WSOP Main Event Finalist Philippe Souki Among Champions at WPT Prime Cyprus
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The $1 million guaranteed WPT Prime Cyprus Championship kicked off just a few hours ago, but the poker action at the Chamada Prestige Hotel and Casino has already been in full swing.
Several familiar faces have wasted no time entering the winner’s circle, securing early victories here in North Cyprus.
Gray & Karayiğit Kick Things off
Matthew Gray has been on a heater in 2025, and his streak continued here in Cyprus. After locking up three cashes at the Chamada January Festival for $13,400, he nearly matched that in one shot by shipping the $660 NLH Welcome Event for $13,000. The tournament drew 75 entries and built a $50,000 prize pool, with Gray outlasting Said Aksoy in heads-up to push his lifetime earnings past the $300,000 mark.
Speaking of Aksoy—he came this close to redemption in the $825 NLH Take-Off but had to settle for another runner-up finish. The title went to Tanju Karayiğit, who bulldozed through a 253-entry field to bank $40,000. 2013 EPT Barcelona champ Tom Middleton also got in on the action, finishing third for $21,000.
NLH Welcome Event & NLH Take-Off Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize | Place | Player | Prize | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Gray | $13,000 | 1 | Tanju Karayiğit | $40,000 | ||
| 2 | Said Aksoy | $9,000 | 2 | Said Aksoy | $29,500 | ||
| 3 | Alper Cankurtaranli | $6,500 | 3 | Tom Middleton | $21,000 | ||
| 4 | Daniel Charlton | $5,000 | 4 | Nicos Sotiriu | $15,000 | ||
| 5 | Hakan Pamukcu | $4,000 | 5 | Davit Mikhanashvili | $10,560 | ||
| 6 | Hakan Sayar | $3,200 | 6 | Tomas Patka | $8,250 | ||
| 7 | Richard Hare | $2,500 | 7 | Daniel Charlton | $6,000 | ||
| 8 | Serdar Akbay | $1,900 | 8 | Kono Reiji | $4,500 | ||
| 9 | Adrián Govea | $1,400 | 9 | Dmitry Makharov | $3,500 |
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Souki & Özdemir Become Bounty Champs
Philippe Souki, a familiar face from his eighth-place finish in the 2022 WSOP Main Event, is back in the winner’s circle after taking down the $440 NLH Turbo Bounty K.O. for $5,550 (plus a stack of bounties). The Brit outlasted 98 runners to claim the lion’s share of the $35,280 prize pool.
Daniel Charlton, also from the UK, made his third final table of the series but had to settle for seventh place and $850. Meanwhile, Chadi Rizk, who finished runner-up for $3,350, quickly bounced back to take down the $800 PLO 5 Card event for $18,000.
Meanwhile, Anil Olgun Özdemir came out on top in the $550 NLH Bounty ITM event, pocketing $11,000. Welcome Event champion Gray made another deep run, finishing seventh, while Sachin Joshi continued the British takeover with a runner-up finish.
NLH Turbo Bounty K.O. & Bounty ITM Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize | Place | Player | Prize | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Philippe Souki | $5,550 | 1 | Anil Olgun Özdemir | $11,000 | ||
| 2 | Chadi Rizk | $3,350 | 2 | Sachin Joshi | $7,500 | ||
| 3 | Hakan Sayar | $2,350 | 3 | Pia Fransson | $5,250 | ||
| 4 | Konstantin Generalov | $1,650 | 4 | Ahmad Abdelhadi | $4,000 | ||
| 5 | Jacob Naumann | $1,250 | 5 | Yusuf Turanli | $3,000 | ||
| 6 | Marie Kabaki | $1,000 | 6 | Ruslan Maiseyenka | $2,350 | ||
| 7 | Daniel Charlton | $850 | 7 | Matthew Gray | $1,750 | ||
| 8 | Benjamin Boltes | $700 | 8 | Marat Shafigullin | $1,300 | ||
| 9 | Abaci Berker | $600 | 9 | Onur Unsal | $1,000 |
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Big Payouts for Pascucci & Zion
Two of the biggest paydays of the early series went to Simone Pascucci and Ittai Zions. Pascucci banked $19,460 for his win in the $880 NLH Old School Event—his second Chamada title after a PLO Bounty victory last November.
