Friday 27 January 2012

Fantasy Poker: Official Prague Results

It's time for the ParadisePoker blog to doff our cap to another Fantasy Poker winner following our trip to Prague, with special praise going to the runner-up too.

He may have fallen short of claiming the €1,200 package on offer for winning our free game, but kewals75 claimed a Fantasy Poker first by naming eventual winner Nat Jarmonthavat in his team.

Even that 32-point haul was not enough to deny the aptly named Winforever, who like several previous victors, picked two players who finished deep into the money places.

German Heiko Kenning was the key, finishing 5th, while Demetris Triantafyilou was equally important even though he missed the final table by a single place in 11th.

In third was maya10 care of Ertan Aldikacti's 4th-place while Kenning's performance saw 87team and Muenster Storm complete the top five.

Well done to all 51 entrants who had a player get into the money - and with it the Fantasy Poker points. Make sure you join us for another game in Vienna this March!

Fantasy Poker Official  Results

Click to enlarge Fantasy Poker results

Wednesday 25 January 2012

Sa SaZu-per! Players' Party pics

We treated our Main Event players to the VIP treatment in Sa SaZu during ParadisePoker Tour Prague and luckily our photographer was on hand to capture much fun being had!

Check out everyone enjoying a little private space and drinks on us...



Viewing on a smartphone? Visit our mobile-friendly gallery to see the Players' Party pics.

Monday 23 January 2012

Recap: Comeback Nat claims Prague title

Jarmonthavat claimed €25,000
in a head-up deal 
Nat Jarmonthavat proved tournament poker’s oldest adage as he bounced back from the brink of elimination to claim the ParadisePoker Tour Prague title.

The road to becoming the first Danish winner since the tour began was far from smooth, as running battles between Piotr Sowinski, Ertan Aldikacti and later Milan Simko pushed Jarmonthavat to the fringes of the final table.

He fought on with a short stack for long spells but having seen his top pair hold up against the nut flush draw of Sowinski, the momentum carried him to victory.

A deal was done at heads-up, with then chip leader Simko taking a €28,000 share and Jarmonthavat €25,000, yet the battle for the trophy proved just how much both players coveted that first major title.

"It feels great to have won the ParadisePoker Tour Prague title,"  grinned the newly crowned champion, "This is my biggest cash and I have to put it down to patience. 

"Some of the players at the final table were just playing crazy, so I just had to wait it out. I was waiting a long time for the right moment but I knew I just had to be patient and keep on believing I could win it.

"I won’t be going out and spending my winnings on a crazy car or anything though – mainly because I already have a crazy car!"

While his winning hand of 10-6 off-suit was far from glamorous, pocket Kings played a leading role in Jarmonthavat's triumph over a 287-player field. 

"I had just over average stack at the end of Day 1 after I had a few big hands. The one I remember is re-raising with Kings and calling when my opponent went all-in. he had AQ but my pair held up and gave me a good size stack.

"Day 2 wasn’t so good, I had to fold for long spells but I made it to Day 3 and won another big pot with Kings again. That was really memorable because I got all-in with KK vs QQ and a Queen came on the flop, but the river saved me as it brought a King. That was crazy."

Day 3 was a long slog as three tables returned to the King's Casino, within the walls of Corinthia Towers hotel, but the adrenaline pushed our man on to a triumphant end in the early hours.

"I'm a little tired right now but to be honest I'm so happy I don't mind. Still, I'll probably celebrate by just going to bed!"

Marketing Manager Bryan Carroll was delighted with this year's visit to the Czech Republic: “We’ve been to Prague twice before but we’d like to thank King’s Casino and the Corinthia Towers hotel for extending us such a great welcome,” he said.

“We couldn’t have been happier with the superb organisation and seeing a field of 287 players join us for the Main Event, not to mention all our side event entrants, made this weekend another success story for the ParadisePoker Tour.”

ParadisePoker Tour Prague: Winner Pics

Nat Jarmonthavat claimed the ParadisePoker Tour Prague title for his own last night and his beaming grin told the story of just how much it meant to the friendly Dane.

Here's our photos from the decisive moments of the heads-up battle with Milan Simko, as well as some traditional - and not so traditional - winner shots.

Nat crowned ParadisePoker Tour Prague champion

Nat Jarmonthavat has been crowned our champion after the heads-up duel was won by arguably the worst starting hand he played all night, as 10♥6♣ trumped Milan Simko.

The chips had swapped back and forth between the pair, despite a deal having been done, but middle pair on the K810 flop proved enough for victory.

Dane Jarmonthavat had first taken the chip lead when he flopped trip Jacks, value betting his entire stack to take up a dominant position in the contest.

He was within touching distance when the pair next raced, his KQ looking in control against Simko's 5s after the board came JJ7-7, but a river 5 kept the competition alive a little longer.

In the end, both players were sufficiently exhausted to up the aggression and Lady Luck smiled on Nat. We'll have plenty of pictures plus an interview with our first Danish winner tomorrow, so come back and visit the blog soon.

Fantasy Poker results, meanwhile, will be announced by Friday, January 28th as they must be verified before our winner can be announced.

From Prague - it's goodnight!

Sowinski out in 3rd as dream comes to an end

Sowinski was 4th in chips at
the start of Day 3
Piotr Sowinski will have €13,346 to ease the pain of missing out on his PPT dream after yet another run-in with Milan Simko proved fatal.

The Pole had been the most aggressive force throughout the final table so it was little surprise that it was he who broke our latest deadlock, committing his stack pre-flop with A♣4♠.

Simko looked down at A♦8♦ and made the call and with the crowd on their feet to watch, the dealer rolled a 10♠7♣3♠-9♣-J♣ board to send Sowinski to the rail.

Our remaining pair are relatively evenly stack and so the inevitable deal discussions are now under way... let's see what they can agree on.

UPDATE - Our players have reached an agreement, with Simko set to take €28,000 and Nat Jarmonthavat €25,000.

They will now play for the PPT3 Prague title!

Big hands go the way of the short stacks

The chips have been swaying back and forth between our players the past hour with little sign of a breakthrough.

The key moments where tournament lives were at risk have twice gone the way of the shorter stack, with first Nat Jarmonthavat and then Piotr Sowinski doubling up when they might have departed.

It was at the latter's expense that Jarmonthavat finally rose above short stack status to become a factor in the battle for first place. The chips went in on a J♦5♦8♣ flop, with Piotr showing A♦7♦ for the nut flush draw but Nat's top pair held firm.

It was Milan Simko who financed Sowinski's own bounce back moment, taking his chances in calling his pre-flop all-in with KQo. An Ace on the flop saw the Pole double up.

Simko seizes the chip lead

Milan Simko's role as executioner-in-chief has earned him a 1,000,000 chip lead over his nearest rival, Piotr Sowinski.

The last remaining Czech has 2,985,000 to work with, followed by the 1,920,000 of Sowinski and the 850,000 short stack of Nat Jarmonthavat.

And then there were three... Aldikacti out

'Baba' had been a leading figure in
the final table's story
After playing a leading role in the final table, Ertan Aldikacti bowed out of the PPT Event in 4th to the tune of €10,906.

