WPT Australia 2026 Day 16: Pranav Bhatt Tops Day 1b as Kenta Ito Wins Deadset Freezeout

WPT Australia 2026 moved another day closer to its conclusion on Friday, with another 151 entries joining the AUD 5,000 WPT Australia Championship and two more boomerang trophies finding new homes at The Star Sydney .

Pranav Bhatt topped Day 1b with 549,500, while defending champion Alan Pham also kept his hopes of making WPT history alive by securing a place in Day 2.

Elsewhere, Kenta Ito continued his strong festival by winning the AUD 880 Deadset Freezeout for AUD 24,941, while Carl Gray came out on top in the AUD 450 Twin Fin Turbo.

Pranav Bhatt Tops WPT Australia Championship Day 1b

Day 1b of the WPT Australia Championship attracted 151 entries, with 53 players surviving the second of three starting flights and securing their places in Day 2.

Bhatt finished on top with 549,500, narrowly missing out on the overall chip lead.  Ryan Henery was next among the Day 1b survivors with 479,000, while Dejan Boskovic rounded out the flight’s top three with 371,000.

Combined with the 185 entries and 50 survivors from Day 1a, the Championship has now attracted 336 entries across its opening two flights, with 103 players already through to Day 2 on Sunday.

Shakti Chauhan remains the overall chip leader after bagging 570,000 on Day 1a . Bhatt slots into second overall, ahead of Kacper Kumpiewski on 514,500 and Zheming Zhu on 493,500, with Henry completing the current top five.

WPT Australia Championship Current Top Ten Chip Counts

Defending Champion Alan Pham Keeps Title Defense Alive

Among those surviving Day 1b was reigning WPT Australia Championship winner Alan Pham , who bagged 82,000 to keep his title defense alive.

Pham won the WPT Australia Championship in 2025, overcoming a 600-entry field to collect AUD 558,211 (~US$364,958) after defeating Jordan Bautista heads-up.

With 82,000, comfortably above the 50,000 starting stack, Pham remains firmly in the hunt heading into Day 2. Another victory would see him make WPT history as the first player to win the same Main Tour event in back-to-back seasons.

Kenta Ito Wins Deadset Freezeout for AUD 24,941

Kenta Ito added a WPT Australia trophy to what has already been a successful festival by taking down the AUD 880 Deadset Freezeout .

The one-day event attracted 124 entries, creating an AUD 99,200 prize pool, with 18 players reaching the money. Ito came out on top for AUD 24,941, defeating Unensaikhan Bolovson heads-up for the title.

Bolovson collected AUD 16,629 as runner-up, while Hussein Salman finished third for AUD 11,621. Salvatore Fazzino came close to adding a third trophy to his festival haul, eventually finishing fourth for AUD 8,350.

Ito’s victory came just a few days after his deep run in the WPT Prime Championship , where he finished fifth from the 1,036-entry field for AUD 56,500.

#26 Deadset Freezeout - One Day Event (880 AUD)

Total Prize USD

$71,620

Total Prize

99.2K AUD

Entries

124

ITM

18

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	A$24,941 $18,007	KI Kenta Ito Australia	927.36
2	A$16,629 $12,006	UB Unensaikhan Bolovson Australia	655.74
3	A$11,621 $8,390	HS Hussein Salman Australia	535.41
4	A$8,350 $6,029	SF Salvatore Fazzino Australia	463.68
5	A$6,175 $4,458	CJ Cooper Johnston Australia	414.73
6	A$4,702 $3,395	JB Joshua Baraba Australia	378.59
7	A$3,692 $2,666	SP Scott Platt Australia	350.51
8	A$2,990 $2,159	DT Daniel Tolomeo Australia	327.87
9	A$2,502 $1,806	RB Robert Bitunjac Australia	309.12

Check the 18 Payouts & Results ...

Carl Gray Wins Twin Fin Turbo

Earlier in the day, Gray became the latest player to add his name to the WPT Australia winners’ list after taking down the AUD 450 Twin Fin Turbo .

The fast-paced one-day event drew 78 entries and generated an AUD 31,200 prize pool, with 12 players making the money. Gray collected AUD 8,959 for the victory after defeating Jack Sweet heads-up.

Sweet earned AUD 5,974 for second place, while Wei Feng completed the podium in third for AUD 4,050. Fazzino also reached the money in the Twin Fin Turbo, finishing 12th for AUD 810 before later making his run to fourth place in the Deadset Freezeout.

#25 Twin Fin Turbo - One Day Event (450 AUD)

Total Prize USD

$22,525

Total Prize

31.2K AUD

Entries

78

ITM

12

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	A$8,959 $6,468	CG Carl Gray Australia	583.76
2	A$5,974 $4,313	JS Jack Sweet Australia	412.78
3	A$4,050 $2,924	WF Wei Feng China	337.04
4	A$2,849 $2,057	SM Susanne Martin Australia	291.88
5	A$2,082 $1,503	MP Matthew Paterson Australia	261.07
6	A$1,582 $1,142	NL Nicholas Lee Australia	238.32
7	A$1,253 $905	KH Kenji Hata Japan	220.64
8	A$1,037 $749	DH David Hovey Australia	206.39
9	A$897 $648	MR Matthew Rolfe Australia	194.59

Check the 12 Payouts & Results ...

Final WPT Australia Championship Flight Headlines Saturday

The Saturday schedule is headlined by Day 1c of the WPT Australia Championship, with the third and final starting flight beginning at 12:30 p.m.

It represents the last opportunity for players to join the 103 qualifiers already through from the opening two flights. Those who survive Saturday will combine with the existing field for Day 2 at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 27, with 60-minute levels continuing as the Championship moves deeper into the tournament.

Saturday’s action begins at 10:30 a.m. with the AUD 500 Second Shot Turbo. The AUD 1,100 Extreme PLO follows at 4:30 p.m., before the AUD 1,100 Prime Time Turbo rounds out the day’s trophy events at 8:30 p.m..

Stay tuned to Somuchpoker throughout Day 1c for live coverage directly from The Star Sydney as the final Day 2 field takes shape.

All images are courtesy of The Star Sydney.

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