Main Event Underway with More than 200 Players Competing on Day 1a
According to a PokerStars Press release, more than 200 players are competing on Day 1a of the eagerly-awaited €5,300 EPT Malta Main Event. Some 275 players have qualified for the event online. Among those already in seats are Team PokerStars Pros Jan Heitmann and Marcin Horecki as well as Team Sports Star Fatima Moreira de Melo and PokerStars-sponsored players Miss Finland Sara Chafak and 2014 PCA champ Dominik Panka.
Along with Panka, there are several other EPT champs chasing a second title including Dimitar Danchev (PCA), Jannick Wrang (EPT Campione), Oleksii Khoroshenin (EPT Vienna), Ruben Visser (EPT London), Martin Finger (EPT Prague), Antonio Buonanno (EPT Grand Final) and Martin Schleich (EPT Barcelona).
Other big name who've turned up include World Series of Poker bracelet winner Barny Boatman, WSOP Main Event finalists Jorryt van Hoof and Martin Staszko, Stephen Chidwick, Shyam Srinivasan, Jeff Rossiter, Marc Etienne McLaughlin, Sam Chartier and EPT €25k High Roller finalist Nick Petrangelo, who won his EPT Main Event seat online on PokerStars. Joao Vieira is also amongst today's entries, the Portuguese player is chasing the EPT Player of the Year title, and currently in third position behind Davidi Kitai and Vladimir Troyanovskiy.
Here's a look at the Season 11 EPT Main Events so far:
| Event | Players | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barcelona | 1,496 | Andre Lettau (Germany) | €794,058 |
| London | 675 | Sebastian Pauli (Germany) | £499,700 |
| Prague | 1,107 | Stephen Graner (USA) | €969,000 |
| PCA | 816 | Kevin Schulz (USA) | $1,491,580 |
| Deauville | 592 | Ognyan Dimov (Bulgaria) | €543,700 |