It is hard for me to believe that we are just slightly over two months away from 2017. Save for a change in digit, I probably say something to that effect every year, but I don’t know – this year has seemed to just whiz by for me. And when this year ends, so will the European Poker Tour, as 2017 will mark the first year of the PokerStars Championship and PokerStars Festival tours and the elimination of the EPT brand. What I’m saying is enjoy the EPT while it’s still here.
Yesterday, the second-to-last EPT Main Event got underway with the first of two starting flights of EPT Malta at Casino Portomaso. It is a close race for the chip lead; Dan Shak just outpaced Pasi Sormunen, 185,100 to 183,500.
The story of the first day may have been Ireland’s Mahmood Rasheed, who was involved in a number of made-for-TV hands early. I’m talking nut-bar hands that we would all groan at if we saw them play out in a movie. The first hand came during Level 1. According to PokerNews, the board showed 7-8-K-3-K and there were 13,000 chips in the pot. Stephan Zesiger bet half of his stack, 11,000 chips, and Rasheed called after about a minute of thought. Zesiger turned over pocket Threes for a full house, rightfully thinking he had the best hand, but then Rasheed revealed pocket Eights for a better boat. Zesiger was confused as to why Rasheed was so cautious – after all, most players would have raised with that hand or at least not thought about it so long before calling. Rasheed said that he was nervous that Zesiger may have slow-played Kings.
At the beginning of Level 2 with a board of K-7-2-Q, Orpen Kisacikoglu bet 1,500 and was called by Florin Minea. Rasheed, in the dealer’s position, raised to 3,500 and was called in both spots. Another Queen landed on the river and Rasheed bet 10,000 after his opponents checked to him. That got Kisacikoglu and Minea out of the hand, likely to Rasheed’s dismay, as he had pocket Queens for quads.
Then, not long after that, Rasheed was on the opposite end of a monster hand. Five players saw a flop of 9-7-4 and Rasheed bet 1,750 chips. Martin Kozlov raised to 4,800 and everyone else folded by Rasheed, who called. Rasheed checked the 5 on the turn, Kozlov bet 7,500, and Rasheed raised it way up to 35,000. Kozlov decided it was time to go for it, so he called off the rest of his chips. He was in great shape, holding pocket Nines for top set, while Rasheed had Jacks for an overpair to the board. Rasheed was unable to improve on the river and, in fact, lost even “bigger,” if that’s a thing, as Kozlov hit another Nine for quads.
After all that, Rasheed did not survive to Day 2, getting knocked out before dinner.
61 players did make it through to Day 2, though, of the original 134 who bought-in to Day 1A. Another group is at it today to try to join those 61 in action tomorrow.
2016 European Poker Tour Malta Main Event – Day 1A Chip Leaders
1. Dan Shak – 185,100
2. Pasi Sormunen – 183,600
3. Alex Brand – 163,300
4. Frederik Jensen – 147,800
5. Ole Schemion – 147,500
6. Guillaume Valle – 143,200
7. Thomas Mjeldheim – 139,700
8. Dmitry Yurasov – 126,500
9. Aliaksei Boika – 125,100
10. Bart Maes – 119,500
