€5,200 PLO Opener
Jour 1a terminé
2024 PLO Grand Slam
€5,200 PLO Opener
Jours 1a
Top
Chip Count
Chip Count
3
1,780,000
7
1,090,000
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Day 1a of the €5,200 PLO Grand Slam Opener hosted by Diamond Poker Series was a roaring success. Throughout the day, 95 entries were made at Arena Casino Tirana, nearly half of what is needed to reach the ambitious €1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. However, after 11 levels only 19 of them would survive the day and bag their chips for Day 2.
Topping the charts is Norwegian high roller Tom-Aksel Bedell. Bedell had a rocky start to his day, being down to just 45,000 chips from the 200,000 he started with at one point. However, he hit his stride after the final break and ended up needing only one bullet to end the day with 2,165,000, good for 144 blinds when Day 2 resumes.
Second in chips is Spanish player Sergio Martinez Gonzalez. Martinez Gonzalez won a five-way all-in for 400 big blinds midway through the day. He stabilized from there on out and ended up with 2,010,000 as the only other player to bag up more than two million. As promised, the organization awarded Bedell and Martinez Gonzalez a ticket to the €10,300 PLO Championship later on in the series for placing number one and two on Day 1a.
Meanwhile, anonymous player "Tony" grabbed the bronze medal with a stack of 1,780,000, while Omaha specialists Pavel Izotov and Grzegorz Derkowski, and retired soccer pro turned bracelet winner Max Kruse also bagged seven-figure stacks.
End of Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Day 2 Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom-Aksel Bedell | Norway | 2,165,000 | 144 |
| 2 | Sergio Martinez Gonzalez | Spain | 2,010,000 | 134 |
| 3 | "Tony" | 1,780,000 | 119 | |
| 4 | Pavel Izotov | Belarus | 1,575,000 | 105 |
| 5 | Christoforos Chrysochoidis | Greece | 1,195,000 | 80 |
| 6 | Max Kruse | Germany | 1,170,000 | 78 |
| 7 | Dimitri Steinfeuer | Germany | 1,090,000 | 73 |
| 8 | Grzegorz Derkowski | Germany | 1,075,000 | 72 |
| 9 | Lautaro Guerra | Spain | 940,000 | 63 |
| 10 | Borislav Bogdanov | Bulgaria | 810,000 | 54 |
Number eight on Scotland's all-time money list Andrew Leathem also found a bag, ending up with 625,000. Meanwhile, bracelet winner Cesar Garcia ended at the bottom with 290,000, but will still have more than those who will register on Day 2.
In contrast, the player who goes by "Jay" was the unluckiest on Day 1a, firing no less than eight bullets before calling it quits without finding a bag. Other notable players who showed up to the Albanian capital but did not make it through include Nikolaos Lampropoulos, Oleksii Kovalchuk, Vasili Firsau, Amir Mozaffarian, Francisco Perez, and Sonny Franco.
They will have another shot at glory tomorrow, November 5, when Day 1b, the second and final flight, gets underway at 3 p.m. local time. The same 11 levels will be played, and even if they remain unsuccessful then, late registration will not close until the shuffle up and deal on Day 2.
So tune back in to PokerNews tomorrow for more high-stakes four-card action from the PLO Grand Slam tournament floor.
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
| Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
|---|---|---|
|
2,165,000
315,000
|
315,000 |
|
||
|
2,010,000
210,000
|
210,000 |
|
|
1,780,000
930,000
|
930,000 |
|
1,575,000
335,000
|
335,000 |
|
1,195,000
794,000
|
794,000 |
|
1,170,000
755,000
|
755,000 |
|
||
|
|
1,090,000
420,000
|
420,000 |
|
1,075,000
490,000
|
490,000 |
|
940,000
-340,000
|
-340,000 |
|
810,000
160,000
|
160,000 |
|
805,000
471,000
|
471,000 |
|
745,000
467,000
|
467,000 |
|
650,000
299,000
|
299,000 |
|
625,000
214,000
|
214,000 |
|
|
610,000
-90,000
|
-90,000 |
|
570,000
150,000
|
150,000 |
|
535,000
-245,000
|
-245,000 |
|
|
460,000
260,000
|
260,000 |
|
290,000
-490,000
|
-490,000 |
|
|
||
|
Eliminé | |
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
The three remaining tables are bagging and tagging as they have secured their spot for Day 2, which will happen on Wednesday, November 6.
