The Irish Poker Open festival kicked off with gusto today, with Day 1A of the €1,000,000 guaranteed Mini Irish Open now completed.
Day 1A attracted a total of 178 entries, with 27 players making the money and nine players advancing to Day 2. Conor O’Boyle was the unfortunate player to bust on the money bubble, while Brendan Coone departed on the Day 2 bubble, with play concluding with 17 minutes left in Level 21.
Cristina Jugastru of Romania (1,160,000) bagged the chip lead, storming to the top of the standings after securing numerous knockouts on her way to being the only player to amass a seven-figure stack. Jugastru’s biggest recorded live score is just over $2,000, and she will be hoping to secure a new personal best when the players return for Day 2.
Jugastru was closely followed by Sylvain Merillon of France (885,000) and Mario Ortiz of Mexico (728,000), showing the extent to which the Irish Poker Open continues to attract players from all corners of the globe.
Husband and wife team Brian Harris and Jennifer Frankenstein also made the Day 2 cut, with Frankenstein being one of the chip leaders throughout the day. The pair travelled from the USA and have a last longer bet. The money would have to be on Jennifer at present, who has close to double the stack of her other half.
Mini Irish Open Day 1A Qualifiers
1. Cristina Jugastru (Romania) – 1,160,000
2. Sylvain Merillon (France) – 885,000
3. Mario Ortiz (Mexico) – 728,000
4. Gareth McMahon (Ireland) – 660,000
5. Karl Lamont (United Kingdom) -555,000
6. Evaldas Kiaulevicius (Ireland) – 545,000
7. Jennifer Frankenstein (USA) – 413,000
8. Brian Harris (USA)- 230,000
9. Elaine Moloney (Ireland) – 140,000
Mini Irish Open Day 1A Payouts
10. Brendan Coone (Ireland) – €850
11. Serhii Maksymchuk (Ukraine) – €850
12. Sarah Gruson (France) – €740
13. Hrvoje Ancic (Croatia) – €740
14. Mark Molumby (Ireland) – €640
15. Terence Plunkett (Ireland) – €640
16. Katherine Best (USA) – €560
17. Or Ouliel (Israel) – €560
18. Benedikt Wenzel (Germany) – €490
19. Yash Chitgupakar (USA) – €490
20. Wang Chan (Ireland) – €490
21. Andreas Putz (Germany) – €420
22. Nicolas Theodorowicz (USA) – €420
23. Ben Miller (United Kingdom) – €420
24. Kyle Rafferty (Ireland) – €370
25. Brendan Shannon (Ireland) – €370
26. Jose Lopez (Andorra) – €370
27. Peter Hyland (Ireland) – €350
Day 1A was the first of 13 total starting flights, with the next opportunity for players to progress to Day 2 being Day 1B at 6 p.m. local time on Friday, 11 April.
All starting flights will follow the same structure, with players sitting down to a 30,000 starting stack and all flights featuring 20-minute levels. 15% of the field of each flight making the money, and 5% of each flight will progress to Day 2, which will take place on Monday 21 April at noon local time.
Stay tuned to our coverage to see if anyone is able to challenge Jugastru at the top of the standings.
