2017 WSOP International Circuit Marrakech

Main Event
Day: 1b
Event Info

2017 WSOP International Circuit Marrakech

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
aj
Prize
1,400,000 MAD
Event Info
Buy-in
1,350 MAD
Prize Pool
6,668,500 MAD
Entries
511
Level Info
Level
30
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
10,000

Carré Out Of Nowhere Saves Saboor

Level 11 : 600/1,200, 200 ante

Down to his last 7,600 in chips, Fidaly Saboor shoved all in from under the gun. Leonard Kensmil called to his left, as did Karim Benamrouche behind him.

In middle position, Sergio Da Silva had different plans and he shoved all in as well. It was 40,000 total, which proved too much to call for Kensmil and Benamrouche.

Fidaly Saboor: {9-Hearts}{9-Spades}
Sergio Da Silva: {A-Diamonds}{7-Diamonds}

Saboor was in great shape to quadruple up, but went aghast when the dealer flipped the {A-Hearts} in the window. The flop got completed with the {7-Clubs} and {6-Hearts}, leaving Saboor drawing to the two remaining nines.

"Oooooh", yelled Saboor upon seeing the {9-Hearts} turn, shaking with joy. The {9-Spades} on the river made his eyes lit up even more.

"Carré!", he gasped, as he pumped his fists in excitement. With all the dead money involved, Saboor is suddenly back to a healthy stack.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Fidaly Saboor fr
Fidaly Saboor
35,000
35,000
35,000
Profile photo of Sergio Da Silva pt
Sergio Da Silva
32,000
-33,000
-33,000

Tags: Fidaly SaboorSergio Da Silva

Counts

Level 11 : 600/1,200, 200 ante

While we were writing up the last post, Alexandre Viard went on a rampage and ran his stack up to a whopping 355,000. He is currently the overall chipleader as we head into the last level of the day.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Alexandre Viard fr
Alexandre Viard
355,000
355,000
355,000
Profile photo of Reda Berbibah fr
Reda Berbibah
250,000
250,000
250,000
Profile photo of Sebastien Compte fr
Sebastien Compte
160,000
-5,000
-5,000
Profile photo of Selim Oulmekki fr
Selim Oulmekki
150,000
5,000
5,000
Profile photo of Farid Azarkan be
Farid Azarkan
150,000
150,000
150,000
Profile photo of Vincent Mansour fr
Vincent Mansour
145,000
145,000
145,000
Profile photo of Samy Salah fr
Samy Salah
120,000
120,000
120,000

Level: 12

Blinds: 800/1,600

Ante: 200

Viard Loses One

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante
Alexandre Viard
Alexandre Viard

Alexandre Viard had to surrender some of his newfound chips to Hafid Kinany. After opening to 3,500, Viard called a 21,500 shove from Kinany.

Viard held {Q-Diamonds}{J-Diamonds} but was in terrible shape against Kinany's {A-Diamonds}{A-Clubs}. The {8-Clubs}{8-Diamonds}{8-Spades} flop all but sealed it, and the {K-Clubs} secured Kinany's double. With 320,000 left, Viard is still in great shape to finish the day as the overall chipleader.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Alexandre Viard fr
Alexandre Viard
320,000
-35,000
-35,000
Profile photo of Hafid Kinany fr
Hafid Kinany
55,000
55,000
55,000

Tags: Alexandre Viard

Haziza Takes A Big Bite Out of Rizzo

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante

Denys Shafikov raised to 3,500, Frederic Rizzo called in late position and David Haziza defended his big blind. The flop {Q-Hearts}{8-Clubs}{7-Hearts} got checked to Rizzo, who bet 6,500. Only Haziza came along with the call.

On the {6-Diamonds} turn, Haziza checked, Rizzo bet 10,000 and Haziza instantly check-raised to 25,000. Rizzo gave it some brief thought before making the call.

The river was the {J-Diamonds} and Haziza bet a quick 43,000. Rizzo took almost three minutes, then put in the calling chips with a loud thump.

Haziza showed {9-Diamonds}{5-Spades} for the turned straight and a disgusted Rizzo flung his hand into the muck.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of David Haziza ma
David Haziza
240,000
240,000
240,000
Profile photo of Frederic Rizzo fr
Frederic Rizzo
120,000
120,000
120,000

Tags: David HazizaFrederic Rizzo

Clock Paused

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante

With 12 minutes remaining in the last level of the day, the clock has been paused. The last four hands will be played together before the chips will be bagged for the night.

