Kickoff (16,500 PHP)

After two days, 34 levels and beating a field of 338 players, Romania's Ionut Dragomir emerged on top of this PHP 4,760,527 ($83,049) prize pool tournament, taking home PHP 843,527 ($14,705) and an APPT Manila Main Event Package worth PHP 125,000.

"I'm really happy to win my first trophy and I'm really excited to play here in Manila, it's my first time in Asia. I just came here 2 months ago and I had a feeling that I can take a trophy home to my family in Romania. I started very bad in the other events but this one was one shot, one opportunity and I hit it."

When asked about his take on the scene here in Manila he said:

"My first impression when I started playing two months ago I felt that the field is like soft-ish, I felt comfortable but later on I said "okay" maybe it's soft during the first stages coz then in the later stages I saw how they're playing and they are pretty strong and very tight even if it's a small pot which I don't see in Europe very often. So this is the biggest adjustment for me because I see them play tighter than usual."

Making the very even final table as 5th in chips with the bigger stacks to his left, he had his work cut out for him.

"I stuck to my normal play. I waited for the other players to move and read how they are playing at the final table. I have to admit that I had a good run earlier that got me to second in the chips or maybe chip leader and you know I feel it's a good shot to win a trophy."

On his way to the heads up he busted Masakazu Miyamoto in 8th with A♦ K♥ against A♠ 3♦ and Lemmor Patulot in 4th with T♣ 6♣ against K♣ J♦ before entering the heads up as a slight underdog.

The 27th hand heads up took a decisive turn just 10 hands before the end when he switched to top position after winning a pre-flop all-in against John Costiniano with A♦ 7♦ against K♣ 9♣ then finished him off with a similar A♣ 8♦ against K♦ Q♣ to hoist the trophy.

When asked if he felt any danger in the heads-up he said:

"No, Poker is one flip away from a bust or a double up and I was lucky enough to win at the right moment, even when I was behind."

That concludes the live coverage for today. Well done everyone and the live updates will be back when the Main Event begins on the 20th of March.

Manila Megastack 22 Kick-off

Dates: March 14-16, 2025

Buy-in: PHP 16,500 ($ 288)

Guarantee: PHP 3,000,000 ($ 52,336)

Entries: 338

Prize Pool: PHP 4,760,527 ($ 83,049)

ITM: 51

Digging for six outs, John Costiniano watches the dealer flip over 7♦ 5♣ 4♦ T♥ 7♥ before getting up and congratulating his opponent.

Hand #83: John Costiniano limps, we see the flop T♥ 2♠ 2♦ that gets checked to the river 9♦ and Q♥ where John's 300,000 bet gets the job done.

Hand #84: John walks.

Hand #81: John Costiniano limps and we see the flop 5♦ 3♥ A♠ where Ionut Dragomir check-folds to a 300,000 bet.

Hand #82: Ionut limps, the flop comes A♦ 6♠ 8♠ and John check-calls a 450,000 bet to see the turn 2♥ . John check-calls again, this time for 1,000,000 and the board completes 3♦ . Two checks have Ionut flip over the winner T♥ 8♥ against Johns 8♣ 4♠

Hand #79: John Costiniano limp-folds to a jam.

Hand #80: Ionut Dragomir limp-folds to a 750,000 raise.

Hand #76: Ionut Dragomir limps and we see the flop 8♣ T♦ K♥ where a 225,000 bet from Ionut ends the hand.

Hand #77: John limps and takes it down with a 250,000 bet on the flop K♠ Q♥ 7♦ .

Hand #78: Another limp from Ionut treats us with the flop T♣ K♠ A♠ where Ionuts's 275,000 lead gets called, the turn falls 3♦ and gets checked to the river 4♥ . John forks out a 750,000 bet to scoop the pot.

Hand #70: John Costiniano walks.

Hand #71: John limps and we see the flop A♥ T♠ 7♣ where John leads 200,000, Ionut calls, the turn comes 7♠ and gets checked to the river J♥ with Ionut leading 500,000 to scoop the pot.

Hand #67: John Costiniano opens 400,000 and Ionut Dragomir defends to lay eyes on the flop 7♣ 2♥ 5♥ that gets taken down by a 350,000 c-bet from John.

Hand #68: Ionut raises to 400,000 and folds when faced with a 1,000,000 three-bet.

