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* The first EPT Dublin Main Event for eight years
* 133 players so far on Day 1A
* Click here for live updates from the €25K High Roller
5pm: Loads for Litvinov
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Artem Litvinov is up to 107,000 after he eliminated Ian Simpson in a big pot. The action was started by Daniel Shapiro who raised to 400 in early position. Litvinov smooth called and Simpson then raised to 2,000 from the small blind. Both Shapiro and Litvinov called.
On the [Ac][3c][2h] flop Simpson checked, Shapiro bet 3,000 and both Litvinov and Simpson stuck around. So there was over 17,000 in the pot already by the time the [5d] fell on the turn. Action checked to Litvinov on this street, he bet 9,575 and Simpson was the only caller.
The river was the [8s] and Litvinov bet enough to set Simpson all-in (about 12,500). The latter studied Litvinov for a while and then pushed his remaining chips over the betting line. The Russian opened [5c][4c] for the flopped straight. Simpson said: "Nice hand, good game, good luck everyone," and then showed that he'd called off with pocket kings. - NW
Artem Litvinov, 107,000
Ian Simpson, 0
4:55pm: Riess chased
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Following a [5h][Ac][Qh] flop, Akin Tuna check-called a small bet from Ryan Riess. After the [2h] turn, he check-called a slightly bigger one. He checked again after the [7d] river, and watched Riess push all in this time for 10,800.
Ryan RiessTuna considered for about a minute, then called the push. Riess tabled [8c][7s] for sevens, but Tuna had [Ah][Tc] for aces and eliminated Riess. Tuna is up to 48,000 now. --MH
4:50pm: Charania busts from the High Roller seat of doom
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Remember we told you that Dario Sammartino had busted earlier? Well, a little while later Mohsin Charania joined that same table sitting in the same seat. It would be an incredibly short day for Charania however, as he has now joined Sammartino on the bust-out list.
He opened to 500 and found a caller in John Sarailis. Artem Litvinov 3-bet to 1,650, and both Charania and Sarailis made the call. The flop came [ts][jh][5h] and it was checked around to Litvinov, who put out 3,875. Now Charania raised to 9,000, forcing Sarailis out of the pot.
Litvinov thought for a minute before moving all-in, which Charania snapped holding [5s][5d]. It was the [kc][kh] which Sarailis was so enthused by throughout the hand, but now he needed to hit one of the two remaining kings. The turn was the [7c], but the [ks] hit the river and Litvinov let out a big cry of joy. "Wow. That was amazing," Charania said as he made a swift exit. Litvinov now has 83,000. --JS
4:39pm: If I hadn't folded, I'd have made a straight
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Keith Johnson found himself caught in the middle of a preflop raising war between Thomas Finneran playing from late position on his left and Namir Mohamed playing from the blinds on his right. Having committed 1,700, he chose against putting in another 5,200 and let the other two have at it.
The flop came [4s][7h][6h], and Mohamed instantly announced he was pushing all in. Finneran likewise didn't hesitate when he called, tabling [As][Ad]. Mohamed was in a bad place with [Qh][Qs], but the turn was the [3d] and the river the [5s], putting a straight on the board and allowing those two to chop up Johnson's contribution.
Finneran has about 35,000 and Mohamed 23,000, while Johnson is at 26,000. --MH
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4:25pm: From the UKIPT to the EPT
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
The UKIPT played down to a final table of eight yesterday. They've got the day off today as the winner will be determined tomorrow on the TV table.
