$3,300 Main Event
Day 4 Completed
2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series
$3,300 Main Event
Day: 4
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 4
2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series
Buy-in
$3,300
Prize Pool
$1,832,640
Entries
664
Level
37
Blinds
300,000 / 600,000
Ante
600,000
Entries
41
Players Left
1
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
The action has come to a close on the final day of the 2024 Merit Poker Carmen Series $3,300 Main Event here at the Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino. It took nearly 12 hour-long levels for a winner to emerge from the 41 players who entered the final day.
After the dust had settled Elie Farah was the last player standing, scoring five final table knockouts and last defeating Felipe Ketzer in heads-up play to take home the title and top prize of $338,500.
Farah notably was down to his last 125,000 chips on the stone bubble during yesterday's Day 3, worth just five big blinds at that time. His previous best score before this comes from an eighth-place finish in the 2022 Merit Poker Retro Series Main Event for $30,255. Today's victory not only exceeds his previous best more than ten-fold, it also triples his total live tournament earnings which before this event stood just under $150,000.
Carmen Series Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elie Farah | Lebanon | $338,500 |
| 2 | Felipe Ketzer | Brazil | $249,200 |
| 3 | Dinesh Alt | Switzerland | $153,000 |
| 4 | Bart Lybaert | Belgium | $113,100 |
| 5 | Dmitry Gromov | Russian Federation | $84,700 |
| 6 | Tahsin Cankurtaranli | Turkey | $68,400 |
| 7 | Andrey Litvinov | Russian Federation | $56,600 |
| 8 | Maher Achour | Tunisia | $45,100 |
| 9 | Danut Chisu | Romania | $33,900 |
Final Day Recap
The Main Event was another success for Merit Poker, attracting 664 total entrants to generate a prize pool of $1,832,640, smashing the $1,000,000 guarantee. Of those 664 entrants only 41 players made it to the final day. Some notable players to begin the final day with chips but fall before the final table include Simone Andrian (28th - $10,445), Day 2 chip leader Fausto Tantillo (22nd - $13,560), and Andrey Pateychuk (20th - $15,205).
Bart Lybaert got off to a hot start today after a brutal runout saw him eliminate Maciej Komorowski. Lybaert would soon surpass start of day chip leader Ketzer and enjoyed the chip lead for most of the day, riding that momentum to eventually enter the final table with the chip lead. Not far behind him going into the final table was Ketzer, who dealt a mortal blow to Umutcan Ipekoglu on the final table bubble to enter the final table with the second-largest stack.
The Final Table
Play was very conservative at the start of the final table, with two players starting with very short stacks that forced the other players to tread carefully in an attempt to outlast them. It would take over one hour before Danut Chisu would become the first final table casualty courtesy of Ketzer. The Brazilian pro would also claim the next two final table knockouts, with Maher Achour and Andrey Litvinov soon following Chisu out the door in eighth and seventh place respectively.
Farah was under the radar for most of the day today and began the final table with only the sixth-largest stack. He made an excellent river call with pocket kings against Lybaert shortly after the final table began to double up his short stack and never looked back from there, eliminating Tahsin Cankurtaranli, Dmitry Gromov and Lybaert in sixth, fifth and fourth place respectively.
Three-handed play between Ketzer, Farah and Dinesh Alt began with all three players very close in chips. After a short three-handed battle Ketzer would claim most of Alt's stack after making top pair on the river and getting max value. Farah would finish off Alt shortly afterwards to set up heads-up play between Ketzer and Farah.
Ketzer, who placed third in the Merit Poker Western Series Main Event this past January, began heads-up play with a modest lead over Farah but it would not be long before Farah picked up top pair and called off Ketzer who had both a straight and a flush draw. Ketzer was left with crumbs after missing his draw and would bow out in second-place shortly afterwards while Farah claimed the last pot of the night, the trophy at the top prize of $338,500.
That concludes the PokerNews coverage for this evening but stay tuned as we continue to bring you all the action from this series including the $5,300 High Roller which wrapped up it's second day today.