Zion, on the other hand, crushed the $825 Mystery Bounty event, cashing in for a whopping $35,900 after conquering a stacked 502-entry field. This score more than tripled his Hendon Mob total, making it a breakout moment for the Israeli player.
NLH Old School Event & Mystery Bounty Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize | Place | Player | Prize | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Simone Pascucci | $19,460 | 1 | Ittai Zions | $35,900 | ||
| 2 | Cenk Nigbolu | $13,000 | 2 | Joshua Marquardt | $22,000 | ||
| 3 | Huseyin Akgul | $8,800 | 3 | Johnny Sawma | $15,000 | ||
| 4 | Baris Topuz | $6,200 | 4 | Rafael Wadl | $11,000 | ||
| 5 | Koray Korkmaz | $4,500 | 5 | Sachin Joshi | $8,250 | ||
| 6 | Maroun Sily | $3,400 | 6 | Hakan Pamukchu | $6,500 | ||
| 7 | Ruslan Maiseyenka | $2,700 | 7 | Iman Ghashayar | $5,000 | ||
| 8 | Suleyman Ciftsuren | $2,200 | 8 | Baris Topuz | $4,000 | ||
| 9 | Stylianos Papanyoniou | $1,900 | 9 | Necolai Macovei | $3,200 |
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Gold Medals for Senol & Mikhanashvili
Closing out the early results, Sener Senol and Davit Mikhanashvili put on a show in the turbo streets. Senol banked $8,084 after outlasting 67 others in the $440 NLH Speed Up event.
Mikhanashvili, the $550 Monster Stack Speed victor, locked up his second cash of the series, adding $21,195 to the $10,560 he earned from a fifth-place finish in the Welcome Event. Not a bad haul in just a few days.
NLH Speed Up & Monster Stack Speed Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize | Place | Player | Prize | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sener Senol | $8,084 | 1 | Davit Mikhanashvili | $21,195 | ||
| 2 | Mert Hadioglu | $5,400 | 2 | Joseph El-Khoury | $14,100 | ||
| 3 | Marios Pavlou | $3,600 | 3 | Kaner Zuhat | $10,300 | ||
| 4 | Daniel Fantoli | $2,500 | 4 | Mihai David | $7,700 | ||
| 5 | Jacob Naumann | $1,800 | 5 | Andrew Hawkins | $5,900 | ||
| 6 | Emile Abi-Daher | $1,400 | 6 | Aykut Emir | $4,460 | ||
| 7 | Claude Bedran | $1,100 | 7 | Mihai Taizs | $3,440 | ||
| 8 | Tudor Purice | $900 | 8 | Kaan Cinitas | $2,660 | ||
| 9 | Aaron Renjit | $800 | 9 | Pavlos Pavlou | $2,100 |
WPT Prime Cyprus Scoreboard
So far, WPT Prime Cyprus has paid out $761,177, with tournament winners grabbing a combined $172,189. Here’s how the events have shaped up:
WPT Prime Cyprus Results
| Event | Buy-in | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize | Places Paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NLH Welcome Event | $660 | 75 | $50,000 | Matthew Gray | $13,000 | 11 |
| NLH Take-Off | $825 | 253 | $183,488 | Tanju Karayiğit | $40,000 | 35 |
| NLH Turbo Bounty K.O. | $440 | 98 | $35,280 | Philippe Souki | $5,550 | 11 |
| NLH Bounty ITM | $550 | 117 | $52,640 | Anil Olgun Özdemir | $11,000 | 15 |
| PLO 5 Card | $800 | 82 | $61,500 | Chadi Rizk | $18,000 | 12 |
| NLH Old School Event | $880 | 85 | $61,190 | Simone Pascucci | $19,460 | 11 |
| NLH Mystery Bounty | $825 | 502 | $200,000 | Ittai Zions | $35,900 | 64 |
| NLH Speed Up | $440 | 68 | $26,384 | Senol Sener | $8,084 | 10 |
| NLH Monster Stack Speed | $550 | 187 | $90,695 | Davit Mikhanashvili | $21,195 | 24 |
Images courtesy of World Poker Tour/Chamada Poker
Calum has been a part of the PokerNews team since September 2021 after working in the UK energy sector. He played his first hand of poker in 2017 and immediately fell in love with the game. Calum has written for various poker outlets but found his home at PokerNews, where he has contributed to various articles and live updates, providing insights and reporting on major poker events, including the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
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