Never playing for less that the win, the Turkish player was never far away from the action, but worn down by the swelling blinds and long-running battles with Piotr Sowinski, his tournament came to an end.

He had certainly upped his pre-flop aggression and after taking down a handful of pre-flop pots, he was called by Milan Simko's 8s - and his 45 never really looked like catching up.

A gutshot on the turn gave a glimmer of hope, but the 7♠ on the river signalled his time in the limelight was done.

Our three remaining players will now continue the fight with someone set to take down the €33,005 top prize and of course, the coveted ParadisePoker Tour trophy! 

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346.

Final Four: the photos

The hour is late but the game must go on as we hunt our next PPT champion. How about a few snaps to lighten the mood?


Heiko twice takes a hit, exits in 5th

Heiko claimed his first PPT cash
After a barren spell punctuated by double ups for the short stacks, Heiko Kenning was the surprise departure after losing two pots in quick succession.

The first was against Nat Jarmonthavat, who having doubled up seems to have confidence renewed, and a short while later it all went in pre-flop against Milan Simko.

The Czech held JJ to crush Kenning's pocket fives, with the 6♠2♠2♥-K♣-4♥ board barely raising a pulse.

PPT regular Heiko collects his first cash on the tour, worth a cool €9,184. 

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906.

Simko doubles up

The one man seemingly able to break the hoodoo Piotr Sowinski has held over this final table is Milan Simko, as the Czech just doubled his stack courtesy of the chip leader.

Sowinski had raised from the button and Simko responded with a shove. After brief thought, the Pole called with A♠J♠ and found himself racing against his rival's 8♣8♥.

The board ran 7♥10♣3♣-Q♣-4♠ and Piotr suffered what has felt like a rare setback.

UPDATE - It seems it's catching, as Nat Jarmonthavat just managed to double his short stack too. The Dane has been quiet for much of the final table, but he put his tournament life at risk with A6♥ and a turn Ace helped him get back on track care of Sowinski.

Sunday 22 January 2012

Chip update

As the dominant force that is Piotr Sowinski continues to hoover up chips, so our short stacks were moving perilously close to the edge.

The 1.148m average stack dwarves that of short stacks Milan SimkoErtan Aldikacti and Nat Jarmonthava, with even the steady Heiko Kenning having to work to stay ahead of that mark.

Rough Chip Count

Piotr Sowinski - 2,600,000
Heiko Kenning - 1,300,00
Milan Simko - 750,000
Ertan Aldikacti - 500,000
Nat Jarmonthavat - 325,000

Sowinski rises at Ertan's expense

There's just no stopping Piotr Sowinski right now and few people have felt that more than Ertan Aldikacti since the final table commenced.

The Turkish player tasted defeat in yet another blind battle between the fiesty duo, with 'Baba' calling as the clock ticked down to its final seconds.

It was he who raised from the small blind and c-bet the 7♥8♦2♦ flop, only for Piotr to raise it up to 130,000. Aldikacti made the call and led out on the 10♥ turn, but his Polish foe chose only to smooth call this time.

Slowing down on the 4♥ river, Ertan faced a 400,000 bet on the river and his rival called the clock after he tanked for a while. The eventual call proved ill-advised however, as Sowinski flipped 69 for a straight.

UPDATE - It seems the Pole is human after all, as Milan Sinko forced him to fold with the board reading A♦4♥Q♣-K♠ board.

Poles apart, Czakon finishes 6th

The luck turned on Czakon
While Piotr Sowinski continues to grow his stack, compatriot Jakub Czakon has endured a far tougher spell in the last hour - eventually succumbing his short stack to finish in 6th.

In truth he had lost two crucial hands some time ago yet still hadn't found his moment until a short time ago, when he raised all but 1,000 of his 300,000 stack pre-flop.

Ertan Aldikacti must have appreciated the humour as he just made the call, before both players watched the dealer deliver an AK8 flop.

Jakub tossed his final chip into the centre and surprisingly enough, 'Baba' called. He might have called a bigger bet still, given he had A♦Q♦ and the pocket fives of Czakon were defeated. The Pole wins €7,605.

Sowinski meanwhile has been getting the better of both Ertan Aldikacti and Milan Simko in recent hands, out kicking the latter in once hand and catching a middle pair that had the former cursing his hot deck.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184.

Latest Chip Count

With our players nipping out for a quick break, we got a rough count of the chips and, as expected, found Piotr Sowinski has extended his lead.

Rough Chip Count

Pietr Sowinski - 1,800,000
Heiko Kenning - 1,100,00
Ertan Aldikacti - 800,000
Milan Simko - 700,000
Jakub Czakon - 680,000
Nat Jarmonthavat - 540,000

Vitezslav sunk in 7th

Following those big defeats, the deck just continued to punish Vitezslav Meisner and he has now been put out of his misery in 7th place.

It was old rival Pietr Sowinski who delivered the decisive blow, calling the Czech's three-bet shove with QQ  and seeing it hold up against the A8 of the condemned.

Meisner wins €6170. We're just taking a quick break but the action will re-commence in just a moment.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605.

Meisner calls prove costly

Meisner has been in the
thick of the action
Vitezslav Meisner has certainly not shied away from a big call so far at PPT Prague but his last two decisions might leave him ruing the bravery.

First up he took on chip leader Pietr Sowinski, raising from middle position and getting called by the Pole in the big blind. Unpeturbed, he c-bet the Q high flop but slowed down on the turn when Sowinski called again.

The river 8♣ roused the usually aggressive big stack into action, reaching for a 119,000 bet which after much thought, Meisner called. He swiftly mucked on seeing his Pietr's AQ, however.

Next it was the turn of Ertan Aldikacti to join the sparring and the Turkish player showed no fear in building a big pot, check-raising Vitezslav on a K♠5♣9♣ flop.

The 6♣ on the turn was a loaded card yet still Meisner felt confident enough to call the 238,000 shove that followed. Again it proved a painful ending, as his Turkish foe turned over 69 for two pair.

Gabor banks €4735 for 8th

Bank takes down €4735  
Who knows what our players had for dinner, but it's certainly moved things along as Gabor Bank just headed for the cash desk in 8th.

The Hungarian continues the long line of excellent displays from our Hungarian contingent but he will not lift the PPT3 Prague crown, as his 10s failed to hold against the AQ of Vitezslav Meisner, who goes from strength-to-strength.

The pair had got into a pre-flop raising war and it was Bank who made the final move, but he could not have been happy to see a Queen on the flop!

UPDATE - Big hand fever continues as Ertan Aldikacti had his stack chopped to less than half by Milan Simko. Simko has been short for some time but found JJ in the hole and it topped his opponent's A9 to double him up.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170.

Szarkezi quickly follows in 9th

Hot on the heels of Jelinek is Nikola Szarkezi after another classic race saw the small pair hold true.

It was Jakub Czakon who made the call of around 200,000 chips with pocket 4s and he promptly flopped a set with the cards on show.

There was still hope for Szarkezi , mind, as the monotone board gave him a ♠ flush draw care of the A♠ with his J♣. The river did bring a Jacks - which Nikola briefly thought had snatched him victory - but the realisation soon dawned.

