1.30am: Allan Baekke is the EPT Snowfest champion!
In the first hand after the break Allan Baekke called all-in with pocket sevens to beat Russell Carson's [kc][js]. It's a big flip for the Dane who wins €445,000 for the victory. Carson, a very worthy runner up, wins €296,000 for his troubles. It was an epic heads up.

The damage was done when Carson opened from the small blind to 320,000 and was three-bet by Baekke in the big blind. The Canadian wasted no time in shipping in his four million stack only to be snap called by Baekke with [7d][7c]. Carson opened up [kc][js] to give himself a good chance with a flip. Could Carson win another coin toss? With a [6d][7s][2d] flop it was more than unlikely. A [td] on the turn and [4c] on the river sealed the win for the aggressive Dane. Wrap report to come. -- RD

LEVEL UP. BLINDS NOW 80,000-160,000

1.15am: Break time
That's the end of the level, so we're now going into level 30 with blinds of 80,000-160,000.

1am: Baekke back over 12million
Allan Baekke bet 260,000 and Russell Carson called. The flop was [3c][9s][8c] and Carson checked, Baekke bet 300,000, Carson re-raised to 1.1million and Baekke called. Both then checked down the [5c] turn and [5s] river. Carson had 10-J for the missed straight draw and Baekke showed [qc][8d] for the pair.

Baekke is now back up to 12million to Carson's 4million. -- SY

12.55am: Baekke grinding his lead back up
Carson limps the small blind and Baekke raises to 370,000. Carson calls but instantly folds to the continuation bet on the [kc][2c][kh] flop. -- RD

12.44am: Another double for Carson!
Russell Carson is back from the dead. He's now up to 6.6million to Baekke's 9.5million thanks to a second quick double up. Carson had raised to 260,000, Baekke re-raised, Carson pushed for 3.3million and Baekke called quickly.

Baekke: [5d][5s]
Carson: [ac][kc]

It was already tight, then the flop of [3c][2c][7h] gave Carson 15 outs, statistically making him a favourite with the nut flush draw and two overcards to aim at. The river was one of those, [ks], putting Carson well in front. Baekke had just one out, but the [qc] was not it. -- SY

12.40am: Soul read!
Carson folds in the small blind and Baekke shows pocket Aces. It's a nice dodge for the short stack. They're all-in for a flip! -- RD

12.30am: Double up for Carson; major outdraw
This was a heads up cooler, and then it was a heads up vicious outdraw. Baekke limped from the small blind and then Carson moved all in for about a 1.5million, which Baekke called instantly. Baekke was ahead with [ac][qd] against Carson's [ah][js] and he stayed there through flop and turn. But a jack spiked on the river to give the hand to Carson and keep this one alive. -- HS

12.25am: Huge pot for Baekke
This one could be the decisive hand of the tournament. It ended with Allan Baekke moving to around 14 million in chips against Russell Carson's 1.9million. Both saw a [5c][6s][2s] flop and Carson check called Baekke's 700,000 bet. On the [4c] turn he check called Baekke's 1.3million pot. Then on the [7d] river Carson checked and Baekke bet a hefty 2.27 million. It was around half of Carson's stack. After a brief dwell he made the call and got shown [8d][6d] for Baekke's top straight. -- SY

12.05am: Another four-bet helps Baekke to a 9m lead
Allan Baekke has made another 1m+ four-bet to push Carson off his hand and into a 9m to 7m chip lead. -- RD

12.00am: Carson pumps the pot
Carson three-bets from the big blind to 700,000 and is called by Baekke. A 975,000 continuation bet on a paint-laden [kh][ts][qd] flop is enough to win it for Carson. -- RD

11.55pm: One way then another
It's a bit tit-for-tat at the moment with both Allan Baekke and Russell Carson trading pots. On this one Baekke made it the standard 225,000 bet pre-flop which Carson called. Both checked the [4s][9c][5s] flop, but on the [7d] turn Baekke made it 275,000 and Carson called. On the [8s] river Baekke continued with a 550,000 bet. Again Carson called - and showed [kh][6s] for the rivered straight. Baekke had J-9. --SY

11.50pm: Four-bet from Baekke
Allan Baekke has made the first four bet of the heads up moving 1.575m chips over the line. Carson throws his hand and Baekke scoops the preflop pot. -- RD

11.40pm: And we're heads up
The dualists are back at the table and we can see that Canadian Russell Carson and Dane Allan Baekke are almost level with over eight million apiece. Baekke will fancy himself as the heads up specialist but Carson doesn't look scared and draws first blood in a three-bet pot when he stabs at the [ts][4s][8c] flop. -- RD

11.25pm: Johannes Strassmann is out in 3rd for €166,000
Team PokerStars Pro Johannes Strassmann is out in 3rd place. Strassmann had raised to 225,000 from the small blind and was called by Baekke in the big blind. Strassmann made a solid continuation bet for 400,000 into a [td][ac][4c] flop and Baekke made the call. Strassmann kept up the aggression on the [9d] turn with a 1,100,000 bet. Baekke slowly counted out dual towers of orange and black/yellow chips and made the call. The river brought a very juicy [kd] completing a lot of backdoor draws. Strassmann moved all for over 2,000,000 and Baekke instantly called.

