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WPT Merit Cyprus Classic Day 3 Seat Draw3
Level 15: 1,500-3,000, 500 ante
10:26 PM, 08/06/12
Sam El Sayed Leads Day 2 of the WPT Merit Cyprus Classic
Level 15: 1,500-3,000, 500 ante
Day 2 has been banished to the annals of World Poker Tour (WPT) history and only 53 of the original starting field of 131 players are capable of winning a WPT title at the WPT Merit Cyprus Classic. Leading that salvo of salivating souls is WPT Champions Club member Sam El Sayed who bagged up 375,500 and was gob smacked when we told him he was the chip leader.
Here is a recap of the day’s events.
The day started with a rash of notable exits. The first player, of note, to be eliminated was Nicolas Chouity. Chouity falling into the trap created by the top set of Martin Finger and once again he fails to cash in a WPT event.
We then lost a WPT Champions Club member, after Michael 'The Grinder' Mizrachi made a move with Qx Tx (suited) only to be called by Arthur Voskanyan holding Ax Jx. The grinder flopped an open-ender, but the turn and river bricked to send Mizrachi to the beach with his brothers Eric and Donnie who were both eliminated on Day 1B.
There was another WPT Champions Club who was struggling early doors, and that was Sam El Sayed. He lost three consecutive pots to leave him with a stack that was 100,000 lighter than the one he started the day with. El Sayed had to grind all day and despite eliminating Gaelle Baumann in level 12 just could not find a hand. Eventually he picked up pocket queens at the same time an opponent picked up pocket jacks and he was able to move over the 300,000 barrier.
The third WPT Champions Club member worth mentioning in the early stages was the chip leader Chino Rheem. In level 12, Rheem eliminated Jonathan Labas - set over set - to increase his chip lead to 500,000. Then the Rheem table broke and he found himself seated to the aggressive Husnu Sincar. The pair squabbled to and fro before Rheem eventually bluffed away half of his chips to Sincar, in a pot he would rather forget about. Sincar leading the pack as approached level 13 while Rheem dropped down to third spot.
Giuseppe Pantaleo was one of the overnight chip leaders who had a terrible Day 2. Pantaleo getting chipped away at until he eventually moved all of his chips into the middle on a flush draw in a hand where Pete Haslam was sitting on top set. The flush did not arrive and Pantaleo was another big name out early on Day 2.
Level 13 saw the prominence of Eric Cajelais, Aubin Cazals and Manig Loeser. The latter winning a monster pot from Eddy Maksoud after Maksoud check-raise jammed on a board of Q
Q
5 2 A
with Loeser holding A T for the nut flush. All three players joining Chino Rheem as they hung onto the coat tails of our chip leader Husnu Sincar.Our penultimate level of the evening saw another WPT Champions Club member leave the competition. Tuan Le called a Eddy Maksoud three-bet holding Tx 9x and paid the price on a nine high flop. Maksoud betting for value and Le with the fatal shove into the waiting arms of Maksoud's pocket jacks.
So one American down but another American rose to the top. Robert Mizrachi rivering a flush holding 8
7 on a Ax J T 3 6 board when his opponent was willing to play for stacks. It was still a tough decision for Mizrachi but it was one that created 370,000 chips and the chip lead with just 50-minutes remaining of the day.Andrey Shatilov had a brief shot at the top spot when he moved over the 450,000 mark, but with five hands remaining Chino Rheem doubled through him A
Q v 8 8 and the chip lead race was blown wide open once more.When the bagging and tagging started we had no idea who the chip leader would be. In the end it was Sam El Sayed with 375,500 who just beat Erik Cajelais (371,500) to the top spot.
Other notables and big stacks through to Day 3 included Robert Mizrachi (365,000), Andras Nemeth (337,000), Manig Loeser (277,500), Aubin Cazals (344,500), Dominik Nitsche (127,500), Tolga Demirel (298,000), Husnu Sincar (225,500), Marko Neumann (234,000), Chino Rheem (361,000), Vyacheslav Stoyanov (356,500), Andrey Shatilay (279,000) and Oleksii Kovalchuk (166,000).
Day 3 resumes at 13:00 (local time) so please make sure you join us at WPT.com for all of the very best action.
Sorted In: Sam El Sayed, Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, Season XI
08:39 PM, 08/06/12
Chino Rheem Doubles Up Through Andrey Shatilov
Level 15: 1,500-3,000, 500 ante
Andrey Shatilov raises to 6,000, Chino Rheem three-bets to 23,000, Shatilov moves all-in and Rheem makes the call. Rheem has nose dived since peaking at 500,000 chips today and this was it, his chance to get back in the game or head to the disco.