He walks away with €3,300 for his three days at the King's Casino.

Jelinek out in 10th; winning €2,009

He may have made it to dinner but his stay could not have been shorter once we were back to the action, as Petr Jelinek lost his remaining chips on the first hand.

The Czech had shipped his stack from early middle position, giving Ertan Aldikacti a big decision when he looked down at 6s. Eventually a clock was called and Ba Ba made the call.

He was up against the A♣8♣ of Jelinek and the board ran 7♥2♠Q♦-3♠-Q♣ to hand the Turkish player victory.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300.

Final table pics

Still 10 players in the mix for the PPT3 Prague crown - which of these hopefuls are you backing for victory?

Chips for dinner

We're on the hour-long dinner break now so while our players take a bite to eat from the tasty buffet downstairs, we've been totting up their revised chip counts.

The big mover is of course, Pietr Sowinski after that big hand with Ertan Aldikacti, but Heiko Kenning has maintained his prominent position.

Final Table Chip Count (Dinner break)

Seat 1: Jakub Czakon - 611,000
Seat 2: Gabor Bank - 411,000
Seat 3: Nikola Szarkezi - 214,000
Seat 4: Heiko Kenning - 948,000
Seat 5: Ertan Aldikacti - 392,000
Seat 6: Pietr Sowinski - 1,243,000
Seat 7: Nat Jarmonthavat - 696,000
Seat 8: Petr Jelinek - 230,000
Seat 9: Vitezslav Meisner - 718,000
Seat 10: Milan Simko - 292,000

Jelinek back from the brink at dinner

Jelinek now has 230,000 chips
Petr Jelinek looked bound for 10th place just before our hour long dinner break but somehow he survived with A2 vs both Gabor Bank and Nikola Szarkezi to stay alive.

The Czech player had been crippled by a clash with Vitezslav Meisner that left him with all of 35,000 chips, but that treble means he is no longer the shortest stack in the room!

Jelinek had raised pre-flop and seen K♥8♦5♥ arrive on the flop, but it was the later streets that prompted the greater action.

Petr bet the 4♥ and then checked the 5♣ river, before tanking when his rival shoved his remaining stack. Eventually he settled on a call, however, and was dismayed to see Vitezslav had turned a set with 4♣4♠ to top his pocket Jacks.

His seemingly inevitable exit was initially delayed by a fiery hand between Ertan Aldikacti and Pietr Sowinski. Ertan was the pre-flop aggressor but check-called the 6 high flop; both players then took a free card on the river and Sowinski fired out for 180,000 on the river, having completed a set of nines.

His Turkish rival even called the hand aloud before any cards were shown, but let curiosity get the better of him and called anyway.

Final Table chip count

Kenning is our final table chip leader
After a short break, our final table is now under way and a chip count shows Heiko Kenning's dominance continues in the final 10.

The understated German has been more quiet and effective than explosive on Day 3, but he has a comfortable lead over is rivals.

Milan Simko is the short stack, with the average tower standing some 521,000 chips high.

Final Table Chip Count

Seat 1: Jakub Czakon - 545,000
Seat 2: Gabor Bank - 362,000
Seat 3: Nikola Szarkezi - 335,000
Seat 4: Heiko Kenning - 957,000
Seat 5: Ertan Aldikacti - 696,000
Seat 6: Pietr Sowinski - 785,000
Seat 7: Nat Jarmonthavat - 785,000
Seat 8: Petr Jelinek - 530,000
Seat 9: Vitezslav Meisner - 537,000
Seat 10: Milan Simko - 223,000

Demetris misses out as final table set

Demetris Triantafyilou had already survived one attempt on his tournament life but he can battle no longer, as he became our last player to miss the final table.

The Cypriot had earlier cracked the AK of Jakub Czakon with A3 to double up, so it was somehow fitting that the same opponent took his chips back to send us to the last 10 players.

Czakon shoved pre-flop in a blind battle between the pair with KJ, prompting a call from Triantafyilou's A7.

The flop immediately brought the Jack that would end the short stack's participation however, and the remaining players cheered their final table opportunity.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th- €2,009.

Vanek brings us closer to final table

Ten players will start our final table and we're now within a single exit of the home straight, after Dominick Vanek became the latest victim of some all-in drama.

The Czech came up against Nat Jarmonthavat in a hand that played itself, as the former's QQ ran into the latter's KK.

The Q76 flop turned the hand on its head but before Vanek could celebrate what looked an inevitable double-up, a river King intervened to send him on his way with €2,009 in prize money.

Hero call the highlight

After the glut of eliminations we're reached another stalemate on the cusp of the final table, though at least Vitezslav Meisner provided some entertainment with a fine piece of passive play.

Defending his big blind to a button raise from Pietr Sowinski, the dealer delivered A♠Q♥6♣ on the flop and Meisner check-called his rival's continuation bet.

The turn and river followed near identical patterns, with the Q♦ and 8♦ eventually seeing the Polish aggressor commit 91,000. After careful consideration, the man in the big blind called - prompting an insta-muck from Sowinski.

Popular Porebski among quick-fire casualties

Porebski's dream flop turned
into a nightmare
After long periods with very little movement, the action has exploded into life as we head to our next 15 minute break, with Damian Porebski breaking many a Fantasy Poker entrant's heart by exiting in 16th.

News of his demise will come as a blow to the 12 teams pinning their hopes on Damian, but his backers will hardly be able to blame him for his final hand.

Porebski had raised to 20,000 and Pietr Sowinski three-bet to 32,000 before the compatriots went to the K♠T♦9♦ flop.

It looked like the dream board for Damian's K♦Q♦ but it soon turned into a nightmare after the chips had gone in, as Sowinski showed A♦J♦ and proceeded to hit two diamonds to make his nut flush.

Porebski was one of five quick fire casualties in the King's Casino and just 12 players will resume following the short interval.

Luis Machado (14th) was eliminated after his top pair ran into a flopped flush, while the aggressive Czech Roman Studynka (13th) couldn't find the moves to get his 87o past the A2o of Gabor Bank.

Also hitting the rail in the burst of exits were Stanislav Polacek (17th) and Mahmut Odun (15th). All of the above won €1,772 apart from Studynka, who secures a €2,009 prize.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th-13th - €2,009.

Two tables after a pair of exits

We're now down to two tables after Damian Mulavczyk's  exit from the Main Event and he was followed very quickly by another pair of hopefuls.

Petr Kralitek was next to go, leaving us with 17 players competing for that coveted final table seat.

Meanwhile Milan Simko will need a quick recovery to avoid being next, having lost two pots in a short spell. First his two pair was bested by a better two pair, before Damian Porebski picked off a bluff with his top pair.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th-13th - €2,009; 14th-17th.

Bank drags in a monster pot

Bank (pictured on Day 1) chipped up in style
Few hands we see truly get the blood pumping but Gabor Bank just dragged in a 425,000 pot worthy of the ParadisePoker Tour all-time highlight reel.

The Hungarian had sparked the action when he open shoved with 8♥8♣ and got action from two rivals, as Nikola Szarkezi and Robert Kokoska shipped their stacks in turn.

