Kickoff (16,500 PHP)

Sergei Korzhenko kicks off the action with a raise to 2,000 from the cutoff and big blind Woody Jeremias defends to see the flop 7♥ K♥ A♣ where a 1,500 c-bet gets called for the turn 9♥ to be revealed. Korzhenko's 5,500 second barrel gets called again, the board completes 5♣ and two checks has Jeremias table the winner A♥ 2♣ .

Over the past couple of months, Russian online player Sergei Korzhenko has been frequenting the Philippine tournament circuit, winning multiple events since the start of the year. SMP caught up with him to get a bit of insight on why he’s chosen Manila as his latest poker battleground.

“In the last two months of 2024, I played in Vietnam but I decided to come to the Philippines and see what it was like here. I started in January, it was my first time, and I already liked the poker here and the atmosphere. That’s why I stayed and played more tournaments here.”

How do you feel about the competition in Manila?

“It is very good, and there are so many good players here. I like it a lot. My biggest win came here in Manila at APL Manila Kickoff, and I’m really happy about that.”

While his recent live results have been impressive, Korzhenko has a strong background in online poker. He’s been grinding the virtual felt for over 10 years, playing on some of the biggest platforms in the world.

“I play online, and I play on most of the platforms, especially GG Poker and PokerStars. I started playing online 10 years ago.”