Kickoff (16,500 PHP)

PokerStars LIVE's opening series of the year, Manila Megastack 21, is heating up the action with its first highlight on schedule front and center. Two flights for the PHP 3,000,000 (~USD 51,290) guaranteed Kickoff have already ran through, bringing in a combined 194 entries to date, just a few shy of meeting its guarantee. The last flight remains in play with the final numbers to be posted by night's end.

Twenty more survivors advanced from today's Flight B battle, with Russia's Ilia Timofeev bagging the lead with a chip count of 377,000. Timofeev shot out to the top just as the action capped, having delivered Martin Gonzales' bubble elimination to close the day. Timofeev turned the nut straight against Gonzales' top pair and collected in full, enough to surpass second in position, Edgar Asehan's 319,000 stack.

Canada's Peter Chung continues to reign, having topped the initial flight with a 395,000 stack onto the next round. Other notables advancing through include Mike Takayama (274,000), Terry Gonzaga (231,000), Jonald Garcia (219,000), Czar Ian Marcos (199,000), Rene Mar David (95,000), and Joris Michl (87,000).

Action resumes tomorrow, January 22nd at 12 noon sharp, where only one off the list will rise to claim the victory. Stay tuned for updates as SMP brings you all the latest directly off the floor!

Kickoff

Date/s: January 20-22, 2025

Buy-in: PHP 16,500 (~USD 285)

Guarantee: PHP 3,000,000 (~USD 51,290)

Starting stack: 30,000

Flight A: 66 entries, 10 qualified

Flight B: 128 entries, 20 qualified

Flight C Turbo: Tuesday, January 21

Day 2/ Final: Wednesday, January 22

Martin Gonzales defended his big blind against Ilia Timofeev's 23,000 hijack open, and went on to battle on board T♦ A♣ 6♣ J♣ 8♥ . Timofeev triple barreled - 23,000, 60,000, and a final all-in, with Gonzales calling all the way down with top pair A♦ 5♣ .

Timofeev revealed nut straight K♦ Q♠ , eliminating Gonzales as the stone cold bubble and closing the day's action at the same time.

Action is right on bubble time with hand-for-hand currently in play. One more elimination is due before the flight wraps up, bringing 20 survivors onto Day 2.

Seungjun Na raised all-in from the small blind and found Mike Takayama right behind call off for his tournament life - 124,000.

Board 6♣ 3♦ J♦ 2♠ 9♦ missed to pair either player, leaving Takayama's better ace-high good for the takedown.

Chirag Shah opened 23,000 on the hijack and was met with an all-in from Edgar Asehan on the big blind, for 142,000 total. Shah put in the call, risking nearly his entire stack.

Dominated, Shah shot down to a single big blind after board 9♠ J♠ 2♣ K♠ Q♦ offered him no help.

Harish Asnani flicked in his last 33,000 and faced initial raiser Jester Intia's pocket pair for a flip.

Asnani missed to pair up on board 6♦ 2♠ 5♣ 9♣ A♠ , busting him out three places shy of the money.

Harish Asnani opened 23,000 on the hijack and called off Lloyd Locsin's button jam for 109,000 total.

Locsin in rough shape, turned the tables around as board Q♦ 7♥ J♦ 3♥ 4♣ landed him a pair to snag the win away.

Jess Dalipe raised all-in on the button and saw Jeffrey Calonge call off for his last 60,000 on the big blind.

At risk, Calonge headed out shortly after board 7♠ 3♥ J♣ 6♣ T♦ offered him no salvation.

With 45,000 in the middle across flop 5♠ Q♣ 4♥ , action was caught on Jonald Garcia with a bet of 13,000. Seungjun Na check raised from the big blind for 33,000, and went to lead another 60,000 on river 7♠ . Garcia let it go by the final bet, shipping Na the win.

Renato Villanueva defended his big blind vs Feridoun Farboud's 12,000 open and headed to flop J♣ 3♣ Q♠ . Action checked round to turn Q♠ , where Villanueva led 17,000. Farboud called behind, yet gave it up after Villanueva fired a final 38,000 on river 9♦ .

Villanueva showed bluff 7♣ 2♠ as he scooped up the pot.