Strassman: [ah][ks]
Baekke: [4d][5d]

It's a big call on the turn and the river delivered him the goods. Strassmann is out and the play is heads up for the trophy. -- RD

11.20pm: Strassmann flushed out by Baekke
Johannes Strassmann has been knocked out by Allan Baekke. Full details are on their way. -- HS

11.15pm: Two for Baekke, one for Carson
Allan Baekke has won the last two hands against Johanness Strassmann. Strassmann didn't put any money in post flop but it's helped Baekke gain momentum. Momentum that is swiftly crushed by the three-bet of Carson the next hand. -- RD

11.00pm: Victory still up for grabs
The blinds are a chunky 50,000-100,000 which means even the shorter stacks, Allan Baekke and Johannes Strassmann, have over 40 big blinds each. The title is still very much there to be taken. Baekke opens to 225,000 and has just passed to a 675,000 three-bet from chip leader Russell Carson. -- RD

11.00pm: Hand 200
It's hand 200 of the final table and Johannes Strassmann raises from the button to 250,000. Allan Baekke three-bets from the small blind to 675,000 and gets a fold. It's a nice addition of 380,000 to Baekke's stack. -- RD

10.45pm: Baekke gets some back
Russell Carson made it 250,000 and Allan Baekke called. Both checked the [6d][6h][ks] flop, but on the [4c] turn Baekke bet 275,000 - call. The river was [7h] and Baekke now made it 410,000. Carson called quickly but soon mucked when Baekke showed [kd][9d]. -- SY

10.35pm: Baekke moves all-in. Carson calls.
Russell Carson had been very quiet up until this hand. Throughout the last couple of days Carson seems to have been blessed with big hands in the big pots and it happened again here. Carson raises to 250,000 from the button and Baekke moves all-in on him. Carson instantly calls.

Carson: [qd][qs]
Baekke: [4c][4s]

The flop brings an entertaining straight draw sweat: [7s][6d][5d] but the turn and river deliver running diamonds with [2d] and [jd] to give Carson an unnecessary flush and the chip lead with the 7,170,000 pot. -- RD

10.25pm: Back again
After that short break the players have returned to slug it out in level 29. Blinds are 50,000-100,000 and there's a 10,000 ante to cough up each hand. It's fair to say this is getting quite expensive. Here are the current chip stacks:

Allan Baekke: 6,855,000
Johannes Strassmann: 5,895,000
Russell Carson: 3,725,000

PokerStars Blog reporting team keeping its distance from mountain goats: Rick Dacey, .Howard Swains and Simon Young

10.10pm: Has Strassman taken the chip lead?
The board is [4s][jd][4h][4d][ts] and Strassmann bets 1,600,000 on the river. What would you need to call here? Well, whatever it is that Allan Baekke would have called with he didn't have. The Dane had check-called on the flop and the turn but couldn't hold on for the final bet. Small pocket pair perhaps? Strassmann claims the 2,465,000 pot and isn't far ebhind the chip leader now. We're going into a five minute break so hang on in there. The finale is just around the corner. -- RD

10pm: Strassmann aggression
Johannes Strassmann seems to have found an extra gear and is taking a few chunks out of Allan Baekke's stack. -- SY

9.50pm: Baekke too good for Strassmann's trap
Carson button raises to 185,000 and is called by Strassmann. Baekke makes a three-bet raise to 605,000 and is called by Strassmann. MONSTER ALERT. Both players check all the way through the [6h][8s][jd][jh][9c] board for Strassmann to show [ac][as]. Baekke looked very suspicious all the way through the hand. Could Strassmann have got more chips any other way? -- RD

9.45pm: Hand blast
1. Baekke gets a walk in the big blind.

2. Baekke limps the small blind. Carson checks. Flop [js][3h][kc]. Carson bets 125,000 and wins the pot.

3. Strassmann gets a walk in the big blind.

4. Strassmann raises from the small blind to 235,000. Baekke raises in the big blind to 525,000. Strassmann passes. Baekke up to over 8,100,000.

We've just heard that a break is due to take place in a couple of minutes. -- RD

9.35pm: Carson takes a bite, too
Russell Carson raised from the small blind to 200,000 and Johannes Strassmann called from the big. On the [9d][kh][4d] flop Carson bet 285,000 and that was enough to send Strassmann packing. -- SY

9.30pm: Strassmann starting to open?
Johannes Strassmann has played this final table pretty snug and hasn't seemed to get out of line too often but is he now shifting gears? Carson raises on the button to 175,000 and Strassmann three-bets to 585,000 from the small blind. Baekke and Carson pass. -- RD

9.25pm: Here they are again
And they're back.

Here are their chip stacks:
Allan Baekke 7,330,000
Russell Carson 5,420,000
Johannes Strassmann 3,720,000

And you can click here or there (to the right on Latest chip count) for updated chip counts.

9pm: Er, calling all players
The player have done one. I don't know where they are. I'm guessing they'll be back soon, but for the moment we're looking at an empty table. -- HS

8.45pm: Alain Medesan out in 4th place winning €111,000
Alain Medesan's comeback has come to a brutal end. The Romanian moves all-in from the button with [kh][tc] and is called by Allan Baekke with [ac][th].

Flop: [5c][6s][6d]
Turn: [9s]
River: [qc]

Medesan's attempt to become the first ever Romanian EPT winner is over... for this tournament at least. We're now taking a small break as we go to play three-handed. -- RD

8.40pm: Medesan starts the comeback
On the very next hand after the big coup against Russell Carson, Alain Medesan was all in for about 300,000. Both Allan Baekke and Carson called and then checked the flop all the way.