So far Vladas Tamasauskas is the only player who's made the final who's also entered the EPT Main Event. -- NW
4:30pm: MacPhee takes one down
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Kevin MacPhee opened to 500 but was 3-bet by Irish player Seamus Cahill to 1,375. MacPhee made the call and the dealer burned and turned the [jc][7s][6d] flop. MacPhee checked and Cahill continued his aggression with a bet of 2,000, but it met a check-raise by MacPhee to 4,025. Cahill gave it up and MacPhee is up to 33,000. --JS
4:25pm: Sapiano busts to Magirius
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Keith Johnson now occupies the seat that Albert Sapiano was in. The latter was down to around 12,000 by the time he got his stack in on a jack high flop with [Js][5s]. Unfortunately for him Sven Magirius had [Kc][Jc] and Sapiano didn't hit his kicker on the turn or river. -NW
Sven Maigirius, 79,000
4:20pm: From the high roller to the main event
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
A short time ago Keith Johnson busted out of the €25,000 High Roller in sixth place, for which he won €106,330. He's immediately reinvested €5,300 of that to enter the Main Event. He's got a bad seat though as he's been drawn to the direct right of the chip leader.
News on how Sven Magirius got his stack up to 79,000 coming right up. --NW
4:15pm: Barbour gets a trim
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Natasha Barbour and hey boyfriend Jason Mercier are both spending their Valentine's Day in Day 1A of the Main Event, and although Barbour is doing fine she just took a little cut to her stack.
UK player Ian Hunter, who has a huge stack already, limped from middle position, Barbour completed from the small blind and Mike 'SirWatts' Watson checked his option. The three saw the [js][ks][ts] flop and Hunter led for 525. Barbour made the call but Watson opted to fold. The turn was the [6c] and now it was 2,200 from Hunter, but Barbour didn't go anywhere. The [7c] arrived on the river, and now Hunter's bet was 2,800. That was too much for Barbour who gave it up. She has 32,000, while Hunter is up to 72,000. --JS
4:12pm: Level 4 begins
Level 4 - Blinds 100/200 (25 ante)
Okay, everyone -- antes are in play now, so time to kick it up into a higher gear. The big board says 130 players have registered so far. --MH
4:10pm: Two more gone
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
We've had two more eliminations from the Main Event in the past few minutes - Andreas Leledakis and Padraigh Cody-Lally will have to find new plans for their Sunday evening. --JS
4:05pm: Hwang in there
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
Multi-way action leading up to a [6c][7h][Qh] then saw the table check around to Yung Hwang who fired 1,200 in the middle and only Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier called. Mercier again check-called a 2,800 bet from Hwang following the [Ks] turn. The river brought the [8h] and another check from Mercier, and Hwang was right there again with another bet, this time for 4,000.
Much riffling and thinking ensued, with Mercier ultimately letting his hand go.
They're nearing the end of the day's third level, and Mercier is sitting with just about 40,000 at present. Hwang meanwhile chips up a bit to 23,000. --MH
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4pm: Zinno and Watson enter the fray
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
When Anthony Zinno makes a final table - and he's made a few - he usually dresses for the occasion, wearing a suit, shirt and tie. Today he's far more relaxed though, he's got shorts on and a zip up chunky grey cardigan.
Mike Watson is another of the players to have joined the game in level three, the 2016 PCA Main Event champion is at the same table as Sebastian Pauli. --NW
3:55pm: No messing around from Thorel
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
A big pot just went the way of Jean-Noel Thorel and he had a big hand to boot.
The action was started by Vladas Tamasauskas, he opened to 525 and picked up five calls before Thorel three-bet to 2,400 from the big blind. Tamasauskas smooth called only for Francisco Gordillo to four-bet to 7,600. It folded back round to Thorel and he shoved all-in, that got rid of both his opponents. As he took the pot he showed [Ac][Ah]. --NW
3:50pm: Short day for Sammartino
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
After the bubbling the High Roller last night, Dario Sammartino's EPT Dublin Main Event has come to quick end. We didn't catch the hand, but we saw Sammartino leaving the tournament area with a big smile on his face. A quick chat to the players on his table and it turns out he'd run pocket jacks into the pocket aces of Artem Litvinov. We're sure we'll see more of Dario as the week goes on. --JS
3:40pm: Big scores in the Bahamas drive players to Dublin
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
Players continue to arrive as the day's second level continues. Mike "SirWatts" Watson, fresh off his Main Event victory in the 2016 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event, is among the latest to take a seat.
