Main Event (18,500 PHP)

Ushering in the weekend, 311 entries descended upon Pokerstars Live here at Okada Manila for (Event #30B) Day 1B of the Manila Super Series 22 Main Event as 47 runners advanced to Day 2 of this PhP10,000,000 (~US$178,210) GTD centerpiece.

Day 2 is on Sunday (June 15th) at 12:00NN (UCT+8).

Like Day 1A, the chip lead moved quickly as at one point India’s Siddarth Mishra had over 200,000 in chips in the early goings but was slowly whittled down by the intense competition to advance to ITM and a shot at the bigger prizes in Day 2.

The short stacks started dropping out of the picture one by one and the bubble saw Japan’s Daiki Goto going all-in and called by Craig Gray of the United States who had a shorter stack. Goto’s J♥ J♠ held against the American’s 7♦ 7♣ on a runout that went 5♠ 4♦ T♦ A♠ 8♠ . The elimination of Gray at the hands of Goto ensured that all those remaining trudge join the 34 qualifiers from 224 entries in yesterday’s Day 1A.

Korea’s Hong Soojing went on an elimination spree as he knocked out three consecutive players en route to the Day 1B chip lead of 649,000. His stack was followed by three Filipinos bunched together as Reiner Magbutay (478,000), Hernan Villa (426,000) and Rodrigo Sequite, Jr. (413,000) occupy second to fourth. Goto placed fifth with 375,000.

Day 1A chip leader Germ de Haas of the Netherlands still holds the overall chip lead of 715,000.

Day 1C commences tomorrow (June 14) still at 12:00NN while the Turbo Day 1D (initially using 20-minute levels) takes flight later at 5:00PM. The buy-ins are still PhP18,500 (~US$330) with unlimited re-entries and with registration remaining open until the end of the tenth level.

The action gets folded to the blinds where Daiki Goto of Japan shoves from the SB against American Craig Gray in the BB who opts to make the call for his last 145,000.

Goto shows J♠ J♥ and is way ahead of Gray’s 7♣ 7♦ .

The runout goes 5♠ 4♦ T♦ A♠ 8♠ as the Jacks hold and Gray is issued his walking papers as the last elimination in Day 1B.

There 47 players remaining and all will advance to Day 2 of the Main Event.

Singapore’s Jason Wei opens from UTG for 16,000 and faces a 3-bet shove from Akhil Narain Bahadur on the D for all of his 61,000. It folds back to Wei who makes the call.

Bahadur tables K♣ Q♦ while Swei has a very slight lead with 3♣ 3♠ .

The runout goes J♣ A♠ 7♠ A♥ 5♦ as Wei avoided all the complications in playing a small pocket pair and successfully ousts the Indian at the twilight of Day 1B.

Wei’s stack is now also among the big stacks.

The action folds to the HJ where chip leader Hong Soojing of Korea raises it up to 16,000. On the D, Japan’s Shinya Arigai 3-bets it to 50,000 but then it folds to Hong who unloads 141,000 on the 4-bet.

Arigai folds and the stack wielding is now in full swing for the Korean.

Filipino Hernan Villa once again has an opportunity to wield the hatchet as he tables A♠ K♥ against the preflop shove of France’s Maxime Delabre who holds 8♦ 8♥ and is at risk for his last 91,000.

The flop once again favors the Filipino: 3♣ K♣ A♥ while the rest of the runout goes 3♦ 2♠ as Delabre becomes the statistic in the Villa ousting spree.

From UTG, the Philippines’ Hernan Villa opens for 13,000 and right beside him in the +1 position, Russia’s John Daenzel David 3-bet shoves his remaining stack of 60,000. It folds back to Villa who calls.

David turns over A♠ Q♠ while the Filipino is live with K♦ J♠ .

Villa takes the lead on the flop: 7♣ J♥ 3♥ and there was no bounce back for David as the last two community cards are the 6♦ and the 6♥ .

Villa is now hanging with the big stacks as Day 1A is down to four eliminations before ending.

The action gets folded to the CO where Rodrigo Sequite, Jr. of the Philippines raises it to 16,000. It folds to the BB where India’s Siddarth Mishra defends.

The flop comes 6♣ A♥ K♥ as Mishra checks. Sequite continues for 15,000 and gets called. The turn is the 4♠ and again Mishra checks. The Filipino now makes it 30,000 to go as Mishra still calls. The river is the T♣ and the Indian checks for a third time. Sequite bets 40,000 and gets called again.

