Sam Chartier Leads for Day 3 of EPT Malta 2015

EPT Barcelona finalist Sam Chartier is leading the 186 remaining players coming back for Day 3 of the €5,300 EPT Malta Main Event. The 30-year-old from Quebec has 455,500. Chartier, a regular on the tour, finished seventh in Spain in Season 5 for €178,000. Other major EPT cashes include third in a Sanremo €10k High Roller and winning a PCA $5k six max in 2011.

There were a staggering 895 entries for EPT Malta, creating a €4,340,750 prize pool with €810,400 for first. As well as their cash prize and trophy, the first EPT Malta champion will also receive a stunning “Black and Steel” watch from luxury Swiss brand SLYDE, the Official Watch Sponsor for EPT Season 11 Main Events and High Rollers.

Today started with 512 Day 1 survivors plus six new players who bought in before the start of play, including Sorel Mizzi, Olivier Busquet and EPT Malta "Triple Crowner" Dzmitry Urbanovich - who has been so busy winning other events that he only joined the Main Event at the very last moment. A total of 127 players will finish in the money with €9,120 for a min-cash.

EPTLive started at noon with an astonishing feature table featuring Team PokerStars Pros Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Vanessa Selbst and Jake Cody. ElkY and Selbst are out but EPT Deauville champion Cody has made it to Day 3 with 58,000. Fellow Team Pro Jonathan Duhamel is also still in with 77,500 while PokerStars-sponsored 2014 PCA champ Dominik Panka has 197,300.

Other notables include Moritz Dietrich (460,000), who won a side event earlier in the festival, Sergio Aido (272,500), Ignat Liviu (248,000), Mateusz Moolhuizen (211,400), 
Global Poker Masters Most Valued Player Giuliano Bendinelli (207,300), Robin Ylitalo (196,000) and Dan Smith (184,500).