By the end of it, Medesan's pocket eights were good, and he tripled back up to 1.5 million. He's still in this one. -- HS

8.35pm: Medesan in bad shape
Alain Medesan is down to just 370,000 after running his pocket jacks into Russell Carson's pocket kings. Carson had raised, Medesan made it 515,000, Carson moved all in and Medesan insta-called. The board ran a jack-dry [4c][8h][ac][2d][6d], and Carson raked in a huge pot. -- SY

8.25pm: The tale of Baekke and the button
You've probably realised that not every single hand is reported here. Blind steals don't tend to make the cut. With Allan Baekke raising about 90 percent of hands when it's folded to his button, a lot is not making it.

Just recently, though, Alain Medesan three-bet from the small blind and Baekke was persuaded out of it. -- HS

8.20pm: Back
Yes we are.

8pm: Battle of the blinds
Russell Carson has often been attacking Allan Baekke's small blind raises and this time was no exception . Baekke made it 155,000 to go and Carson three-bet to 440,000. Now remember that these are the two largest stacks at the table, Baekke makes the four-bet to a cool one million. The Canadian instantly looks a little unhappy with life and tosses his hand into the muck. Two minutes away from a 15-minute break. -- RD

7.50pm: Baekke pulling away
There's now about two million between Allan Baekke and his closest challenger, Russell Carson. This is the time to turn the screw, and Baekke is doing precisely that. He's picking up numerous small pots. -- HS

7.40pm: Medesan mucks on the river
Allan Baekke has just caught Alain Medesan at it. Both players had checked the [ad][jc][4s] flop when Medesan bet 200,000 on the [5d] turn. Baekke calls 425,000 on the [2d] river and Medesan instantly mucks his hand. Good call by Baekke who is stretching his chip lead at this final table. -- RD

7.30pm: Hand 100 claimed by Strassmann
Alain Medesan raises to 150,000 from the cut-off and is three-bet to 465,000 by Johannes Strassmann. Medesan passes. The German is picking his spots really well. Obviously getting Kings in against Jonathan Schroer's King-Jack helped him along. -- RD

7.20pm: Pre-flop poker
Pick the bones out of this one. Allan Baekke raised to 125,000 under-the-gun and Russell Carson three bet to 370,000. Alain Medesan attempted to four bet and puches forward a tower of orange chips, but it was only 500,000, which wasn't enough for a min-raise. It was deemed a call by the tournament staff.

That was fine. Baekke, knowing that his Romanian opponent had intended to four-bet, did it for him, moving in a million chips. Carson gave up. And then Medesan gave up too.

That puts Baekke back into the chip lead and through the 500,000 mark.-- HS

7.15pm: Carson takes the chip lead
Russell Carson takes the chip lead for the first time. Carson raises to 140,000 from the cut-off and Allan Baekke calls in the big blind. Carson bets 205,000 on the [4d][2c][3d] flop and is called by Baekke. Both players check the [8d] turn. Baekke quickly check-calls 370,000 on the [5h] river. Carson shows [ad] [6h] for the six-high straight. -- RD

7.10pm: We're back
Players have had their dinner - and I can exclusively reveal that at least Allan Baekke and Russell Carson availed themselves of the really quite amazingly sumptuous buffet here. I can't speak for either Alain Medesan or Johannes Strassmann. I didn't see them. (PokerStars Blog's Rick Dacey had four helpings. Yes, four.)

Enough of that. Here are the four players and their counts. See the captions.

And that is dinner
We'll be back refreshed/bloated in an hour. The full counts are over there on the chip count page. There are four of them still involved.

5.55pm: Plans
Word has reached us that a dinner break is planned for 6pm. That's five minutes from now. -- HS

5.50pm: Medesan fights fire with fire
Alain Medesan raises to 125,000 from the button and Allan Baekke three-bets to 360,000. Medesan reaches for his chips and makes it a cool 1m four-bet. Baekke studies the action and then mucks his hand. Baekke has been three-betting a lot but this is the first time he's been four bet. The other players aren't looking like they want to mess with him unnecessarily. -- RD

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 30,000-60,000, 5,000 ante

5.40pm: Carson gets aggressive... then passes
Allan Baekke button raises to 125,000 and is three-bet by Russell Carson to 330,000. Baekke calls with position and stabs 275,000 on the [7s][2c][th] flop when Carson decides not to make a continuation bet. -- RD

5.35pm: Medesan takes another one down
Allan Baekke raises from the cut-off to 125,000 and is reraised to 250,000 from the small blind by Alain Medesan. Baekke calls but folds on the [ac][9h][5d] flop when Medesan pushes 325,000 forward. -- RD

5.30pm: Lull
Yes. It's all gone quiet. Oh so quiet.

5.25pm: 72 hands in
We're down to just four players after 72 hands in this final table. There are no radical short stacks and Medesan seems to have recovered from tossing his straight away. Baekke is chip leader with 5,265,000. -- RD

5.20pm: Baekke bats Strassmann away
Strassmann raises from the small blind and is called by Baekke in the big blind. Strassmann leads 200,000 into the [qh][5d][8h] flop and is called by Baekke. Strassmann check-folds the [3d] on the turn. -- RD

5.05pm: Huge fold from Medesan
Baekke raises from the button to 105,000 and is called by Medesan in the big blind. Medesan check-calls 160,000 on the [8c][6h][2h] flop before leading 365,000 on the [9s] turn. The Romanian quickly checks the [3h] river allowing Baekke to bet 725,000. Medesan then folds [5s][7s] face-up showing the straight. Great read or bad lay down? You decide.

