Steve O'Dwyer opened to 16,000 in early position, and the action folded over to Steven Biemueller in the small blind. Biemueller opted to three-bet to 30,000, which, after some consideration, O'Dwyer called.
Biemueller checked on the A♠10♠9♦, and then called a bet of 15,000 from O'Dwyer.
Before the 6♦ turn was even dealt, Biemueller announced he was checking in the dark. O'Dwyer followed suit and checked back.
The 5♥ completed the board, and Biemueller checked for a third time. O'Dwyer then carved 51,000 out of his stack and put it into the middle. His bet represented a significant portion of Biemueller's remaining 72,000 chips.
After toiling over the decision, Biemueller opted to call.
It was immediate bad news, as O'Dwyer flipped over A♥J♦ for top pair. Unable to beat it, Biemueller returned his cards to the dealer.
Nursing a stack of just 14,000, Dara O'Kearney limped in before seeing a raise to 25,000 from Neculai Macovei. The action folded back to O'Kearney, who committed the rest of his chips.
Dara O'Kearney: A♦K♥
Neculai Macovei: K♦Q♣
A promising situation for O'Kearney soon turned sour, as the dealer burned and turned a Q♠9♥4♦ flop.
The 7♠ turn and K♠ river couldn't save the PokerStars Team Pro member, as his main event came to an unfortunate end.
The record-breaking field of 5,003 entries in the 2026 Irish Open Main Event generated a prize pool of €4,852,910.
The top 735 players will receive a payout, with a minimum cash of €1,800.
All eyes will be on the first-place prize, though, as the eventual champion is set to walk away with €517,100 alongside the coveted Irish Open Main Event trophy.
A total of 1,236 players will return to the Royal Dublin Society today for Day 2 of the €1,250 Main Event at the 2026 Irish Open, each chasing a deep run and the chance to etch their name into Irish poker folklore.
Sponsored by PokerStars and Paddy Power Poker, play resumes at 12:00 p.m. local time following five action-packed starting flights that drew a record-breaking 5,003 entries.
The massive turnout pushed the prize pool to a remarkable €4,852,910, comfortably surpassing the €2,500,000 guarantee and marking a huge success for the Irish Poker Open and its organisers.
In a tightly contested leaderboard, where less than 30 big blinds separate the top seven stacks, it is Kristian Svanbom who will return later today as the chip leader. The Swede topped the charts of Day 1d, the busiest of all five flights, and will start the day with 150 big blinds.
Rounding out the podium is Day 1b chip leader Lawrence Penfold with 796,000, followed closely by Massimiliano Cordeschi, carrying 773,000 from the opening Day 1a flight.
Notably, Alexander Rizvi (748,000) and Alex Todd (746,000) each advanced from Day 1c, having ended their flight with just a single big blind between them. Their efforts see them return fourth and fifth on the leaderboard heading into today.
Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Kristian Svanbom
Sweden
899,000
150
2
Lawrence Penfold
United Kingdom
796,000
133
3
Massimiliano Cordeschi
Italy
773,000
129
4
Alexander Rizvi
United Kingdom
748,000
125
5
Alex Todd
United Kingdom
746,000
124
6
Glenn Cochrane
United Kingdom
740,000
123
7
Jiri Kocab
Czechia
731,000
122
8
Abel Pruchon
France
666,000
111
9
Fraser Bellamy
United Kingdom
665,000
111
10
Florian Bock
Germany
655,000
109
Simon Wilson
Entry to Day 2 doesn’t require you to be a chip leader, though, and there are plenty of players further down the leaderboard with an abundance of experience in poker's big occasions.
Players such as former champion Ian Simpson (554,000), Matthew Davenport (477,000), Will Kassouf (468,000), PokerStars Team Pro member David Lappin (296,000) and reigning champion Simon Wilson (261,000) all found their way through their respective flights to ensure they are among the action when cards are in the air.
Kicking off at noon local time, Day 2 is scheduled to resume on Level 16, with blinds of 3,000/ 6,000 and a big blind ante of 6,000. The plan is to play 10 hour-long levels, with play for the day ending at the conclusion of Level 25. At that point, the remaining players will bag their chips and progress to Day 3.
2026 Irish Open Main Event - Remaining Schedule
Day
Date
Time
Day 2
April 4
12:00 p.m.
Day 3
April 5
12:00 p.m.
Day 4
April 6
1:00 p.m.
Be sure to tune into PokerNews where you will find live coverage of all the major moments until a 2026 Irish Open Champion is crowned.
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