Terry Gonzaga defended his big blind vs Jean Paul Berdejo's open, and check called another 12,000 on flop Q♣ 9♠ 3♣ . Both players checked turn 4♥ through to river K♥ , where Gonzaga faced a final 60,000 bet from Berdejo. Gonzaga eventually found the call, yet mucked as Berdejo showed 8♥ 8♠ .

Terry Gonzaga opened to 13,000, joined by both players on the blinds onto flop K♣ 7♣ T♦ . Jess Dalipe led out a bet of 20,000, called by Gonzaga. On turn Q♠ , Dalipe checked, pushing Gonzaga to fire 30,000. Dalipe made the call, and paid a final 50,000 on river 3♠ , only to muck as Gonzaga revealed two pair K♥ Q♣ .

Facing an open and a call, Renato Villanueva squeezed all-in on the big blind, and saw initial raiser Yoshiki Nakamura call off for his lesser 53,000 stack.

At risk, Nakamura exited the arena shortly after failing to improve on board K♠ K♣ J♠ 9♠ A♦ .

Jester Intia opened utg+1 and flicked in the rest after Sunhwi An pushed all-in for 32,000.

Board 5♠ T♠ A♦ K♦ 6♦ missed to pair up An's overcards, knocking him out just a few places short of making Day 2.

Nichols Manalo moved all-in utg for his last 41,000 and saw Nikolai Babushkin push likewise.

A classic flip, Babushkin's overcards won it this time around, having spiked a pair on board K♠ 4♦ T♦ 8♦ 8♣ to send Manalo's pocket pair bound for the muck.

Edgar Asehan opened 15,000 on the button and called Anthony Castro's all-in for 63,000 total.

Up for a flip, board 8♥ 3♠ 4♠ Q♣ 9♦ landed Castro's way, earning him more room to maneuver across the last few levels.

MikeTakayama opened 11,000 on the hijack, and called off Joseph Magnotti's 50,000 all-in from the small blind.

Magnotti in rough shape, was left drawing dead instantly as board 9♥ 9♦ 4♣ 4♥ J♦ landed Takayama quads to deliver the bust.

Ilia Timofeev opened 12,000 utg, called by Jester Intia on the small blind. Action on flop A♦ 5♥ T♥ was checked through to turn 9♥ , where Intia bet 15,000. Timofeev called behind and arrived at showdown shortly after river K♣ collected no more bets.

Intia showed two pair ace-ten and raked in the pot.

Renato Villanueva stuffed his last 68,000 in and was looked up by chip leader Jonald Garcia.

At risk, Villanueva continued on as board J♠ 8♠ K♦ 7♦ 9♦ ran a straight for his pocket pair to take the win.

With 29 players left holding on to their seats, that means the day is about to close with 9 more eliminations to go before is reached. 20 players are set to advance to Day 2, joining yesterday's 10-survivor qualifier list.

Chip Counts

Raphael Bulaong open shoved his last 41,500 on the hijack and was looked up by Nichols Manalo right on the big blind.

In rough shape, Bulaong turned it around as the river landed him a full house on board T♠ T♣ A♥ 7♣ 3♦ to steal the win away.

Facing an open and a call, Sunhwi An squeezed all-in on the big blind, for 30,000 and was challenged by initial raiser Lloyd Locsin.

Sunhwi slightly ahead, immediately paired up his eight on board 3♦ 8♥ 2♠ T♠ 5♥ , earning him the full double up.

With 27,000 already in the middle on flop 2♣ T♣ A♥ , Jonald Garcia sent out a 10,000 bet on the button and saw Renato Villanueva put in the call. Both checked turn K♦ through to river K♠ , where Garcia went for a final 15,000. Villanueva gave it up, shipping Garcia another boost to his already healthy stack.

Edgar Asehan opened 8,000 utg+1 and called 21,000 more following an all-in from Ki Burm Lee.

Running a race, Asehan's suited ace kept ahead all the way through board 2♣ A♦ 6♥ 4♦ 6♣ , taking one out of the counts.

Jess Dalipe opened utg and called off Bonghyun Lee's all-in for 45,000.

Lee in search of an ace, found none on board 9♦ J♦ 9♥ 3♠ 8♣ , eliminating him from the qualifier entirely.