Baekke has taken back the chip lead. -- RD

4.55pm: Medesan chip leader; Wheeler departs
Brent Wheeler out in fifth winning €88,000
Alain Medesan has just pulled off a massive double up through Brent Wheeler that has left the American with a bowl of rice and made the Romanian the chip leader. This was a very strange one, but here's how it happened.

Wheeler raised pre-flop and Medesan called from the big blind. Medesan checked in the dark as the dealer dealt out [2s][5c][qd]. Wheeler bet 140,000 and Medesan min-raised to 280,000. Wheeler called.

The turn was the [7d] and then it all went in. Medesan led for 500,000 and Wheeler shoved. Medesan insta-called.

Medsan showed pocket fives for a flopped set. Wheeler had [qc][2c] for a flopped two pair. The [8d] river didn't help anyone but Medesan.

Wheeler's last 150,000 was all in on the very next hand, with pocket eights, but Allan Baekke's [qd][9s] beat him on a board [7c][6d][9h][6c][2c]. -- HS

4.40pm: Jonathan Schroer out in sixth winning €65,000
Russell Carson raises to 120,000 and is called by Jonathan Schroer in the cut-off. Johannes Strassmann three-bets to 380,000 from the button and Schroer moves all-in for 1.4m. The Team PokerStars Pro instantly calls.

Strassmann: [kd][kc]
Schroer: [ks][js]

It's a terrible spot for Schroer who blanks out but considering this has been Schroer's first ever live poker tournament he's got to be given some kudos and, as it happens, €65,000. -- RD

4.30pm: Carson flushes chunk from Baekke, takes chip lead
Allan Baekke is out of the chip lead for the first time in two days. Russell Carson now has that mantle, and here's how he got it.

Baekke made a standard pre-flop raise and Carson called in position. Johannes Strassmann came from the big blind too. The flop was [qd][6c][5s] and when it was checked to Carson, he bet 165,000, which only Baekke called.

The turn was [9s] and both players checked. The river was [8s] and Baekke checked. Carson bet 415,000 and that was sufficiently small to get Baekke to call.

Carson showed: [as][qs] for flopped top pair and a rivered flush. Carson moves to more than four million and Baekke dips below. -- HS

4.35pm: Schroer still moving it in
Jonathan Schroer's all-in routine appears to be irritating and amusing players in equal measure. The American, not a regular live player, puts on his glasses, pulls up his hood and shoves his chips across the line - literally. Russell Carson appears to be giggling about it while Alain Medesan certainly isn't. Allan Baekke is the one looking most annoyed as it's the sixth time that Schroer has moved in on him. -- RD

4.25pm: Back with Baekke and Co.
Righto, the six remaining players at Snowfest have re-taken their seats and we're all set for level 26. Allan Baekke is still bossing this one and has more than four million. Russell Carson and Brent Wheeler are still the closest chasers.

You know where to find the chip counts. Yep, it's the chip count page.

Don't forget you can also follow this on EPT Live provided you have a lenient enough boss to allow you to watch live poker all day. Or you're your own boss. Or you're unemployed. Whatever. EPT Live is the place.

This is the Team PokerStars Pro Johannes Strassmann, still smiling despite a slight slide in chips today.

4.06: Level up
That's the end of level 25. We're now on a 15-minute break.

4.05pm: More for Baekke
Strassmann dips below 2 million chips (1.9 million) after letting this one go against Allan Baekke. Strassmann had raised to 105,000 from the button and Baeeke re-raised to 295,000. Strassmann made a pretty quick call, building a nice pot. But on the [4c][5s][3d] flop Baekke's 300,000 bet ended things right there. -- SY

4.00pm: Schroer shoving it up Baekke
Jonathan Schroer is repeatedly moving all-in over the top of Allan Baekke's open raises. It's happened about four times now. His shoves have boosted him up to over 1.3m and he's really got himself back into this final table. -- RD

3.50pm: Another messy all in
It was folded around to Jonathan Schroer in the small blind and he called Johannes Strassmann's big blind. On went the glass and up went the hoodie. Schroer then turned his back on the German. But he turned around again fairly sharpish when Strassmann raised it to 150,000. Cue the all-in antics of Schroer, ending with him pushing his chips over the line in a mess, rather than stacked neatly. Strassmann insta-folded.

Schroer is now spending more time re-stacking his chips than he is concentrating on hands he is not involved in. -- SY

3.45pm: Bullying the bully
Allan Baekke is raising pretty much every time it's folded to him, but the others are not letting him have it all his own way. Jonathan Schroer has re-raised him all in three times, and just recently Russell Carson three-bet from the small blind, up to 255,000, and Baekke folded. -- HS

3.30pm: Three to a flop; Baekke takes it
Johannes Strassmann made it 105,000 from the cut off and Allan Baekke called from the small blind. That persuaded Russell Carson in from the big and the three of them went to a flop.

It came [8d][10h][jd] and after the two blinds checked, Strassmann followed through and bet 250,000. Only Baekke called.

They both checked the [9c] turn and they went to a [2d] river. Baekke double checked his cards and bet 310,000. Strassmann wasted little time in mucking. -- HS

3.20pm: Down to six
Lukas Baumann out in seventh, winning €46,000
Johannes Strassmann opened this one - and he ended it too. Strassmann made it 105,000 and Lukas Baumann moved all in for 490,000. Strassmann couldn't fold even if he wanted to, and why would he: he had [8d][8h] and was flipping against Baumann's [ah][jc].

