Joris Ruijs Ready for the Hunt After Dominating Day 1 of €10,200 Mystery Bounty
During the first day of the 2024 PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Paris, 71 entries were made on Day 1 of the €10,200 Mystery Bounty. At the end of the eight levels of play, 46 of them still had chips and will return to Le Palais des Congrès in the heart of Paris tomorrow for Day 2. The expectation is that they will be joined by many more, as late registration will be open throughout the first two levels of Day 2.
The new faces will have a tough time catching up to Joris Ruijs, however. The Dutchman accumulated 405,500 chips on Day 1, being the only player to end up with more than four starting stacks. He will not be the only one with more than 100 big blinds at their disposal at the start of Day 2, however, as four other players also accomplished that feat.
Sergi Reixach ended up Ruijs' nearest contender with a stack of 375,000, while Jeremie Zouari completes the podium with 358,000 chips in his bag. The final two players in the top five are Mario Navarro (353,500) and Michel Molenaar. Other notable names in the top ten include Chinese regular Quan Zhou (251,000) and France's all-time money list leader Jean-Noel Thorel (235,000).
€10,200 Mystery Bounty End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Day 2 Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joris Ruijs | Netherlands | 405,000 | 135 |
| 2 | Sergi Reixach | Spain | 375,000 | 125 |
| 3 | Jeremie Zouari | France | 358,000 | 119 |
| 4 | Mario Navarro | Spain | 353,500 | 118 |
| 5 | Michel Molenaar | Netherlands | 324,500 | 108 |
| 6 | Daisuke Ogita | Japan | 273,500 | 91 |
| 7 | Joakim Andersson | Sweden | 266,000 | 89 |
| 8 | Quan Zhou | China | 251,000 | 84 |
| 9 | Jean-Noel Thorel | France | 235,000 | 78 |
| 10 | Boris Kolev | Bulgaria | 233,000 | 78 |
Plenty of other high-stakes regulars found bags as well, including Orpen Kisacikoglu (209,000), Mike Watson (154,500), Chris Brewer (141,000), and Niklas Astedt (136,000).
These players will have to hold off hunting bounties for a little longer, however, as they will come into play only at the start of Level 13, the fifth level of Day 2. Before then, the €333,700 collected cash prize pool, as well as the €355,000 bounty prize pool, will have plenty of room to grow as the option to enter or make use of a single re-entry, for those who have not done so already, are still open for two more levels on Day 2.
Day 2 will kick off on Thursday, February 15 at 12:30 p.m. local time. All levels will remain 30 minutes in length, and the tournament will play down to a winner. The prize pool, payout, and bounty information will be confirmed when late registration closes at the start of Level 11 and will be posted once they are announced.
So stay tuned to PokerNews to not miss any of the thrilling bounty action, and do not forget to check out the EPT Paris coverage hub to check on the other tournaments happening in the French capital.