Harshud Keshav four-bet jammed for 11,100 and Thomas Bedford called to set up the following all-in showdown.
Harshud Keshav: A♥8♥ 
Thomas Bedford: A♠K♠
Both players held suited aces and the kicker played on the A♣5♣2♦J♦3♠ runout to send Keshav to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
44,000 | |
|
|
Busted |
Three ways to the Q♠J♥10♥J♣ turn, Marriette Language bet 4,000. Josh Liebenthal raised to 10,000 and Hardus Swanepoel called while Language opted to fold. The K♥ fell on the river and Swanepoel faced the shove by Liebenthal for the 12,400 he had behind.
Three time banks were used by Swanepoel before he called all-in and Liebenthal instantly announced quads, rolling over the J♦J♠. Swanepoel flashed his A♥K♣ and headed to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
80,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
|
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
|
Busted |
With 1,500 in the middle four ways to the 8♦8♣7♣ flop, Malcolm Rajah bet 1,700 and Eben Lottering called in the cutoff. The 9♠ fell on the turn and Rajah bet another 1,600. Lottering jammed for another 7,000 on top and Rajah called.
Eben Lottering: J♣10♣
Malcolm Rajah: 9♥6♣
The river was the 8♥ and Rajah hit an unlikely full house to score the knockout.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
70,000
70,000
|
70,000 |
|
Busted |
Russel Wheatley bet the A♥7♥4♠ flop for 1,200 to earn one caller on the button and he then checked the K♦ turn. The button made it 4,000 to go for Wheatley to come along and then led again the 8♥ river for 13,000. Wheatley received the call and turned over his 4♥3♥ for a flush to scoop a decent pot in the first level of the day.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
56,000
56,000
|
56,000 |
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There are four tables up and running on Day 1a and the field is expected to grow in the hours to follow. Two of the most recognisable names in the field so far are Jarred Solomon and Shannon Elizabeth. The former has nearly $1.9 million in cashes and he sits in second place of the all-time money list of South Africa.
American actress, model and poker player Elizabeth is married to a South African and lives here now to give the SunBet Poker Tour stop at Time Square a shot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
40,000 | |
|
40,000 |
The SunBet Poker Tour is the newest and most exciting poker series in South Africa and has been launched in a partnership between the Monster Jam Poker Tour (MJPT) and Sun International Group, the leading South African gaming and hospitality company. From February 28 until March 10, 2024, the SunBet Poker Tour is taking place at the Time Square Casino in Pretoria with 12 major tournaments scheduled in as many days.
All eyes will be on the SunBet Poker Tour Time Square Main Event, which is slated to play down to a winner throughout the next five days. The tournament features a buy-in of ZAR15,000 (~$790) and comes with a guarantee of ZAR5,000,000 (~$263,400) whereas the entire festival offers ZAR12,000,000 in guarantees.
A total of four different starting days are available with Day 1a to Day 1c featuring a level duration of 50 minutes each. The registration for each heat will conclude upon completion of level ten with unlimited re-entries available during that period. Each Day 1 will play 15 levels or down to 15% of each respective field. Cash prizes will be distributed as of Day 2 as one out of eight entries will be in the money.
All players start with 40,000 in chips and that makes for a deep structure right away, as the initial blinds will be 100-200 with a big blind ante of 200. A long day at the tables can be expected with a 60-minute dinner break after level seven at approximately 6:35 p.m. local time.
Day 1a will kick off at noon local time and the PokerNews live reporting team will be on the floor from start to finish for the first time right here in South Africa.