A blind vs blind battle brewed a pot of 23,500 preflop. Seungjun Na led 6,500 on flop J♥ Q♦ 5♥ , called behind by Jonald Garcia. On turn A♠ , Na checked to Garcia this time, pushing the latter to bet 8,500. Na made the call, but was left unable to get to showdown after Garcia barreled a final 43,000 on river 7♥ .

Terry Gonzaga opened utg and called Bonghyun Lee's all-in for 27,000.

Dominated, Lee lucked out on board A♣ T♣ 6♥ 2♣ 3♥ , shipping him the win with a pair of tens.

A three way raised pot saw the aggressor continue for 7,000 on flop 9♦ 6♠ 6♦ . Ramon Pablo called behind, followed by a check raise from Ilia Timofeev on the big blind, to 20,000. Pablo reshoved for the rest, and Timofeev pushed in his remaining 59,300.

Ramon Pablo A♦ K♦

Ilia Timofeev T♥ 6♥

Drawing to a flush, Pablo missed out on both turn 4♣ and river 6♣ , leaving Timofeev's quads in for the win.

Junj Javalera opened 8,000 on the cutoff, joined by Edgar Asehan behind onto flop A♣ 4♣ 3♦ . Javalera check called a 6,000 bet from his opponent and headed to turn 2♣ . Both checked it through to river 6♠ , where Javalera check called a final 16,000.

Asehan revealed a set 6♦ 6♣ and raked in the pot.

Anthony Castro opened utg+1 and called a 15,000 three bet from Chirag Shah right behind. Action on flop J♦ 6♥ 2♠ checked round to turn K♣ , where Castro led for 6,000. Shah bumped it up to 13,500, enough to get Castro to lay it down.

Liam Schreiter defended his big blind against Chirag Shah's 4,000 hijack open, and check called another 7,000 on flop 9♠ 3♠ 2♦ . Both checked turn 8♠ through to river 2♣ , where Schreiter led 3,000. Shah called and mucked after Schreiter revealed two pair A♠ 9♦ .

Terry Gonzaga sent out a 12,000 three bet against Justin Ong's utg open and saw the latter complete. On flop A♥ 9♠ 3♠ , Ong responded with a check raise to 35,000, called by Gonzaga onto turn K♠ . Ong checked once more, and folded shortly after Gonzaga jammed his remaining 47,500 in. Gonzaga tabled A♦ A♣ as he raked in the pot.

Sunhwi An opened utg+1 and happily put out the chips after Reynaldo Ong pushed on the small blind for 20,000.

In great shape, An easily busted his opponent as board J♣ 4♠ 3♥ 7♥ A♥ kept his kings ahead all the way through.

Nichols Manalo opened 4,500 on the hijack, called by Nikolai Babushkin behind along with the big blind. Action on flop 4♠ 6♦ 9♥ was checked to Babushkin, who bet 5,500. Manalo check called, but laid it down after Babushkin went for another 7,500 on turn 7♥ .

With 24,000 in the pot across board 9♠ 3♣ 3♠ 7♦ , four way action saw Kiril Gelev lead all-in for 34,000. Chirag Shah reshoved behind, isolating Gelev for a showdown.

Kiril Gelev T♠ 8♠

Chirag Shah A♥ A♣

River T♥ bricked for Gelev, shipping Shah the pot with his rockets good for the takedown.

With two limps ahead, Tamon Nakamura raised it up to 10,000 and saw Seungjun Na on the big blind, three bet to 23,000. Nakamura called for his remaining 12,000, and found himself in rough shape against the rockets.

No help for Nakamura arrived on board 3♣ Q♠ 2♣ Q♣ 7♣ , ending his run in the Flight B games.

Sergei Korzhenko opened on the hijack and called off Mike Takayama's all-in from the big blind for 21,500.

In for a flip, Takayama continued on after his opponent missed to connect with board J♥ 8♦ 3♦ 8♠ Q♥ .

Masakazu Miyamoto opened 3,000 utg+1, joined by Sergei Korzhenko and Junghyun An on the big blind. On flop 5♣ 4♣ J♦ , Miyamoto continued for 7,000, check called by both opponents. Miyamoto didn't slow down on turn Q♥ and barreled all-in, pushing both out of the pot successfully.

