Day 3 will start this afternoon with 40 players play down to the final table.

It will be a tight start to play as only 8 players will miss the money.  Payout for 32nd place is £8,153.  First prize is a hefty £611,520.

Irish eyes will begin to glimmer if Alan Smurfit (10th), Shane Reihill (26th) and Tony Cascarino (30th) can make the money.  Those same eyes will be smiling broadly if any of them can make the final table.

Surindar Sunar has a commanding lead over the field sitting on 400k. Second place Ben Grundy (220k) leads the chasing pack of 4 players over the 200k mark.

Other players to watch out for are Katja Svendsen (Blonde. Norwegian. Hot. 100k), Chris Moneymaker (Brunette. American. Dishevelled. 70k) and Roland De Wolfe (Black haired. English. Cheeky. 70k).

We’ll keep you up to speed as soon as the action kicks off…

Just when the Irish Open lads were flying along I go and ruin it for them by telling everyone!

Both Flood and Smyth have been sent to the rail as things consolidate at the top.

Liam Flood (not after he had just been knocked out)

At least we have another Irish Open old timer sitting atop of the field to cheer on.  Surindar Sunar, who played in the very first Irish Opens in the early 1980s is sitting on over 400k at the end of Day 2.

In fact it was Sunar who finally saw off Liam Flood (and crippled Erik Friberg) in a massive pot at the end of the final level of play. Surindar hit a set of nines and got two eager customers in Flood and Friberg.  They held up and Sunar now has twice as many chips as his nearest competitor.

Alan Smurfit is leading the way for the Irish sitting on on over 100k, while Big Cass is hanging in there with 50k. Shane Reihill is on 60k.

Moneymaker no longer looks like he’ll be making me any money sitting on 70k but I’m predicting a big comeback!

This year’s Irish Open runner up Roland De Wolfe has had a typically up-and-down day finally settling around the 70k mark.

It’s all to play for tomorrow as we approach the bubble. 40 players left. 32 get paid.

Join us for more action from the London EPT tomorrow.

Like the Headmaster and star pupil of poker’s greatest school,Irish Open double act, Liam Flood and Marty Smyth are teaching the EPT boys a few lessons at the felt.

Liam “The Gentleman” Flood is the Tournament Director of the Irish Open, Europe’s largest poker tournament, and Marty Smyth is the reigning Irish Open champion.

Together they are like Obi Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker or God and Moses or Cagney and Lacey.  OK maybe not the last one, anyway, together they are a potent attack force and a reminder of just how much better the Irish Open is than any other tournament in the known, heck even the unknown, universe!

With 65 players left they are both sitting on average stacks of about 50k. 32 places are paid.

Flood and Smyth et al are currently at dinner eating all.

The list of great Irish heroes is endless.

The list of Irish left in the EPT is not.  However, the ones that are left aren’t doing half bad. 

Irish Open champ Marty Smyth and WSOP bracelet holder Alan Smurfit have both made moves up the leaderboard today. While everyone’s favourite Irish granny’s grandson Tony Cascarino is sauntering along with the grace of a gangly Millwall forward.

All three are about average at 45k.

Shane Reihill has nearly 50k. The Gentleman Liam Flood is on 40k. John Conroy and Paul Leckey are both safe enough with over 30k each.

The blinds are currently 800/1600 and 200 ante.

Me and my big mouth! I’ve been mouthing off about the fact that Moneymaker is so certain to win that i walked myself into the worst odds bet of all time.  With 90 players left Mad Mike offered me 10/1 on Chris winning outright. I accepted immediately… to guffaws of laughter around Paddy Tower.

Terrible odds, but when yer man is a certainty to win, how could i refuse.

We’ll see who has the last laugh…

(oh yeah, Moneymoaker lost the chip lead about half an hour ago, gulp) 

Whoop Whoop, that’s the sound of da chip lead!

2003 WSOP Champ Chris Moneymaker, the man we all have to thank for the explosion in internet poker, has stormed into the chip lead at the Vic. He is currently nearing the 150k mark with second place Nicolas Levi hovering around 100k.

