button in SafariMartinelli Soars into the Lead in Day 2 of $5,000 Challenge
It was another extended day on the felt at the Aussie Millions Poker Championship 2026 Presented by CrownBet, with the $5,000 No Limit Hold'em Challenge stretching beyond its planned two-day finish. After 11 more hour-long levels, only 26 players remain in contention for the title, trophy, and the $482,405 AUD top prize stemming from the $2,134,400 AUD prize pool.
Surging to the top of the counts was Aussie Luke Martinelli, who bagged 14,200,000 — more than five million ahead of his nearest challenger and the only player to reach eight figures. The local pro surged up the leaderboard late in the day and capped it off by winning a big pot against Joe Hachem. A victory would mark Martinelli’s first Aussie Millions title and offer a measure of redemption after his runner-up finish in a $1,500 event during the 2017 series.
Sitting a distant second place is Day 1 chip leader Corey Kempson, who enjoyed a steady day of upward progression en route to bagging up 9,125,000. Nathan Ong rounds out the top three with a stack worth 7,900,000.
Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luke Martinelli | Australia | 14,200,000 | 95 |
| 2 | Corey Kempson | Australia | 9,125,000 | 61 |
| 3 | Nathan Ong | Australia | 7,900,000 | 53 |
| 4 | Vincent Wan | Hong Kong | 7,725,000 | 52 |
| 5 | Xiaosheng Zheng | China | 7,175,000 | 48 |
| 6 | Kahle Burns | Australia | 6,325,000 | 42 |
| 7 | Thijs Hilberts | Netherlands | 5,875,000 | 39 |
| 8 | Joseph Antar | Australia | 5,825,000 | 39 |
| 9 | Jian Ting Cai | China | 5,675,000 | 38 |
| 10 | Billy Argyros | Australia | 4,925,000 | 33 |
Just outside of the podium spots is 2020 Aussie Millions Main Event champ Vincent Wan, who still has a well-above average stack of 7,725,000 to work with in his bid to secure another major title.
Other notables still in the hunt include Jaxon Byrne, Michael Gathy (3,500,000), Jennifer Cassell (2,475,000), Ehsan Amiri (1,175,000), and of course Aussie Millions ambassador and 2005 WSOP Main Event Champion Hachem — who will have a bit of work to do with his below-average stack worth 1,875,000.
Day 2 began with 142 returnees looking to make a deep run and would be joined by a staggering 111 additional entrants by the time registration closed. A steady pace of eliminations leading up to the money bubble saw a handful of notables hit the rail, including Tristan Wade, Martin Finger, Bernardo Del Toro, Robert Damelian, and tournament crusher Michael Addamo.
A brief bubble period ended with Vladas Tamasauskas being forced all in from the big blind holding six-four and losing against Scott Stewart's ace-seven — guaranteeing the 55 remaining players a payout of at least $10,245 AUD.
With the pressure to secure a min-cash relieved, a slew of eliminations followed. Among those to secure a min-cash were Van Marcus, Kenta Ito, Matthew Wakeman, Michael Tchong, and Tyron Krost.
In an odd coincidence, three players were eliminated in a short period of time after getting all in preflop with queens as the favorite and taking a beat. Yu Hai Kee's ladies fell to Zong Chi He's pocket fives, Xin Xu's queens were cracked by Hachem's ace-queen, and Johan Lees also had his ladies cracked by the ace-queen of Romain Morvan toward the end of the day.
The remaining 26 players have already locked up a payday of $13,445 for their efforts, but everyone will surely be gunning for the $482,405 first-place prize that comes with the title, a trophy, and the right to be called an Aussie Million champion.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Payout | Place | Payout (AUD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $482,405 | 10–11 | $ 32,015 |
| 2 | $290,280 | 12–13 | $ 26,680 |
| 3 | $188,895 | 14–15 | $ 23,050 |
| 4 | $141,725 | 16–17 | $ 19,850 |
| 5 | $108,955 | 18–20 | $ 17,715 |
| 6 | $87,510 | 21–23 | $ 15,580 |
| 7 | $72,570 | 24–26 | $ 13,445 |
| 8 | $57,630 | ||
| 9 | $43,755 |
Day 3 is scheduled to get underway at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 3 and play down to a winner. Play will resume on Level 22, which features 75,000/150,000 blinds with a 150,000 big blind ante. Levels will remain 60 minutes each for the duration of the tournament.
For all the action on Day 3, be sure to stick with PokerNews until the final card has been dealt and the latest Aussie Millions champ has been crowned!