2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series

$3,300 Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info

2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
q5
Prize
$338,500
Event Info
Buy-in
$3,300
Prize Pool
$1,832,640
Entries
664
Level Info
Level
37
Blinds
300,000 / 600,000
Ante
600,000
Players Info - Day 2
Entries
257
Players Left
172

Habib Calls Out Vyborov's Hand; Karam Takes Out Guimond

Level 13 : Blinds 1,500/3,500, 3,500 ante
Artur Vyborov
Artur Vyborov

Michel Habib bet 10,500 from the hijack on a flop of 6?10?7? and Artur Vyborov then raised to 36,000 in the small blind. Dmitrii Astratov called in the big blind, while Habib gave it some thought before folding.

The turn was the 9? and Vyborov bet 35,000. Astratov again called to the 3? river, where Vyborov bet another 70,000. Astratov called once more.

"Eight-nine," Habib said, and sure enough Vyborov showed 9?8? for the flopped straight. Astratov mucked.

"He's your friend," Habib said to Vyborov.

"He was my friend," Vyborov replied as he stacked up the big pot.

At the same time at another table, Florian Guimond and Ramzi Karam went to the river on a board of A?K?8?4?9? when Karam moved all in for 200,000 from early position.

Guimond had around 155,000 remaining and called from under the gun. Karam then showed A?K? for top two pair and Guimond mucked his cards and headed for the exit. Tablemate Seref Dursun Anar then asked the dealer to retrieve Guimond's cards from the muck and A?J? was shown.

Player Chips Progress
Ramzi Karam lb
Ramzi Karam
520,000
172,000
172,000
Artur Vyborov ru
Artur Vyborov
350,000
314,000
314,000
Dmitrii Astratov ru
Dmitrii Astratov
250,000
124,500
124,500
Michel Habib lb
Michel Habib
220,000
-130,000
-130,000
Florian Guimond fr
Florian Guimond
Busted

Tags: Artur VyborovDmitrii AstratovFlorian GuimondMichel HabibRamzi Karam

Litvinov Hits a Set to Bust Sun

Level 14 : Blinds 2,000/3,500, 3,500 ante
Andrey Litvinov
Andrey Litvinov

A player in middle position raised to 7,000 before Andrey Litvinov three-bet to 20,000 on the button. Yunsheng Sun then moved all in for 180,500 in the small blind and action folded back to Litvinov, who tanked for a minute before calling.

Yunsheng Sun: A?K? All in
Andrey Litvinov: J?J?

The flop came 5?8?J? and Sun was already standing up from his seat as Litvinov hit top set. The rest of the board came 2?9? and Litvinov took the pot to send Sun to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Andrey Litvinov ru
Andrey Litvinov
550,000
379,000
379,000
Yunsheng Sun cn
Yunsheng Sun
Busted

Tags: Andrey LitvinovYunsheng Sun

Tukmachev Calls Off Against Habib

Level 14 : Blinds 2,000/3,500, 3,500 ante
Michel Habib
Michel Habib

Heads-up on a flop of 9?3?A?, Michel Habib bet 50,000 from the button and Ivan Tukmachev called in middle position.

The turn was the 8? and Habib moved all in. Tukmachev had around 40,000 remaining and called with K?9? for a pair of nines. Habib, though, had A?K? for top pair.

The river came the 7? and Tukmachev was sent to the rail.

"It's Christmas time," Habib said as he took the pot.

Player Chips Progress
Michel Habib lb
Michel Habib
350,000
130,000
130,000
Ivan Tukmachev ru
Ivan Tukmachev
Busted

Tags: Ivan TukmachevMichel Habib

Christoforou Runs Into Astratov's Queens

Level 14 : Blinds 2,000/3,500, 3,500 ante
Dmitrii Astratov
Dmitrii Astratov

Dmitrii Astratov moved all in before the flop and Andreas Christoforou called for 175,000.

Andreas Christoforou: J?J? All in
Dmitrii Astratov: Q?Q?

"Jack of diamonds. Sorry, man," Christoforou said as he pleaded for a jack, but the dealer instead turned over a board of 7?8?5?3?2? to keep Astratov's queens in the lead and send Christoforou to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Dmitrii Astratov ru
Dmitrii Astratov
420,000
170,000
170,000
Andreas Christoforou cy
Andreas Christoforou
Busted

Tags: Andreas ChristoforouDmitrii Astratov

Barut Holds On to Bust Ignat

Level 15 : Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
Ozcan Barut
Ozcan Barut

Heads-up on a flop of 3?J?6?, Ozcan Barut bet 18,000 from the hijack before Liviu Ignat moved all in for 80,000 from under the gun. Barut called.

Liviu Ignat: K?9? All in
Ozcan Barut: A?K?

Barut was ahead with ace-high, while Ignat was on a flush draw. The Q? turn was no help to Ignat, while the J? river improved Barut to a straight and sent Ignat to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Ozcan Barut tr
Ozcan Barut
450,000
237,000
237,000
Liviu Ignat ro
Liviu Ignat
Busted

Tags: Liviu IgnatOzcan Barut

Habib Takes Out One

Level 15 : Blinds 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
Michel Habib
Michel Habib

Action folded to Michel Habib in the small blind who raised to 10,000. The big blind then three-bet to 50,000 and Habib called.

