by Mario Alfonsi | Published on Feb 4, 2012 | Updated on Feb 4, 2012Day Three of the European Poker Tour’s Deauville Main Event was dominated by locals, as French players took firm control at the top of the leaderboard. At the end of the day’s play, there were just 54 players left in EPT Deauville, with Frenchman Sam Phomveha jumping to the top of the heap.Phomveha will have a sizable advantage over the field heading into Day 4. He’ll start the session with 1,471,000 chips, nearly 400,000 more than his closest competitor, fellow countryman Oliver Rogez.Phomveha may not be a player most readers will be familiar with, but he’s had a smattering of success around the world over the last three years. His biggest cash came when he finished in 3rd place at the 2009 Unibet Open in London, where he won £79,000. According to the Hendon Mob Database, Phomveha has a total of $232,296 in career winnings, including a win in a 2010 event at the Mazagan Beach Resort in Morocco.Friday’s play saw the money bubble burst, as only 128 of the 178 players who began the day would cash. Several notable players were eliminated after the bubble broke, with prominent players such as Toby Lewis and James Dempsey taking home small cashes.The leaderboard is bereft of poker stars; in fact, it’s likely that many poker fans wouldn’t recognize anyone remaining in the field. The most notable name remaining is likely Luca Pagano, who has won nearly $2 million in his live tournament career, mostly on the European circuit. He’ll enter the fourth day of play with a below average stack. Another player to keep an eye on is Martins Adeniya, who came into the day as the chip leader, and is still hanging around in fifth place.On a side note: Check out the photo above and see his jacket with a Skrill MoneyBookers Logo. Skrill/MoneyBookers has really been on the scene lately sponsoring many players and events. Its of our opinion they are one of the safest places to deposit money online.