Hand # 69: Another 400,000 open from John takes Ionut to the flop 6♠ 9♠ 7♠ that gets checked to the turn T♦ where Ionut leads 300,000 and gets called. The river 2♣ has both player check, with John coming out on top.

Hand #66: Ionut Dragomir raises to 330,000, John Costiniano pumps it to 1,000,000 and Ionut calls to see the flop A♦ 8♥ A♣ where a 320,000 continuation gets called to reveal the turn 6♥ . John slows down to a check, Ionut bets 650,000 after using a time bank and the board completes 4♣ . John checks again with trips A♠ 2♣ , but Ionut doesn't bit and checks back before throwing it in the muck.

Hand #64: Ionut Dragomir limps and John Costiniano opts to check for the flop 7♣ 4♠ 7♠ that gets checked to the turn Q♦ where a 360,000 lead from Ionut takes it down.

Hand #65: John limps, Ionut checks to see the flop 6♣ Q♦ Q♠ and John scoops after laying out 210,000.

Hand #62: Ionut Dragomir opens 330,000 and John Costiniano defends for the flop K♣ 5♠ 9♥ where a 250,000 c-bet and a call is all the action we get until the river 4♠ and 3♥ with John turning over the winner 6♠ 5♦ .

Hand #59: John Costiniano opens 330,000 and Ionut Dragomir defends to look at 3♠ 9♦ 7♦ where a 350,000 c-bet takes it down for John.

Hand #60: John walks.

Hand #61: John limps, Ionut ups it to 525,000 and a call reveals the flop J♦ 4♦ 8♣ where a 600,000 c-bet from Ionut gets the job done.

Everything is looking peachy for his rockets on J♣ 3♦ 7♦ 8♦ before turning pear shaped once again when the river hits K♣ for a massive upset, sending another local 6-digit live earner to the rail.

Hand #56: Ionut Dragomir walks.

Hand #57: Elmer Kalaquian jams from button and collects the blinds.

Hand #55: Under the gun Ionut Dragomir opens 330,000, small blind Lemmor Patulot shoves 910,000 with K♣ J♦ and Dragomir becomes a customer due to the numbers and not some love affair with T♣ 6♣ . Those numbers prove correct, when the board runs 4♣ T♠ 3♥ A♣ 8♣ , knocking out local grinder Lemmor Patulot in the process.

Hand #52: John Costiniano takes the blinds with 320,000 raise from under the gun.

Hand #53: Costiniano gets small blind Ionut Dragomir off of a 475,000 open with a jam.

Hand #54: Dragomir collects the blinds with raise to 330,000 from the button.

Hand #50: Elmer Kalaquian scoops with 250,000 raise from under the gun.

Hand #51: John Costiniano collects blinds with 250,000 from the button.

Hand #49: Looking down at 5♥ 6♥ in the cutoff, Keijiro Shimojo opts to spin and jams 1,135,000, but Elmer Kalaquian wakes up with A♥ Q♦ on the button and calls. A monster flop 5♦ 9♥ J♥ for Shimojo fizzles out with T♦ and K♣ , giving his opponent a straight and grinding his dream of a second Kickoff win to a halt, adding a 16th final table to his tally since November that includes five victories.

Hand #48: Under the gun John Costiniano makes it 240,000 and takes big blind Ionut Dragomir to the flop J♠ 7♦ 5♣ where a 165,000 c-bet gets peeled to the turn Q♦ . Costiniano fires a second barrel of 450,000, but surrenders the pot against a 1,725,000 jam from Dragomir, losing two time banks in the process.

No help on the river A♠ and Jannodin Riga packs up his belongings.

Hand #40: John Costiniano raises to 265,000 from the button and Keijiro Shimojo defends big to see the flop 8♠ 3♥ 2♠ where he check-folds to Costiniano's 260,000 c-bet.

Hand #41: Elmer Kalaquian walks.

Hand #39: Under the gun Keijiro Shimojo limps and Lemmor Patulot opts to check his big blind to lay eyes on the flop 3♦ 5♥ 4♠ , Shimojo's 120,000 bet gets check-called and the turn falls 6♠ . Patulot takes over the reins with a 345,000 jam that takes down the pot.

Hand #37: Keijiro Shimojo picks up the blinds with a 250,000 open from the cutoff.

Hand #38: Shimojo opens 250,000 from the hijack and takes big blind John Costiniano to the flop A♦ K♣ 2♥ that gets checked to the turn 5♦ where a delayed c-bet of 225,000 gets the job done for Shimojo.

