Only 18 Title Contenders Remain
The field in the EPT Monte Carlo Main Event has been thinning day by day, and only 18 players now remain. Day 4 was ruthless, eliminating nearly all of the bigger names. Former EPT champion Sebastian Malec finished 42nd for €17,150, WSOP Circuit legend Ari Engel earned €19,800 for 34th place, and the ever-popular Nacho Barbero was knocked out in 31st for €22,750.
The final 18 players bagged their chips at the end of Day 4, and leading the way is Russia’s Aleksandr Shevliakov. He had a dream run yesterday, entering Day 4 as a short stack with just 565,000 chips and ending the day with a massive 4,000,000, securing the overall chip lead. With only two recorded cashes totaling $55,564 on his HendonMob profile, Shevliakov now has a real shot at the biggest score of his life.
Boris Angelov’s name is certainly one to watch as well. Many will remember his incredible run to the final heads-up of last year’s EPT Monte Carlo Main Event. Could this be the year he finally lifts the trophy?
Day 5 chipcounts:
| # | Player | Country | Chip Count | BBs |
| 1 | Aleksandr Shevliakov | Russia | 4,000,000 | 100 |
| 2 | Diego De Martino | Italy | 3,650,000 | 91 |
| 3 | Khossein Kokhestani | Ukraine | 3,590,000 | 90 |
| 4 | Boris Angelov | Bulgaria | 3,450,000 | 86 |
| 5 | Enrico Coppola | Italy | 3,180,000 | 80 |
| 6 | Andreas Goeller | Italy | 3,100,000 | 78 |
| 7 | Miguel Capriles | Venezuela | 2,205,000 | 55 |
| 8 | Mateusz Moolhuizen | Netherlands | 1,990,000 | 50 |
| 9 | Artem Shaganov | Russia | 1,615,000 | 40 |
| 10 | Jamil Wakil | Canada | 1,560,000 | 39 |
| 11 | Leon Zeaiter | Germany | 1,255,000 | 31 |
| 12 | Kestutis Jungevicius | Lithuania | 1,080,000 | 27 |
| 13 | Mariusz Golinski | Poland | 1,045,000 | 26 |
| 14 | Malcolm Franchi | France | 1,030,000 | 26 |
| 15 | Mykhailo Demydenko | Ukraine | 930,000 | 23 |
| 16 | Stanislav Petriv | Ukraine | 860,000 | 22 |
| 17 | Manuel Cortada | Spain | 845,000 | 21 |
| 18 | Alexandros Kolonias | Greece | 290,000 | 7.5 |
Rania Nasreddine Aiming for Another Deep Run
While the Main Event continues, the €25,000 EPT High Roller also kicked off yesterday, attracting an impressive 205 entries on Day 1. This has already pushed the prize pool past the €5 million mark, and with late registration still open, there's a strong chance last year's record of 247 entries could be surpassed.
Ninety players advanced to Day 2, led by American star and EPT standout Rania Nasreddine. Last year, Nasreddine made back-to-back final tables in the EPT Main Event and now appears poised for yet another deep run. Still, the road ahead is long and filled with fierce competition, including names like Jesse Lonis, Klemens Roiter, Patrik Jaroš, Chris Nguyen, Dario Sammartino, Joao Vieira, and Steve O’Dwyer.
The Endgame Begins
With over 50 events now completed, the EPT Monte Carlo is approaching its grand finale. In addition to the ongoing Main Event and High Roller, today’s schedule includes a wide range of tournaments—from a €550 NLH event to the final €10,200 High Roller of the festival.
Sources: PSLive, Flickr, PokerNews