Sari Haddad raised to 125,000 on the button and Andrea Dato called in the small blind.
The flop came K♦6♠7♦ and Haddad bet 60,000. Dato then raised to 180,000 and Haddad called.
The J♣ fell on the turn. "Three hundred and twenty-five thousand," Dato then announced and Haddad again stuck around.
The river was the Q♠ and Dato checked this time. Haddad also checked back and Dato showed 5♦4♦ for a missed flush draw. Haddad also had a missed draw with 9♠8♠ but took the pot with nine-high.
Andrei Daniliuk raised to 130,000 under the gun, Simone Andrian three-bet to 640,000 in the small blind, and Daniliuk moved all in for 1,190,000. Andrian called.
Andrei Daniliuk: A♣K♦
Simone Andrian: J♣J♥
The 6♣Q♠6♥ flop was no help to Daniliuk, and he stood up from his seat after the 8♥ fell on the turn. The river was the K♥ and Daniliuk gave out a big fist pump as he rivered a pair to stay alive and double up.
A prestigious Merit Poker trophy awaits one lucky player when the final day of the Merit Poker Western Series $2,200 Warm Up begins at noon local time.
Just 17 players out of a starting field of 446 have successfully navigated through four starting flights and three days of play to reach this far. They are led by Italian pro Simone Andrian, who went on a late rush of eliminations yesterday on his way to bagging up a massive stack of 8,410,000 and becoming the man to beat today on Day 4.
The group of players who will try to track him down and steal the title include Adrian State, the Romanian pro who will eclipse $1 million in total live earnings with a victory today. State enters in third chip position with 3,900,000, right behind Day 2 chip leader Abdullah Alajmi (6,010,000). WSOP bracelet winner Guoliang Wei, part of a large Chinese contingent that traveled here to North Cyprus for the festival, is in fourth place with 2,810,000.
Day 4 Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Simone Andrian
Italy
8,410,000
140
2
Abdullah Alajmi
Kuwait
6,010,000
100
3
Adrian State
Romania
3,900,000
65
4
Guoliang Wei
China
2,810,000
47
5
Andrea Dato
Italy
2,750,000
46
6
George Panagides
Cyprus
2,750,000
46
7
Baurzhan Akimov
Kazakhstan
2,450,000
41
8
Yuefan Gu
China
2,230,000
37
9
Sari Haddad
Lebanon
2,170,000
36
10
Qusai Albakeer
Jordan
2,025,000
34
11
Fahredin Mustafov
Bulgaria
1,940,000
32
12
Azamat Tulepbergenov
Kazakhstan
1,930,000
32
13
Antoine Hasbani
Lebanon
1,320,000
22
14
Andrei Daniliuk
Russia
1,190,000
20
15
Ermanno Di Nicola
Italy
975,000
16
16
Nina Krasilnikova
Russia
925,000
15
17
John Basta
Egypt
790,000
13
Rounding out the top five is Andrea Dato, the veteran Italian pro who already has earned nearly $2.5 million in a career that dates back to 2006. Dato has fond memories of playing here in North Cyprus, finishing in second place in the EPT festival back in October for more than $650,000, the largest score on his resume. Other players still in the hunt include Baurzhan Akimov (2,450,000), Fahredin Mustafov (1,940,000), Andrei Daniliuk (1,190,000), who finished runner-up in the Warm Up at the Merit Poker Gangster Series in November, Ermanno Di Nicola (975,000), and Nina Krasilnikova (925,000).
Andrea Dato
The action on Day 4 resumes on Level 25 with blinds of 30,000-60,000. The players are already guaranteed $8,450 for making it this far, with a spot at the final table worth $16,500. But all eyes will be on the trophy and $165,000 top prize today at the Merit Poker Crystal Cove and Casino. The final table will be streamed on a 30-minute delay on Merit Poker’s YouTube channel, with commentary from James Dempsey and David Lappin.
Stay tuned as PokerNews follows all the action as the field plays down to a final table and on to the crowning of a new champion.