Moneymaker famously parlayed a $40 online satellite into $2 Million when he won the 2003 WSOP Main Event.  Since that fateful day Chris has struggled to prove his credentials and has very few tournament cashes since.  Everywhere we has played since he has had to justify his status as World Champ and poker know-it-alls love nothing better than to sully his name.

Well Chris, you’ve got one fan here and once you win the EPT you can have my vote for president!

Go Money, Money!

… the best you’ve ever seen!

A classic world cup song, no doubt, and one which will be ringing through the ears of Big Cass as he leads the pack of remaining Irish players.

Day 2 of the EPT sees the following Paddies swap the green hills for the green felt…

Tony Cascarino 45k
John Conroy 37k
Paul Leckey 33k
Liam Flood 27k
Shane Reihill 20k
Alan Smurfit 17k
Marty SMyth 13k

142 players will start Day 2. Nicolas Levi is the chip leader with just over 100k. My money is on Moneymaker upsetting all his “donkey” critics by taking down the title, once and for all proving that the surly former accountant is actually the greatest player of them all!  Chris is currently 4th in chips with 80k.

..so said the original Commando, Arnie Schwarzenegger.

This morning our Craic Commandos are more likely to be saying “I eat a greasy frys for breakfast. And right now I’m very hungover!”

Who’d of thought that a gang called the “Craic Commandos” would enjoy more success in the bar than at the poker tables!!

Seriously though, well played by all our qualifiers, if a few key coinflip pots had gone the other way we might have had all five going to the second day.  Glad you tore up the London night life guys, I’d have been disappointed if you hadn’t, and I’m sure we’ll be seeing you all at a major final table soon!

Now let’s all unite in our hexing of Patric Antonius - ex-model, ex-tennis player, drives an Aston Martin - what’s not to hate!!

My table was broke around 9pm & i was moved to another table. On my left on the new table was the very aggressive Patrik Antonius, to my right was ept winner Noah Boaken & Eric Friberg ( 6th place WSOP main event 2006 ) was next to him, plus other notable pro’s at my table, the table of death to be honest. I was running card dead for nearly 2 hours until i picked up pocket 9’s & took down a pot of 4K. But about an hour later, i found myself with KQ hearts in the Big Blind, patrik antonius raised to 1,600 from the small blind & i called. The flop came 9h 10h Qc, patrik bets 2,400 & i move all in for 6,500 with top pair & a flush draw, patrik calls with AKc, so i was ahead going to the 4th street, the turn was a blank & the river was a J giving him the nut straight, arrgh, i know he is one of the top pro’s in europe but what a bad call, he had 4 outs & hit it.  ” That’s Poker for you “.

The ept has to be the toughest poker tour in the world. I played in the world series main event in july & thats like a lottery, the play is much different in USA than it is in europe, it is actually easier in the USA because you get alot of limpers pre-flop & the action is easy-going. The class of play is excellent in the ept & aggression is the key to winning an ept event & getting the right cards of course.

We all headed to the bar after that & in true irish fashion, all the bad beats were forgotten about after a couple of pints. The craic was mighty after that, so myself, andrew dwyer, keith ” 30 red ” elliott, sean jethi ( played like phil ivey today ) headed down to soho to drown our sorrows.

I would like to thank keith & nic from paddypowerpoker for this opportunity & i will be in amsterdam in 4 weeks time to play in the master classic of poker where hopefully i will get the cards unlike today & roll on to success. So its bye for now & may the cards be with you.

News is filtering through that Sean Jethi has been eliminated.  Never afraid to mix it up at his table Sean had a rollercoaster day with his chip stack flutuating more than the New York stock exchange. Hard luck Sean, I’m sure we’ll see you back at major tournament very soon.

Keith will update you with the details shortly from London…

That leaves our blogger Anthony Donohoe as the last remaining Craic Commando.  I’d wish you luck Anthony but we all know your game is based on skill!

Come on Ireland!! (That chant can apply to Big Cass Tony Cascarino who is also playing today!)