Sequite turns over A♦ K♠ for top two pairs on the flop. Mishra mucks as his stack continues to slowly evaporate.

Former chip leader Siddarth Mishra of India is all-in preflop, covering Korea’s Lee Seongmin who is at risk for his last 124,000.

Mishra shows A♠ K♠ while Kee has J♣ J♦ .

The flop gives the Korean an almost insurmountable advantage: J♠ 4♦ 9♥ and Mishra is drawing dead on the turn when the Q♥ arrives. The A♣ on the river just added insult to injury as Mishra’s stack has now gone down to below the 200k mark for the first time since the early levels.

Hernan Villa of the Philippines opens from UTG for 12,000 and is met with a 3-bet shove from India’s Abhijeet Shetty for his last 82,000. It folds back to Villa who calls.

Shetty flips over T♣ T♠ and his hand is the favorite against the Filipino’s 7♥ 7♦ .

The first four community cards are 4♥ 6♣ K♠ 4♠ but then the 7♣ makes an appearance on the river to give Villa a set and boot out Shetty from further contention in Day 1B.

From nthe +2 position, the Philippines’ Renier Magbutay opens for 16,000 and it folds to the BB where Kim Sangbun of Korea decides on a defense.

The flop comes 6♣ K♠ A♠ as Kim checks. Magbutay CBets for 7,000 and gets called. The turn is the J♥ and once again the Korean checks. Magbutay now makes it 30,000 to go and still can’t shake Kim who sticks around. The river is the Q♥ and this time, Kim bets 70,000. But then the Filipino raises all-in making Kim go into the tank. Kim eventually elects to fold.

Magbutay shows 9♣ 8♣ for complete air.

Magbutay is now among the big stacks of Day 1B.

Daryl O’Rourke of Ireland opens from UTG for 16,000 and it gets to the CO where Akhil Narain Bahadur makes the call. Everyone else steers clear.

The flop is T♥ 6♣ 8♣ as O’Rourke unloads anew for 16,000 and gets called. The turn is the 9♣ and the Irishman is unperturbed as he fires 22,000. Bahadur still calls. The river card is the T♦ pairing the board. O’Rourke’s bet gets reduced in size as he puts 12,000 into the pot. Bahadur raises it to 37,000 and this time, O’Rourke makes the call.

Bahadur shows A♣ T♠ for trips on the river while O’Rourke tables 7♦ 7♣ for a one-card straight on the turn.

O’Rourke was able to bring his stack up to close to the quarter million mark.

From UTG, Yossef Cohen of Israel goes all-in for his last 55,000 and is greeted with an isolation shove from the CO of Thomas Fonce of France for 44,000. No one else gets involved.

Cohen turns over Q♣ J♣ while Fonce shows K♠ K♥ .

The runout goes 5♣ 6♦ 5♥ 7♦ J♦ as the Frenchman doubles up and Cohen’s stack is down to about two BBs.

Russia’s John Daenzel David raises it up from UTG for 11,000 and it fold all the way to the BB where Akhil Narain Bahadur chooses to defend.

The flop comes 8♦ 4♥ 9♦ as Bahadur checks. David continues for 5,000 and gets called. The turn is the 7♣ as the Indian checks again. David now makes it 15,000 to go but is met with a check-raise all-in for Bahadur’s remaining 78,000. The Russian makes the snap call.

Bahadur unveils 9♠ 7♦ for two pairs on the turn while David shows A♣ A♠ .

The river card does not pair the board as the T♦ makes the cracking of aces official for Bahadur as the loss derails David’s previous momentum.

From the CO, Singapore’s Jason Wei raises it to 12,000 and it gets folded to the SB where Chan Ching Nam of China goes all-in for her last 53,000. Wei makes the call.

Chan shows A♣ 9♣ while Wei has her dominated with A♠ Q♥ .

The runout goes 5♥ T♦ A♦ 4♦ 2♣ as Chan is sidelined for good as far as Day 1B is concerned.

Japan’s Rio Shinohara has it folded to him in the CO and raises it up to 8,000. Big stack Siddarth Mishra of India defends his BB.

The flop is Q♣ 3♥ 2♦ as both players check. The turn is the A♥ and again, no action happens. The river is the A♠ and this time Mishra bets 12,000 and then gets raised by Shinohara to 35,000. The Indian then goes all-in and Shinohara can’t call.

The former chip leader gets more ammunition.

From the +2 position, India’s Abhijeet Shetty raises it up to 9,000 and in folds to the SB where Maxime Delabre of France declares he is all-in for his remaining stack of 53,000. Shetty makes the quick call.