End of Day 1b

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante

Twelve full levels have been played and Day 1b of the WSOP International Circuit Main Event is in the books as well. 105 out of 339 players have survived the second starting day. Alexandre Viard has amassed the biggest stack on Day 1b and is the overall chipleader after both starting days.

Chip counts of the big stack and an extensive recap follow shortly. All counts will be added later on.

End-of-the-Day Big Stacks and Notables

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante
Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Alexandre Viard fr
Alexandre Viard
345,000
25,000
25,000
Profile photo of Fernandez es
Fernandez
268,000
118,000
118,000
Profile photo of R. Sxias
R. Sxias
232,000
232,000
232,000
Profile photo of Reda Berbibah fr
Reda Berbibah
227,100
-22,900
-22,900
Profile photo of Selim Oulmekki fr
Selim Oulmekki
190,200
40,200
40,200
Profile photo of Roland Rozel fr
Roland Rozel
181,000
Profile photo of Sebastien Compte fr
Sebastien Compte
160,000
Profile photo of Arthur Conan fr
Arthur Conan
135,000
135,000
135,000
Profile photo of Abdelhadi Kondah ma
Abdelhadi Kondah
131,800
21,800
21,800
Profile photo of Alexandre Reard fr
Alexandre Reard
97,000
27,000
27,000
Profile photo of Camel Meriem fr
Camel Meriem
30,000
-20,000
-20,000
Profile photo of Aurelie Quelain fr
Aurelie Quelain
19,000
-21,000
-21,000

Record-Setting Day 1b in Marrakech; Alexandre Viard Claims Chip Lead

Level 12 : 800/1,600, 200 ante
Alexandre Viard
Alexandre Viard

Day 1b of the WSOP International Circuit Main Event in the Es Saadi Resort in Marrakech is in the books and set a new record. With 339 entries on Day 1b, combined with the 172 on Day 1a, a record-breaking number of 511 players took their shot at WSOP Circuit glory. Alexandre Viard bagged the Day 1b - and overall - chiplead with 345,000. 104 players survived Day 1b and will join the 49 survivors of Day 1a on Saturday for Day 2. On Sunday night, the winner will be crowned.

After two starting days, the top 5 is as follows:

#PlayerCountryChip Count
1Alexandre ViardFrance345,000
2FernandezSpain268,000
3Rodrigo StrongBrazil250,000
4Fabrice SoulierFrance241,400
5R. Sxias-232,000

Like yesterday, the day started off slowly, with dealers at many tables unable to start dealing due to an insufficient number of players. It didn't take long for the players to show up in droves, creating a densely packed poker room in Casino de Marrakech. After twelve levels of 45 minutes, 104 out of 339 found their way to the second day.

A lot of players fell on Day 1b, with Guillaume Darcourt being one of the first to go down. Darcourt, who was the chipleader after Day 1b last year, was also unsuccessful on his second bullet. Many other notables busted in the early stages as well, including Clyde Tjauw Foe, Alexandre Moreau, Gwendoline Laurent and Said El Yousfi, but every one of them rebought themselves right back in. Not every attempt was successful, but Tjauw Foe was among those to make it to Day 2. Jerome Sgorrano was the last to bust out, as he went down in the final hand of the night.

In the end, it was France's Alexandre Viard who claimed the overall chip lead. Viard went on a rampage during the last three levels, which included a takedown of high-roller Erwann Pecheux. When the dust settled, Viard was left with 345,000, enough to claim the overall lead. Spain's Fernandez sits in second with 268,000, while Reda Berbibah (227,100), Selim Oulekki (190,200) and Moroccan poker legend Abdelhadi Kondah (131,800) also had a strong showing. French soccer star Camel Meriem finished the day with 30,000 and is still in contention for the coveted gold WSOP Circuit Ring.

A total of 153 players will return for Day 2 on Saturday. Play will resume at 1 p.m. and levels will be 60 minutes. The prize pool and payouts are being finalised overnight and will be announced at the start of Day 2. The PokerNews live reporting team will be on the floor to provide start-to-finish coverage of this exciting Main Event.

Tags: Abdelhadi KondahAlexandre ViardClyde Tjauw FoeFabrice SoulierGuillaume DarcourtSaid El Yousfi