The Czech pair showed A♦K♦ and A♥A♠ but the drama was far from done there...

First the flop brought Bank top set 6♦8♠2♦, only for the turn to deliver the J♦ for Szarkezi to take the lead. A river 2♠ saw our Hungarian hero cry out with delight before stacking up his new found fortress.

Poor Kokoska exits in 20th as a result, while Szarkezi clings on after winning the side pot.

History-making halted as Huspeka departs

Huspeka won PPT1 Prague back in 2010
Needless to say, David Huspeka has many a reason to be remember in ParadisePoker Tour history but the young Czech will not be our first repeat winner after crashing out in 21st place.

Entering the day in the middle of the field, he had already managed the distinguished honour of cashing twice in this year's event following a 4th-place finished in Wednesday's Deep & Steep.

He will add  €1,579 to that score to take his winnings this week to over €3,000, but no doubt he would have wanted more.

His demise came after a typically aggressive move proved mistimed. A three-bet shove with A&hearts:6♥ was quickly called by Stanislav Polacek's JJ and though he picked up an open-ended straight draw on the 739-8 board, the river Q ended Huspeka's hopes of PPT history.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th-13th - €2,009; 14th-17th - €1,772; 18th-21st - €1,579.

Skiadis ends tight spell

We've been waiting for nearly an hour for our next player to bow out of the Main Event and it was Georgie Skiadas who ended the drought.

The Greek player was short stacked when he put his tournament life at risk pre-flop with AK and he must have been delighted to get a call from Heiko Kenning's AQ.

That was until the flop came Queen high and knocked him out in 22nd for the last €1,435 prize.

Three more to the rail

After the initial rush to the door, our exits had slowed a little until Adrian Ghofranifar and Jakub Kyrian made their moves... and duly departed in 25th and 24th place respectively.

First it was Ghofranifar who raised from the button with Q♦8♦ and having been three-bet all-in by Petr Kralitek, made the call for his tournament life.

Adrian found himself up against K♦J♠ and the K♠3♦6♦ flop kept things interesting. The turn (A♣) and river (8♥) were blanks, however, and the German's Day 3 came to end with a €1,435 payday.

Kyrian was close behind, winning the same prize after open shoving with K♥J♥ and finding no help after being called by pocket 7s.

UPDATE - Marek Pomazal made it a hat trick of departures just moments before out first break of the day, also winning €1,435 for his efforts.

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th-13th - €2,009; 14th-17th - €1,772; 18th-21st - €1,579; 22nd - €1,435.

Snowmen prove deadly as Day 3 kicks off

We're just minutes into Day 3 and the short stacks have already been in the middle, with Team Paradise member Rafal Lubczynski the first victim of the day.

The Polish player shoved the very first hand with 66 and ran into the 88 of Ertan Aldikacti, with little drama along the way as Rafal headed for the cash tables.

Within moments compatriot Gregor Reczko followed him out the door, with his A10 failing to find the cards he need to beat his opponent's 88.

Both players take €1,292 for their trouble and we'll be using our prize pool reminder so you can keep track of the money from now on!

Prize Pool reminder: 1st - €33,005; 2nd - €20,090; 3rd - €13,346; 4th - €10,906; 5th - €9,184; 6th - €7,605; 7th - €6,170; 8th - €4735; 9th - €3,300; 10th-13th - €2,009; 14th-17th - €1,772; 18th-21st - €1,579; 22nd-25th - €1,435.

Fantasy Poker: Kenning holds the key

No less than 37 teams have players still in the running at ParadisePoker Tour Prague, but only Winforever can boast two of the final 27.

Crucially his team also includes chip leader Heiko Kenning with Demetris Triantafyllou in support, but who knows what the day's drama holds?

We should mention that three teams picked Bartlomiej Swieboda and he scored four points for his 29th-place finish, while Julio Diaz notched three points for a pair of teams and Jandrulo secured a single point as he survived the bubble - just!

Among the remaining teams Damian Porebski is the most popular pick, with Luis Machado picked by four entrants and Gabor Bank by seven. Here's the latest 'standings:'


Click to zoom on Fantasy Poker latest

Day 3 Chip Count

The hour is drawing close for play to resume at King's Casino and with three tables remaining, Heiko Kenning is the man to beat as he owns just shy of 12% of the total chip count.

The German was certainly on a heater in the latter stages of Day 2, wiping out the big stack of Tomáš Junek in one swoop care of Aces and winning his fair shares of slips, not least the JJ that held up vs Bright Ibhadon's AK.

Five players have already notched Fantasy Poker points and we'll bring you their names soon, along with a full update on whose in the points. We can say that three teams picked Kenning and so look sure to be in the running.

Day 3 Chip Count

Heiko Kenning GER - 686500
Ertan Aldikacti TUR - 448000
Milan Simko CZ - 346500
Pietr Sowinski POL - 319800
Demetris Triantafyilou CYP - 318600
Damian Mulavczyk POL - 289800
Nikola Szarkezi CZ - 289700
Jakub Czakon POL - 273300
Dominik Vanek CZ - 254700
Kralitek Petr CZ - 244300
Stanislav Polacek CZ - 240300
Roman Studyoka CZ - 213100
Robert Kokoska CZ - 189200
David Huspeka CZ - 188500
Vitezslav Meisner CZ - 161800
Luis Machado POR - 157300
Damian Porebski POL - 154100
Adrian Ghofranifar - 136700
Nat Jarmonthavat DEN - 113500
Marek Pomazal CZ - 106300
Odun Mahmut SUI - 105100
Petr Jelinek CZ - 103700
Georgie Skiadas GRE - 101600
Gabor Bank HUN - 98200
Rafal Lubczynski POL - 78600
Jakub Kyrian CZ - 73300
Gregor Reczko POL - 38500

Day 2 ends, party night begins

Inevitably Day 2 came to a rapid end once the bubble burst and we'll be returning to the King's Casino tomorrow with three tables and 27 hopefuls vying for the PPT crown.

Among those will be Gabor Bank, Luis Machado and Stanislav Polacek so get ready for an exciting finish to Fantasy Poker as well as the Main Event.

We'll have a full chip count, Fantasy Poker update and of course coverage right to the last hand tomorrow so come back for more ParadisePoker Tour action - plus all the gossip from the Players' Party!

Bubble recap

Studýnka is always at the heart
of the action
Some big hands shaped the future of the ParadisePoker Tour Main Event during the bubble and with the PP blog loathed to leave the action, we decided a recap was the way to go.

The action-packed hands signalled something of a big shift in power at Table 1 as the relentlessly aggressive Roman Studýnka had his stack cut down to size by Ertan Aldikacti.

The man nicknamed Baba had been called pre-flop by Czech native Studýnka and much to the former's delight, he flop top set on a 4♠9♥10♦ board.

Roman called another bet with his K♦J♦ and when the turn brought 5♦, the ensuing fireworks saw the chips shipped into the centre. Ertan's set held against the draw and having taken a huge chunk from his rival's stack, his tower stood among the highest in the room at 450,000.

