The calm before the storm
The last chips are bagged, and Shiina strikes a pose
The day comes to an end here in Prague, and the room has thinned out considerably. In the Main Event, only 85 players remain in contention for the title. There’s something striking about seeing all these empty tables, but above all, it’s the relative calm that stands out. The once-deafening sound of chips gradually fades away. Not that it’s a bad thing, far from it. I remember that noise lingering in my head long after my first festival.
Another thing that hits you in moments like this is the feeling that time slows down. Every decision matters. Every chip won or lost carries extra weight. The stakes are now massive, with Day 4 looming at the end of this final level.
One player who won’t be there is Pierre Calamusa. His Day 3 was a rollercoaster. Down to just two big blinds after losing jacks to kings, he mounted an incredible comeback, going from 34,000 chips to 900,000 in a matter of minutes. At that point, it felt like nothing could stop him. But the final level proved fatal. A key hand against Yassine Adib saw his opponent turn two pair and shove 460,000 (15 BB). Holding A♠ K♦, Pierre couldn’t find the fold with top pair, and his stack took a huge hit. Despite a triple-up the very next hand, he eventually exited in 93rd place for €18,000, a strong result nonetheless in a field of 2,617 entries.
Still flying the French flag, Thomas Eychenne spent most of the day near the top of the leaderboard. He finishes a bit slower but bags 1,600,000 chips for Day 4. Benjamin Chalot also moves on with 1,800,000. The two best-performing French players of the day, however, are Safwane Bahri and Sonny Franco, who end the day in 9th and 10th place respectively, both with stacks around 3,700,000.
Also worth noting: two former WSOP champions will be back tomorrow. Annette Obrestad, the youngest bracelet winner in history, and Shiina Okamoto, who achieved the rare feat of winning the same event in back-to-back years.
Play resumes at noon, and I’ll be here to bring you all the action.
But for now, it’s time to get some rest, and without bers tonight.
Paul Koessler