Merit Poker Pays Out Record $3,725,000 at September Festival
Merit Poker’s latest poker series Merit Poker RETRO 3 took place at the luxurious five-star Merit Crystal Cove Hotel & Casino in North Cyprus from Sept. 17-27. It was a momentous event for the organization, which awarded a record-high more than $3,725,000 in prize pool payouts across 25 events.
Main Event
The highlight of the festival, the $5,000 Retro 3 Main Event, had a $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool which was exceeded by more than half a million dollars. The event got a total of 356 entries, including re-entries, for a total prize pool of $1,539,344.
Albert Daher from nearby Lebanon took the lion’s share of that prize pool, banking $218,000 after a chop deal at the final table to add to his already more than $1.6 million in live tournament earnings.
November Niners in Attendance
Among the well-known poker players to make the trip to North Cyprus were two former November Niners – the Belgian Pierre Neuville and France’s Antoine Saout.
The legendary Neuville is best known for being the oldest player to reach the WSOP Main Event final table. Neuville was 72 years old when he joined the elite club of November Niners in 2015 where he finished in seventh place for $1.2 million. He now has almost $4.4 million in live tournament cashes to his credit after adding a sixth-place finish in the $10,000 High Roller Event in the Merit Poker series.
Saout has the rare distinction of being a two-time November Niner, having notched a third-place, a fifth-place, and also a 25th-place finish on poker’s biggest stage. The French poker pro with $7.5 million in live earnings also joined the Merit Poker festival in September.
Event Prize Pool Highlights
| Event | Entries | Prize Pool |
| $1.500 Warm Up Event, $200K GTD | 353 | $438,426 |
| $5.000 Main Event, $1Mil. GTD | 356 | $1,539,344 |
| $10K High Roller Event, $250K GTD | 52 | $454,480 |
| $550 Satellite to ME Day 1A, $25K GTD | 156 | $75,660 |
| $770 Super Sat. To ME Day 1A, $40K GTD | 169 | $114,751 |
| $1.100 Turbo Bounty $500 K.O, $40K GTD | 179 | $173,630 |
| $1.000 Merit Poker Cup Event, $100K GTD | 184 | $154,045 |
| $1.100 Mix Max Event, $60K GTD | 151 | $138,920 |
Other Event Highlights
The Merit Poker Retro 3 festival once again delivered to its players a colorful and entertaining atmosphere as well as lofty prize pools that exceeded the more than $2 million in combined guarantees. The series attracted players from more than 35 countries including Turkey, Israel, Russia, Lebanon, Iran, Romania, Greece, Germany, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Belarus.
It’s no surprise that the event draws such a diverse player pool with its distinctive location on a beautiful secluded bay, offering a private beach, spa, wellness center and fine dining restaurants that overlook the Mediterranean Sea in addition to an array of activities for families. During the series, players also had the chance to attend a concert featuring world-famous pop star Arash, who took the stage at Merit Royal & Premium on Sept. 23.
You can visit Merit Poker for more event news and also check out the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel & Casino website for additional information about the property.
Sponsor generated content by Merit Poker.