Hand #36: With under the gun Dragomir, button Shimojo and small blind Kalaquian all limping into Riga being all-in from posting the big blind we see a friendly check to the river Q♥ 2♠ A♠ K♣ 5♣ that has Jannodin Riga survive with A♦ J♦ and Shimojo picks up the side pot with K♦ 7♠ .

Hand #29: Elmer Kalaquian three-bets his big blind to 600,000 to pick up John Costiniano's 200,000 open from thr cutoff.

Hand #30: Kalaquian picks up the big blind with a 475,000 raise in the small blind.

Hand #31: Keijiro Shimojo ups it to 200,000 from the cutoff, big blind Ionut Dragomir defends, the flop 7♦ Q♦ 2♠ gets checked around to the turn A♠ and Shimojo slides out a delayed c-bet of 200,000. A check-call from Dragomir completes the board T♥ with both players checking once more and Shimojo picks up the pot with nine-high 9♥ 8♥ against 9♠ 4♠ .

Hand #27: Elmer Kalaquian picks up the blinds with a 600,000 open from the hijack.

Hand #28: Under the gun Elmer Kalaquian makes it 200,000 and Keijiro Shimojo defends big blind to see the flop Q♥ 4♦ 3♦ . A double barrel of 100,000 and 250,000 to the river 5♥ 2♦ get check-called by Shimojo where two checks have Kalaquian come out on top with A♣ T♦ agains Shimojo's Q♣ 2♠ .

Hand #25: Ionut Dragomir jams his big blind to pick up Lemmor Patulot's 225,000 open from the hijack.

Hand #26: With the action folded to Ionut Dragomir in the small blind he limps and John Costiniano opts for a check to the flop 5♣ K♦ Q♦ where Dragomir leads 125,000, gets called to the turn 8♠ and sees his second barrel of 250,000 called again. The river J♠ has Dragomir check-fold to Costiniano's 650,000 bet.

Hand #22: Ionut Dragomir scoops with a 220,000 raise from the hijack.

Hand #23: Elmer Kalaquian walks.

Hand #24: Ionut Dragomir scoops again with a 210,000 open from under the gun.

Hand #17: Lemmor Patulet picks up the blinds with a 180,000 raise from the button.

Hand #18: Big blind Jannodin Riga jams 510,000 into Keijiro Shimojo's 160,000 open from the button and scoops.

Hand #19: Ionut Dragomir walks.

Hand #20-21: Keijiro Shimojo takes the blinds with small openings from the hijack and under the gun.

Hand #15: Under the gun Keijiro Shimojo opens 160,000, but lays it down when faced with a 425,000 re-raise from Ionut Dragomir in the cutoff.

Hand #16: John Costiniano makes it 160,000 from the button and big blind Keijiro Shimojo defends to see the flop 7♣ 9♥ 6♥ that gets checked to the turn 7♥ where Shimojo leads 100,000, Costiniano calls and the board completes J♦ . Two more checks reveal Costiniano as the winner with king-high K♣ T♦ against Q♦ 2♦ .

Chong is looking good until the turn A♠ 8♣ 8♥ Q♠ but the river J♥ ends his run, probably having higher hopes when he punched his final table ticket.

Hand #11: The action folds to Elmer Kalaquian who limps his small blind and Jannodin Riga opts to check for the flop 8♠ A♣ 8♥ that gets checked to the turn 9♥ where Kalaquian's 80,000 lead takes it down.

Hand #7: Lemmor Patulot jams 695,000 from under the gun to scoop.

Hand #8-9: Ionut Dragomir's min-raises from the cutoff and hijack pick up the blinds.

Hand #10: John Costiniano min-opens the cutoff to take the blinds as well.

Hand #3: Elmer Kalaquian three-bet jams the big blind against Zi Heng Chongs 120,000 open from +2, winning the pot and loosing a time bank.

Hand #4: Masakazu Miyamoto jams 540,000 from the button with no takers.

Hand #5: Big blind Ionut Dragomir jams 1,030,000 into Keijiro Shimojo's 135,000 open from the hijack to scoop, losing a time bank in the process.

Hand #2: Lojack Ichiro Uesugi looks at 9♠ 9♣ and declares all-in for 350,000, but runs into small blind Keijiro Shimojo's K♣ K♦ and needs an excavator to dig himself out of this hole. Some hope on the turn 3♣ 6♥ 8♥ 7♦ , adding eight more outs, but the river 3♦ sends him packing, extending Shimojo's gap to the field even more.

