button in Safari$10,600 Aussie Millions Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2026 Aussie Millions Poker Championship
$10,600 Aussie Millions Main Event
Day: 1a
Players Left 195 / 259
Filter
Top
Chip Counts
Chip Counts
2
250,700
8
190,800
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Day 1a of the Aussie Millions $10,600 Main Event kicked off with a strong turnout and plenty of action at Crown Casino, Melbourne. A total of 200 players took their seats for the first of three starting flights, battling through seven levels of minutes each to secure a spot in Day 2. After six levels, 136 players remained to advance to Day 2, narrowing the field and setting the stage for the next phase of the tournament.
The competition was fierce from the start, with notable players and former champions making their presence felt. The chip counts fluctuated throughout the day, with several players emerging as early leaders.
Scot Malseed experienced a rollercoaster of a day after falling down in chips early in the day. He managed to spin back as stack, just a few levels later, doubling back up with Kings. They took through 157,200 chips, putting themselves in a comfortable position going into Day 2.
Thomas McMahon was running well throughout the day and stood tall as the chip leader in the final levels of the night. He started to build early in the day and continued to climb after forcing a big fold from Man Wong. He bagged up as the Day 1a chip leader taking through a huge 329,800 stack.
McMahon was a good few miles ahead of the next biggest stack, Wei Han Le, who finished close behind with 250,700 chips. Xiaohu Liu rounded off the podium position, bagging up third in chips after around 12 hours of play.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Mcmahon | United States | 329,800 |
| 2 | Wei Han Le | Malaysia | 250,700 |
| 3 | Xiaohu Liu | China | 240,200 |
| 4 | Ori Ohana | Spain | 226,800 |
| 5 | Aditya Rao | Australia | 218,200 |
| 6 | Matthew Carlson | New Zealand | 206,000 |
| 7 | Simon Carter | Australia | 193,800 |
| 8 | Mario Doria | Australia | 190,800 |
| 9 | Weiran Pu | China | 188,800 |
| 10 | Wang Sum Li | Hong Kong | 181,300 |
Several big names joined the tournament on Day 1a including Poker legends and WSOP Main Event Champions Joe Hachem & Michael Mizrachi. Hachem managed to lock up a bag, taking through 130,900 chips but Mizrachi wasn’t so lucky and busted out of the freezeout in the middle of play today. Hachem sent Haibin Huang to the rail after chasing a royal flush draw, giving him a good chip up midway through the day.
Chicago Bulls and Australian NBA star Josh Giddey also locked up a healthy 168,000 stack by the end of the night, helped by upping the pressure on his table during a big three-way pot. A few tables across Jackson Warne was also seen peeling and sealing his 39,400 chips. He will progress to Day 2 but be looking to spin their stack as bagged one of the smaller stacks in this opening flight.
It was a particularly brutal end for Riff Mustafa after getting in all his chips in against Mario Doria (190,800) on the flop and running into Doria's flush, just a few hands before the end of the night.
With Day 1a complete, attention now turns to Day 1b, where the next group of hopefuls will take their shot at advancing.
Remaining Main Event Schedule
| Day | Date | Start Time | Level Duration | Late Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1b | Tuesday, May 5 | 12:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | Start of Level 9 |
| Day 1c | Wednesday, May 6 | 12:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | Start of Level 9 |
| Day 2 | Thursday, May 7 | 12:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | Start of Level 9 |
| Day 3 | Friday, May 8 | 12:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | — |
| Day 4 | Saturday, May 9 | 12:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | — |
| Final Day | Sunday, May 10 | 2:30 p.m. | 90 minutes | — |
Day 1b of the Aussie Millions Main Event will follow the same format as today's Day 1a with blinds starting at 100/200 and a 200 big blind ante. As in the opening flight, each level will last 90 minutes, with scheduled 15-minute breaks after every level. A 60-minute dinner break is scheduled for approximately 7.15 p.m., giving the field time to recharge. Play will wrap up after Level 6, with late registration open until the start of Level 9 in Day 2.
Stay tuned and return to the PokerNews live updates tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. for Day 1b updates, where a fresh batch of hopefuls will take their seats, each with a dream of making it all the way to the final day.
