$2,200 Merit Poker Cup
Day 3 Started
2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series
$2,200 Merit Poker Cup
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 3
2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series
Buy-in
$2,200
Prize Pool
$844,560
Entries
459
Level
36
Blinds
400,000 / 800,000
Ante
800,000
Entries
108
Players Left
20
| Table | Seat | Player | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Milad Oghabian | 537,000 | 67 |
| 1 | 2 | Par Gunnar Dybeck | 133,000 | 17 |
| 1 | 3 | George Phiniotis | 302,000 | 38 |
| 1 | 4 | Nuri Hadioglu | 233,000 | 29 |
| 1 | 5 | Naji Abdo | 196,000 | 25 |
| 1 | 6 | Ehsan Nadimi | 167,000 | 21 |
| 1 | 7 | Traian Stanciu | 85,000 | 11 |
| 1 | 8 | Ivan Zabiiakin | 1,142,000 | 143 |
| 1 | 9 | Mikhail Zavoloka | 616,000 | 77 |
| 2 | 1 | Jovan Kenjic | 779,000 | 97 |
| 2 | 2 | Alessandro Pichierri | 270,000 | 34 |
| 2 | 3 | George Tomescu | 1,130,000 | 141 |
| 2 | 4 | Baris Topuz | 315,000 | 39 |
| 2 | 5 | Andrey Pateychuk | 100,000 | 13 |
| 2 | 6 | Sergey Bortsov | 289,000 | 36 |
| 2 | 7 | Matthew Davenport | 304,000 | 38 |
| 2 | 8 | Felipe Ketzer | 124,000 | 16 |
| 2 | 9 | Krzysztof Spisak | 399,000 | 50 |
| 3 | 1 | Mehmet Demirkol | 332,000 | 42 |
| 3 | 2 | Boris Tabiyev | 267,000 | 33 |
| 3 | 3 | Erdal Gulseven | 430,000 | 54 |
| 3 | 4 | Natan Chauskin | 133,000 | 17 |
| 3 | 5 | Murad Cakir | 641,000 | 80 |
| 3 | 6 | Razvan Sabau | 774,000 | 97 |
| 3 | 7 | Leonid Bozhkov | 143,000 | 18 |
| 3 | 8 | Edgard Raffoul | 1,070,000 | 134 |
| 3 | 9 | Alisa Sibgatova | 104,000 | 13 |
| 4 | 1 | Joseph Mouwad | 471,000 | 59 |
| 4 | 2 | Tilekbek Shamurzaev | 633,000 | 79 |
| 4 | 3 | Cenk NIgbolu | 536,000 | 67 |
| 4 | 4 | Aziz Efe | 174,000 | 22 |
| 4 | 5 | Danil Rafkiov | 255,000 | 32 |
| 4 | 6 | Nikolay Fal | 515,000 | 64 |
| 4 | 7 | Toni Kaukua | 531,000 | 66 |
| 4 | 8 | Mesut Tekin | 322,000 | 40 |
| 4 | 9 | Yiannakis Papapetrou | 37,000 | 5 |
| 5 | 1 | Boris Angelov | 100,000 | 13 |
| 5 | 2 | Huseyin Akgul | 1,128,000 | 141 |
| 5 | 3 | Simeon Spasov | 297,000 | 37 |
| 5 | 4 | Aleksandr Kirichenko | 950,000 | 119 |
| 5 | 5 | Kacper Pyzara | 666,000 | 83 |
| 5 | 6 | Jenya Gavrilovich | 517,000 | 65 |
| 5 | 7 | Mustafa Gulal | 419,000 | 52 |
| 5 | 8 | Denis Zelenkin | 474,000 | 59 |
| 5 | 9 | Milen Bakardjiev | 640,000 | 80 |
| 6 | 1 | Antonio Aversa | 919,000 | 115 |
| 6 | 2 | Anatoly Nikitin | 305,000 | 38 |
| 6 | 3 | Giorgiy Skhulukhiya | 651,000 | 81 |
| 6 | 4 | Armand Matti | 649,000 | 81 |
| 6 | 5 | Sergey Baranski | 530,000 | 66 |
| 6 | 6 | Fausto Tantillo | 555,000 | 69 |
| 6 | 7 | Maksim Skripkin | 448,000 | 56 |
| 6 | 8 | Leonid Sidelkovskiy | 219,000 | 27 |
| 6 | 9 | Maksim Shornikau | 651,000 | 81 |
| 7 | 1 | Amir Sonsino | 150,000 | 19 |
| 7 | 2 | Mihai Tusnea | 222,000 | 28 |