The flop came [4d][kd][9d], which cut Baumann's outs down even further. And the [2c][3s] turn and river didn't help him, meaning the final Austrian in the field is eliminated in seventh, taking €46,000. -- HS

3.15pm: Million chip swing
Baekke raises to 85,000 and is three-bet by Medesan from the big blind to 190,000. Baekke makes the call. Both players check the [8d][qh][kc] flop before Medesan bets 250,000 into the [7h] turn. Baekke calls. The [js] on the river seems to be a card that Medesan likes and he leads 500,000 into the Dane. Baekke grimaces and makes the call saying, 'I have a bad feeling about this.' Baekke had backed into a set of jacks but Medesan had rivered a nut straight with [as][th]. -- RD

3.10pm: More three-betting
It's all getting a bit tasty now. Johannes Strassmann made another standard pre-flop raise and Russell Carson defended his big blind with a three bet to 315,000. Strassmann folded. -- HS

3.05pm: Schroer all-in
Baekke raises to 85,000 and Schroer pulls up his hood, pushes his chips (890,000) into the middle and puts his head onto the felt. Baekke passes. Schroer is up to 1m. -- RD

LEVEL UP. BLINDS NOW 20,000-40,000, 4,000 ANTE

3pm: Wheeler halted
For the second time in this final Brent Wheeler opens with a raise to 110,000 - and for the second time Allan Baekke re-raises him and takes the pot. -- SY

2.50pm: Carson wins two on the bounce
Baekke open raises and is three-bet to 225,000 by Russelll Carson and the Dane folds. Carson scoops the blinds on the next hand. -- RD

2.50pm: Medesan four-bets all-in
Allan Medesan opens from late position and is three-bet from Johannes Strassmann in the blinds. The Romanian wastes no time in shipping his stack in to pick up a nice 200,000 pot when the German quickly mucks. -- RD

2.45pm: Baekke wriggles out of Strassmann's trap
Johannes Strassmann raised to 75,000 from mid position and Allan Baekke called from the button. It was just those two to a flop of [ah][2h][3s] and Strassmann check-called Baekke's 85,000 bet.

The turn was [7s], which they both checked, and then the river was [ac] and they both checked that too. Baekke was first to show and tabled [qc][10c]. Strassmann showed his [as][10h]. He'd given Baekke the rope to hang himself, but the Dane refused. -- HS

2.42pm: A pretty picture
Well, not that pretty. It's a bunch of eight blokes after all. But here's our final table line up.

2.40pm: Daniel Van Kalkeren finishes eighth for €37,000
It did not take long to lose our first player of the final, and it was as straightforward as these things can be. Van Kalkeren shoved for 366,000 with [5h][5d] and then Alain Medesan re-raised all-in for just over one million with [ad][ks]. Everyone else got well out of the way, and the race was on.

The flop came [kh][10s][8h], pretty much killing off Van Kelkeren from the off. The [2s] turn and [qh] river failed to revive him. Medesan up to 1.4 million. -- SY

2.35pm: Our first flop!
Don't get too excited though. Allan Baekke raised to 65,000 and Johannes Strassmann called from the button. The board came [7c][2d][3d] and after Strassmann checked, Baekke bet, and Strassmann folded. I'm not sure we've seen a hand for the edit yet. -- HS

2.29pm: Schroer on the shove
Here's one way to deal with Allan Baekke: after an early position raise from the chip leader, Schroer shoved all in for 898,000. Baekke folded. -- HS

2.27pm: Another three bet
Two hands in, and we have seen two three bets. This time Lukas Baumann opened to 72,000 and Alain Medesan bumped it to 230,000 from the big blind. Er, fold. -- HS

2.25pm: We'll see this again
The first hand was folded to Brent Wheeler in the cut off and he raised making it 76,000. Allan Baekke, to his left and on the button, casually three-bet to 210,000, and everyone else, including Wheeler, folded. It's going to be a long day for Wheeler with that seat draw. -- HS

2.20pm: Off we go
Right on cue - and by "right on cue" I mean, of course, 20 minutes late - we're off! There are 28 minutes left in this level. Here's a video of what we've got to look forward to...

1.45pm: Readying for the final
The elimination of Huub Verdonschot in level 24 last night brought us down to our final eight. You can find out all you ever wanted to know about them, and less, by reading the final table player profiles.

You can relive all of yesterday's action by flicking through yesterday's wrap and you can see all the money winners so far on the prizewinners page.

Play is due to begin on the final table at 2pm, so make sure you're back here at 2.15pm to read our excuses as to why we're late. (Sneak preview: it will be to do with photographs being taken and players being wired up for broadcast on EPT Live.)

Get ready.

The final table for EPT Snowfest is set.

The eight players below will compete for the €445,000 first prize at the Alpine Palace, in Salbach-Hinterglemm. You can watch the action live on EPT Live and follow it on PokerStars Blog.

The full list of winners so far is on the prizewinners page

Final table line up:

Seat one - 3,463,000 chips
Russell Carson, 27, Powell River, BC, Canada - PokerStars qualifier





Carson may not be a familiar face to EPT followers, but he is a formidable online player known by his moniker "rdcrsn". Carson has been a professional poker player ever since he finished his studies, and his biggest cash was for $150,000 in an online tournament. He is an avid sport fan, particularly soccer.

Seat two - 919,000 chips
Alain Medesan, 33, Baia Mare, Romania





Medesan has been a fulltime poker professional since December 2006. "I decided then that I would play for everything," he said. "I would play with all my heart." His rail of supporters at Snowfest include seven friends who helped stake him into the event, which Medesan admits would have been too expensive otherwise. Their investment has already reaped dividends as Medesan now has the chance to become the EPT's first Romanian champion and to improve on his friend Mihai Manole's fourth place in Barcelona. Medesan's biggest live result before EPT Snowfest was €17,025 for a second place finish in a €700 tournament in Slovenia, but he's no slouch online where his biggest score has been a $85,000 third place finish in a $100 rebuy event.