Hand #1: Lemmor Patulot opens his small blind to 140,000 and Keijiro Shimojo defends to see the flop 6♥ 2♦ K♦ where a 105,000 c-bet finds a float to reveal the turn J♦ . Patulot fires a second barrel of 250,000 and Shimojo min-raises to 500,000 that sends his opponent in the tank for two time banks before laying it down.

With Keijiro Shimojo in a commanding lead, trying to win his second Manila Megastack Kickoff Event in just a few months and Ichiro Uesugi as the shortest stack the rest of the contenders are on equal footing.

Things are looking rather peachy for the Korean when the dealer flips over 9♥ Q♠ 4♥ Q♦ before going pear shaped on the river 9♦ that sends him home as the final table bubble.

Ionut Dragomir limps his small blind, big blind Lemmor Patulot pumps it to 120,000 and a call takes us to the flop 6♥ T♦ A♥ where Patulot's 80,000 c-bet gets called. The turn J♦ is rejected to complete the board J♠ with two more checks and Dragomir comes out on top with A♠ 4♥ .

Button Jannodin Riga asks for 105,000 and big blind Ionut Dragomir pays up to see the flop K♥ 6♥ 6♠ that gets checked to the turn A♦ where Dragomir tests the waters with a 60,000 lead, but lets it go after Riga raised to 150,000.

When the action folds to Keijiro Shimojo on the button, 125,000 go into the middle, big blind Lemmor Patulot ups it to 340,000 and Shimojo four-bets to 800,000. Spending some time deliberating, Patulot decides to fold, handing the dealer a time bank in the process.

No ace on 9♠ 6♥ 2♣ 2♥ Q♠ sends the No.50 on the PH all time money list packing, adding the 20th cash to his tally this year alone.

Looking at T♦ 9♦ in the hijack, Lester Timonera declares all-in for 225,000 and cutoff Keijiro Shimojo successfully isolates with A♠ K♠ . The dealer keeps it interesting until the end with J♥ A♦ 8♥ J♦ 2♠ , but ultimately hands the pot to Shimojo.

Patulot's ladies hold after A♥ J♣ T♣ K♥ 6♣ hit the felt, taking him back to over 2M.

Ionut Dragomir open-limps his small blind and Michael Calunsod opts to check for the flop T♥ 9♥ J♥ where Dragomir's 35,000 gets peeled, the turn comes T♣ and another 55,000 gets answered for the board to complete 3♥ . Both players check, having Dragomir table the winner Q♥ 9♦ .

Hijack Keijiro Shimojo opens 60,000 and takes big blind Lemmor Patulot to the flop 6♥ A♠ Q♥ where a small 30,000 c-bet gets called to the turn 5♣ . Shimojo's 75,000 second barrel gets check-raised to 220,000 and another call completes the board 4♠ with Patulot leading 400,000 holding two pair A♣ 6♦ who then calls Shimojo's 555,000 jam and surrenders the pot against his opponents 7♥ 8♥ nut straight, catapulting the Japanese back into the lead of the tournament.

The board 7♠ 5♠ J♥ J♠ 9♣ changes nothing and the No.30 knocks out the No.4 on the Philippine's all time money list.

The river A♣ is none of them and this massive pot goes to the chip leader who is the first to break 2M.

The turn 7♥ and river 5♣ keep the Flight B winner ahead, taking him to over 1M in chips.

The river 2♦ has none of Anacleto's five outs and he starts packing up his belongings.

Ichiro Uesugi starts off with a 40,000 open from the hijack and calls small blind Jannodin Riga's 110,000 three-bet to see the flop 6♥ A♥ 2♥ where an 80,000 c-bet gets the job done for Riga.

Under the gun Anthony Alway opens 40,000 and takes Keijiro Shimojo to the flop J♦ 2♣ 4♥ where a 30,000 c-bet gets called, the turn falls 7♠ and Alway switches to a check-call for 50,000. The board completes Q♠ and two checks reveal Alway as the winner with A♦ A♥ against Shimojo's 8♣ 8♦ .

Out of our view Joseroy Jeremias was able to wrestle his way back up to 180,000 after being left with 1,000 a few hands ago. Chip and a chair baby!