Also here and trying to spin up the 30,000-chip starting stack are two more players who enjoyed success in the Bahamas last month. LAPT Bahamas champion Georgios Sotiropoulos of Greece is here and sitting just below the starting stack at present, while Knut Karnapp -- who finished third in that event -- is also part of today's field. The German has about 32,000 at present. --MH
3:30pm: Koivurinne conquers Sammartino, then Simpson
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
It's been a great orbit for Finnish player Riku Koivurinne - actually, forget the orbit; even just the last two hands have seen his stack increase substantially.
The first hand was against Dario Sammartino, fresh from a deep run in the High Roller last night. With the flop showing the [th][8h][2c], Sammartino and Artem Litvinov checked over to Koivurinne, who put out a bet of 1,050. Both players called and the [3c] landed on the turn. It was checked to Koivurinne once again and now he made it 2,200, which was called by Sammartino (Litvinov gave it up). To the river, which was the [kd]. There were no flushes or straight draws on the board, but now Sammartino chose to take control with a bet of 6,600. Koivurinne tanked for a minute or so and made the call. Both players had two pair, but Koivurinne's [kc][ts] was best against Sammartino's [kh][2h].
Sammartino slipped to 18,000 in that hand, but Koivurinne was right back at it in the very next hand. After Ian Simpson had opened and Koivurinne called from the big blind, the two saw a flop of [3c][7s][4h]. Simpson continued for 1,750, which was called, and then bet 2,500 on the [7d] turn, which was called once more. The [ad] landed on the river, and now Simpson put out 4,500, only to be met with a raise to 11,000 from the Fin. Simpson gave it up and Koivurinne has now almost double the starting 30,000 starting stack. --JS
3:21pm: Forks in the road for Silver and Daly
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
A poker tournament is full of "forks in the road." Every hand presents several of them, with the choices made by players endlessly affecting not only their own tourney journeys but others', too.
Just now we saw Ireland's John Daly make one decision by raising to 400 from the button, then the UK's Max Silver make another by three-betting from the big blind. Daly then made it 3,300 to go, and after hemming and hawing a bit Silver at last called the reraise.
Both chose to check the [9s][Tc][4d] flop, then Silver decided a 2,700 bet was in order following the [Ts] turn. Daly tanked for a couple of minutes, rechecking his cards while reconsidering all of the prior decisions each had made. He finally let his hand go, and Silver began talking as he collected the pot.
"I was sure I was going broke," said Silver, and Daly smiled as he speculated what that might have meant about Silver's hand. "I should have just flat-called pre," added Silver, lamenting he nearly had gotten involved in a bigger pot that he'd have liked. Sounded a little like a driver who'd swerved at the last moment, luckily heading down the less dangerous of two paths.
Silver's driving a stack of 24,000 at the moment, while Daly has about 38,000. --MH
3:20pm: Sapiano lets it go
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
Albert Sapiano has a reputation for playing a lot of pots and he was involved in one as I passed by his table. He opened to 650 from middle position and picked up a call from Sven Magirius.
On the [Jh][4d][6h] flop Sapiano c-bet 700 and Magrius stuck around. The [6s] fell on the turn and Sapiano check-folded to a bet of 1,000. -NW
Albert Sapiano, 33,000
Sven Magrius, 40,050
3:15pm: Charity Event tonight at 6pm
There's more taking place today than the final of the €25K High Roller and the Main Event. The EPT will be hosting a charity event in support of Right to Play, here at the Royal Dublin Society.
It starts at 6pm with a buy in of €150. What's more you can have unlimited rebuys for €50.
