It's about this stage of the sector Series of Poker Main Event whilst you begin to get an idea of who's still in, and who isn't. Faces you saw a couple of days ago deep within the Pavilion Room, or in some corner of Brasilia, are back again. Sometimes they're memorable for a baseball cap, or a hair style, or because, well, you're employed with them a lot.

If you follow the ecu Poker Tour you're conversant in the name, particularly when you tune into the Russian commentary on EPT Live. Mikhail Semin is likely one of the hosts of the Russian broadcast, and along side Ilya Gorodetskiy provides one of the crucial most energetic and lively poker coverage anywhere within the world.

Today though he works alone, returning to a stack of 400,000, roughly 25 big blinds.

It's tough keeping an eye on a field this big, so whilst you wish good luck to someone you risk accidentally reminding them that their Main Event is at an end. Thank fully that wasn't the case with Semin before play began today.

Semin has had a hectic summer, playing all the series. It's what you do when the day job keeps you from playing as much poker as you'd like.

"It's fun when you are winning," he said. "Not if you end up losing."

So far though he's had his share of the former, with five cashes this summer including a seventh place finish within the Seven Card Stud Championship worth $33,000. He's locked up no less than $40,433 today, which in his words makes him even at the summer. He's also locked up no less than a year's worth of bragging rights over his co-host.

Even more reason to appear forward to the brand new EPT season.

Stephen Bartley is a staff writer for the PokerStars Blog.

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: World Series of Poker]