EPT Deauville Day 1A: Andrulis, Ma in Dead Heat

From one beach to another. The Bahamas to the “Parisian Riviera.” It has been over two weeks since the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure adjourned, but now it is time for the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) Deauville stop. The Casino Barriere at The Deauville International Centre is the destination this week, as EPT Deauville kicked off Tuesday with the first of two starting days for the €5,000 + €300 Main Event.

It was a very solid turnout for Day 1A, as 339 runners found their seats in the casino’s new tournament area. Leading the remaining 221 players are Lithuania’s Kristijonas Andrulis and France’s Philippe Ma with almost identical chip stacks – 162,600 and 162,200, respectively. Day 1B will need to improve on Tuesday’s attendance numbers to eclipse last year’s record of 891 players, but considering later starting days typically have larger fields than earlier ones, it looks like there is a fighting chance to set a new EPT Deauville record.

As we mentioned in our EPT Deauville preview yesterday, this tournament was on a forced hiatus for a couple years starting in 2007 because of problems with the gambling laws in France. Obviously, everything has been resolved, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some quirks to tournament play in the country. As the good people over at the PokerStars Blog have pointed out, there are no final tables deals of any kind allowed. At all. No exceptions. While some might be slightly annoyed by this, it won’t affect many people, and frankly, most players, even those who like making deals, are probably a bit relieved by this. It can be stressful trying to strike a deal, especially for those who don’t have any experience at it. It is hard enough to figure out if you are getting a fair shake, but if there are others involved who are aggressive or impatient, the process can be quite intimidating. In France, players can just concentrate on the game at hand.

Another rule difference involves raising rules. In French gambling, the minimum raise permitted is one that is twice the previous bet, rather than twice the previous raise. While this shouldn’t be a problem most of the time, it would not be surprising to see a little confusion at least once late in a tournament if someone wants to make a traditional min re-raise.

Day 1B of the EPT Deauville Main Event will start at noon local time (6:00am EST) Wednesday as a new batch of players look to join the 221 Day 1A survivors for Thursday’s Day 2.

EPT Deauville – End of Day 1A Chip Leaders

1.   Kristijonas Andrulis – 162,600
2.   Philippe Ma – 162,200
3.   Elie Payan – 141,800
4.   Julien Claudepierre – 128,200
5.   Marchel Masaladzhiu – 114,600
6.   Yoann Amaudry – 111,600
7.   Denis Patout – 102,500
8.   Pavel Perfilov – 100,300
9.   Pierre Barthelemy – 99,800
10.   Jean Marc Rigaill – 97,400

Related Poker Tournaments News:

Wild Cherry 200% Bonus worth up to $1200 with No Max Cashout!

Fast play, fast payouts and unrivalled customer support.

Poker jargon:

TO GO - The current betting level, as in "$20 to go" meaning every player must contribute $20 (total) or drop. A $10 raise would then make the pot "$30 to go".
HOUSE RULE - Rules and interpretations (e.g., use of wild cards, or rules on having to show beaten hands) that are specific to an establishment or even tables within the establishment.
WHITE BLACKBIRD - A hand so astonishingly rare as to be unworthy of the opponents' consideration, e.g., being dealt a pat royal flush in 5-card draw.
LIVE BLIND - The last and largest blind bet may or may not be LIVE. If LIVE, the blind bettor has the option of "raising" his own blind in the event the bet is called around to him. This is normal, and is sometimes referred to as "blinds are live".
STRAIGHT FLUSH - A hand consisting of 5 cards in sequence and the same suit.
OPENER - The player who opens the betting, especially in draw poker. A hand may have no openers, in which case it is PASSED OUT, i.e., new hands are dealt.

♥ Bookmark Us! ♠

Poker Information