Andrew Chen Leads the Survivors Into Day 2 of the ESPT Main Event
The 20th-anniversary celebration of the PokerStars European Poker Tour promised to bring massive fields to Barcelona, and the opening PokerStars Estrellas Poker Tour (ESPT) Main Event lived up to the billing.
A total of 7,138 entries packed the Casino Barcelona over the course of eight starting flights, just falling short of last year’s record total but still the second-biggest field in PokerStars live event history. Just 1,066 return for Day 2 at 11 a.m. local time today, with all remaining players in the money and guaranteed a portion of the €6,852,480 prize pool.
Andrew Chen is the only player who crossed the million-chip milestone on the opening day, taking 1,077,000 in Day 2. PokerStars Team Pro Alejandro Lococo is right behind him with 896,000 and in second place. Other top stacks include EPT Paris finalist Ami Barer (494,000), Marle Spragg (488,000), Noah Boeken (470,000), Ren Lin (460,000), and Jesse Lonis (434,000).
Day 2 Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew Chen | Canada | 1,077,000 | 180 |
| 2 | Alejandro Lococo | Argentina | 896,000 | 149 |
| 3 | Jose Nadal | Spain | 882,000 | 147 |
| 4 | Maksims Uskovs | Latvia | 853,000 | 142 |
| 5 | Karol Bogusz | Poland | 835,000 | 139 |
| 6 | Robbie Bull | Scotland | 724,000 | 121 |
| 7 | Alejandro Rodenas | Spain | 700,000 | 117 |
| 8 | Raoul Kanme | Netherlands | 683,000 | 114 |
| 9 | Alexandros Kolonias | Greece | 681,000 | 114 |
| 10 | Barry Donovan | Ireland | 670,000 | 112 |
PokerStars team pros and EPT champions Barny Boatman (300,000) and Simon Wiciak (245,000) are also still in the hunt for the title, as are Parker Talbot (104,000) and defending champion Lucien Cohen (195,000).
The action on Day 2 picks up with 19 minutes remaining on Level 17 with blinds of 3,000-6,000 and a 6,000 big blind ante. All subsequent levels will be 60 minutes long. The full list of payouts will be revealed near the start of play today.
Stay tuned to PokerNews throughout the day for live updates as this once-massive field continues to get whittled down.