Stay tuned for full chip counts and a reap of the day.
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Burak Simsek raised to 42,000 under the gun. Jake Parsons then three-bet the pot and called off his stack of 278,000 once Simsek put him all-in.
Jake Parsons: K♠K♥8♠6♥ [allin[
Burak Simsek: A♥A♣J♠2♠
Simsek made top set on the A♠7♦8♥Q♠2♥ board to secure Parsons' elimination one hand before the table bagged.
| Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
|---|---|---|
|
|
700,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
Eliminé |
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Tom-Aksel Bedell raised to 42,000 under the gun. In the hijack, Nikolaos Lampropoulos made it 147,000 to go, after which the action folded back to Bedell.
He quickly put Lampropoulos all-in for around 250,000, which the Greek player snap-called.
Nikolaos Lampropoulos: A♦A♣K♠Q♠ 
Tom-Aksel Bedell: Q♦J♦10♥5♥
Bedell flopped two pair, a flush draw, and a straight draw on Q♥9♦5♦ to take massive lead over Lampropoulos' aces.
The 6♥ turn and 7♣ river did not help either player, resulting in Lampropoulos' exit shortly before the night's end.
| Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,850,000
570,000
|
570,000 |
|
|
||
|
Eliminé | |
|
|
||
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
The floor has announced that each table will play four more hands before Day 1a reaches its conclusion.
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
In the 863rd episode of the PokerNews Podcast, which is sponsored by the free-to-play WSOP App, Chad Holloway and Kyna England are joined by Connor Richards at Level 9 Studio to kick off the 2024 Pokerstars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) at Resorts World!
The series runs November 1-10 and will offer players and Gold Pass winners the opportunity to become the “Loose Cannon” on the PokerStars Big Game, which will also see future football Hall of Famer Rob Gronkowski compete at the felt. Speaking of Gold Pass winners, we highlight more players who won their way to Las Vegas including Luis Viera, who won his Gold Pass in the PokerNews Podcast giveaway, and Canada's Steve Maddison, who our PokerNews Ontario Ambassador Kyle Anderson interviewed as a part of the show.
And let's not forget about the NAPT Women’s Event on Nov. 5 featuring a $30,000 guarantee and CardPlayer Lifestyle’s Mixed Game Festival IX from Nov. 3-7.
Connor then shares his thoughts on the Life Outside Poker Meet-Up Game and shares the tragic story of Jim Weger, who passed away in a motorcycle accident the night before the 10th Annual Pawn Stars Poker Run. You'll also get to hear about winners from the 2024 Norwegian Poker Championship, and finally, you can see Chad take part in a $100 flip during an impromptu appearance on The Absolute Nuts show, which was filming their cash game at Resorts World during the PokerNews MUG.
The podcast has a new sponsor in the #1 free-to-play WSOP app, and as part of it, we run another "WSOP Replay" segment in which Chad reviews a famous poker hand through the lens of the WSOP App. Check it out and remember to use bonus code "POKERNEWS" if you download and play for an extra 1,000,000 in chips!
A new PokerNews Podcast will drop weekly every Friday at 8a PT / 11a ET / 4p UK time. Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you do not miss an episode!
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
| Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Eliminé | |
|
|
Eliminé | |
|
Eliminé | |
|
Eliminé | |
|
Eliminé | |
|
||
Niveau 11
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Deniz Sir in the big blind and Tom-Aksel Bedell on the button had built a pot of 320,000 when the 10♠7♦8♠10♣Q♠ river was dealt.
Sir checked to Bedell, who fired a bet of 155,000. Sir asked the dealer the size of the pot and spent two time banks before finding a call.
Bedell opened J♦10♥7♥2♦ for a full house. Sir nodded and sent his cards to the muck in defeat, seeing Bedell chip up to a seven-figure stack.
| Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,280,000
1,020,000
|
1,020,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
205,000
-9,000
|
-9,000 |