Shetty is not delighted to find out that Delabre has A♥ A♣ against his A♦ K♠ .

The runout did not change the impending outcome: 6♠ Q♥ 5♦ 3♠ 8♠ as the Frenchman doubles up and Shetty’s stacks is now in the danger zone.

Janno Alvarez of the Philippines opens from the +1 position for 8,000 and it folds to the SB where Japan’s Takayuki Aihara 3-bets it to 24,000. Alvarez makes the call.

The flop is K♥ J♦ 8♠ as Aihara moves all-in for his last 54,000. Alvarez calls.

Aihara shows A♠ Q♠ for a gutshot straight draw while Alvarez tables T♦ 9♦ for an open-ended straight draw and live cards. The turn is the T♠ which immediately shuts down Alvarez’s chances as Aihara picks up the nuts. The river is the 2♠ to officially cripple the Filipino.

The action opens from the +1 position with a raise to 10,000 and a re-raise from the HJ of India’s Akhil Narain Bahadur to 25,000. In the BB, William Rogers of England 4-bet shoves and gets no callers.

The +2 position begins the action with a raise to 9,000 and gets re-raised from the CO by Taiwan’s Chang Shao Chi to 22,000. On the D, Hirohisa Tanaka 4-bet shoves his remaining 54,000 and gets the initial raiser to fold. Chang, though, makes the quick call.

Tanaka turns over 8♠ 8♣ while Chang is way ahead with K♠ K♦ .

The runout goes T♣ T♠ 7♥ A♣ 9♥ as the Japanese player has been taken out by Chang.

The action is folded to the CO where Kunal Jain of India goes all-in for his remaining stack of 31,000. On the D, Taiwan’s Huang Ting Yen makes the call.

Jain shows A♥ Q♥ while Huang is dominated holding A♦ J♥ .

However, the flop gave the Taiwanese edge right off the bat: 5♦ J♣ 9♦ and the last two community cards failed to improve the Indian’s plight as the 8♥ 9♠ ends his run.

Leading up to the most anticipated event in the Philippines, the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) is offering players a rare shortcut. Running from July 20-22, 2025 at Okada Manila is the APPT Manila Super Qualifier which serves as a direct passage to the APPT Manila Main Event (₱58 Million Guaranteed) at just a fraction of the ₱80,000 buy-in. Players can now secure a seat for just ₱9,000!

Unlike traditional satellites, this is a milestone event where players earn an APPT Manila Main Event seat the moment they accumulate 100,000 chips. No waiting for bubbles and final table negotiations, just hit the target and the seat is in the bag. Additionally, there are many chances to get there with 30 seats guaranteed.

For those looking to stretch value even further, the Step 1 Qualifier offers an even cheaper path. With a buy-in of just ₱2,000, players can vie for one of ten guaranteed seats into the Super Qualifier. The format mirrors the milestone structure with 50,000 as the goal to win a seat.

The action gets folded to the CO who raises it to 7,000 and gets a call from Filipino Renier Magbutay on the D. Then Chong Zi Heng of Singapore declares he is all-in from the SB for his last 43,500. The original folds and Magbutay makes the call.

Chong tables Q♦ 7♦ while Magbutay is dominated holding T♣ 7♣ .

The runout goes Q♠ 6♠ 3♠ 5♠ 9♦ as the board narrowly chops the pot and Chong gets the double up he seeks.

The gets folded to the CO where Guam’s Joshua Chargualaf raises it up to 6,000. It folds to the SB where Renier Magbutay of the Philippines makes the call.

The flop comes 4♦ Q♦ 4♠ as Magbutay checks. Chargualaf CBets for 4,000 and gets called. The turn is the Q♣ double pairing the board. Both check. The river is the 6♥ as the Filipino bets 43,000. Chargualaf tanks awhile then folds face up showing A♦ 4♣ for what would have been a full house. Magbutay also decides to show his hole cards of 7♣ 7♥ . Chargualaf folded the winning hand as he could not pull the trigger on Magbutay’s big river bet.

The action begins from the +1 position as it gets raised to 6,500. In the +2 position, Tadhg Conway of Ireland 3-bets all-in for his last 43,000 and is called in the SB by the Philippines’ Philip Andrew Cobol. The initial raiser flees.

Conway turns over J♦ J♣ and is disgruntled to see that his foe tables Q♦ Q♥ .

The runout goes 7♣ 5♣ 3♠ 8♣ (a sweat card for a backdoor flush) and the 5♥ gives the pot to the Filipino and Conway has been eliminated.