Studýnka wasn't done with the limelight, however, getting all-in a short time later with Aces and restoring some measure to his stack as he doubled up vs the A6 of an opponent.

Inevitably the bubble bursting has seen a raft of exits, including that of Alejandro Rodrigo - aka Jandrulo. His super short stack simply had to go in, so it was little surprise that his exit came once a cash was assured.

Saturday 21 January 2012

Short stack falls at last, we're in the money!

Our nameless bubble boy could hang on no longer
A number of near misses and over an hour's wait to lose our final unpaid player - and we didn't even catch his name!

Such was the crowd around the table when his 2♣6♠ was beaten, that the PP blog was cut off from the unluckiest man in the room. 

He had hung on for a long time and when the time finally came to put his three big blinds into the middle, he found a rag hand to go up against A♥Q♥. 

The flop offered hope aplenty, coming K♠J♥6♥ but the bigger stack's flush completed on the turn with the K♥ and the river 5♠ was a costly blank.

The remaining 32 players will all receive a cash prize, so let's remind ourselves of the breakdown:

Prize Pool Structure
1st - €33,005
2nd - 20,090
3rd - €13,346
4th - €10,906
5th - €9,184
6th - €7,605
7th - €6,170
8th - €4735
9th - €3,300
10th-13th - €2,009
14th-17th - €1,772
18th-21st - €1,579
22nd-25th - €1,435
26th-29th - €1,292
30th-32nd - €1,004 

Bubble bound

Just 34 players remain in the fight for our 32 money spots so we're about to encroach on to bubble territory at King's Casino.

The PP blog needs to stay close to the action at this crucial time, but here's a quick chip count to keep you informed.

Heiko Kenning - 580,000
Roman Studýnka - 270,000
David Huspeka - 230,000
Luis Machado - 220,000
Bartlomiej Swieboda - 220,000
Gabor Bank - 106,000
Damian Porebski - 175,000
Ertan "Baba" Aldikacti - 170,000
Adrian Ghofranifar - 150,000
Bright Ibhadon - Out

UPDATE - Bright Ibhadon hit the rail when his AK went up against the JJ of Heiko Kenning. The German's hot deck ensured Bright couldn't catch anything to help Big Slick, leaving him agonisingly close to earning a PPT payday. Hard luck Bright! 

The King is dead

It's been a case of too many Heikos for the PP blog this evening as we got in a muddle reporting the stacks of Heiko Kenning and namesake Wendt.

The latter, whose nickname is King Heiko, hit the rail a while ago after battling with a short stack for much of the day.

Fantasy Poker entrants with Kenning will be pleased to hear he is a long way from a suffering a similar fate, meanwhile, as he now boasts 580,000 chips in his stack.

That was after a huge hand with Tomáš Junek, whose aggressive streak just got him into trouble before the money places.

The Czech player was a little bashful when asked to recount the story: "I five-bet shoved with 69 suited and found [Heiko Kenning's] Aces," he blushed, "Maybe next time!"

Elsewhere Bright Ibahdon was forced to make a big fold shaky-handed bet set his spider sense tingling! It was enough to convince him to lay down his top pair, good kicker and the villain showed him KK for a top set. Phew! 

Damian doubles up

Porebski slow-played his Kings full to double up
Comfortably the most popular Fantasy Poker pick still battling it out in the Main Event is Damian Porebski and his backers will be delighted to hear he just doubled his stack to 165,000.

Now some 40,000 ahead of the average, the quiet Pole looks like have a great shot at the money - and with it a share of the Fantasy Poker spoils - having slow-played a monster hand to perfection.

Porebski was the pre-flop raiser but was called by a player in late position and they went to the K♣8♥10♦ flop heads-up.

Damian c-bet for around 7,000 into a 15,000 pot and earned another call, before check-calling the 10♣ on the turn. The river was a blank 2 ♥ and the hero of this tale checked once more.

That prompted a shove from his opponent and even when Poresbski snap-called with KK, there was no sign of jubilation, no cry of delight; little more than a wry smile.

The 12 Fantasy Poker entrants who picked him might allow themselves a little more celebration.

Day 2 in pics

Our pro photographer has kindly handed us another batch of photos so check out some of the Day 2 highlights in our slideshow.

Baby-faced assassins

Junek looks in good shape as we
approach the money
Full stomachs tend to up the aggression and so its proved here at Corinthia Towers, where a pair of poker's new breed have helped trim the field of 10 players in a short time.

First we stopped by as Tomáš Junek put an end to an opponent's Day 2 with a slice of good fortune. The money had gone in pre-flop before the soon-to-be-victim showed QQ to trump his native rival's 55.

The flop looked harmless enough, coming 4♥&3♥J♦, but the 6♥ on the turn handed the bigger stack plenty of outs, with the river completing the turnaround care of the 7♣.

Meanwhile David Huspeka, continues to swell his stack at the far side of the room. The PPT1 Prague champ has already cashed during this festival and is on track to repeat the trick in the Main Event.

We caught the end of his latest big hand, as his set of Jacks triumphed vs the AQ of a medium-sized stack to send yet another player to the rail.

Just 16 players stand between our remaining field and the money now, so we'll need our baby-faced assassins to continue their work if we're going to make it to the Players' Party tonight!

Dinner break over

We're back at the tables for the final straight this evening, as we aim to play down to at least three tables by the end of Day 2. That means the bubble will burst before the day is done, but will your Fantasy Poker players make the money?

60 players remain in play and Level 14 is now taking 1,250/2,500 blinds plus a 250 ante.

Here's a selected chip count as we shuffle up and deal...

Luis Machado - 190,000
Gabor Bank - 150,000
Bright Ibhadon - 130,000
Heiko Kenning - 36,000
Jandrulo - 56,000
Mikkel Olesen - Out
Mikkel Bergmann - Out

Roman's empire grows before dinner

In the very last hand before we go on our hour-long dinner break, Roman Studýnka flashed the same fearless aggression that earned him what we think is the chip lead.

The Czech player had raised two hands in a row before pumping up the pre-flop action once more with the buffet calling. He was called by one rival and raised by another, but refused to back down.

His pre-flop 4-bet was called by one of his out of position rivals and the flop fell A♠6♦3♦. A continuation bet was enough to secure the pot after his opponent checked, but it didn't stop Studýnka's turning over 10♠2♠ for stone cold bluff.

The PP blog estimates his stack is now 250,000 chips high and with the average around 95,000, there seem to be few towers around that could challenge for the chip lead.

Ghofrani Far also picked up a big pot before heading off to eat, as his KK held up after all the money went in on a 46J flop.

His villain showed 57 for an open-ended straight draw, but couldn't connect to stay alive in the tournament. Far's stack is now around 160,000.

Turbo/High Roller results

The rate of eliminations has been a little slow over the last couple of levels as our players cling on until the dinner break, hoping a full stomach might help revive their fortunes.

We thought we'd use this lull to bring you our official side event results from earlier in the week, including the €115 Turbo Event on Wednesday and Thursday's High Roller.

Cashing in side events helps boost your tally in the PPT3 League so the more events you play, the more hope you have of taking down a slice of the €20,000 prize pool at the end of season awards.

