2018 Winamax SISMIX

Before the day started, it appeared that someone would need a chip stack in the region of 600,000 to vie for the chip lead in the Winamax SISMIX Main Event. However, Winamax Team Pro Pierre Calamusa knocked it out of the park, bagging up in excess of one million chips to become the outright chip leader heading into Day 2.

At the end of play, the former Winamax Poker Open Dublin said that such a big stack was only possible because of the six-max format of the tournament.

"There's a lot more action," said Calamusa as he was bagging. "I got a lot of good hands and hit a lot of good boards. People never believed me, and they kept paying my bets! It was very easy today."

Calamusa will be joined in Day 2 by fellow Winamax Team Pros Sylvain Loosli, who qualified yesterday and Adrian Mateos who steadily accumulated chips throughout Day 1c to bag 309,000. However, they won't be joined by Gaelle Baumann, namely because Calamusa eliminated her!

"It's been a very good day. Gaelle and I are very good friends and the chips stay in the family so we're both happy!"

The Winamax SISMIX has been highlighted by a community atmosphere, and Calamusa says that everything here is made for the amatuer to enjoy.

"Winamax chose to have a tour for the amateurs. Other tours have high buy-ins, but with us it's more family stuff. We all enjoy it. Even if you bust a tournament you still have a lot of other things to do. You have games, pool parties. Everybody comes back every year!"

Calamusa himself is no stranger to the off-the-felt activities, winning yesterday's Beer Pong Tournament.

"It was so cool; everybody was cheering for us. I mean it's unbelievable. I will remember this for my whole life. Even better than my WPO Dublin victory a few years ago, because this had like 100 people cheering for m.e

But if he goes on to add the 2018 SISMIX title to his poker resume, will that top his beer pong triumph.

"Obviously not," he said with a smile.

It was clear from the outset that the record for largest Winamax SISMIX event was going to get smashed, and in the end the 1,252 entries not only broke the SISMIX record, but became the largest field ever held for a poker tournament in Africa.

104 players will advance to Day 2, lead by Calamusa, with other big stacks including Raphael Loiseau (747,000), Jerome Paveaux (699,000), Abdelhamid El Khayati (667,000), and Julien Baldassarre (636,000).

There are still several notables in the field, including 2017 Winamax SISMIX final tablist Said Hahou (428,000), Paul-Francois Tedeschi (287,000), Said El Yousfi (180,000) and Marvin Dupre (22,800).

Play will resume at tomorrow at midday, with 12 50-minute levels schedule. Stay tuned to PokerNews.com as we get closer to crowning a winner here in Marrakech.

The turn of was out between Adrian Mateos and Said Haho. Haho checked to Mateos who bet 35,000. Haho check-raised to 90,000 and Mateos called.

The river was the and Haho moved all in. Mateos almost beat him in to the middle with his chips and tabled . Haho showed for a chop, but was frustrated as he also held a flush draw from the flop.

"Lucky boy," he said to Mateos, and the pair smiled.

Pierre Calamusa has chipped up even further after eliminating a player with 120,000 in chips against . Another player adding to his stack is Said El Yousfi, who eliminated another player to move up to just over average in chips.

Among the recent eliminations include 2015 Winamax SISMIX winner Bruno Lopes, 2017 final tablist Rakesh Lalwani, and Winamax Team Pros Ivan Deyra and Guillaume Diaz.

The all in and calls are flying here at the Winamax SISMIX Main Event. Firstly Mohamed Hossam moved all in with and, after some thought, was called by Nicolaus Paskiewicz with .

The flop was a good one for Hossam, coming giving him a flush. The turn might have got Hossam's heart racing a little bit, giving Paskiewicz trips, but the river was the handing him the full double up.

At another table Bruno Michels was all in with and would have to come from behind to beat the of Boyan Dulyanov. The flop gave Michels a flush draw. The turn was the but the river completed that flush draw and handed him the double.