of nines to further increase his stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
180,000
28,000
|
28,000 |
|
145,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
The pace of eliminations has certainly slowed down in the last level of the night as there are still 51 hopefuls in contention.
Among them are Rene Kuhlman and Robin Valting, who can be found over on table one. On a 
river, Kuhlman bet 5,000 and Valting called with very brief hesitation. Kuhlman tabled the 
for the second pair but Valting had the best of it with 
for the top pair.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
110,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
75,000
20,000
|
20,000 |
Serdar Demircan defended the big blind and then got it in for 35,000 with 
for two pair on the flop. Alexis Longhe looked him up with the 
to instantly find some outs on the turn. However, the river ensured another double for Demircan and he told the good news to Oliver Said one table over.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
140,000
40,000
|
40,000 |
|
|
80,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
Only 50 players remain as Day 1b is drawing to an end. Simultaneously, Day 1c is already in the final five hands of the night with some 39 players out of 87 entries in contention.
One of the very late all-in showdowns on Day 1c included a three-way contest between Zsolt Kocsis, Emilien Pitavy and Simon Wilson.
Zsolt Kocsis:
Emilien Pitavy: 
Simon Wilson: 
Board: 
Kocsis was eliminated while Pitavy doubled through Wilson for 35,000. One table over, Romain Nardin also departed as well just shy of reaching Day 2.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
90,000
90,000
|
90,000 |
|
60,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted | |
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted | |
|
Busted | |
|
Busted |
The last 50 contenders in the Day 1b field will aim to complete the last five hands of the night without any drama. A new big stack has emerged in Oliver Said, while John Hunter on his direct left has been missing. It is even possible that Said may claim the overall lead for Day 2 as he boasts a very nice wall of chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
250,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
|
||
During the final hands of the night, Andrew Dickinson was all-in for 56,000 with the . Henrik Juncker looked him up with the and fell behind after the 
flop. The 
turn changed nothing and the river only improved Dickinson to the nut flush.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
120,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
85,000
48,000
|
48,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Darren Nolan and Joni Liimatta were the final two casualties on Day 1b with the latter falling in the very last hand of the night.
Liimatta defended the big blind against a cutoff raise by Dylan Kirstein and check-called a bet on the flop. He then did so again for 8,000 on the 
turn to leave himself with around 33,000 behind.
Liimatta checked the 
river and that's when Kirstein pushed forward a stack of T-5,000 chips worth more than 60,000. The Finn tank-called all-in with the and Kirstein had him pipped by one notch with the 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
180,500
35,500
|
35,500 |
|
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted |
The last two starting days concluded at nearly the same time with 47 and 39 survivors respectively. Out of a total field of 359 entries, only 119 hopefuls will return for Day 2 at 12 pm noon local time on Saturday, October 1, 2022.
All chip counts, a recap of today's action and the seat draw for the penultimate tournament day are to follow.