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Felipe Ketzer shoved from the button for his last 2,300,000 and was called by Elie Farah, leaving Ketzer at risk.
Felipe Ketzer: 9♥2♣
Elie Farah: Q♦5♥
Farah remained ahead throughout the 5♦3♥A♦J♠2♥ runout to send Ketzer to the rail in second place and take down the final pot of the night.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
66,400,000
2,300,000
|
2,300,000 |
|
Busted | |
|
||
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
With two players seeing a board of 4♦J♦5♥A♦ and roughly 3,000,000 in the middle, Felipe Ketzer checked from the big blind and Elie Farah bet 2,500,000 from the button. Ketzer put in a check-raise to 27,000,000 and Farah, who had exactly 30,000,000 behind, moved all in. Ketzer called to put Farah at risk.
Elie Farah: A♠9♣
Felipe Ketzer: Q♦3♠
Farah was ahead with top pair but had to fade some outs from Ketzer in the form of any two or diamond. The 8♠ river was a brick and Farah dragged in the vast majority of the chips in play while Ketzer was left with just under four big blinds.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
64,100,000
26,700,000
|
26,700,000 |
|
|
2,300,000
-26,700,000
|
-26,700,000 |
|
|
||
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Felipe Ketzer opened to 1,500,000 from the button and Elie Farah three-bet to 5,500,000 from the big blind. Ketzer made the call.
The flop came 10♥9♣8♣. Farah checked and Ketzer bet 3,000,000.. Farah put in a check-raise to 7,500,000 which was enough to force a fold from Ketzer.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
37,400,000
11,000,000
|
11,000,000 |
|
|
29,000,000
-11,000,000
|
-11,000,000 |
|
|
||
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Felipe Ketzer opened to 1,200,000 from the button and Elie Farah called from the big blind.
Both players checked the Q♥9♣7♥ flop leading to the 4♣ turn. Farah checked, Ketzer bet 4,000,000 and Farah quickly folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
40,000,000
1,275,000
|
1,275,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
26,400,000
-1,275,000
|
-1,275,000 |
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Dinesh Alt moved all in from the button for 1,500,000 and was called by Elie Farah in the big blind to put Alt at risk.
Dinesh Alt: K♣4♣
Elie Farah: 4♥3♥
Alt was in great shape to double with a dominating four but the A♠6♠5♣ flop gave Farah a plethora of outs. Farah drilled the straight on the 2♥ turn and after the 5♥ river Alt's deep run came to an end in third place while Farah collected the last of his chips.
The tournament is briefly being pause before heads-up play between Farah and Felipe Ketzer will begin.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
38,725,000 | |
|
|
||
|
|
27,675,000
3,175,000
|
3,175,000 |
|
Busted | |
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Dinesh Alt limped in from the small blind and Felipe Ketzer raised to 2,100,000 from the big blind. Alt made the call.
The flop came Q♠7♦4♠ and Alt check-called a 1,100,000 continuation bet from Ketzer.
Alt check-called a second barrel for 4,500,000 from Ketzer on the K♣ turn.
The river was the A♣. Alt checked and Ketzer used a time extension before betting 7,000,000. Alt also used a time extension before making the call.
Ketzer tabled A♠9♦ for top pair with a middling kicker which was good enough to take down a colossal pot and leave Alt with just under three big blinds.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
38,725,000
11,625,000
|
11,625,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
1,500,000
-14,100,000
|
-14,100,000 |
Level 37
: Blinds 300,000/600,000, 600,000 ante
Dinesh Alt opened to 1,200,000 from the button and received calls from Felipe Ketzer in the small blind and Elie Farah in the big blind.
The flop came 9♠8♠7♥. Ketzer lead out with a bet of 2,000,000 and both opponents opted to fold.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
27,100,000
3,300,000
|
3,300,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
24,500,000
4,100,000
|
4,100,000 |
|
|
15,600,000
-6,000,000
|
-6,000,000 |
Level: 37
Blinds: 300,000/600,000
Ante: 600,000