We knew this was going to happen, but it is pretty impressive nonetheless. In a major (or minor, for that matter) live poker tournament with two starting days, the second is ALWAYS bigger – and usually significantly bigger – than the first. Yesterday was no exception. Day 1A of the European Poker Tour (EPT) Dublin Main Event on Valentine’s Day saw 147 players pay the €5,300 for a shot at the big time, but Day 1B was an entirely different story. The Day 1A was tripled, as a whopping 442 runners gave it a try on Monday, perhaps saying, “Well, I dropped a chunk of change on Valentine’s Day, might as well try to win some of it back.”
Portugal’s Francisco Oliveira came out on top at the end of the night on Monday with 175,100, though Day 1A leader, Gilles Bernies, still has the overall number one position. Oliveira was doing just fine late in the night when Daniel Dvoress took a seat at the table. Dvoress had just been eliminated on the bubble of the €10k Single Day Event, according to PokerNews, and decided to join the Main Event’s festivities before the late registration period closed. Hell, perhaps he could just fold his way to Day 2, as there was only maybe a half hour left in the day.
That wasn’t going to happen (besides, no self-respecting poker player do that). On his very first hand of the tournament, Dvoress woke up with pocket Kings, so he three-bet a pre-flop raiser to 3,500. That raiser called, but Oliveira ended up four-betting to 8,800. Dvoress took a moment and then pushed all of his chips in. The first raiser folded, but Oliveira called and revealed – wouldn’t you know it – pocket Aces. The dealer laid out all low cards on the board to the dismay of Dvoress, who didn’t even have time to get comfortable. Oliveira’s stack was increased to 180,000 and it was around there that it would stay for the brief remainder of the night.
Francisco Oliveira had $181,615 in live tournament earnings, according to TheHendonMob.com. He has no major tournament titles or cashes; his biggest cash came from a win in a $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em preliminary event at this year’s PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, where he pocketed $51,640. Has found some success at the Royal Dublin Society this month, having cashed three times so far at EPT Dublin.
Day 2 is underway as 341 players keep marching along (79 from Day 1A, 262 from Day 1B) in their quest to make the money and beyond.
European Poker Tour Dublin Main Event – Day 1B Chip Leaders
1. Francisco Oliveira – 175,100
2. Richard Dubini – 157,300
3. Bernardo Dias – 137,600
4. Jean-Philippe Goulet-Ratelle – 137,500
5. Alex Difelice – 136,100
6. Walter Treccarichi – 129,800
7. Iliodoros Kamatakis – 125,200
8. Pierre Calamusa – 124,500
9. Fergal Cawley – 122,300
10. Lucas Reeves – 112,100
European Poker Tour Dublin Main Event – Combined Day 1 Chip Leaders
1. Gilles Bernies – 189,600
2. Francisco Oliveira – 175,100
3. Mike McDonald – 162,400
4. Richard Dubini – 157,300
5. Ian Hunter – 139,400
6. Artem Litvinov – 138,900
7. Bernardo Dias – 137,600
8. Jean-Philippe Goulet-Ratelle – 137,500
9. Alex Difelice – 136,100
10. Victor Ilyukhin – 131,400