A pot of 18,000 was seen on flop 9♥ 8♦ J♣ with Roxanne Victorino already all-in. Initial raiser continued for 4,000, called behind by Sunhwi An for a side pot. On turn A♦ , An fired 5,000, followed with a final 20,000 on river 3♣ . Opponent called the first bet but gave it up after An proceeded with aggression.

An showed nut straight Q♥ T♦ , crushing Victorino's 4♠ 4♣ entirely.

Following an open and a call, Rene Mar David squeezed all-in on the small blind and saw initial raiser Roland Ferrer call off for his entire 21,500.

Dominated, Ferrer bowed out shortly after board 4♦ 9♣ 7♥ 3♣ T♥ rolled on the felt.

Registration for today's Kickoff Flight B showing is officially closed with an additional 128 entries going towards the tally. Action will close once the field is down to ITM at 15% of the field - 20 players.

The final heat, Flight C, is now open for registration, running faster-paced 20 minute blind levels all throughout.

Following an open and two calls, Matthias Frost squeezed on the big blind for 30,000 and saw Jonald Garcia reshove. Waki Yasuhiro called off for his entire 115,100, making it a three way showdown.

With the worst hand, Garcia was in luck to find his two outer on board 2♣ 6♥ 9♦ 2♠ 7♠ , running him a boat to scoop it all.

Facing an utg open, Seungjun Na stuffed 26,500 on the button and saw Mike Takayama call behind. Initial raiser opted out, leaving the two to showdown.

Takayama a favorite to win, instead booked the loss as board 3♦ 4♦ 2♥ A♠ 8♥ ran ace high.

A pot of 47,000 was centered across flop 4♦ 6♥ 2♦ , with one player already all-in. Waki Yasuhiro led jam for 33,100 and was called by Sergei Korzhenko behind for the side pot.

Waki Yasuhiro K♣ 5♣

Sergei Korzhenko T♦ T♥

UTG K♦ Q♣

Runout J♦ 3♥ offered Yasuhiro a second life, giving him a straight to sweep the table.

Matthias Frost pushed for his last 14,500 on the cutoff and was snap called by Jess Dalipe right on the big blind.

Drawing slim, Frost headed out shortly after 2♥ T♣ 8♥ 6♣ 3♥ failed to save him from his demise.

Jia Jason Tan opened 2,500 utg, and went on to jam his entire 25,400 against Rene Mar David's big blind raise. David called off, and easily scooped it all after board T♠ J♥ 2♥ 6♥ K♦ left him with a slam dunk win.

Hogyun Kang defended his big blind vs David Lennard Ang's 2,500 cutoff open, and went on to check raise 7,500 on flop Q♥ T♦ T♠ . Ang completed, revealing turn 9♦ . Both checked it through to river 2♠ , where Kang opted to check fold after Ang pulled a final 8,000.

Kim Enriquez open shoved 22,100 from the small blind and saw Yashiro Naoki behind make the call.

Naoki in search of an ace, found none on board 5♥ 6♣ 9♦ T♠ 2♠ , costing him another chunk off his stack.

Facing an open and a call, Ilia Timofeev squeezed to 12,000 on the big blind, and called off for his remaining 26,700 after Yashiro Naoki moved all-in.

In for a flip, Timofeev scooped the double up just as board 2♣ K♦ 3♣ 8♥ 8♦ missed to pair his opponent's overcards.

A three way all-in ensued with Peter Da covering both Terje Braberg (22,900) and Terry Gonzaga (10,900).

Board 7♣ 8♦ 9♥ 2♣ K♦ held through for Gonzaga's pocket pair, shipping him a full triple up. Braberg shipped the side pot and covered his losses.

With 22,000 in the middle across board Q♣ 5♥ 8♥ 7♠ , Ramon Pablo made an attempt for it with an all-in from the big blind. Toshiki Sugio called off behind, for his remaining 15,500 and found himself in a good spot to double up.

Ramon Pablo 9♣ 7♣

Toshiki Sugio K♦ Q♥

River 7♥ however, went Pablo's way, landing him trip sevens to crush Sugio's top pair entirely.

