EPT Warsaw: Day 5, level 25/26 updates

Live updates from day five, levels 25 and 26 of the EPT Warsaw Main Event event brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Howard Swains and Simon Young.

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 (5,000 ante)

8.55pm: Christophe Benzimra wins EPT Warsaw and €358,644 (1,493,170 PLN). Runner up Alfio Battisti wins €200,520 (834,840 PLN)
Benzimra opened and was raised by Battisti to 250,000 which Benzimra called. The flop came [7c][5c][ac]. Battisti now made it 300,000 which Benzimra raised to 900,000. You can start to see where this is going now, Battisti moving all in. Very clearly Benzimra announced: "Call."

Alfio Battisti: [kc][th] for a flush draw.
Christophe Benzimra: [ad][7s] for two pairs

Dario Minieri was on the rail behind Battisti. "Three of clubs," he said. "One time!" But this time at least the one time didn't work. [8h] on the turn, [5h] on the river. We have a winner in Warsaw, the Frenchman Christophe Benzimra.

EPT 6 Warsaw winner Christophe Benzimra

8.53pm: Christophe Benzimra wins EPT Warsaw
Hand details to follow!

8.50pm: New level
We've moved up to level 26. Blinds are 25,000-50,000 (5,000 antes)

8.48pm: Battisti opens
Battisti opened for 120,000, the amount he seemed to be riffling at that moment. Benzimra called for a flop of [ah][qd][kc]. Benzimra checked before Battisti made it 220,000. Benzimra passed.

8.46pm: Benzimra completes
Benzimra completes the small blind but Battisti ramps it up a bit, betting 140,000 which is called. The flop comes: [8h][6s][3d]. Battisti made it 210,000, Benzimra took out a stack of oranges and made it 645,000. Battisti passed.

8.45pm: You gotta feel sorry for Luca
Luca Pagano went out in very unlucky circumstances in fourth place. Ever the gentleman, he found time to talk to our video bloggers soon afterwards...

And here is the moment when he went out...

8.40pm: Benzimra going nowhere
Another pot goes to Benzimra in this heads up duel. Alfio Battista raised to 100,000, which was called. The flop came [4d][8h][qs], which Benzimra checked, Battista bet 120,000, and Benzimra called again. The turn was [6h]. Check, check. The river was [qd], check, check again, but Battista mucked without a showdown.

8.40pm: Early stages
After the first hand was passed, the second has a flop of [8h][3s][2d]. Battisti checked to Benzimra who bet 60,000 to win the hand. On the next hand Battisti raised after Benzimra completed the small blind. That took that one. And just a moment ago, on a flop of [2c][qd][6h] both players checked, but when Battisti bet on the [td] turn he took the pot.

8.35pm: Back again
Everyone has been fed and watered, and our two finalists are back for their head-to-head showdown. This should be good.

7.32pm: Post-prandial heads up
Tournament officials have decided to take a one-hour dinner break before heads-up play. We'll be taking some sustenance before returning for the mano-a-mano action. Here are the stacks of the two players:

Alfio Battisti: 2,729,000
Christophe Benzimra: 3,360,000

7.30pm: Oleksandr Vaserfirer, Ukraine, out in third earning €120,311 (500,900 PLN)
Vaserfirer has been eliminated. The overnight chip leader was left with only about 600,000 after the huge pot against Benzimra. And it was no surprise that he shoved all in over the top of Battisti's 110,000 button raise. Battisti called instantly and was ahead: the Italian had [ah][ks] against Vaserfirer's [ac][8h]. The board was a miracle free [jh][qd][qc][3d][5d].

We're down to two.

7.20pm: Villain call
Is that the name for a hero call gone awry? It's a massive pot, with Oleksandr Vaserfirer making it 120,000 pre-flop, which was called in the big blind by Christophe Benzimra. The flop came [ac][5d][4s] and Benzimra checked, but then raised Vaserfirer's 150,000 stab.

The Frenchman made it 300,000. Call. The turn was [4d] and Benizimra now took the lead, betting 300,000. Call. The river was [7s] and Benzimra shoved, 1,052,000. Vaserfirer came up with what was a possibly tournament-defining call, but it was not to go his way. Benzimra had [as][jh] and Vaserfirer, forced against his will to show his hand (it being an all in situation) showed [8c][5c].

The new counts after that hand are as follows:

Christophe Benzimra 3,400,000
Alfio Battisti 2,000,000
Oleksandr Vaserfirer 650,000

7.10pm: Battisti and Vaserfirer
Battisti opened for 110,000 from the button, getting a call from Vaserfirer. They see a flop of [ac][qc][4d]. Vaserfirer checked but Battisti made it 200,000, getting a call from Vaserfirer. The turn came [9h]. Both checked for a [5d] on the river. Vaserfirer fired out 250,000, forcing Battisti to fold.

7pm: Battisti burnt
Oleksandr Vaserfirer completed the big blind of Alfio Battisti. The flop came [jh][ks][ah] and Vaserfirer bet 60,000. Battisti called, a pattern that was repeated when the [5d] turned. This time the bet/call was for 100,000. The river was [3c] and after Vaserfirer checked, Battisti bet 300,000. Vaserfirer didn't take too long to make the call, and Battisti took even less time to muck without showdown.

6.55pm: Luca Pagano out in fourth place, winning €85,938 (357,790 PLN)
Benzimra opened for 170,000. Sitting with 120,000 left was Luca Pagano who shoved in. On the showdown the Team PokerStars Pro showed [ad][5d] against Benzimra's [qh][tc]. The flop sealed it: [6c][5h][qc]. Pagano, already looking devastated, removed his sunglasses, stood up and prepared to leave. A [4h] on the turn and [4d] on the river were no help.

The remaining three players are close - on around 2 million chips each.

6.50pm: Pagano crippled
Luca Pagano has just taken a crushing blow and is on the ropes here in Poland. It was brutal: he raised from under-the-gun, making it 120,000. Alfio Battisti reraised from the small blind, making it 400,000 and Pagano moved all in. Battisti called. Pagano had [ad][kh] and Battisti had [ac][qs]. It was looking like Battisti was going to be eliminated, but the flop came [6s][qd][3c] and that vaulted Battisti into the lead. The turn was [3d] and the river [5s]. The all in was 1,061,000, which left Pagano with only about 120,000.

6.50pm: Pagano pass
Pagano opened from the button for 100,000. Battisti called for a flop of [7s][kh][3s]. Both checked for an [8s] turn. Both checked again for a river card [ks]. Battisti made it 155,000 now. Pagano looked thoughtful but eventually passed.

6.40pm: And here they come
The remaining four players are finally heading back to the table after their extended break.

6.15pm: Break again
Just after the break, we have another one, this time at the players' request. Give them ten minutes or so.

6.10pm: Players are refreshing
Players will be back from their break shortly, and as the official counts at the end of the last level reveal, we have a new chip leader. It's the French player Christophe Benzimra.

Christophe Benzimra - 2,213,000
Oleksandr Vaserfirer - 2,140,000
Luca Pagano - 1,091,000
Alfio Battista - 671,000