The largest European Poker Tour (EPT) Grand Final Main Event in history continued on Monday as the 561 survivors from the two opening flights joined together in a unified field on Day 2 at the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Casino. Only about a third of those players made it through the day; Pierre Calamusa leads the 205 remaining entrants with 580,200 chips heading into Day 3.
As registration for the tournament remained open until the start of Monday’s action, the field grew slightly from the Day 1 numbers, with the final registration total settling at 1,098 players. This figure shattered the previous record for an EPT Grand Final, previously set in Season 5 at 935. Keep in mind, though, that at the time, the buy-in for the tournament was €10,000, while this year it was cut in half to €5,000.
The prize pool is €5,325,300; 159 players will make the money with first place receiving €961,800.
Pierre Calamusa has won $365,127 in live poker tournaments, according to TheHendonMob.com. His best cash was his first: €70,560 ($89,974) for a third place finish in the 2012 Euro Finals of Poker €10,000 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller Event.
On Saturday, soccer legend and Team PokerStars SportsStar Cristiano Ronaldo was eliminated very early on, which was probably a good thing, as he has a big match against Manchester City on Wednesday. Another star athlete and member of Team PokerStars SportsStar, Fatima Moreira de Melo, has fared much better. The former Dutch field hockey player is currently eighth in chips with 357,200, just behind one of the greatest poker players of all time, Erik Seidel.
She actually has a very solid list of live tournament cashes with $440,228 in total winnings to her credit, a much better resume than we generally see from sponsored players who come from outside the world of poker. Her most lucrative cash came back in 2013 when she finished second in the UKIPT Isle of Man Main Event, good for £59,660 ($95,750). She also finished 286th in the World Series of Poker Main Event this past summer.
Other notables amongst the chip leaders are online poker star Randy “nanonoko” Lew and former EPT champ Aaron Gustavson (EPT London, Season 6).
Play will resume at noon local time on Tuesday as the remaining 205 players try to crack the money bubble. The plan is to play though five more levels.
2016 European Poker Tour Grand Final Main Event – Day 2 Chip Leaders
1. Pierre Calamusa – 580,200
2. Marcin Chmielewski – 493,500
3. Erwann Pecheux – 413,800
4. Randy Lew – 385,800
5. Albert Daher – 375,100
6. Aaron Gustavson – 374,400
7. Erik Seidel – 368,400
8. Fatima Moreira de Melo – 357,200
9. David Susigan – 351,900
10. Nikolas Menke – 350,300
