Action is heating up at PokerStars LIVE, Okada Manila with both qualifiers for its opening highlight, Kickoff, wrapped up. The final heat drew in a slightly bigger field of 159 entries, bumping up the final count to 283. Well over the expected turnout, PHP 3,019,610 (~USD 51,690) in total prizes are on the table, all to be awarded across tomorrow's Day 2 battle.
Twenty four more survivors joined the list across the later flight, with Canada's Christian Lortie topping the charts with a massive 540,000 (90 BB) stack. Lortie's rise to the lead came at the cost of Mike Takayama by the final hour after the latter hero called with pocket jacks against Lortie's two pair. Lortie’s late surge pushed him past Flight A chip leader James Moriles, who finished with 437,000 (73 BB), to take the overall lead. Trailing behind are seasoned locals David Erquiaga 456,000 (76 BB), and Richard Marquez 316,000 (53 BB), to round up the top three spots.
Other players to keep an eye on include Martin Gonzales 186,000 (31 BB), Renniel Galvez 176,000 (29 BB), Ashley Patterson 166,000 (28 BB), and Joseph Sia 161,000 (27 BB).
Action resumes at 12 noon this Sunday, February 2nd, with blinds set at Level 17: 3,000/ 6,000 ante 6,000. Stay tuned for more updates as SMP brings you all the latest directly off the floor!
Kickoff
Date/s: February 1-2, 2025
Buy-in: PHP 12,500 (~USD 215)
Guarantee: PHP 2,000,000 (~USD 34,235)
Entries: 283
Prize pool: PHP 3,019,610 (~USD 51,690)
ITM: 43 places
Flight A: 124 entries, 19 qualified
Flight B: 159 entries, 24 qualified
Day 2/ Final: Sunday, February 2