Habib checked dark as the flop came 4?7?2?. The big blind then bet another 50,000 and Habib moved all in. His opponent let out a deep sigh before calling for 170,000.

All-In Player: A?Q? All in
Michel Habib: 10?10?

Habib was ahead with his two tens and the at-risk player found no help on the 6? turn or 9? river and made a quick exit from the tournament area.

Player Chips Progress
Michel Habib lb
Michel Habib
600,000
250,000
250,000

Tags: Michel Habib

Akyun Flops a Boat, Lukovic Makes a Big Fold

Level 16 : Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Ahmet Akyun
Ahmet Akyun

Three players saw a flop of 8?5?5? when Dogan Dinler moved all in for around 150,000 from early position. Nemanja Lukovic called in the big blind, but Ahmet Akyun then reshoved for around 450,000. Lukovic open-folded J?5?.

Dogan Dinler: A?A? All in
Ahmet Akyun: 8?8?

Lukovic found out he made the right fold as Akyun showed a flopped full house against Dinler's pocket aces. The board ran out 9?4? and Akyun took the big pot to send Dinler to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Ahmet Akyun tr
Ahmet Akyun
770,000
543,000
543,000
Nemanja Lukovic rs
Nemanja Lukovic
220,000
-90,000
-90,000
Dogan Dinler tr
Dogan Dinler
Busted

Tags: Ahmet AkyunDogan DinlerNemanja Lukovic

Shakiba Spikes the River on Kuzin

Level 16 : Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Dmitrii Kuzin
Dmitrii Kuzin

Dmitrii Kuzin raised to 10,000 in early position before Miad Shakiba three-bet to 29,000 in middle position. Kuzin then moved all in for 112,000 and Shakiba called.

Dmitrii Kuzin: 8?8? All in
Miad Shakiba: A?Q?

Kuzin began filming the action as he was flipping for his tournament life. He remained in the lead through the turn on a board of 9?2?10?K?, but Shakiba hit the Q? on the river and Kuzin, who began the day second in chips, was sent to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Miad Shakiba ir
Miad Shakiba
500,000
373,500
373,500
Dmitrii Kuzin ru
Dmitrii Kuzin
Busted
Day 1A Chip Leader

Tags: Dmitrii KuzinMiad Shakiba

Fausto Tantillo Goes Runner-Runner to Snag the Chip Lead on Day 2 of the Merit Poker Carmen Series Main Event

Level 16 : Blinds 2,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Fausto Tantillo
Fausto Tantillo

A miraculous double knockout helped catapult Fausto Tantillo to the top of the chip counts on Day 2 and put him in a position for a repeat run at the 2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series Main Event.

The Italian pro, who made the final table of this event last year, went runner-runner for a full house to crack Tony Aziz's flopped set of kings in a three-way all in that helped him finish with 1,158,000 to end the day. He��s joined near the top by Kacper Pyzara (1,024,000), Denis Vlasov (950,000), Uladzimir Zhyharau (839,000), and Kemal Aslan (833,000), who rivered quads in a massive pot earlier in the day.

Day 2 Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Fausto TantilloItaly1,158,000193
2Adria DiazSpain1,102,000184
3Kacper PyzaraPoland1,024,000171
4Adrian StateRomania935,000156
5Alisa SibgatovaRussia898,000150
6Razvan SabauRomania845,000141
7Uladzimir ZhyharauBelarus839,000140
8Kemal AslanTurkey833,000139
9Rashad IskandarovAzerbaijan815,000136
10Giorgiy SkhulukhiyaGeorgia807,000135

Alisa Sibgatova, the start-of-day chip leader, kept up her good run and ended Day 2 with 898,000. Other notable big stacks include Andrey Pateychuk (802,000), Boris Kolev (462,000), Felipe Ketzer (462,000), and Bart Lybaert (359,000), while Mikalai Vaskaboinikau (247,000), Andrea Dato (182,000), and Benjamin Hamnett (112,000) are further down the leaderboard.

Andrey Pateychuk
Andrey Pateychuk

Among the players who failed to survive the day include defending champion Maxime Chilaud and Dmitrii Kuzin, the Day 1a chip leader who began Day 2 in second place on the leaderboard.

Day 2 began with 241 players from the 502 who entered the four opening flights returning to play at noon local time. They were joined by 162 new arrivals until late registration closed, creating a total field of 664 and building a prize pool of $1,832,640. Just 172 remain and will begin Day 3 at noon to play down to the money bubble. Just 80 players will guarantee themselves a payday, with the champion earning $338,500.

Stay tuned to PokerNews for all the action leading up to the money and past the bubble tomorrow as the field continues to whittle down toward the final table and the eventual crowning of a new champion.

Tags: Alisa SibgatovaAndrea DatoAndrey PateychukBart LybaertBenjamin HamnettBoris KolevDenis VlasovDmitrii KuzinFausto TantilloFelipe KetzerKacper PyzaraKemal AslanMaxime ChilaudMikalai VaskaboinikauTony AzizUladzimir Zhyharau