€5,300 Main Event Jour 1b | 2016 PokerStars and Monte-Carlo® Casino EPT Grand Final

2016-05-01 17:00 UTC+2

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Antonin Teisseire	70,000
Ludovic Geilich	51,000 18,000	18,000

Naoya Kihara	40,000 10,000	10,000

James Akenhead	34,000 34,000	34,000
Ivan Soshnikov	34,000 34,000	34,000
Juicy Li	34,000 4,000	4,000
Lex Veldhuis	32,000 2,000	2,000

Alan Smurfit	27,000 3,000	3,000
[Removed:17]	Eliminé

Finger Building

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Niveau 4 : 100/200, 25 ante

EPT star Martin Finger, who counts his EPT8 Prague Main Event win, his EPT10 London £50,000 Super High Roller win and his latest EPT12 Barcelona €25,000 High Roller win among his biggest poker accomplishments, is climbing the ladder early here in Monaco.

The perennial threat has it up over 80,000 now, after an under the gun raise got called twice, but he managed to push those opponents off the pot with a simple continuation bet on an flop.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Martin Finger	82,500 29,500	29,500

Tags: Martin Finger

Niveau: 4

Blinds: 100/200

Ante: 25

2016-05-01 16:18 UTC+2

Strong Start by The Defending Champ

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Last season Adrian Mateos beat a field of 564 players to capture the first-place prize of €1,082,000, and he's off to a strong start again today with 58,000 chips in front of him right now.

Mateos - who's just 21 years old - has $4.3 million in live tournament earnings already, including a WSOPE Main Event title from 2013 for €1,000,000. Two weeks ago - in the World Poker Tour Seminole Hard Rock - Mateos came close to completing the Triple Crown as the youngest ever, but he busted out in fourth place for $200,510.

Ever since bursting onto the live tournament scene with a victory in the Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event for €103,053 in 2013, Mateos has been unstoppable and he's looking to carry that into this event.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Adrian Mateos	58,000 58,000	58,000

Tags: Adrian Mateos

2016-05-01 16:16 UTC+2

The Heartbreak Kid

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

The European Poker Tour's own heartbreak kid is off to a hot start in Monaco today, surprising no one.

Team PokerStars Pro Johnny Lodden has cashed a record 21 times in 10 straight seasons on the tour, made an impressive ten top 20 finishes, and three final tables. But the fan and media favorite has yet to win one.

In fact, the Grand Final has provided some of Lodden's most heartbreaking finishes, including a run to fourth place last year, third in 2013 and 17th in 2008.

Today, Lodden has it up close to 80,000 already, but told PokerNews it has been a slow grind, devoid of the big confrontations that often accompany all that heartbreak.

"Just climbing, slowly climbing," he said.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Johnny Lodden	78,000 78,000	78,000

Tags: Johnny Lodden

2016-05-01 16:04 UTC+2

Updated Chip Counts

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Sofia Lovgren	63,000
Martin Finger	53,000 23,000	23,000

Vanessa Selbst	52,000

Robbie Schiffbauer	45,000
Sylvain Loosli	44,000

Davidi Kitai	40,000 10,000	10,000

Michel Abecassis	38,000
Nacho Babero	38,000
Manig Loeser	34,000 4,000	4,000

Kristen Bicknell	34,000
Quentin Lecomte	33,000
Simon Deadman	32,000 2,000	2,000
Ben Heath	31,000
David Boyaciyan	31,000
Ami Barer	27,000
Celina Lin	12,000 18,000	18,000

2016-05-01 15:52 UTC+2

A Friend Of Ours

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Brazilian Friend of PokerStars Felipe Ramos had a deep run in the PokerStars and Monte-Carlo® Casino EPT Grand Final €10,300 Single Reentry High Roller a few days ago, earning €74,100 for a seventh-place finish.

And so it would seem that Ramos understands a poker tournament is more akin to a marathon than a sprint. This evidenced by the fact a slow start to the day has not phased Ramos one bit, as he opened to 500 from early position moments ago, getting one caller and going heads up to a flop.

Ramos fired out 1,200 and his opponent open folded the gutshot. Ramos did not show, but appears to have righted the ship after taking on a little water in the first two levels.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Felipe Ramos	28,000 4,000	4,000

Tags: Felipe Ramos

2016-05-01 15:36 UTC+2

One For Akkari

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari just faced a raise to 600 from Paul Linton, and the Brazilian pro made the call. The player in the big blind called as well, creating three-way action on .

On the flop the big blind checked, and Linton bet 1,000, which was called by both his opponents.

The turn brought the and now all three players checked. On the river the hit and the action was checked to Akkari who bet 2,500. Both the big blind, and Linton folded, giving up this pot to the Team PokerStars Pro.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Andre Akkari	33,000

Tags: Andre Akkari

2016-05-01 15:34 UTC+2

Grassi Smoking Hot Early

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Italian Samuele Grassi is running hot here, riding an early wave up to a spot among the leaders now.

He had more than 65,000 in front of him already when he bumped it to 1,175 from early position. The big blind defended and then checked the flop. Grassi checked before the big blind checked again on the turn.

Grassi bet 3,500, but the big blind did not fold. Finally, after calling, the big blind checked the river and Grassi fired out a sizable bet of 15,500. The big blind tanked for an eternity before making the call and mucking, with Grassi showing the straight.

A hand later he limped under the gun, then joined the small blind in calling a James Akenhead raise to 800. Grassi checked the flop, and was the only caller when Akenhead continued for 1,200. They both checked the turn and Grassi led the river for 4,500. Akenhead folded.

"How can you fold on that board?" Grassi asked, turning over the full house and adding the pot to his now 100,000-plus stack.

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Samuele Grassi	102,000 102,000	102,000

Tags: James Akenhead Samuele Grassi

2016-05-01 15:27 UTC+2

Chip Counts

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Niveau 3 : 100/200, 0 ante

Joueur	Jetons	Progression
Ludovic Geilich	33,000

Vasili Firsau	32,000
Felipe Ramos	32,000

Amit Makhija	30,000
Alan Smurfit	30,000
Jason Wheeler	27,000
Simon Higgins	22,000
[Removed:17]	7,000 23,000	23,000