Alessandro Peciarolo Seizes Lead for IPT7 Malta2 Main Event Day 3

Thirty players remain in contention for the title as the IPT7 Malta2 Main Event goes into Day 3. Alessandro Peciarolo from Italy is holding a massive chip lead after scooping a huge pot in one of the last hands of the day to bring his stack up to 2,625,000. Hailing from Rome, the 42-year-old is a passionate poker player and he's been running really well so far in the tournament. He led the field after Day 1a as well.
PokerStars qualifier Tobias Garp is following in second place with 1,819,000. The Swede has came to fame at EPT8 Tallin - he brought a trophy back from Estonia after winning the €2k Turbo for €34,850.
Famous names coming back for Day 3 include EPT5 Prague runner-up Massimo di Cicco (1,120,000), PCA 2013 finalist Yann Dion (873,000), English pro Christopher Brammer (566,000) and former November Niner Russell Thomas (514,000).
Three Team PokerStars Pros cashed - Matthias De Meulder (77th), Luca Pagano (87th), Pier Paolo Fabretti (88th) as well as Team Online's Mickey Petersen (130th).
It's been a thrilling bubble with tension rife for 90 minutes. After several double ups, it was EPT11 Deauville finalist Matas Cimbolas who finished in 136th place eventually. The Lithuanian's exit guaranteed the remaining players a €1,810 payday.
The IPT7 Malta2 Main Event attracted 947 participants from 57 countries. The €918,590 prize pool will be shared amongst 135 players with the eventual champ securing €170,030.
In March, Greek pro Georgios "ZISIMO7" Zisimopoulos scooped €142,205 along with the title and trophy. The 27-year-old from Athens, who qualified on PokerStars for his title-defending campaign, also competed today but departed after the dinner break.
IPT MALTA MAIN EVENT HISTORY:
IPT2 Malta1 - 385 players, Michal Pochlopek from Poland for €190,000