Seat three - 972,000 chips
Jonathan Schroer, 46, North Carolina, USA, FPP qualifier





Schroer won his seat to EPT Snowfest in a Frequent Player Points satellite on PokerStars, which means his first ever trip to Europe has cost him nothing. Schroer is one of the few amateurs in the Snowfest final; by day he is the head of a Montessori School in North Carolina. He is also an international master at chess and is a poker veteran having been playing online for nearly ten years. He normally plays limit cash games, and also satellite tournaments.

Seat four - 2,034,000 chips
Johannes Strassmann, 25, Berlin, Germany, Team PokerStars Pro





Originally from Bonn and now living in Berlin, Strassmann is a poker professional who, like ElkY, switched from the strategy game Starcraft, opening an online account with a $5 deposit. Strassmann now has one of the best EPT records, currently lying sixth in the Tournament Leader Board. He has eight EPT cashes (including two finals) and has also bubbled two final tables. His best result was €152,000 for sixth place in Dortmund two years ago; his most recent was 23rd place in Berlin two weeks ago. Overall he has made more than $750,000 at EPT events.

Seat five - 728,000 chips
Lukas Baumann, 24, Austria, FPP qualifier





Baumann comes from Leoben, three hours' drive away from Hinterglemm, and is the last remaining Austrian in the tournament. He is currently about half way through a materials engineering course at university. Like Schroer, Baumann won his seat in a FPP tournament on PokerStars so his seat at EPT Snowfest has cost him nothing. He is thrilled and amazed to have made the final table, surrounded by pros, and merrily puts it all down to luck. However he does have results - he came fourth in a $50,000 guaranteed tourney on PokerStars for $4,000 and is also the current official Styrian University poker champion, a title he's held since December.

Seat six - 3,096,000 chips
Brent Wheeler, 24, Chicago, USA





Wheeler is a fulltime poker professional who mainly plays online. He says the only job he has ever had other than playing poker was being a golf caddy. Wheeler says his "favourite" live result was coming fourth for €57,000 in the PokerStars Italian Poker Tour event in San Remo last month but he also came 86th at EPT Berlin two weeks ago for €12,000 and had a deep run at the PCA in January, coming 39th for $35,000.

Seat seven - 4,688,000 chips
Allan "Sifosis" Baekke, 27, Denmark





Baekke is a PokerStars SuperNova, who has made his name playing the biggest buy-in heads-up sit and gos. He competes in the major Sunday tournaments as well but his biggest hit to date was second place in the $25,000 PokerStars WCOOP high roller heads-up event last September. He has been chasing an EPT title for quite a while, having competed in 15 events. He has cashed twice - 48th place in Budapest last season and 28th in Copenhagen on season four. However in Berlin two weeks ago, Baekke came second in the €2,000 side event - his best live result before reaching this Snowfest final table. For last season's Copenhagen event, Baekke joined forces with PokerStars to write strategy tips for the leading newspaper Ekstrabladet on how to win EPT seats via steps satellites. He is being supported in Hinterglemm by his girlfriend Kirstine.

Seat eight - 396,000 chips
Daniel Van Kalkeren, 25, Hengelo, Holland





Van Kalkeren has been a fulltime professional poker player for two years but is here in Austria playing his first ever EPT event. He took up poker while studying IT and communications at university. He plays online - usually no limit hold 'em short-handed cash games at $2-$4 and $3-$6 stakes. His best live result was reaching the final of a tournament in Budapest last year where he cashed for more than €18,000. Daniel is being supported from home by his girlfriend of eight years - as well as his new dog Tommy.

Yesterday's wrap, in case you didn't see it, was entitled "Baekke leads all stars in Alpine thriller". We try to provide fresh content daily on PokerStars Blog, but that title could certainly get a second airing tonight, and not just because we're recycling enthusiasts.

Allan Baekke was the dominant force on day three of the inaugural EPT Snowfest, leading the field as it was sliced from more than eighty to the final 24. Today, when those 24 were trimmed to the last eight, he was again the prime mover. The 27-year-old from Copenhagen, Denmark, known online as "Sifosis", is the chip leader heading to the final table, with 4,688,000 chips. This is momentum, and then some.

Baekke's charge today began on the very first hand he saw. After three betting the fearsome Nasr El Nasr, Baekke faced an all in shove from the German for something like half a million chips. A quick re-glance at the cards later and Baekke called with his [ad][kd]. El Nasr's [ac][7c] never caught up.

Neither did anyone else. Russell Carson, Brent Wheeler and the Team PokerStars Pro Johannes Strassmann were the men who came closest, each also bagging up more than two million to take to the final table. That full line-up is as follows:

Allan Baekke, Denmark, 4,688,000
Russell Carson, Canada, 3,463,000
Brent Wheeler, USA, 3,096,000
Johannes Strassmann, Germany, 2,034,000
Jonathan Schroer, USA, 972,000
Alain Medesan , Romania, 919,000
Lukas Baumann, Austria, 728,000
Daniel Van Kalkeren, Netherlands, 396,000

There's a lot of talent there, and some dangerous unknowns. Wheeler has been honing his game in Europe over the past season and is due this big one; Russell Carson has played pretty much impeccable poker to tear through this event.

