APT Main Event (60,000 PHP)

Or Yaaqov Nezer raised the cutoff to 240,000, and Jeoffrey Sibal shoved all in for 1,210,000. Nezer made the call to put Sibal at risk.

Jeoffrey Sibal: K♦ T♦

Or Yaaqov Nezer: K♣ Q♣

Nezer was ahead with the queen kicker. A flop came down 2♣ 8♠ 9♣ , giving Nezer a flush draw.

The turn revealed a 6♦ and Sibal received a straight draw. The Q♦ hit on the river, pairing Nezer’s queen and sending Sibal to the rail in eleventh place for a payday of PHP 679,000 (~$11,667).

Action folded to the short-stacked Ivan Govorov on the button, who raised to 200,000. Small blind Jeoffrey Sibal, also with a short stack, pushed all-in for 1,200.000. Govorov surrendered.

Players have been sent on a 60-minute dinner break.

Here's a peek at the counts while the players fuel up.

Dmitrii Belikov raised to 160,000 from under the gun, only to be jammed by Jeoffrey Sibal for 745,000 from the cutoff. After some consideration, Belikov dropped in a call to put Sibal at risk.

Dmitrii Belikov: A♦ K♦

Jeoffrey Sibal: K♠ K♣

Sibal held the lead with the pocket kings on the flop of 3♣ 6♠ J♣ .

The 7♦ hit on the turn, leaving Belikov drawing dead.

A bricky 8♦ fell on the river, shipping Sibal a double-up.

Jeoffrey Sibal had his last 600,000 chips at risk against Dimitri Belikov.

Jeoffrey Sibal K♣ K♠

Dimitri Belikov A♦ K♥

The board ran 3♣ 6♠ J♣ 7♦ 8♦ giving SIbal's kings a crucial double-up.

Luke Dainton made it 84,000 to go from middle position, leaving only 16,000 chips behind. Jeoffrey Sibal three-bet to 200,000 from the small blind. Dainton called oof his last few chips.

Luke Dainton: 8♣ 8♥

Jeoffrey Sibal: 8♠ 8♦

Both players held pocket eights, giving Dainton a strong chance to stay alive. On the flop of 3♠ A♣ Q♣ , he saw hope for a flush.

'Club! Club!' Dainton exclaimed. However, the runout brought 4♠ 7♥ , sealing the hand as a chop.

After an intense and grueling bubble period in the APT Manila Classic Main Event, 175 players have locked up a payday and secured their spots in Day 3. This event has officially made history as the largest-ever APT Main Event in the Philippines, reinforcing the tour’s continued growth in the region.

Leading the field is Taiwan's Po-Shuo Huang, who finished Day 2 with an impressive 1,168,000 chips — the only player to bag a seven-figure stack. Not far behind is Javier Zarco, who accumulated 959,000, with the Spaniard playing a pivotal role in bursting the bubble after eliminating Kenneth Anthony.

Nobuaki Sasaki rounds out the top three, benefiting from a dream scenario when his pocket aces held up against the pocket kings of Raju Jaruplavath in one of the biggest hands of the day.

The day began with 377 returning survivors from the opening flights, joined by 56 late entries who took advantage of the last chance to buy in before registration closed. David Erquiaga wasted no time making his presence felt, quickly rising among the chip leaders after eliminating Shinya Maeda in Level 13. Erquiaga capitalized on his early momentum and bagged a top ten stack of 680,000.

However, several former Main Event champions weren’t as fortunate, as Punnat Punsri, Lester Edoc, Henrick Tollofsen, Christopher Mateo, and John Tech all failed to make the money. Three past champions are still in contention, with Mike Takayama (577,000), Moses Saquing (124,000), and Yohn Paredes (71,000) carrying the torch forward.

China’s Zhen Chen, who has been making waves in the poker world, closed out Day 2 with 165,000 chips. Chen added another trophy to his collection just yesterday, winning the Baby Superstar Challenge for PHP 4,327,600.

Samuel Mullur, currently third on Austria's All-Time Money List, secured the fourth-largest stack of 834,000. Mullur, who captured a WSOP bracelet in December 2023 by conquering the GGMillion$ High Roller for $2,736,300 — his career-best score—now sets his sights on adding another prestigious title. Despite his global accolades, an Asian trophy still eludes him, and what better way to start his collection than by claiming an award-winning Gold Lion to adorn his mantle?

Despite his gut-wrenching cooler against aces, Jaruplavath, champion of the Philippines National Cup, still managed to survive the day with 169,000 chips. Another notable mention is APT commentator Stephen Lai, who navigated the field smoothly and bagged a respectable 333,000 heading into Day 3.

as play resumes, 29 online qualifiers will merge with the live field, adding a fresh dynamic to the competition. Some notable names among them include Adalsteinn Karlsson (428,000), Abraham Ceesvin (353,000), Joshua Mccully (321,000), Marc Rivera (242,000), and Asa Smith (135,00).

Vietnamese poker vlogger Ngoc Huyen Quach, aka “Gemmy” maintained her position as the top stacked female player, fighting through with 226,000 in chips, with five other women still in contention for Day 3: Thailand’s Nattamon Kaweesorasak (206,000), Natural8 Ambassador Hua-Wei Lin (203,000), Thailand’s Wipawadee Kanaraksapong (179,000), Japan’s Seina Asagiri (117,000), and China’s Cai Xin Wong (59,000).

All remaining players are guaranteed a payout of PHP 94,000 (~$1,615), but it’s the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) top prize that remains the ultimate goal. With the biggest APT Main Event field in Philippine history now down to its final contenders, who will rise to the occasion and claim poker glory?

David "Spade" Erquiaga has added around fifty percent to his stack in the early goings, with a chunk of those chips coming from his compatriot Jeoffrey Sibal.

The action was picked up on a board of J♠ T♣ T♥ J♦ and with around 45,000 in the pot, Erquiaga fired out 24,000 from the hijack. Sibal was on the button and after thinking it over for some time, he dropped in the call.

A 3♣ landed on the river and Erquiaga didn't need to think for too long before he shoved, which put Sibal to the test for his remaining stack of around 100,000. It wasn't an easy decision for Sibal as he went through the motions, and at one point looked as if he was about to toss in a chip to call. However, after thinking it over a little more, he removed his chips from the top of his cards and made the fold.