With the pot already at 19,000 preflop, Edwin de la Cruz of the Philippines barely covers his Japanese opponent Taisuke Nina as the cards are revealed: de la Cruz shows T♥ T♠ while Niina has A♥ K♥ .

The flop immediately gave the lead to Niina: A♣ 9♥ 6♦ and the last two community cards provided no miracle comeback for the Filipino as the 5♣ and the 7♦ completed the runout in favor of Nina who doubles up.

De la Cruz’s stack plummets down even further after the debacle.

The Philippines’ Lemmor Patulot raises it up from the HJ to 6,000 and in the CO Paul Wilson of the United States 3-bets it to 20,000. It folds back to Patulot who calls.

The flop goes 9♦ A♥ T♦ as Patulot checks. Wilson continues firing, this time for 40,000. Patulot calls. The turn is the 9♠ as the Filipino checks again. Now, Wilson goes for it all by shoving his remining stack all-in. He covers Patulot who tanks and decides it’s time to shine.

Wilson unfurls A♦ K♦ for top pair-top kicker on the flop. Patulot shows A♠ J♠ and is outkicked.

The river, however, is the J♦ and initially it was thought that Patulot rivered Wilson for two pairs, but it also gave the American the nut flush, hence, Patulot is now permanently out of the running for Day 1B.

In one of the sickest hands thus far, the pot is already at 36,000 with a flop of K♣ T♠ Q♠ Akiyoshi Kono of Japan declares he is all-in for his last 34,000 and gets an all-in response as well from India’s Jayantilal Mangilal Jain for his remaining 32,500.

Kono tables Q♥ Q♦ for middle set while Jain shows T♦ T♣ for bottom set. The turn is the A♠ to give the Indian player hope of either hitting a straight or chopping with one when the improbable happens: the river card is the T♥ to give Jain quads and defeat Kono’s full house.

Kono’s stack is all but obliterated and the sick beat puts Jain past the century mark.

The Philippines’ Junj Irineo limps in from UTG and successfully makes this an unraised pot with multiple players joining from the D, the SB and the BB.

The flop is T♥ 9♠ 6♥ as John Daenzel David of Russia leads out from the SB for 4,000. Irineo calls as the other players fold. It is now Heads-Up to the turn which produces the 6♣ as David fires again, this time for 7,000. The Filipino still calls. The river is the A♣ as once again David unloads, this time for 11,500. Irineo still calls.

David flips over J♥ J♣ while Irineo shows A♥ 8♦ for what initially was a gutshot that turned into top pair on the river.

Fortunately for the Russian, he still is among the big stacks.

With a pot of already 86,000 and a board that reads 8♣ K♦ 2♦ 9♦ Kevin Mateo of the Philippines checks his option in SB as Korea’s Shim Heungsub puts in his last stack of chips worth 57,000. The Filipino gives it a think and eventually calls.

Shim tables K♠ J♣ while Mateo is behind with T♠ T♥ . The river card is the 6♣ and just like that Mateo’s stack falls considerably and is on the respirator. Shim enters the double century category.

Jose Cheung of the Philippines and Japan’s Daiki Goto engage in a preflop raising war that ends up in all of their chip going into the pot as the Filipino is at risk for his last 30,500.

Cheung shows Q♣ Q♦ while Goto sees he is behind with 9♠ 9♣ .

The flop is 8♦ K♣ 7♣ but then the T♦ arrives on the turn to give the Japanese player an open-ended straight redraw which he hits on the river as the J♠ shows up to bust Cheung and bring Goto into the chip leader conversation.

Hernan Villa of the Philippines raises it to 90,000 when the action gets folded to him in the CO and gets fellow Filipino John Niko Costiniano to jump in from the SB for his last 10,500 as well as England’s Robbie Fisher-O’Brien for his last 21,000 from the BB.

Costiniano shows K♣ 8♥ while Fisher-O’Brien has K♥ T♥ . Villa has made albeit vulnerable hand in 8♠ 8♦ .

The runout goes 9♠ 2♠ A♥ Q♣ 7♦ as Villa dodges all potential problems and knocks out two in one go.

The action starts from the UTG for a raise to 4,000 which is called by Finland’s Eduard Galanzovskiy on the D and Craig Gray of the United States in the BB.

The flop comes 7♣ Q♣ 6♥ as it checked around to Galanzovskiy who bets 8,000. Gray calls but the original raiser folds. It is Heads-Up to the turn where the T♦ appears. This time, Gray who leads out for 13,500 and gets raised all-in by Galanzovskiy who covers him. The American makes the call for his remaining stack of 52,500.