With a pot of 19,000 in the middle across board 6♣ 8♦ 4♣ 2♥ , three way action was caught on player utg with a bet of 11,000. Roxanne Victorino called behind, followed by an all-in for 51,000 from Jongho Lee. Victorino took the spot with top pair flush draw 9♣ 8♣ and was up against Lee's turned straight 5♣ 3♣ . River T♣ rolled a third club, turning the tables in Victorino's favor.

Edgar Asehan defended his hijack open and called a 5,200 three bet from Richard Garcia on the big blind. On board 9♠ J♦ J♥ 8♥ , Garcia double barreled - 5,600 and 10,500, and was met with a jam for 18,300 on the turn. Garcia called off with Q♥ Q♣ , crushed against Asehan's trip jacks J♠ 6♠ . River 6♥ further improved Asehan to a boat, leaving Garcia down short.

Following an open, a call, a three bet and another call, Feridoun Farboud threw in a cold four bet from the big blind to 30,000. Everyone else folded, shipping Farboud all the dead money in the middle.

Jester Intia opened 2,300 on the cutoff, joined by both players on the blinds onto flop 8♥ J♦ A♥ . Intia continued for 3,500, check called by Lenart Ecarma. Both turn A♦ and river 3♣ was checked to showdown, revealing Intia's Q♠ 8♠ , good against Ecarma's busted flush draw 7♥ 4♥ .

A pot of 39,600 was seen in the middle, with Waki Yasuhiro already all-in. On board 5♥ T♠ 5♣ Q♠ , Junghyun An double barreled - 5,000 and 15,000 with Ricardo Torres check calling both streets for a side pot. River 3♥ was checked to showdown, leaving An's two pair good for the pot.

With a pot of 9,500 in the middle across flop 4♣ 2♥ 9♥ , four way action saw initial raiser Jess Dalipe continue for 4,000. Tamon Nakamura called behind, along with Vince Nachor on the big blind. All three checked turn 8♦ through to river 9♣ , where Nachor led 8,000. Both folded, earning Nachor the boost.

Ricardo Torres opened on the hijack, and went on to fourbet jam his entire 23,800 against Waki Yasuhiro's raise behind. Yasuhiro called off, and was in for a flip for nearly half his stack.

Board 9♣ Q♠ 7♣ K♦ T♠ held for Torres' pocket pair, keeping him in the Kickoff games.

A four way raised pot led by Woobeen Lee saw the aggressor continue for 3,500 on flop J♦ 7♣ 5♥ . Jongho Lee check called on the small blind, and arrived at showdown after no more bets went in on either turn K♣ or river 7♦ .

Jongho showed T♠ 5♥ , no good against Woobeen's pocket pair T♥ T♣ .

Rene Mar David defended his button open and called a 7,000 three bet from Toshiki Sugio on the small blind. On flop 9♠ 7♦ 9♦ , Sugio continued for 6,000, enough to get David out of the way.

A blind vs blind battle saw Lloyd Locsin open for 2,400. Woobeen Lee called behind, and proceeded to call a 1,200 continuation bet on flop Q♥ 6♥ T♥ . On turn T♦ , Locsin check called 2,500 from Lee, yet was unable to get to showdown after Lee went for a final 6,000 on river T♣ .

A four way raised pot read a flop of 8♥ A♣ J♣ . Action was checked to Woobeen Lee, pushing him to bet 4,000. Roxanne Victorino called behind, yet folded after Lee pulled another 7,500 on turn 4♦ .

Ki Burm Lee defended his big blind vs Kunwoo Kim's 1,700 open, and went on to check call two streets - 1,500 and 4,500, on board T♥ 5♣ J♠ K♣ . On river T♣ , Lee this time led 6,500, and called 15,000 more following a raise, only to muck as Kim revealed a full house K♠ T♠ .

Matthias Frost opened utg+1 and called off Dmitrii Belikov's jam for 15,000.

In for a flip, board 2♥ 3♥ 5♦ 5♥ K♠ ran in favor of the overcards, eliminating Belikov from the qualifier.