Previous versions of this event have proven hugely popular, with a mix of amateur, professional and even celebrity players taking part. That typically guarantees a good atmosphere, while a selection of great prizes, including trips away, iPads and tournament buy-ins ensure there's something to play for. - SB
3:10pm: Another one gone
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
Scott Montgomery is out. The Canadian, who made the final table of the WSOP Main Event in 2008, is the second player out today. --NW
3pm: Pagano takes one from Silver
Level 3 - Blinds 100/200
In a blind on blind hand Luca Pagano and Max Silver had reached the river of a [4c][4d][Ks][As][3h] board. Silver had bet 3,200 only for Pagano to check-raise to 10,000 total.
Luca Pagano and Max SilverSilver had the calling chips in his hand and looked pained as to what to do. He then put the chips back down and took a look back at his cards. It looked like he was about to fold but he then changed his mind and called.
Pagano showed [Ah][4s] for a full-house, "did you have a four too," asked another player at the table. "No I had jack high and thought it was good," jested Silver in return. -NW
Luca Pagano, 42,000
Max Silver, 14,000
2:45pm: Break time
After two levels players are now on the first break of the day.
2:35pm: Finneran makes a big fold
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
I arrived at the table to see 5,875 in front of Thomas Finneran (small blind) and an all-in bet of 29,150 in front of Tomasz Raniszewski. Finneran had cut out the calling chips from his stack and he'd have about 7,000 back if he called and lost.
He tanked for a few minutes before folding and said: "Kings hey?" to Raniszewski as he did so. Sven Magirius asked Finneran if he'd folded queens and the Irishman nodded. --NW
2:30pm: Man down
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
It took longer than usual for the first exit of the day. Nikolaos Iliakis is the unfortunate player who can lay claim to that honour.
Ian Simpson's at the table that Iliakis was seated at and told us about the Greek's exit hand. He was down to 15,000 by this point and Kamran Aliyev flopped the nuts with [6][5] on a [2][3][4][A][2] board.
Apparently Iliakis didn't show his hand so what he had will remain a mystery. --NW
2.15pm: Roses are red, 5K chips are blue
Spending Valentine's Day with @natashabarbour doing what we both love to do.. Playing the #EPTDublin main! pic.twitter.com/rpwdo6HTsp
— Jason Mercier (@JasonMercier) February 14, 2016
2:10pm: Boatman with a river decision
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
"Set of fours?"
This was Barny Boatman, looking across at Dominykas Karmazinas who had just bet 4,800 into a large pot, and with the board already showing [ks][4d][js][th][5c].
We didn't know it at the time, but Boatman was sitting with a set, but couldn't quite place Karmazinas's hand. He called.
Karmazinas flipped over [qd][9s]
"They never listen," he said. "That's my card."
He thought it was funny, but Boatman didn't.
"I was listening all right," replied Boatman. "But I had a set of jacks."
A drop for Boatman, down to around 20,000. - SB
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2:05pm: All (still) in
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
Amazingly everyone who has entered this event is still in. There's usually an early bust out or two in the Main Event but not this time. Perhaps it has something to do with the bar not opening until 3pm. --NW
1:50pm: Mercier arrives
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
The numbers are steadily trickling upwards. One of the latest players to arrive is Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier.
Elsewhere in the field Rocco Palumbo and Jarred Jaffe are at the same table and a tough table at that as it also contains Rasmus Agerskov, Joao Vieira and Victor Ilyukhin. --NW
1:40pm: Nothing to see here
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
Given that everyone was looking at a phone or tablet, it was easy to forget that there was a hand taking place on table eight. But the board of [ks][8s][5h][as] was a giveaway.
