Skhulukhiya and Gill Lead The Final Nine; Heidorn in Contention
After a long day in the conference centre of the five-star Merit Crystal Cove Hotel Casino & Spa in Girne, North Cyprus, the final table of the 2021 partypoker LIVE MILLIONS North Cyprus $5,300 Main Event has been set. Only nine players out of a 839-entry strong field remain for the biggest slice of the $3,859,400 prize pool and they have all locked up a payday of at least $68,695.
Georgia's Giorgiy Skhulukhiya pulled into the top spot in the final stages of the day and bagged nearly 18.5 million in chips, surpassing long-time chip leader Harpreet Gill (16,820,000) at the end of the night.
Another three players have more than the average stack at their disposal in Majid Kamarei, Hadi Khadra, and Pokercode Grindhouse member Fabian Bernhauser. Also still in contention is German poker pro Robert Heidorn, who now calls the island of Cyprus his home base.
2021 partypoker LIVE MILLIONS North Cyprus $5,300 Main Event Final Table
| Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [Removed:464] | Lithuania | 2,390,000 | 10 |
| 2 | Giorgiy Skhulukhiya | Georgia | 18,455,000 | 74 |
| 3 | Angelos Michael | Cyprus | 5,790,000 | 23 |
| 4 | Robert Heidorn | Germany | 2,930,000 | 12 |
| 5 | Halil Baybars | Turkey | 4,085,000 | 16 |
| 6 | Fabian Bernhauser | Austria | 9,625,000 | 39 |
| 7 | Harpreet Gill | Canada | 16,820,000 | 67 |
| 8 | Hadi Khadra | Lebanon | 11,375,000 | 46 |
| 9 | Majid Kamarei | Iran | 12,380,000 | 50 |
partypoker sponsored pro Joni Jouhkimainen was eliminated on the final table bubble by Skhulukhiya when he lost a flip with ace-queen versus pocket jacks.
There are 57:42 remaining in level 30 at blinds of 125,000-250,000 with a big blind ante of 250,000. The final table is scheduled to recommence at 2pm local time on Monday, September 27 and will be streamed on the partypoker YouTube and Twitch channels.
The Action of the Day
The penultimate tournament day of the flagship tournament started with 109 hopefuls still in contention and the top 98 spots were guaranteed at least $9,335 for their efforts. Among those to bust prior to the money bubble was also Day 1b chip leader Ali Shaerzadeh. He was short after an early clash and then came up second-best with ace-king against the ace-six of Martin Mulsow. Soon after, Umit Sadi lost a flip to Harpreet Gill to send all remaining contenders into the money.
Gill remained among the chip leaders throughout the entire day and went on a hot streak during the final four tables when he sent numerous opponents to the rail, describing himself as a luck-sac. As far as Skhulukhiya is concerned, he joined the big stacks early on but leaped into the lead during the final two tables after winning a big pot off Gill and then bursting the final table bubble by knocking out Jouhkimainen.
Notable eliminations in the money and prior to the final three tables included Viktor Ustimov, James Romero, Artur Martirosian, Alexander Lakhov, Danilo Velasevic, Johan Guilbert, Stoyan Madanzhiev, Sergio Aido, and Ramon Colillas. For Martirosian, the end came soon after losing a big flip with ace-king against the jacks of [Removed:464]. Madanzhiev failed to get there with two overcards against the deuces of Semen Kravets and bowed out just shy of the final five tables.
Gill Runs Hot on the Final Four Tables
The rise to the top for Gill commenced on the final four tables when he went on a tear on the feature table. He first knocked out Axel Hallay in a memorable hand in which he hit running diamonds for a flush. Ahmed Al Barwani and Colillas were his next two victims and the Canadian continued his hot streak by sending Rokas Neiberka to the rail in 25th place.
Alessio Isaia saw his fortune run out against Semen Kravets, who then became the next casualty. Gill was responsible for the eliminations of [Removed:452] and Vlad Darie to reduce the field to the final two tables. Sergio Fernandez Bernal was knocked out by Dominik Panka and quick-fire eliminations thereafter set up the final table. Gill cracked the pocket kings of Boris Angelov and the pocket tens of Panka in preflop contests and established a commanding lead over the other contenders.
However, the late surge of Skhulukhiya knocked the Canadian back into second place as partypoker sponsored pro Jouhkimainen became the final casualty of the day.
