The 20th anniversary of the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) is reaching its thrilling climax as the Main Event inches closer to its conclusion. From a massive field of 1,975 entries, only 40 players remain after 113 returned to the felt for Day 4. Leading the survivors is American tournament powerhouse Stephen Song, who ended Day 4 with an impressive 4,130,000. Song, with over $6.5 million in live tournament earnings, has already crossed his previous best EPT result—a 47th-place finish in this event last year. Now, he’s in pole position as a strong contender for the coveted title.
Sriharsha Among Top Contenders For EPT Barcelona Main Event Title
Song is followed by fellow American and high stakes regular David Coleman (3,000,000), English pro Harry Lodge (3,450,000) and China’s Jianwei Lin (2,835,000). India’s very own Sriharsha Doddapaneni (2,730,000), who began Day 4 with the ninth-largest stack, made significant strides, bagging 2,730,000 in chips and finishing among the top five chip counts heading into Day 5.
Fresh off his recent success at the 2024 WSOP, Sriharsha made big headlines for winning the WPT Mega Stack High Roller last year. With his stellar track record, Sriharsha is one of India’s most talented pros and is now in strong contention for the EPT Main Event title and the €1.512 Million top prize!
Also representing India was Paawan Bansal, the winner of the 2024 APO Poker Palace Warm-Up Event in April. Although Bansal made it to Day 4, he bowed out in 282nd place, securing a prize money of €8,700. This marked his ninth cash of the year, underscoring his consistency on the live circuit in 2024.
Among the other notable players heading into Day 5 are Wiciak (1,300,000) and female pro Rania Nasreddine (2,005,000). Wiciak is looking to make history as he attempts to become the first player to win back-to-back EPT Main Event titles. Nasreddine, who finished third in EPT Monte Carlo, currently sits 10th in chips and is aiming for another deep run in consecutive EPT final tables.
Others still in contention for the title include start-of-day chip leader Timothy Chung (2,525,000), EPT veteran Govert Metaal (1,705,000), 2022 EPT London runner-up Jack Sinclair (1,575,000), 2022 EPT Barcelona finalist Fabiano Kovalski (1,460,000) and PSPC champion Aliaksandr Shylko (935,000).
2024 EPT Barcelona Main Event Top Ten Chip Counts After Day 5
1. Stephen Song 41,30,000
2. David Coleman 39,00,000
3. Harry Lodge 34,50,000
4. Jianwei Lin 28,35,000
5. Sriharsha Doddapaneni 27,30,000
6. Pablo Beltran 26,40,000
7. Yurii Zabrodotsky 26,35,000
8. Timothy Chung 25,25,000
9. Jack Kiriakus 20,05,000
10. Rania Nasreddine 20,05,000
Each of the remaining players is guaranteed at least €23,350 but all eyes will be on the top €1,512,000 prize. The action for Day 5 begins today (Friday) at 12 p.m. local time with 48 minutes in Level 23 with blinds of 10,000/25,000 and a 25,000 big blind ante. Keep following PokerProNews for more updates from the ongoing EPT Barcelona Main Event!
Source: PokerNews/PokerStarsLive/EPT
