Day 4 of the EPT

It is appropriate for a week that began with the London Marathon that the EPT Final at the Monte Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort has been a punishing ordeal. Day 4 was meant to see the 40 runners whittled down to a final table of 8 but play closed at 1am with 10 individuals still riffling their chips.

One man who didn’t quite last the distance was Claudio Pagano who, when he cashed out in 22nd place, was reluctantly forced to leave his son, Luca, chasing for family glory and depriving the final table of some Oedipal dynamics. At 7th, Pagano jr is well placed to makes his third EPT final table - he has already set a record with nine EPT cashes.

However, having come so far, all of the players will try to remain focussed on the first prize of EURO 2,020,000. They are guaranteed a minimum of 126,000 for their efforts and those incentives have produced some fine play over the course of the tournament. They have also given us this one: Eric Liu was looking at a flop of AAT when Valeriy Ilikyan bet half of his opponent’s stack and then began to jabber nonsense.

After pondering, Eric said ’I’ve had enough. All-in’. Valeriy stopped talking to push his chips in, beam a wide smile and flip A5. The crowd was speechless as Eric revealed QJ.

To know the exact reason why he decided to donate, we would probably need the services of someone who can solve the Rubik’s Cube blindfolded, underwater and singing ‘My Way’. We will just have to accept it’s part of the pressure of a poker marathon. Find out who’s hit the wall tomorrow.

Final 10 At The EPT Monte Carlo

1. Glen Chorny - CAN - 3,370,000
2. Isaac Baron - USA - 2,365,000
3. Michael Martin - USA- 1,579,000
4. Maxime Fillmore - CAN - 1,220,000
5. Denes Kalo - HUN - 957,000
6. Antonio Esfandiari - USA - 735,000
7. Luca Pagano - ITA - 705,000
8. Valeriy Ilikyan - RUS - 650,000
9. Stig Top-Rasmussen - DEN - 590,000
10. Henrik Gwinner - DEN - 466,000