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
329,800
800
|
800 |
|
||
|
|
250,700
250,700
|
250,700 |
|
240,200
31,200
|
31,200 |
|
226,800
226,800
|
226,800 |
|
218,200
218,200
|
218,200 |
|
206,000
121,500
|
121,500 |
|
|
193,800
193,800
|
193,800 |
|
|
190,800
800
|
800 |
|
188,800
12,200
|
12,200 |
|
||
|
181,300
181,300
|
181,300 |
|
176,500
176,500
|
176,500 |
|
||
|
176,300
176,300
|
176,300 |
|
171,000
171,000
|
171,000 |
|
168,000
8,000
|
8,000 |
|
159,800
159,800
|
159,800 |
|
|
157,200
86,200
|
86,200 |
|
154,600
56,100
|
56,100 |
|
|
148,500
47,500
|
47,500 |
|
|
147,800
147,800
|
147,800 |
|
147,500
147,500
|
147,500 |
|
|
||
|
|
145,400
145,400
|
145,400 |
|
|
145,100
145,100
|
145,100 |
|
|
144,800
144,800
|
144,800 |
|
|
143,500
143,500
|
143,500 |
|
139,500
139,500
|
139,500 |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Players have now bagged up for the night and a number of notables are still in play. As Joe Hachem was playing his last hand he joked,"Can we come back to the same table tomorrow?".
Alongside Hachem, Jackson Warne and Josh Giddey also secured a bag and will return to play Day 2 in a few days time. Other players who will return to battle through the second day of the main event include WSOP bracelet winner Weiran Pu.
Stay tuned to the blog for the full chip count update and daily recap which will be posted shortly.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
329,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
201,000
28,000
|
28,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
160,000
78,500
|
78,500 |
|
140,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
|
||
|
139,500
51,000
|
51,000 |
|
34,000
12,900
|
12,900 |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Thomas Amir put his remaining 16,500 stack on the line after facing an open to 1,800 from his opponent in the hijack.
Amir remarked to his opponent, "You've been busting me up all day...". He didn't get a call and added a few extra chips to his stack before ending the night and bagging up ~18,000.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
18,000
21,000
|
21,000 |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
The floor has announced that five more hands should be played before bagging up for Day 2.
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Callum Gordon was all in for his remaining ~27,000 and called and covered by Liam Reeves.
Callum Gordon: A♦K♠
Liam Reeves: Q♠Q♣
Gordon improved after seeing an ace on the 10♥A♣6♠ flop, and locked up the pot after another ace came on the A♠ turn.
The 5♦ river saw Gordon pull in the pot, putting him back up to just under starting stack nearing the end of the day.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
101,000 | |
|
56,000 |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Mitchell Reid got is final 4,800 chips in on the button against Sunny Makar in the big blind.
Mitchell Reid: J♥7♦
Sunny Makar: A♥10♥
Reid needed to improve but Makar picked up top pair on the 2♦A♣6♠ flop. Reid stood after seeing the 9♥ turn and 5♣ river as his time in the main event came to an end.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
69,000
69,000
|
69,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Mario Doria opened to 1,800 from the cutoff and Riff Mustafa three-bet to 6,000 in the small blind. Doria called, and the players were taken to the 8♥4♥K♥ flop.
Mustafa bet 6,100 and Doria paid to see the 3♠ turn. Mustafa moved out 10,000 and Doria raised to 40,000. Mustafa quickly moved in his remaining ~50,000 stack to move all in and Doria snap called saying "If you have it, you have it".
Riff Mustafa: A♥K♦
Mario Doria: J♥10♥
Doria had flopped a flush, with Mustafa looking at a pair of kings and a nut flush draw, hoping for another heart. Doria soof from the table to watch the runout and another player remarked "I'ts not over yet!".
A 4♦ completed the board and Mustafa was left to leave the freezeout, narrowly missing out on bagging for day 2 having been eliminated with just an hour left in the day.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
190,000
190,000
|
190,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Level 6
: Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Players were already heads up and on the turn looking at a 9♦10♥J♠7♣ board. The pot stood at around 6,000.
Ken Doi was in the small blind and bet 2,500, seeing Julian Warhurst call from the big blind.
A 10♠ river saw Doi bet 6,000 and Warhurst considered his options for around a minute before calling.
Doi showed K♦9♠ for two pair, which was enough to make Warhurst muck thier hand.
In the next hand, Doi called an 800 opened from Haiyang Yang in early position.
The J♥2♠2♣ flop was checked through the 3♣ turn and 8♦ river. Doi showed A♦6♠ to take the small pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
160,000
22,000
|
22,000 |
|
|
45,000
45,000
|
45,000 |
|
|
21,100
29,000
|
29,000 |