Topping the money in our midweek event was Jiri Golasowski, with €3,900 the top prize in the €15,000 GTD event, with Daniel Peterson (€2700), Cristina Dumistresku (€1950) and David Huspeka (€1530) also claiming sizeable scores after beating the 131-man field.

The 22-man High Roller event paid just three players and with a high standard on show, it was fitting that Grzegorz Cichocki topped the pile to take down €15,400. The Pole had an outstanding 2011 including big wins on the EPT Tour.

Also making the cash position on Thursday night were Stefan Vagner (€9240) and Ruslan Tsmur (€6,160) so a tip of the cap to you gentlemen. Here are the results in full:

Click to zoom in on results

Boros battle at an end

Tibor Boros will not avenge the pain of last year's final table this time, as having struggled through much fo Day 2 he finally succumbed in a standard all-in.

One villain had raised utg and when the small blind went all-in, Boros decided the time was right with AQ. The original raiser folded 99 face-up and when his other opponent revealed the same hand, Tibor was handed a little extra hope.

Lady Luck refused to bring any of the outs he desired, however, and the Hungarian found himself out of the Main Event: "I've not had any cards these past two days and normally that's ok, as I don't need strong starting hands to play - but I couldn't really hit anything on the flop either!"

Boros has endured a rough start to the year but his search for a change in fortunes continues, as he quickly made his way across the room for late registration in the €220 NLHE side event.

Double me up, dealer!

Mikkel Olesen has been card dead for much of the day
A quick skim around the remaining 79 players reveal that many a Fantasy Poker favourite needs a double up to get back near the 72,000 chip average.

Shortest of all if Tibor Boros, who has been playing survival games all day as he bids to right the wrongs of last year's infamous blow-up in Prague.

Mikkels Bergmann (25,000) and Olesen (30,000) are not much better off mind, with Heiko Kenning (29,000) and Bartlomiej Swieboda (35,000) also struggling to keep up with the average.

Hungarian Gabor Bank looks a lot more comfortable with his near 85,000 chip tower while Luis Machado goes from strength-to-strength.

The Portuguese has 200,000 chips to play with and is among the biggest stacks to be found in Corinthia Towers.

Champion call lifts Huspeka

2010 champ Huspeka made
a fine hero call
David Huspeka is out to prove his 2010 victory in PPT Prague was no fluke and given recent evidence, it seems the young Czech is on track.

Often involved in a pot when we visit his table at the far end of the room, our former champion was facing a bet of 17,400 on the river with the board reading K♦2♥10♣-5♣-6♠ when the PP blog arrived.

After much careful thought, he committed the chips to good effect, showing 9s to beat the busted straight draw of his opponent. Can he continue his form as we edge closer to the money?

A big call proved the wrong decision for Mikkel Bergmann, however, as the Dane lost a sizeable pot versus the all-in of a female villain.

Bergmann flipped AJ after making the call on a draw-laden A♣2♣3♠ board, but his rival joyfully turned over a set and watched with glee as it held up. Mikkel has just 23,000 chips after that hand.

Fantasies shattered by Cichocki exit

Grzegorz Cichocki was the shining light of many a Fantasy Poker entrant but the Polish player won't be scoring any points at PPT Prague after shipping his stack to another player.

The hand will likely haunt our €1400 High Roller winner, having put his tournament life on the line with just top pair against multiple opponents.

He had been the pre-flop aggressor and having earned three callers, he continued that trend on the flop. The board read 10-7-3 when the big blind check-raised his 3,100 continuation bet.

Even that didn't slow the EPT Tallinn runner-up down, though, and he was called when he pushed his remaining 58,000 chips into the centre.

Grzegorz showed K10 for top pair and his rival had top two, which held up to do some real damage to the 21 teams featuring Cichocki.

Huge hand sends us to a break

Things can turn so quickly in poker. Take Milan Simko, staying alive with a below average stack just a few minutes ago, he shipped his 38,000 with 10s and when he got two callers things looked a little bleak.

Vojtěch Růžička was also at risk, holding J♠Q♠, while Team Paradise member Rafal Lubczynski was the third ingredient with AK in his armoury.

As if the pre-flop fireworks weren't enough, the board brought 2♠2♥7♣-3♠ to leave Simko needing to dodge flush cards and over cards aplenty.

The river 8♣ was the blank he prayed for and propelled him from short stack to 120,000. The Czech ensured dangerous player Růžička goes home empty handed in 101st place.

Meanwhile, Luis Machado looks like going from strength-to-strength today after another fold from his opponents. The Portuguese fired out on a 8♦8♣4♦ flop when we last passed by, with the villain backing down after some thought.

Bright start for Ibhadon

Bright has made a promising start to Day 2
110 players remain in the room after 90 minutes of Day 2 and among those moving their chip stack in the right direction is Bright Ibhadon.

The PP blog knows Bright from the WSOP trip of 2010, when he and a group of friends joined us in Las Vegas for a week of poker and partying.

Just like those many moons ago, our old pal was bought in by good friend Andy Cooper and has been steadily building since the first deal here in Prague.

The construction continued with one good-size pot today. Calling a min raise from a villain in the cut-off, Ibhadon matched his rival's c-bet too when the flop came 3-4-9. A 3 on the turn changed little in his mind, giving him license to call a second barrel, before the river brought him an Ace for top pair.

The fact his value bet of around 8,500 was called suggests it was a lucky river, but he defended the play with a smile: "That sounds like I was calling to hit a gut shot, but I really believed I was good the whole way. He mucked his cards in the end, but I guess that was a misread!"

Fortunes have not favoured all our familiar faces, however, as Joao Brito's stack has been chopped down to just 20 big blinds after a few lost pots.

The latest was a pre-flop all-in versus a short stack, with his Joao's 10s dominated vs the KK of the villain and the 8♥J♠9♦ flop proving no more than a tease. The Portuguese now has around 21,000 chips.

Fantasy Poker update

Fantasy Poker produced many a fine performance from our blog readers on Day 1 as no less than 16 teams saw their all three of their picks survive.

YERERE will be toasting his all-Portuguese line-up, with only Paulo Calado looking vulnerable, while popular Poles Damian Porebski and Grzegorz Cichocki paid off for the likes of DnaloP Team, Random Donks and 1500100900.

Of course only those plays reach the money will score points, with top spot worth 32 points, 2nd 31 etc, so our overnight leaders still have a long way to go to claim that €1,200 package.

Here are the 16 teams with all three players still in tournament:

Click to zoom in on our Fantasy Poker standings

Day 2 cards in the air

Day 2 has just begun in the King's Casino, Prague and with the snow tumbling down outside, our players will be hoping to avoid a cold deck in the Czech Republic!

Bad joke, we know. Sorry about that...

Meanwhile our professional photographer just delivered a batch of great photos from Day 1, so here's a slideshow for the memories.

Ladies first... Veronika heads the Day 2 field

Veronika Kokočeva won over €29,300 in 2011 tournaments
After Marga Gonzalez showed her flash of girl power in Barcelona, the rise of the female player continues on the ParadisePoker Tour as Veronika Kokočeva commands the biggest stack in the room.

