Poker players from across the globe have made their way to the luxurious Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa for another edition of PokerStars European Poker Tour Cyprus. The festivities kicked off today with Day 1a of the Eureka Main Event, which drew 220 entrants by the time late registration closed.
After the last hand was dealt, Sergei Bortsov emerged as the chip leader of the remaining 33 players after bagging up 598,000 in chips. His next closest competitor was Mateusz Sikora, who was the only other player to breach the 500k mark after ending with an even 500,000.
Eureka Main Event Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sergei Bortsov | Russia | 598,000 |
| 2 | Mateusz Sikora | Poland | 500,000 |
| 3 | Vladislav Dubanov | Russia | 477,000 |
| 4 | Giorgiy Skhulukhiya | Russia | 433,000 |
| 5 | Eduard Tasoev | Russia | 423,000 |
| 6 | Santiago Nadal | Mexico | 387,000 |
| 7 | Lan Haoyenan | China | 315,000 |
| 8 | Yueksel Savsa | Switzerland | 295,000 |
| 9 | Oleg Ustinovich | Russia | 240,000 |
| 10 | Mehmet Demirkol | Turkey | 226,000 |
Bortsov got off to a good start after catching Nichita Verbitchii in a bluff to nearly double his starting stack. From that point on, Bortsov steadily built his stack throughout the day.
Barny Boatman, who won the EPT Paris Main Event earlier this year, was in attendance from the start and more than tripled his starting stack at one point after flopping the nut flush and getting paid. However, Boatman was unable to hang onto his momentum and ended up busting just ten spots away from the Day-2 bubble.
Two players were all in on the stone bubble, which saw Yueksel Savsa doubling up with ace-king while Andrei Kaigorodtsev busted after calling Sikora down with top pair against Sikora’s trips.
All players who earned a Day-2 berth have already made the money, although the exact amount of a min-cash won’t be calculated until after all starting flights have been played to completion.
Other notables who entered but were unable to find a bag include Nick Palma, Dinesh Alt, Pablo Silva, Viet Van Vo and Nina Krasilnikova — who busted after getting all in with a dominated ace against Rustam Kabdylsalykov on an ace-high flop and failing to improve.
All players who failed to make it to Day 2 still have several chances left as the event has four more starting flights. Day 1c is the next flight, scheduled to begin on Thursday, October 10 at 12 p.m. local time. Day 2 will take place on Saturday, October 12 at noon.
Be sure to stick with PokerNews as we continue to bring you all the action as EPT Cyrpus is just getting warmed up!