The Finn shows 6♠ 6♦ for bottom set on the flop while Gray tables Q♠ T♥ for two pairs on the turn.

The river card does not bring in any of Gray’s required outs as the 2♠ shows up.

Galanzovskiy also joins the six-figure club.

Singapore’s Ang Lim Yong opens from the +1 position for 4,000 and gets caller in Park Eunseo of Korea in the HJ and Japan’s Hirotaka Matsunaga from the D.

The flop goes 3♣ Q♠ T♣ as Ang continues for 8,000. Park raises it to 16,000 and Matsunaga moves all-in for 35,500. Ang then commits his last 39,500 into the pot. Park makes the snap call.

Matsunaga tables K♠ Q♥ for top pair on the flop as Ang reveals he has Q♣ J♣ and is outkicked. However, they are both behind against Park’s concealed A♣ A♥ .

The turn card is the A♦ to give both pursuers a semblance of a chance with a gutshot that never arrives when the river card is the 3♦ .

The double elimination ups the Korean’s stack to way past the century mark.

The action folds to the D where Vinod Raj Saundararajan of Malaysia raises it to 4,000 and gets a BB defense from Singapore’s Ang Lim Yong.

The flop is 7♠ 8♦ K♥ as both players check. The turn is the J♦ as Ang takes the betting lead for 6,000. Saundararajan calls. The river is the 4♠ as Ang fires 16,000. Saundararajan suddenly raises all-in for his last 42,500. Ang tanks a bit but ultimately decides to make the call.

Saundararajan turns over K♣ 8♥ for top two pairs on the flop while Ang shows 8♠ 7♥ for bottom two pairs on the flop. The decision cost the Singaporean more than half his stack at most inopportune juncture.

Japan’s Tadayoshi Uemura takes the leap from the +2 position for all his remaining 17,500 and gets a caller from the HJ. However, Reiner Magbutay of the Philippines also goes all-in from the D for his last 58,000. The LJ folds and it’s Head-Up for the Japanese player’s tournament life.

Uemura tables Q♣ T♦ while the Filipino dominates him with A♠ Q♠ .

Suddenly the tables get turned on the flop: 4♣ T♠ 5♥ with Uemura surging ahead with top pair. But that celebration is short-lived as the A♣ hits the turn and the deal is sealed when the 5♣ arrives on the river to oust Uemura and bring Magbutay’s stack close to the six figure mark.

Of the 314 entries that comprise Day 1B, 47 will make it through to Day 2. Still over a hundred players left, but many are already getting close push to double up. The homestretch draws near.

Leading up to the most anticipated event in the Philippines, the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) is offering players a rare shortcut. Running from July 20-22, 2025 at Okada Manila is the APPT Manila Super Qualifier which serves as a direct passage to the APPT Manila Main Event (₱58 Million Guaranteed) at just a fraction of the ₱80,000 buy-in. Players can now secure a seat for just ₱9,000!

Unlike traditional satellites, this is a milestone event where players earn an APPT Manila Main Event seat the moment they accumulate 100,000 chips. No waiting for bubbles and final table negotiations, just hit the target and the seat is in the bag. Additionally, there are many chances to get there with 30 seats guaranteed.

For those looking to stretch value even further, the Step 1 Qualifier offers an even cheaper path. With a buy-in of just ₱2,000, players can vie for one of ten guaranteed seats into the Super Qualifier. The format mirrors the milestone structure with 50,000 as the goal to win a seat.

The action opens from UTG for 2,500 and a call from the HJ. Then in the SB Jonathan Looi of Malaysia goes all-in for his remaining stack of 39,300 and gets an isolation shove from Gregory Israel of the Philippines.

It’s off to another coin-flip with Looi at risk but holding T♦ T♠ against Israel’s A♦ K♦ .

The runout goes 8♥ 5♦ 2♥ J♠ 8♦ as Big Slick fails anew and Looi extends his stay.

India’s Arjun Dhingra commits the last of his 27,000 stack into the pot and is up against Hibino Masaaki of Japan for his tournament life.

Dhingra has K♣ J♣ while it’s a coin-flip against Masaaki’s T♥ T♣ .

The runout was going so well for the Japanese player: 8♥ 7♦ 4♠ 2♥ but then the river card brings in the K♦ to allow the Indian to double up and reduce Masaaki’s stack to nearly nothing.