button in SafariDay 2 Field Set in Record-Breaking Arizona State Poker Championship
Over the last four days, poker enthusiasts from the Phoenix area and far beyond have made their way to the Talking Stick Resort for their chance to become in the next champion in the 2026 Arizona State Poker Championship. The fourth and final starting flight has concluded play, and the field for Day 2 has been set.
Today, there 1,137 entries added, bringing the total number of entrants to 4,018, generating a record-breaking prize pool of $4,018,000 for the event.
However, by night's end just 137 players punched their ticket to Monday's restart, bringing the total number of Day 2 bags to 483.
Leading the pack into Day 2 is Toby Price, who stormed into the overall chip lead after accumulating 1,868,000 chips. Price held just over one million going into the soft bubble, but an extended bubble period allowed him to dominate the table.
End of Day 1d Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toby Price | United States | 1,868,000 |
| 2 | Jean Gaspard | United States | 1,200,000 |
| 3 | Erik Gault | United States | 1,169,000 |
| 4 | Fernando Orellana | 883,000 | |
| 5 | Tony Tran | United States | 847,000 |
| 6 | Jonathan Gerrick | United States | 843,000 |
| 7 | Robert Gentile | United States | 827,000 |
| 8 | Christopher Staats | United States | 808,000 |
| 9 | Jonathan Roeder | United States | 751,000 |
| 10 | Fausto Valdez | United States | 698,000 |
Full chip counts from Day 1d will be available in the morning, as will the seat draw information.
Play will resume on Monday at 10:30 a.m., with all remaining players in the money and guaranteed a minimum cash of $2,200. It was announced during play today that the first-place prize will be $627,050.
Action gets back underway with 5:40 remaining in Level 16 with blinds of 4,000/8,000. Levels are 60 minutes in length on Day 2.
Cumulative Day 1abcd Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toby Price | United States | 1,868,000 | 234 |
| 2 | Gregory Brown | United States | 1,354,000 | 169 |
| 3 | Andrew Crookston | United States | 1,278,000 | 160 |
| 4 | Jean Gaspard | United States | 1,200,000 | 150 |
| 5 | Erik Gault | United States | 1,169,000 | 146 |
| 6 | Jacob McDonald | United States | 1,150,000 | 144 |
| 7 | Nicholas Julia | United States | 1,138,000 | 142 |
| 8 | Hunter Campbell | United States | 1,116,000 | 140 |
| 9 | Peter Fox | United States | 1,106,000 | 138 |
| 10 | Vinny Tran | United States | 1,050,000 | 131 |
The plan for Day 2 is to play 12 60-minute levels or until 12% of the returning field remains (57 players), whichever comes first.
Full payout information is not yet available, but it will be posted once play begins.
Day 2 Structure
| Level | Blinds | Length (minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 4,000/8,000 | 5 |
| 17 | 5,000/10,000 | 60 |
| Break | 15 | |
| 18 | 6,000/12,000 | 60 |
| 19 | 10,000/15,000 | 60 |
| Break | Color Up 1,000s | 15 |
| 20 | 10,000/20,000 | 60 |
| 21 | 15,000/25,000 | 60 |
| Break | 15 | |
| 22 | 15,000/30,000 | 60 |
| 23 | 20,000/40,000 | 60 |
| Break | 15 | |
| 24 | 25,000/50,000 | 60 |
| 25 | 30,000/60,000 | 60 |
| Break | 15 | |
| 26 | 40,000/80,000 | 60 |
| 27 | 50,000/100,000 | 60 |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for updates from start to finish in the 2026 Arizona State Poker Championship. Day 2 coverage will begin at the first shuffle at 10:15 a.m. on Monday.