Alain Medesan continues an excellent show from Romanian players this season, and Daniel Van Kalkeren is the last member of a sizeable Dutch contigent going deep. Jonathan Schroer, meanwhile, is the latest chess player to make a successful transition to poker. He's International Master level over the chequered board, and has been a big stack throughout the four days at Snowfest.

For all that, it might have been even more formidable. In addition to El Nasr, we also lost the likes of Richard Toth, Jim Collopy, Lee Gaines, Alexander Debus and Max Lykov today. The latter had been a serious challenger to land the first ever EPT Main Event double, but yet again that particular prize remains elusive.

Take a look back on the action today. It was fast and furious and available at any of the following links:

Introduction and Levels 21 and 22 live updates
Level 23 and 24 live updates

There are video blogs aplenty at PokerStars.tv. And there's a mountain of German, Dutch and Italian in the usual places.

Join us again tomorrow for our last day in the foothills. Goodnight.

9.25pm: Over
A full chip count and a full wrap is on its way. Stand by.

9.20pm: Single Dutch
We have our final eight. Huub Verdonschot opened for a standard raise and Brent Wheeler three-bet to his left. Verdonschot shoved and Wheeler insta-called and showed [ac][kh], which was all over Verdonschot's [ad][jd].

We were a jack away from our final eight, and although that changed to "a diamond away from the final eight" when the flop came [5s][9d][6c][kd], the [jh] on the end was no longer enough for the Dutchman. -- HS

9.15pm: Professional side event player
As the Main Event plays down to its final eight, news reaches us that Martin Kabrhel, who has won three side events already on this season of the EPT, has (guess what) made the final two tables of the €2,000 side event. This is ridiculous. -- HS

9.05pm: Strassmann lights a big stack fuse
Johannes Strassmann raises to 70,000 and is called by Allan Baekke before Brent Wheeler comes in with a squeeze to 200,000. Strassmann moves out of the way leaving Baekke with a question. His answer is to reraise to 515,000. Wheeler thinks for a minutes before mucking his hand. Baekke's stack is a monstrous 4.6m. -- RD

9.05pm: Wheeler on a roll
Brent Wheeler raises to 76,000 from middle position and scoops the blinds. He raises the following hand and wins the pot unopposed again. Easy game. The big stacks are slowly chipping away at the short stacks. -- RD

9.00pm: Schroer feels the heat
Allan Baekke raises from the hijack to 65,000. Schroer calls in the big blind. Both players check the [8d][qh][7d] flop. Schroer check-calls 50,000 on the [2c] turn. Schroer checks the [3h] and Baekke bets 175,000. Schroer passes. -- RD

8.55pm: Baekke and Wheeler clash
Allan Baekke raises to 65,000 and Brent Wheeler re-raises from the big blind to 237,000. Baekke passes. -- RD

8.45pm: Early action
Baekke raises to 65,000 and is called by Medesan on the button. The Dane leads out the [5d][3s][2d] flop for 75,000 and Medesan elects to raise to 180,000. Baekke thinks for a long time before folding. It's a handy boost for the Romanian.

Talking of Medesan, just take a look at the gloves he is wearing... -- RD

8.35pm: Level up
We're in to level 24 now. The blinds are 15,000-30,000 with a 3,000 ante.

8.25pm: Play resume
After the break for the redraw and set-up of the last table, we're under way again. One player to go, folks.

8.02pm: Redraw
So with that we are down to one table. But it's not the final table. Oh no. Instead it's the last table of nine. Their seats have been drawn and now we play until one more player busts. Then, and only then, will we have our final table set for tomorrow. -- SY

1. Russell Carson, PokerStars qualifier
2. Alain Medesan
3. Jonathan Schroer, PokerStars qualifier
4. Huub Verdonschot
5. Johannes Strassmann, Team PokerStars Pro
6. Lukas Baumann, PokerStars qualifier
7. Brent Wheeler, PokerStars player
8. Allan Baekke, PokerStars player
9. Daniel Van Kalkeren

8pm: Stop Debus, I want to get off
After losing that huge pot (see below) to Allan Baekke, Alexander Debus was knocked out the very next hand by Team PokerStars Pro Johannes Strassmann. But it was not a moment of tilt. Instead his genuine hand ran in to a really genuine hand.

Debus had opened with a raise and Strassmann re-raised to 126,000. Debus announced all in for 742,000 and Strassmann insta-called.

Debus: [ad][kh]
Strassmann: [ah][as]

The flop was certainly interesting, but it served only to extend Strassmann's advantage, coming [3c][ac][kd]. The turn was [5c] and the river [10s] and Debus left in tenth place, €28,000 the richer. Interestingly he bubbled the final table in Warsaw this season as well, not something he want to make a habit of. -- SY

7.55pm: Monster for Baekke
Allan Baekke stretched his lead by winning a huge pot off Alexander Debus. Baekke had opened with a 53,000 bet and Debus called. On the [3c][qs][3h] flop Baekke made it 60,000. Call. The turn was [ad] and now Baekke put on more pressure, betting 137,000. Again Debus called. Finally, on the [ks] river Baekke put out a monster 437,000 - and got the call he needed:

Baekke: [ah][3s] for the full house. Debus did not show. -- SY

7.50pm: Holstege halted
Johannes Holstege is out, running into Brent Wheeler - and getting a little unlucky. Holstege opened to 51,000 from early position, the second time he'd done that in a couple of hands, and Wheeler had seen enough. Wheeler shoved for more than a million, covering Holstege's 900,000. Holstege called. Big pot.