Heading into Day 2, the Czech lady is just a few chips ahead of Matthias Weigert and Vítězslav Meišner, with the trio into six-figures after a fine first day.

Of our most popular Fantasy Poker picks, Luis Machado (77,700), Mikkel Bergmann (73,900), Grzegorz Cichocki (73,325) and Joao Brito (72,100) stick out.

Speaking of Fantasy Poker, our Barcelona winner David Miko has 68,150 - more than 25,000 chips ahead of the average - and is on course to turn his PPT fantasy into reality! We'll have a more comprehensive round-up of Fantasy Poker soon.

Day 1 Chip Count

Veronika Kokočeva - CZ - 110475
Matthias Weigert - GER - 109100
Vítězslav Meišner - CZ - 108550
Dominik Orzech - PL - 87825
Julio Diaz - SPA - 86800
Jiří Golasowski - CZ - 86525
Bright Osereimen Ibhadon - UK - 83525
Jakub Czakon - PL - 81050
Luis Machado - POR - 77700
Jens Mikkel Bergmann - DK - 73900
Siegmund Appel - GER - 73700
Grzegorz Cichocki - PL - 73325
Milan Šašek - CZ - 72650
Joao Manuel Brito - POR - 72100
Tobias Jahn - GER - 69675
Ľudovít Fischer - SK - 68925
David Miko - SPA - 68150
Krishan Suresh Larsen - DK - 68050
Nat Jarmonthavat - DK - 67275
Petr  Jelínek - CZ - 67225
Milan Šimko - CZ - 65675
Juan Antonio Tocino Fuillerat - SPA - 65675
Daniel Adam Korczak - PL - 64775
Matthias Gude - GER - 64000
Dariusz Szoen - PL - 63750
Roman Studýnka - CZ - 63250
Alexis Pouros - CYP - 63175
Stanislav Poláček - CZ - 62125
Tomáš Junek - CZ - 61875
Piotr Mikolaj Sowinski - PL - 61625
Piotr Obuchowski - PL - 59600
Jan Šurman - CZ - 59575
Athanasios Kechagias - GRE - 57500
Damian Mularczyk - PL - 57000
Gerhard Bauer - GER - 57000
Arian Ghofrani Far - GER - 55975
Heiko Kenning - GER - 55575
Vojtěch Růžička - CZ - 55075
Václav Vojta - CZ - 54650
Jiří Porkert - CZ - 54025
Ekaterina Kolobekova - RUS - 53900
Jakub Pastrňák - CZ - 53050
Štěpán Kolovratník - CZ - 51300
Jaroslav Vávra - CZ - 51025
Piotr Wdowiak - PL - 50950
Robert Kokoška - CZ - 49325
Berg Riza - GER - 48975
Rafat Lubczynski - PL - 48675
Marcus Hein - GER - 48250
Olaf Pohlmann - GER - 48100
Pavlos Kasselouris - GRE - 48075
Lukasz Andrzej Laskowski - PL - 47775
Gabor Bank - HUN - 47250
Nikolaos Skiadas - GRE - 46025
Enrique  Martin Pascual - SPA - 45825
Rasmus Vejbaek - DK - 45525
Nikola Szarkezi - CZ - 45075
Panagiotis Roumelis - GRE - 44300
Ondřej Knězů - CZ - 43725
Cem Yilmaz - TUR - 43425
Grzegorz Wyraz - PL - 42425
Jakub Kyrian - CZ - 41900
Rasmus Schmidt - DK - 41800
Ertan Aldikacti - TUR - 41425
Radek Nechuta - CZ - 41100
Claus Uhrskov - DK - 40450
Ferenc Bartha - HUN - 39675
Heiko Andreas Wendt - GER - 39475
David Huspeka - CZ - 38000
Jiří Najman - CZ - 37500
Tomas Brokl - CZ - 37175
Tibor  Boros - HUN - 36700
Jiří Stáňa - CZ - 36025
Grzegorz Jakub Reczko - PL - 35750
Hendrik Unverricht - GER - 35325
Jan Tomanec - CZ - 35000
Petr Králíček - CZ - 34475
Pawel Marek Jaskolski - PL - 34275
Bartlomiej Swieboda - PL - 33700
Paul-Philipp Schulz - GER - 33000
Pawel Czartoryski - PL - 32300
Rasmus Hansen - DK - 31875
Unruan Sae Ueng - GER - 31750
Robert Kunzmann - GER - 31000
Salim Alibas - GER - 30950
Srinivasan Thavarajah - SRI - 30700
Ulrike Josefine Schröder - GER - 30500
Robert Wagner - GER - 29575
Armando Suma - IT - 29525
Dragan Ignjatovic - SER - 29300
Mykola Lakatosh - UKR - 29225
Georgios Skiadas - GRE - 28325
Jan Brandejs - CZ - 27700
Toni Hakan Englund - SWE - 26900
Mahmut Odun - CH - 25875
Thomas Schioler - DK - 25800
Alain Medesan - ROM - 25775
Marek Pomazal - CZ - 25775
Magic Man  - GER - 24250
Daniel Johannes Dankelmann - GER - 23850
Morten Jensen - DK - 23800
Mikkel Steen Olesen - DK - 23575
Ondřej Drozd - CZ - 23525
Milan Boršč - SVK - 23475
Alejandro Rodrigo Gutierrez - SPA - 23100
István Magyar - HUN - 22925
Uwe Plaschke - GER - 22825
Damian Porebski - PL - 22450
Aleksandr Berenbein - RUS - 22025
Daniel Petersen - DK - 21700
Demetris Triantafyllou - CYP - 21425
Pavol Ott - GER - 21325
Christoph Erdt - AT - 21175
Yehuda Cohen - ISR - 20425
Viktor Csákányi - HUN - 20125
Milan Zaric - AT - 19925
Radek  Sedláček - CZ - 19800
Alexios Valonasis - GRE - 19500
Lucian Papp - GER - 19500
Piotr Paskudzki - PL - 19400
Michael Mertel - GER - 18800
Jan Olov Lennart Akervall - SWE - 18775
Paul Michaelis - GER - 18275
Benjamin Michael Riegel - GER - 15525
Filip Žák - CZ - 15450
Zoltán Kapitány - HUN - 15350
Mario Allekotte - GER - 13900
Andreas Zauner - AT - 13725
Petr Hlaváček - CZ - 13550
Paul  Schmuck - GER - 13075
Dominik  Vaněk - CZ - 11525
Paulo Filipe Calado - POR - 9025
Abgerockt Kilic - GER - 8750
Javier Dosuna - SPA - 8700
Jens Bastek - GER - 8325
Jan-Peter Jachtmann - GER - 7300
Pawel Jacek Chrusciel - PL - 5375

And that's a wrap for Day 1

The ParadisePoker Tour Prague Main Event has whittled the 287-field down to around 140 players as we draw the curtain Day 1.

We'll have a full chip count and all the Fantasy Poker implications for you tomorrow before play restarts, so check back tomorrow to continue our journey to PPT glory.

Night all!

Final hour pics

Still time for a final round of pics before Day 1 draws its last breath, with some tired poker players, big stacks and lucky charms on view in our slideshow finale.

