A High-Stakes Battle Is on the Horizon as Day 1 of the $50,000 EPT Cyprus Super High Roller Commences
The long-awaited $50,000 Super High Roller at the first-ever PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Cyprus held at the luxurious Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa is the highest buy-in on the schedule and is set to kick off at 12:30 p.m. local time.
The latest player to capture a Super High Roller trophy at an EPT was Kayhan Mokri, when the Norwegian high-stakes regular conquered a field of 18 players to receive the trophy and €750,960 in cash during the €100,000 buy-in event at EPT Barcelona less than two months ago. However, unlike some of poker's other most notable names, Mokri has not been spotted on the idyllic island of Cyprus so far.
In fact, the two $25,000 tournaments that have been held thus far this week attracted many household faces in the high roller circuit. There are too many poker superstars present to name, but among those who have shown up so far are PokerStars Ambassador Sam Grafton, Steve O’Dwyer, Artur Martirosian, Sam Greenwood, Sergi Reixach, Mikita Badziakouski, Joao Vieira, Teun Mulder, Leon Sturm, and Adrian Mateos, who is the only player to have registered for the Super High Roller at the time of writing. Meanwhile, Alexander Tkatschew and Paulius Plausinaitis boosted their bankroll by being victorious in these star-studded fields, receiving $432,090 and $264,690 for their efforts respectively.
Many, if not all, of the aforementioned names are expected to put down the $50,000 buy-in for the chance of hoisting the coveted Super High Roller trophy at the end of the three-day tournament. In exchange for the buy-in, the players will receive 250,000 chips and they will have the opportunity to fire unlimited reentries until the end of the late registration period at the start of Day 2, at which point the starting stack is still worth over 40 big blinds. Play will begin with blinds of 500/1,000 with a big blind ante of 1,000 and Day 1 will see eight levels of one hour being played, with a 20-minute break interluding after every two levels.
EPT Cyprus Day 1 Structure
| Level | Duration (min) | Small Blind | Big Blind | Big Blind Ante |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60 | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| 2 | 60 | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Break | 20 | |||
| 3 | 60 | 1,000 | 1,500 | 1,500 |
| 4 | 60 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| Break | 20 | |||
| 5 | 60 | 1,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 |
| 6 | 60 | 1,500 | 3,000 | 3,000 |
| Break | 20 | |||
| 7 | 60 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 |
| 8 | 60 | 2,000 | 5,000 | 5,000 |
The EPT Cyprus $50,000 Super High Roller is sure to provide plenty of spectacle and grandeur when poker’s elites face off once more. PokerNews will as always be present to provide all of the live updates throughout the three days of play, so be sure to stick around and not miss any of the high-stakes action.