Wheeler: [ad][10d]
Holstege: [10c][10s]

Holstege clenched his fist and was delighted with the situation. But that only lasted as long as the flop, which came [as][js][7d] and the [3d] left him one out on the river. It wasn't the [3c] and Holstege departs. -- HS

7.45pm: First blood to Baekke
First hand back from dinner and Allan Baekke keeps up his pre-snack aggression. He made it 53,000 and got calls from Huub Verdonschot, Johannes Strassmann and Alexander Debus. On the [7s][2d][2c] flop Baekke bet 100,000 and everybody else ran for the hills mountains. SY

7.42pm: Snowball fight
Get a bunch of poker folks in a pile of snow and chaos is lilkely to follow. A bit like this...

7.40pm: Back
That was dinner. This is the resumption of level 23.

6.50pm: Dinner chips
The chip count page has been updated with the latest counts. But this will save you a click:

Allan Baekke Denmark PokerStars player 3,415,000
Russell Carson Canada PokerStars qualifier 3,203,000
Brent Wheeler USA PokerStars player 1,624,000
Johannes Strassmann Germany Team PokerStars Pro 1,500,000
Alexander Debus Germany 1,430,000
Jonathan Schroer USA PokerStars qualifier 1,291,000
Alain Medesan Romania 930,000
Johannes Holstege Germany PokerStars player 907,000
Huub Verdonschot Netherlands 906,000
Lukas Baumann Austria PokerStars qualifier 706,000
Daniel Van Kalkeren Netherlands 622,000

So Baekke still leads, but Carson is right on his back. Join us in about 50 minutes from now for the resumption. -- HS

6.45pm: Debus to enjoy dinner
Allan Baekke is mortal, but you wouldn't necessarily want to be all in against him, even if you were ahead. Alexander Debus just had a major sweat for his tournament life, but ended up doubling up on the last hand before the dinner break.

Baekke was on the button and Debus in the big blind. They got to the turn pretty quietly, and the four cards were [as][6d][5c][8h]. Debus bet 220,000 at it and Baekke announced that he was all in. Call from Debus!

Debus: [ad][2d] top pair
Baekke: [7c][5d] bottom pair and open-ended straight draw

Baekke had a few outs then but the [2h] was not one of them. Debus survives and doubles up to more than a million.

That's the dinner break and we're getting the full chip counts right now. Give us five. Or ten. -- HS

6.15pm: Koller culled
Marcel Koller had realistic hopes of joining an exclusive club of back-to-back EPT final table-ists. But they have just been dashed. It all started innocuously enough, with Koller and Baekke getting to a flop of [7s][jc][8d] and Baekke betting 60,000. Koller raised here, making it 155,000 and Baekke called.

The turn was [10c] and then it all went off - including the sound on the live feed from the announcer's microphone, so I'm not precisely sure how this all went in. Anyhow, it did and Koller's last 724,000 was in the middle, called by Baekke.

Baekke had turned a straight with his [qc][9d] and Koller's top pair, with [kd][jh], had been outdrawn. The [2h] on the river was irrelevant and Koller departs.

Baekke now has 4,185,000, more than the rest of the table combined.-- HS

6pm: Baumann doubles through Holstege
I don't understand mathematics and I don't try. But I'm sure it had something to do with the way this hand played out.

Jonathan Schroer raised to 61,000 from under-the-gun and Johannes Holstege called from a seat to his left. It was folded around to Lukas Baumann in the big blind, who moved all in for 370,000 more.

Schroer folded without too much delay, but Holstege, who had Baumann well covered with a stack of about a million, dwelled for a while but then called.

Holstege: [5c][5s]
Baumann: [js][10s]

That's a coin flip. I think. (Is it?) Anyway, it's pretty close and on this occasion the gods favoured Baumann. The flop came [ks][8s][kd] and the turn of [3s] gave the flush. The river was neither a king nor a five (it was [4h]) and so Baumann won it.

He's back to about 750,000. So, roughly speaking, is Holstege. -- HS

5.45pm: Lykov out in 13th for €15,800
Former EPT winner Max Lykov has just been knocked out by Canadian Russell Carson in a top pair versus set tussle. Lykov raised from the cut-off to 55,000 and was called by Carson on the button. The flop ran out [ts][2s][7c] and Lykov continuation bet 68,000 into the pot. Carson, who had been very aggressive over the previous five hands winning three of them, counted out 195,000 and slid it into the middle. Lykov announced that he was all-in for his remaining 800,000 or so and was snap-called by Carson. The cards went on their backs:

Lykov: [qh][td] for top pair
Carson: [7h][7d] for middle set

The [9d] and [ad] made little difference as Lykov stood and shook hands with the table ending his chance to be the first double EPT champion. -- RD

5.40pm: Cainelli caned
Straight after the break Luca Cainelli needed to shove with any two. It turned out he had a playable hand, [10c][js]. Unfortunately for him he was called by Allan Baekke who had the dominating [qc][jd]. The board ran [7h][3h][jh][5s][5c][jd] and the Italian was out in 14th for €15,800. We're sure to see him at his home event of EPT San Remo next month. -- SY

5.35pm: Fourteen for it
We're down to our final 14 players, meaning we're six away from a final table. The full, updated counts are now over there on the chip count page and a reminder of who has won what is still there on the prizewinners page.

The next man out will earn himself €15,800. But outlast 13 players and you're getting €445,000.

This is Alain Medesan. He's still looking strong:

PokerStars Blog reporting team in the Alps (thin on air, fat on hot dogs):Howard Swains, Rick Dacey and Simon Young