Day 1d of the €1,100 Eureka Main Event, running as part of the 2024 PokerStars European Poker Tour at the Hilton Prague, has now reached its conclusion. A total of 543 entries were made; up 343 from the turbo flight Day 1b yesterday. After 18 levels of play, 81 advanced to Day 2 and secured a minimum cash.
The overall field size now stands at a total of 2,306 entries with Saturday’s Day 2 now comprising of 346 hopefuls.
As this late-night turbo flight died down, Istvan Pilhofer bagged the overall chip lead taking through a total of 653,000 for the Day 2 restart. Pilhofer played a crucial role in proceedings as he eliminated Milan Aloric on the stone bubble to ensure the remaining 81 players, including himself, all progressed to Day 2 and were in the money.
Day 1d Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Istvan Pilhofer | Hungary | 653,000 | 82 |
| 2 | James Bagley | United Kingdom | 582,000 | 73 |
| 3 | Lazare Kalebashvili | Georgia | 472,000 | 59 |
| 4 | Michele Di Lauro | Italy | 441,000 | 55 |
| 5 | Pavel Cerveny | Czech Republic | 438,000 | 55 |
| 6 | Alexis Tremblay | France | 437,000 | 55 |
| 7 | Hassan Sleiman | Germany | 414,000 | 52 |
| 8 | Silviu Baltateanu | Romania | 380,000 | 48 |
| 9 | Rene Christener | Switzerland | 371,000 | 46 |
| 10 | Malcolm McKinlay | United Kingdom | 364,000 | 46 |
Action of the Day
Day 1d welcomed some of the best players in Europe and beyond. Hailing from the United States, but residing in Prague, EPT regular and tournament veteran, Jason Wheeler, took to the felt in dramatic fashion. Wheeler secured an early double-up against opponent Sutharsan Ariyanayagam as a flopped two pair over two pair cooler saw his stack soar.
However, a cold deck late into the night saw Wheeler’s pocket queens run into both kings and jacks in a three-way all-in; Ariyanayagam hit a one outer to claim back some compensation from Wheeler, leaving him with fumes.
Wheeler managed to retain his short stack across the finish line, bagging a total of 65,000 by the end of play.
Conor Beresford also made his presence known on the felt in today’s turbo flight. Beresford eliminated fellow Brit, Robbie Bull, early on in proceedings as his flopped full house also gave Bull trips, ultimately resulting in his departure. Beresford eventually bagged a stack of 59,000.
Those to join Bull on the rail included Vivian Saliba, Alexane Najchaus and Ivan Banic. However, the hope is not yet lost for these unfortunate few as they will have two more opportunities to progress tomorrow, December 6th, with flights Day 1e and, its turbo counterpart, Day 1f starting at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. respectively.
The PokerNews live reporting team will return to bring you more coverage of the Eureka Poker Tour Main Event here at EPT Prague, so stay tuned.