Rheem: A Q
Shatilov: 8 8
Flop: A K 6
Nobody says anything, nobody does anything, in fact it remains remarkably calm. The turn 6 and river 3 finish off the action and an unpeturbed Shatilov moves 130,000 chips to an unpeterbured Rheem.
Rheem ~ 269,000
Shatilov ~ 315,000
08:10 PM, 08/06/12
Fox Finds a Double Up
Level 15: 1,500-3,000, 500 ante
We catch the action on the turn with the board showing Q J 3 T. Jerfi Firatlu had bet 18,000 into a 30,000 pot and 'time' has been called on Ran Azor. Azor also has Stuart Fox behind him hence we believe the delay in the action. Eventually Azor folds, Fox takes a few seconds more before announcing all-in. Firatlu makes the call and when the cards are overturned he needs a little bit of help.
Fox: A K
Firatlu: A 4
The river is the 2 and Firatlu bangs the table in anger.
"I folded king-queen," says an excited Azor.
"Yeah, yeah," says an uninterested Fox.
Fox has 160,000 while Firaltu is down to 55,000 chips.
08:06 PM, 08/06/12
The Lead Now Goes to Shatilov
Level 15: 1,500-3,000, 500 ante
Credit to Andrey Shatilov. He has spent most of the day battling with the likes of Chino Rheem and Eric Cajelais, but despite that ominous task he has a commanding 470,000 chips going into the final 30-minutes of play. Judging by the dwindling stack of Rheem it looks like a wedge of his stack have been handed to Shatilov. Rheem now down to 160,000 and falling.
07:48 PM, 08/06/12
Chip Lead For Robert Mizrachi
Level 14: 1,200-2,400, 400 ante
It's tight, but with one hour of the day left Robert Mizrachi is the chip leader with 370,000 chips. We just kindly asked him how he managed to surge in front and this is what he said.
"I raised with 8
7 and two players called. The flop was Ax J T and one player called my 9,000 bet. The turn was the 3 and he check-called a 14,000 bet. The river was the 6 and he checked to me again so I bet 24,000. He then made it around 60,000 more and I tanked for a while before making the call and he showed Ax Tx."Sorted In: Robert Mizrachi, Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, Season XI
07:18 PM, 08/06/12
Loeser Wins the Blind Battle
Level 14: 1,200-2,400, 400 ante
We catch the action on the flop in a blind battle between Aubin Cazals (SB) and Manig Loeser (BB). The flop is A
K Q and Loeser calls a 5,000 Cazals bet. The turn card is the 8 and this time it is Loeser who bets. The amount is 9,500 and Cazals makes the call. The river card is the A and Cazals check-calls a 22,000 Loeser bet. Loeser shows A 5 for trips and Cazals mucks his hand.Loeser ~ 320,000
Cazals ~ 293,000
Sorted In: Manig Loeser, Aubin Cazals, Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, Season XI
07:12 PM, 08/06/12
Big Stacks
Level 14: 1,200-2,400, 400 ante
Here are a collection of big stacks and notable stacks in the room.
Marvin Rettenmaier 200,000, Eric Cajelais, 325,000, Andrey Shatilov 320,000, Chino Rheem 205,000, Manig Loeser, 280,000, Husnu Sincar 210,000, Oleksii Kovalchuk 100,000 and the man currently leading the rest is Robert Mizrachi with 370,000 chips.
07:03 PM, 08/06/12
Eddy Maksoud Eliminates Tuan Le
Level 13: 1,000-2,000, 300 ante
Tuan Le has been eliminated and Dominik Nitsche has been kind enough to give us the details of his elimination.
Le raised from early position, Manig Loeser calls on the button and Eddy Maksoud squeezes from the blinds. Both players call and they share a flop of 9x 7x 2x. Maksoud bets, Le shoves, Loeser folds and Maksoud makes the call. It's Tx 9x for Le and Jx Jx for Maksoud and after the turn and river bricked for Le he was out.
06:46 PM, 08/06/12
Stuart Fox Cracks Aces to Eliminate Oleg Lipkin
Level 13: 1,000-2,000, 300 ante
Ran Azor raises to 5,300 in the hijack, Stuart Fox calls in the cutoff, Alexey Makarov three-bets to 15,300 on the button, Oleg Lipkin moves all-in for 52,500 in the small blind, Azo folds, Fox reshoves and Makarov - who knows better than to mess with that combination of plays - also folds.
Lipkin turns over A
A and Fox turns over K K. So it was not good news for the final British player left in this WPT event. Flop: K
T 6There are groans from all around the table as Lipkin sees his aces get cracked. The turn 4
and river 2 make no difference to the outcome which is an elimination for Lipkin and 204,000 chips for Fox.Sorted In: Stuart Fox, Oleg Lipkin, Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, Season XI
06:14 PM, 08/06/12