Also among the stories told by our pics was the survival of Zoltan Kapitany, as much to the relief of his Fantasy Poker owners the Hungarian caught a 9 to double up with K9 vs AK after getting it in pre-flop.

Here's our latest pics...

Chip counts as Day 2 beckons

With around ninety minutes to play we're closing in on Day 2 but as the tiredness sets in, the survival challenge starts here for our remaining 164 players.

Between the familiar faces, popular Fantasy Poker picks and former cash winners we've compiled a selected chip count. So without further ado:

Luboš Galuška - 60,000
Luis Machado - 46,000
Jurgen Bachman - 41,000
Bright Ibhadon - 40,000
Mikkel Olesen - 40,000
Joao Brito - 35,000
Tibor Boros - 25,000
Zoltan Kapitany - 20,000
Paulo Calado - 18,000
Salim Alibas - 11,400
Srini Thavarajah - 8,000
Carlos Oliveira - Out
Daniel Ferrera - Out

Friday 20 January 2012

Mixed fortunes for poker press

Jachtmann has nearly double the average stack
Jan-Peter Jachtmann propelled himself into big stack territory care of a monster flop just a few moments ago, which saw him drag in nearly double the average.

The poker journalist, who edits hit German publication Pokerblatt, had three-bet Pawel Zawadowicz's  pre-flop raise to 2,200 and earned a call with his Q♣Q♠.

The flop was a dream, coming 3♣3♠Q♥ and both men checked. The 7♠ turn and 2♣ prompted a pair of bets from Bachman and his Polish rival gave much thought to it before calling. It allowed Jurgen to flip the nuts in glee, with Zawadowicz cursing the decision.

"I showed a bluff earlier," revealed Jurgen, "So perhaps that played a part in his decision."

Elsewhere there was less positive news for PPT Prague champion 2011, Radoslav Prucha, who made his move at the wrong time.

The Czech, who also runs a poker magazine in his home country, shoved a J high board with Q high - only for his opponent to snap call with Aces.

We now have 178 players remaining as we go on our final short break. Upon their return our players will battle it out for two more levels before calling it a day.

Almeida meets a nasty end

Almeida suffered a sick beat to depart from PPT Prague
A quick glance downstairs at the cash tables reveals something of a who's who of PPT past as our numbers start to dwindle - and the ghost of this Prague event may be tough to shake for Hugo Almeida.

The Portuguese pro, whose deepest run came in the 2010 trip to Villamoura when he finished 2nd, met a particularly cruel end and he shared his story with the PP blog in between hands at the €1/€2 tables.

"I raised with QQ after a donk player had limped and he was the only caller," began Hugo, "He had been tilting against me all day for some reason. The flop came 7♣7♦6♣ and he checked-raised me. I had around 10k at the start of the hand so I went all-in and he snap-calls with K♣9♣.

"The turn brought the 7♠ - which I thought was the perfect card given it meant he no longer could draw to the flush, but the river was the 7♥! He won with a King kicker - sick sick sick!"

Almeida leaves seven Fantasy Poker entrants disappointed (including the PP blog's own team) but even more damaging was the earlier exit of Krzysztof Zapolski. 

The Pole had three-barrel bluffed into an opponent before getting check-raised all-in on the river to be left with just 1,025. He exited with 22 vs AJ soon afterwards. 

Hungarian Peter Csecsetka was another casualty found mourning his tournament life at the cash tables. "I just couldn't get anything going," he lamented, "I wasn't getting any cards and none of my bluffs worked, so it wasn't a good day!"

Eyes on the prize

The prize money for our Main Event has now been announced, with a grand total of €143,500 in the pot after our field eventually grew to 287 players.

The winner will find him/herself €33,000 richer and 32 places will be paid in all - meaning the same number will pick up Fantasy Poker points. Here's the breakdown:

Prize Pool Structure
1st - €33,005
2nd - 20,090
3rd - €13,346
4th - €10,906
5th - €9,184
6th - €7,605
7th - €6,170
8th - €4735
9th - €3,300
10th-13th - €2,009
14th-17th - €1,772
18th-21st - €1,579
22nd-25th - €1,435
26th-29th - €1,292
30th-32nd - €1,004

It has also been announced that we will play eight levels in all tonight, meaning the Day 1 is expected to end around 2am local time. Stick with us as we'll be updating you live until the final hand.

Chip counts at the break

Kovacs will not repeat his Barca final table appearance
We're just returning to the action at the King's Casino, with level six about to start biting 150/300 chunks off the blinds, and we dashed round the room to bring you a selected chip count.

We also picked up a few stories along the way, with Mikkel Bergmann telling the happiest tale after running hot throughout the Main Event so far. 

"I'm on about 52,000 and I've been hitting everything. I must have had four sets, two flushes and two straights - so my table really hate me!" grinned the Dane.

Day 1 has not been so kind to Joszef Kovacs and Miguel Rato, with both men making their exits before the last interval. Kovacs departed on the very final hand, running his mystery hole cards into AK and seeing a 5♥2♠J♥-6♦-K♠ board end his tournament life.

Selected Chip Count
Mikkel Bergmann - 52,000
Mikkel Oleson - 40,000
Carlos Oliveira - 30,000
Joao Brito - 23,000
Srini Thavarajah - 22,000
Daniel Ferrera - 22,000
Paulo Calado - 16,000
Hugo Almeida - 9,000

Grzegorz the Great

Back in business - Damian Porebski doubled up
Judging by our Fantasy Poker entries, we've got plenty of popular Poles in the room - none more so than Grzegorz Cichocki after his €1400 High Roller victory last night.

That €15,400 prize can be added to long list of accolades according to the Hendon Mob database, with over €250,000 in major tournament cashes in 2011 alone. No wonder so many of you snapped him up!

Things have started well for him in our €125,000 Guaranteed Main Event too... so well that he wasn't at his table when we went to get a photo.

His stack has swollen to around 50,000 chips within the first few levels and he looks in great shape to continue his excellent form here in the Czech Republic.

Also doing his country - and Fantasy Poker backers - proud is Damian Porebski after he doubled up to get back on track.

A wobbly start saw him drop to less than 10,000 at one point, but his FP owners will be pleased to hear that  his AA held up against a rival's KK to rebuild his chip tower.

Lee sharpens up for first PPT

Tweet as you go! Lee Davy logs his progress
For a second straight event the PP blog has met a fellow blogger taking their shot at the tables and this time it's WPT scribe Lee Davy.

Sporting a hair style as sharp as his writing, the Brit was sitting on his starting 20,000 stack when last we dropped by, but it wasn't for the want of trying.

Lee confessed his bluffing had been less than effective so far, failing on each of the three times he had make a move - and we can only presume we caught his latest effort!

A villain in late middle position had raised pre-flop and Davy three-bet from the cut-off, before earning a call from his rival. The flop fell 7♣ A♦ 4♥ and the villain again played it passively, check-calling a c-bet.

The K♦ on the turn slowed the action as both players checked and our man folded to a river bet. We just learned care of his Twitter account @Chingster23 that he had KQ - and that apparently he speaks Czech!


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