button in SafariWho Will Reach the Final Table of the SiGMA Poker Tour Manila Main Event?
The inaugural SiGMA Poker Tour Manila festival at the luxurious five-star City of Dreams Manila hotel and entertainment complex is just two days away from the conclusion and all eyes will be set on the business end of the PHP 40,000 (≈$650) SPT Main Event. Across five starting days, the crown jewel on the schedule attracted 362 entries and each of these heats played down to the money with 47 players securing a portion of the PHP 15 million (≈$242,755) guaranteed prize pool.
Hosted in cooperation with the Soul Poker Club inside of the entertainment venue near the international airport, the Main Event resulted in a small overlay and is set to have an incredibly deep-stacked conclusion throughout the next two days. Since the action will recommence where the fastest Day 1 finished, the blinds will continue at 1,000-2,000 with a big blind ante of 2,000 which gives Day 1a chip leader Gursimran Brar (988,800) an incredible 494 big blinds worth at his disposal.
He is followed by Hyunsik Nam (672,900) and Alex Chong (672,900), who both had very respectable showings in their opening heat. Most of the big stacks represent the local Pinoy poker community but Sweden's Simon Isback also reached the top ten for Day 2 with 463,000 in chips as well.
Top 10 Chip Counts for Day 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gursimran Brar | India | 988,800 | 494 |
| 2 | Hyunsik Nam | South Korea | 815,000 | 408 |
| 3 | Alex Chong | Hong Kong | 672,900 | 336 |
| 4 | Alexis Lim | Philippines | 617,000 | 309 |
| 5 | Rene David | Philippines | 589,500 | 295 |
| 6 | Marlon Laxamana | Philippines | 534,500 | 267 |
| 7 | Jonard Arcilla | Philippines | 516,000 | 258 |
| 8 | AJ Acdal | Philippines | 480,500 | 240 |
| 9 | Renato Villanueva | Philippines | 478,000 | 239 |
| 10 | Simon Isback | Sweden | 463,000 | 232 |
Notables still in contention include Alexis Lim (617,000), Renato Villanueva (478,000), Henrik Tollefsen (252,400), Patrick Clarke (245,200), Joshua Figuerres (219,500), John Tech (156,000), Anton Del Rosario (110,900), and Terry Gonzaga (93,500). SiGMA Asia ambassador Benjamin Ebarle is also among the shorter stacks but comes back with 169,500. Thanks to the roll back by seven levels compared to where Day 1d concluded in the early morning hours, even the shortest stack still has at least 45 big blinds.
Day 2 will recommence at 1 p.m. local time and the level duration increases to 50 minutes each. The penultimate tournament day is scheduled to continue until the official final table has been reached and that may make for another very long at the poker tables in Manila.
All those bowing out from the flagship tournament have several other options at their disposal alongside the cash games in the Soul Poker Club. For example, the debut of The Hendon Mob Championship on Asian soil commences at 2 p.m. local time. The PHP 12,000 (≈$194) tournament runs on the final two days of the series with a PHP 3 million (≈$48,551) guarantee.
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All PokerNews live updates for the final two days of the series will be focusing on the conclusion of the Main Event, but we will also keep an eye of the progress of all other Side Events as well.