| 7 | 3 | Aleksandr Razinkov | 156,000 | 20 |
| 7 | 4 | Emad Ghadamian | 365,000 | 46 |
| 7 | 5 | Yuri Suvorov | 446,000 | 56 |
| 7 | 6 | Iulian-Remus Blebea | 187,000 | 23 |
| 7 | 7 | Grigorii Rodin | 216,000 | 27 |
| 7 | 8 | Aleksandar Tot | 149,000 | 19 |
| 7 | 9 | Aleksandr Ivanov | 162,000 | 20 |
| 8 | 1 | Aylar Lie | 208,000 | 26 |
| 8 | 2 | Florian Guimond | 202,000 | 25 |
| 8 | 3 | Maxime Chilaud | 558,000 | 70 |
| 8 | 4 | Bogdan Jontulovic | 188,000 | 24 |
| 8 | 5 | Yuliyan Kolev | 108,000 | 14 |
| 8 | 6 | Nan Zhu | 400,000 | 50 |
| 8 | 7 | Sergei Sokharev | 746,000 | 93 |
| 8 | 8 | Alexandru Papazian | 437,000 | 55 |
| 8 | 9 | Parham Ghadamgahi | 537,000 | 67 |
| 9 | 1 | Alexander Ivanov | 343,000 | 43 |
| 9 | 2 | Iurii Saiapin | 714,000 | 89 |
| 9 | 3 | Temur Abbosov | 500,000 | 63 |
| 9 | 4 | Jakub Michalak | 334,000 | 42 |
| 9 | 5 | Danny Gez | 506,000 | 63 |
| 9 | 6 | Mario Bratanov | 317,000 | 40 |
| 9 | 7 | Uladzimir Zhyharau | 208,000 | 26 |
| 9 | 8 | Denis Vlasov | 238,000 | 30 |
| 9 | 9 | Mustafa Ercan | 419,000 | 52 |
| 10 | 1 | Darius Samual | 200,000 | 25 |
| 10 | 2 | Tahsin Cankurtaranli | 317,000 | 40 |
| 10 | 3 | Benjamin Hamnett | 217,000 | 27 |
| 10 | 4 | Gabriel Akiki | 567,000 | 71 |
| 10 | 5 | Elvin Hasanli | 342,000 | 43 |
| 10 | 6 | Maher Achour | 574,000 | 72 |
| 10 | 7 | Georges Hanna | 336,000 | 42 |
| 10 | 8 | Koray Korkmaz | 182,000 | 23 |
| 10 | 9 | O I | 893,000 | 112 |
| 11 | 1 | Simone Andrian | 145,000 | 18 |
| 11 | 2 | Alan Turabayev | 1,092,000 | 137 |
| 11 | 3 | Nenad Dukic | 650,000 | 81 |
| 11 | 4 | Cagdas Ersoy | 716,000 | 90 |
| 11 | 5 | Alain Hajj | 374,000 | 47 |
| 11 | 6 | Andrey Litvinov | 171,000 | 21 |
| 11 | 7 | Georgios Skarparis | 168,000 | 21 |
| 11 | 8 | Ufuk Kortan | 407,000 | 51 |
| 11 | 9 | Boris Smuskevicius | 434,000 | 54 |
| 12 | 1 | Adrian State | 269,000 | 34 |
| 12 | 2 | Murat Ozyurt | 367,000 | 46 |
| 12 | 3 | Anton Markov | 565,000 | 71 |
| 12 | 4 | Dmitry Gromov | 666,000 | 83 |
| 12 | 5 | Zafer Sener | 567,000 | 71 |
| 12 | 6 | Damir Gabdullin | 795,000 | 99 |
| 12 | 7 | Halil Tasyurek | 655,000 | 82 |
| 12 | 8 | Kutay Taskin | 485,000 | 61 |
| 12 | 9 | Marcin Dziubdziela | 207,000 | 26 |
Just 108 players remain from a field of 459 entrants going into the penultimate day of the 2024 Carmen Series Merit Poker Cup here at the Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino, beginning at noon local time. Of those 108 players, 55 will make the money and be guaranteed at least a min-cash of $3,885 but all eyes will be on trophy and top prize of $167,100.
Ivan Zabiiakin begins the day with the overall chip lead, having bagged 1,142,000 chips by the end of Day 2. Zabiiakin is one of five players to surpass one million chips and is most closely followed by George Tomescu and Huseyin Akgul.