Alfie Adam looked up long enough to bet 1,650 after the small blind Dominykas Karmazinas checked. They both checked the [8d] on the river, at which point Adam was showed pocket kings. It was enough to others look up for a moment, but only briefly. - SB
1:25pm: Gustavson up, Silver down
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
Aaron Gustavson and Max Silver both checked the river of a [Th][Kd][2d][Ac][Td] board and Gustavson immediately rolled over [Ad][4d] for the nut flush. He might not have got anything out of Silver on the river, but the pot was worth about 6,000 in total. -NW
Aaron Gustavson, 34,000
Max Silver, 23,000
1:15pm: Reiss reels one in from Fish
Level 2 - Blinds 75/150
I joined the action to see Ryan Reiss betting 1,200 on the turn of a [8s][3d][Jc][7s] board, there was one fold and then Daryll Fish called on the button. On the [5h] river Reiss bet again, this time the calling price for Fish was 2,100. The American went into the tank but eventually folded.
"Did you feel like you were being bluffed?" asked Kevin MacPhee to Fish. "I misread the turn, but it was too late to make up for it," replied Fish. -NW
Ryan Reiss, 32,000
Darylll Fish, 29,000
1:00pm: Early gains
Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
It's an admittedly slow start in the Main Event today. We expect the field to fill up as play continues.
Making early progress though is Ryan Reiss. He just won a hand against Carmen Ebus. On a board of [ts][8h][3d][ah][jh] Reiss got paid off on the river, showing [3h][5h]. - SB
12:50pm: More arrivals
Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
Joao Vieira has already won one €5,000 event in Dublin this week and he's now trying to win a second, taking his seat in the Main Event. He's at the same table as Rasmus Agerskov and Victor Ilyukhin.
Phil Helmuth once famously berated an opponent by saying "you can't even spell poker," well Andrew Hulme certainly can. He's a Countdown Octochamp (ink: ) and a regular on the UKIPT and EPT.
Meanwhile Ian Simpson has also taken his seat, the Geordie knows what it's like to win a big tournament in this city as he took down the Irish Open in 2013. --NW
12:40pm: Distractions on stage
Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
Players are still taking seats in the Main Event, slowly filling in gaps. Two of those include Ryan Reiss and Kevin MacPhee, who share a table.
A few steps away from their table the High Roller event is about to get started. It's something of a distraction so Main Event players who watch photographer Neil Stoddart choreograph the pre-match photo, and asking Mustapha Kanit to sit up straight. Like a good boy, he complied. -- SB
12:25pm: Name dropping
Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
There are a number of familiar faces among the early arrivals. Like WSOP Main Event champion Ryan Reiss for instance. Thomas Finneran has a UKIPT title to his name and made another deep run in Dublin in the UKIPT Main Event. He busted in 20th place yesterday and has stuck around for the EPT Main Event. He's at the same table as Albert Sapiano and Tomasz Raniszewski.
Ryan ReissDotted around the room you'll find the likes of: Adrian Mateos, Kyle Frey, Jeremy Knock, Luca Pagano, Barny Boatman and Georgios Zisimopoulos. --NW
12:10pm: Introductions complete
Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
The welcomes have been made, and cards are in the air. As the introductory film showed a short while ago, this is the first time the tour has been to Dublin since Season 4. We saw footage of those days, with wins for Ram Vaswani, Mats Gavatin, Roland de Wolfe and Reuben Peters. Then we flashed forward to the modern era of the EPT, to the likes of Cody and Mercier, players I'm not entirely certain had been born the last time we were here.
Regardless, the plan today is much the same as the plan was back then. Eight levels, with a dinner break after level six. We're under way. - SB
11:45am: Main Event players begin to arrive
It's Day 1A of the EPT Dublin Main Event, the first for eight years. Already there's a sense that it's good to be back. The High Rollers have been in action for the past two days (they're now down to eight), and before them the UKIPT kicked off the festival in grand style. It's now time for the main feature.
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Take a look at the official website of the EPT, with tournament schedule, news, results and accommodation details for the rest of the season.
Also all the schedule information is on the EPT App, which is available on both Android or IOS.
PokerStars Blog reporting team on the EPT12 Dublin Main Event: Stephen Bartley, Nick Wright, Jack Stanton and Martin Harris. Photography by Neil Stoddart. Follow the PokerStars Blog on Twitter:@PokerStarsBlog
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