Dmitrii Belikov defended his big blind against Justin Ong's 2,000 hijack open, and check called another 1,300 on flop 2♠ 6♣ 9♥ . Both checked turn J♥ through to river 6♥ , where Belikov led 5,200. Ong found the call with two pair A♦ 2♦ , good against his opponent's 7♣ 3♣ .

With 10,500 in the middle across board A♦ K♣ T♠ 2♣ , Justin Ong fired 8,000 on the button, and was faced with a check raise for 10,000 more from Yoshiki Nakamura. Ong tossed his hand in the muck, giving up the pot.

Martin Gonzales opened 1,300 utg, joined by both players on the blinds onto flop A♥ 9♦ 4♣ . Action checked round to turn 8♦ , where Woobeen Lee on the small blind led 1,500. Big blind called behind, followed by a raise to 4,500 from Gonzales. Only Lee continued to river 3♥ , yet gave it up as Gonzales pulled the triger.

A back and forth between Jester Intia and Tony Khoang saw the latter five bet jam his 13,300 stack in preflop, called by his opponent.

Khoang a huge favorite, bagged the win with a straight as board 5♥ Q♣ 8♣ T♥ 9♣ landed on the felt.

A three way raised pot saw action on flop Q♦ 6♠ 3♠ check to Justin Ong on the button, who bet 2,200. Jess Dalipe check called from the big blind, and went on to lead 5,000 on turn A♣ . Ong quickly surrendered, giving Dalipe the win.

A four way raised pot dealt a flop of 8♥ 3♣ K♣ . Initial raiser Yuya Asakawa bet 1,500, called behind by Ki Burm Lee. On turn 3♥ , Asakawa barreled another 6,000, and followed with 13,000 on river 2♣ . Lee pushed all-in by the final bet, and collected the pot just as Asakawa threw in the fold.

Bonghyun Lee opened 1,000 utg, joined by both players on the blinds onto flop A♦ K♣ J♥ . Lee continued for 1,400, and saw both stick around to turn T♠ . All three checked it through to river 9♠ , where Joseph Magnotti led 2,000. Lee paid the price, only to muck as Magnotti revealed straight Q♠ J♣ .

Roxanne Victorino defended her big blind vs Jegal Gun's 1,200 cutoff open, and went on to check raise 5,000 on flop 4♥ K♦ 4♠ . Gun continued to turn K♥ , where both checked through to river J♥ . Gun bet all-in for his last 14,500, snap called by Victorino with a boat K♠ Q♦ . Gun's J♦ J♣ bound for the muck just as he stepped out of the floor.

Following two limps, Yoshiki Nakamura sent out a 2,400 raise on the button, and saw Justin Ong continue to flop 7♥ 4♠ 2♦ . Action checked round to turn 9♦ , where Ong led 3,000. Nakamura gave it up and moved on to the next deal.

Lenart Ecarma opened 1,000 utg, called behind by Kim Enriquez along with Reynaldo Ong on the big blind. Ecarma continued for 1,800 on flop 3♦ 6♠ 5♥ and saw both stick around to turn Q♣ . Action this time, was checked to Enriquez, who bet 3,600. Both made the call, dealing river T♣ . All three checked to showdown, revealing Ecarma's Q♦ J♥ , good for the pot.

Yoshiki Nakamura sent out a 2,100 three bet on the cutoff against Dmitrii Belikov's open, and saw the latter complete. On flop 3♥ 5♠ Q♥ , Belikov check called another 1,400, and arrived at showdown shortly after turn 2♠ and river 5♣ were checked through. Nakamura tabled 4♠ 4♣ and shipped the pot.

Anju Abrol defended his big blind against Yoshiki Nakamura's 1,500 button open, and check called another 2,000 on flop 8♠ K♠ 3♥ . Turn Q♣ and river 7♣ welcomed no more bets, revealing Nakamura's Q♥ T♣ for the win.

With 16,700 already in the pot across board 2♠ 9♣ T♣ 7♠ , Younghwan Sung on the button, made an attempt for it with an all-in. Jongho Lee tank called for his remaining 12,800 with top pair Q♥ T♥ , and found himself in great shape for a double up against Sung's A♠ Q♦ . River 5♣ sealed the win for Lee, earning him the full double up.