Day 2 Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ivan Zabiiakin | Russian Federation | 1,142,000 | 143 |
| 2 | George Tomescu | Romania | 1,130,000 | 141 |
| 3 | Huseyin Akgul | Turkey | 1,128,000 | 141 |
| 4 | Alan Turabayev | Kazakhstan | 1,092,000 | 137 |
| 5 | Edgard Raffoul | Lebanon | 1,070,000 | 134 |
| 6 | Aleksandr Kirichenko | Russian Federation | 950,000 | 119 |
| 7 | Antonio Aversa | Italy | 919,000 | 115 |
| 8 | O I | n/a | 893,000 | 112 |
| 9 | Damir Gabdullin | Russian Federation | 795,000 | 99 |
| 10 | Jovan Kenjic | Serbia | 779,000 | 97 |
Other players still in contention include Aleksandr Kirichenko (950,000), Dmitry Gromov (666,000), Halil Tasyurek (655,000), Giorgiy Skhulukhiya (651,000), Maksim Shornikau (651,000), Maxime Chilaud (558,000), Alexandru Papazian (437,000), Simeon Spasov (297,000), Alessandro Pichierri (270,000), Benjamin Hamnett (217,000), Simone Andrian (145,000), Yuliyan Kolev (108,000) and Andrey Pateychuk (100,000).
The action picks up at Level 16 with blinds at 4,000/8,000 and an 8,000 big blind ante. The plan is to play ten 60-minute levels. As always, stay tuned to PokerNews as we bring you all the action leading up to the money bubble and then heading towards the final table.
Level: 16
Blinds: 4,000/8,000
Ante: 8,000
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Cards are in the air for Day 3 of the Merit Poker Cup
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Mustafa Gulal raised to 18,000 in early position and Aleksandr Kirichenko called on the button, as did small blind Kacper Pyzara.
The flop came 7?Q?J? and Gulal bet 12,000. Both opponents called to the 4? turn.
Gulal then bet another 24,000 and Kirichenko and Pyzara again both called. The river was the Q? and Pyzara checked to Gulal, who this time checked back.
Kirichenko took his time before tapping the felt and Pyzara showed 10?9? for a missed straight draw. Gulal turned over A?K? and Kirichenko mucked.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
900,000
-50,000
|
-50,000 |
|
640,000
-26,000
|
-26,000 |
|
500,000
81,000
|
81,000 |
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Three-handed on a board of 7?5?3?5?, Koray Korkmaz bet 40,000 from the big blind and O I called under the gun. Georges Hanna then raised to 110,000 in the small blind.
Korkmaz moved all in for 163,000 and O I tanked for a minute before folding. Hanna, though, snap-called.
Korkmaz showed 6?4? for a straight, but Hanna had 3?3? for a full house and Korkmaz was already drawing dead going to the 2? river. Hanna took the pot while Korkmaz, runner-up in this event last year, was sent to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
800,000
-93,000
|
-93,000 |
|
550,000
214,000
|
214,000 |
|
Busted | |
|
||
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
With two players seeing a board of A?A?J? and roughly 50,000 in the middle, Anton Markov bet 15,000 from middle position and was called by Halil Tasyurek in the hijack.
Markov fired a second barrel on the Q? turn for 30,000 and was once again called by Tasyurek.
Both players checked the 8? river. Markov tabled 6?6? while Tasyurek showed down Q?J? for a bigger two pair to take the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
755,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
525,000
-40,000
|
-40,000 |
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Toni Kaukua raised to 16,000 in early position before Mesut Tekin three-bet to 45,000 in middle position. Danil Rafikov then moved all in for 205,000 in the big blind and Kaukua quickly folded. Tekin, though, tanked for nearly five minutes until Rafikov called the clock. Tekin allowed the timer to nearly reach zero before calling.
Danil Rafikov: A?K? 
Mesut Tekin: A?Q?
Rafikov had Tekin dominated as both players hit an ace on the 8?A?7? flop. The turn was the J?, but the river was the Q? and Tekin spiked two pair to send Rafikov to the rail.
At the same time at another table, Mustafa Ercan and Denis Vlasov were heads-up on a board of 2?9?3?6?A? when Ercan bet 30,000 from the small blind.
Vlasov then raised to 150,000 on the button and Ercan tanked for several minutes before moving all in for 370,000. Vlasov also took a few minutes before calling.
Ercan showed K?10? for the nut flush and Vlasov mucked J?4? as he handed over the big pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
870,000
451,000
|
451,000 |
|
|
750,000
428,000
|
428,000 |
|
130,000
-108,000
|
-108,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 16
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Ivan Zabiiakin opened to 16,000 from early position before Mikhail Zavoloka three-bet to 50,000 from middle position. Naji Abdo then four-bet shoved for 174,000 from the big blind. Zabiiakin folded and after a brief tank Zavoloka made the call to put Abdo at risk.
Naji Abdo: 10?10?
Mikhail Zavoloka: A?7?
Zabiiakin mentioned he had folded pocket jacks before the dealer fanned a flop of A?7?4? to give Zavoloka the lead with aces up. Abdo couldn't catch a ten on the 9? turn or 6? river and was sent to the rail while Zavoloka took down a healthy pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
835,000
219,000
|
219,000 |
|
|
Busted |