The Merit Crystal Cove Hotel-Casino is gearing up for its latest spectacular poker festival, the Merit Poker Gangster Series. Running from November 22 through December 3, the Merit Poker Gangster Series boasts over $4 million in guaranteed prize pools, with each event featuring a guarantee. Best of all? PokerNews is jetting out to Northern Cyprus to bring you coverage of three of the biggest, or should that be most gangster, tournaments.
While the first proper Gangster Series event kicks off on November 22, two satellites are taking place a day earlier. First, there is a freeroll satellite, with $25 rebuys permitted, at 6:00 p.m. local time on November 21 that feeds into the $275 NL Satellite to the Warm Up. That $275 satellite starts at 9:30 p.m. local time, and will award at least 15x $2,200 NL Warm Up seats.
The $2,200 NL Warm Up is the first of three events PokerNews‘ reporters will cover. The first of four flights begins at 12:00 p.m. local time on November 22, with the champion crowned on November 26. That champion will take home the lion’s share of the $700,000 guaranteed prize pool.
Next up on PokerNews‘ coverage is the eagerly anticipated $5,300 High Roller event. Running from November 26 through November 28, the Gangster Series High Roller should being plenty of stellar names out of the woodwork. High stakes action is popular in Northern Cyprus, so it would be a major surprise if this event did not obliterate its $300,000 guarantee.
Last but certainly not least on PokerNews‘ live reporting radar is the $3,300 buy-in Main Event, which comes with a $1,500,000 guarantee on its prize pool. Day 1a commences at 12:00 p.m. local time on November 28, and it has three more flights. Day 4, the final day, is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. local time on December 3.
When this tournament last ran in 2018, it commanded a $5,000 buy-in and guaranteed $2 million. Some 457 players bought in, and Russian superstar Andrey Pateychuk returned home with the title and $280,643 after a four-way deal. Expect similar prizes this time around.
2023 Merit Poker Gangster Series Schedule
Expect to see Merit Crystal Cove regulars, such as Turkey’s Seref Dursun Anar, who has a record 118 cashes in tournaments held there, plus the likes of serial cashers Makram Saber, Dmitry Gromov, Orhan Ates, and Michel Habib. Hopefully, you’ll be writing your name in the Merit Crystal Cove record books some the end of the Gangster Series.
The Merit Crystal Cove Hotel-Casino is a luxurious 5-star all-inclusive resort with everything you need under one roof. The weather in Northern Cyprus right now is a toasty 28 Celsius (83 Fahrenheit), so you can enjoy the sunshine and beaches if the poker doesn’t quite go to plan! See you there.