Four levels of play have passed here on Day 1B and the number of entrants has grown to 101.There is a lot of focus on cards but just as much on the TV screens hung around the casino floor as Hamburg SV – amongst other football teams – are battling for survival in the Bundesliga.

Henry Schroder can fully focus on the football if he so wishes, as he was the first player eliminated from the maiden Eureka event held on German soil. Not the record he would’ve liked but somebody had to go first. He busted just before the end of level three and was joined on the rail by Mattias Gunther and Bulent Avci, the only players who busted during level 4.

Olga Lermolcheva keeps on smilingOlga Iermolcheva, from Ukraine, had slowly being winding up her poker career over the past three years. Her first recorded victory came in a €550 Russian Poker Tour side event for €7,515 and she went on to cash multiple times before recording her second tournament victory, in another side event. It was at the EPT100 festival in Barcelona and her victory in the €550 side event earned her €25,400.

She saved the biggest score of her career for earlier this month and it came in a Main Event. The LAPT Panama event had a $2,500 buy in and Iermolcheva made it all the way to heads up where she lost out to Shakeeb Kazemipur. Don’t feel too bad for her though, the $113,580 for second place finish would’ve helped her over the disappointment.

Fast forward two weeks and Iermolcheva came here to Hamburg full of confidence after that result and qualifying online for this event. This game has a habit of biting back though, just when you think you’re impenetrable.

Niko Koop opened to 600 before Iermolcheva three-bet to 1,775. Marcel Destici was in the big blind and cold called the raise only to see Koop four-bet to 4,600. Iermolcheva wasn’t finished and five-bet to 10,500, which was enough to oust Destici (ace-king) but not Koop who jammed for 22,700. Call.

Iermolcheva: A♥ A♣
Koop: K♠ K♣

The board ran 5♠ 4♦ 8♥ 7♠ K♥ to make Koop a very unlikely (one out) set on the river.

Cruel king on the river for IermolchevaThat left her with fewer than 3,000 chips but she was still in and fighting as level 4 came to a conclusion. In one hand there was an under the gun limp before a player in the hijack raised to 450. Iermolcheva moved all in for 2,400 and both players opponents folded quickly which prompted her to smile widely and say, “They don’t call. Wow!”

Selected chip counts:

Detlef Lehner – 12,000
Lothar Meier – 34,000
Alex Young – 16,000
Robert Kopke – 35,000
Maria von Perger – 34,000
Alex von Halle – 27,000
Alem Shah – 27,000
Norbert Krull – 53,000
Marc Haberthür – 35,000
Reiner Pack Ross – 20,000
Jan von Halle – 27,000

Hamburg SV update: They won their game and avoided immediate relegation but their 16th place finish means they will enter a playoff versus the team who finish third in the division below.

Eureka Hamburg Key Facts:
– Players begin with 25,000 chips (an increase from Season 4’s 20,000)
– Blinds start at 25/50
– 10 – 12 45-minute levels make up Day 1A
– 45-minute dinner break after level 6 (roughly 6pm)
– Registration will close around 6pm.

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