APT Cancels Remaining Series

The Asian Poker Tour (APT) took to their social media handles to make a crucial announcement regarding the APT Hanoi Billions 2023. The live poker brand shared the news of the cancellation of the remainder series on 9th and 10th December. The reasons for the cancellation have not been revealed yet, but the brand mentions about the safety and well-being of their players in their official statement. Stay tuned for more updates on this key announcement. 

Read more on the cancellation here:

APT Hanoi Billions 2023: Remainder Of The Series Cancelled

Only 3 Indians Make ME Day 4 

After a tough Day 3 of APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event, only three Indians have managed to survive further into Day 4. These players are Karan Gupta, Sanish Chhabra, and Ayush Garg. 

Main Event Day 3 Draws Curtains

Level 26, blinds 25K/50K, big blind ante 50K

The survivors of APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event Day 3 are now bagging and tagging up. Indian players like Pratibh Saluja, Rubin Labroo, Bhavik Khatsuria, Suresh Kolli, Kanchan Sharma, Shailesh Patel, Jatin Sablani, Sreekanth Narayan among others have been eliminated. 

APT made a key announcement of adding Day 5 to the Main Event schedule owing to the overwhelming number of entries the tournament received. Day 5 will be played on Sunday and tomorrow we will see the game play down to the final table. 

Pratibh Saluja Finishes 58th For VND 151,400,000

Level 26, blinds 25K/50K, big blind ante 50K

Indian poker pro Pratibh Saluja journey in the Main Event came to an end. He moved all-in from under-the-gun position with 380,000 and found a caller in China’s Wu Bin. Saluja tabled Dimes and his rival had Fishhooks. 

Saluja hopes to keep going ahead were dashed when the community cards fell 5♦ 2♣ A♣ 9♥ 4♣. Bin won and got all of Saluja’s chips as the latter got eliminated at the 58th spot for VND 151,400,000 (~₹5.20 Lakh).

Sanish Makes Punnat Fold 

Level 24, blinds 15K/30K, big blind ante 30K 

From the hijack spot Punnat Punsri opened with 60,000. India poker pro Sanish Chhabra called from the button position.

The action was checked till the river and the board read: T♠ K♣ 6♥ 8♥ A♦. Punsri led with 135,000 and his rival counted his chips to raise it to 410,000. This miffed the Thai pro. 

Punsri checked his cards and looked at the board. He then fixed his gaze at the Indian pro and muttered something in Thailand’s native language. Punsri used up a few time-extension chips only to fold disappointingly.

Van Sang Nguyen Is Chip Leading

Level 23, blinds 10K/25K, big blind ante 25K 

A massive 2,500,000-chip pot played out between Van Sang Nguyen and Seunghyeon Son. This made the Vietnamese poker player the latest chip leader.

Nguyen opened the action with a min-raise of 50,000. Son opted for a 3-bet of 180,000. Nguyen who made the call to see a flop of 6♣ 7♦ J♠. The Vietnamese player checked. Son fired 220,000 into the pot. Nguyen was seen counting his chips and he pushed them in the middle.

Nguyen led with 300,000 when the turn presented T♥. Son went for a killer raise of 800,000. Nguyen again made the counting action and then called. The pot now stood at around 2,400,000 chips.

5♣ blessed the river spot; Nguyen checked and Son followed suit. Nguyen tabled pocket sixes and Son mucked his cards and then gave himself a pat on the back for that river check.

Kanchan Sharma Gets Her Queen In Time

Level 22, blinds 10K/20K, big blind ante 20K 

It was a race to make the winning hand between Khanh Nguyen and Indian poker pro Kanchan Sharma. Nguyen had A♠ T♥ and Sharma was riding high with her K♣ Q♠. The flop came K♠ Q♣ T♣ keeping Sharma ahead but an A♣ on the turn changed that soon. The river was Q♥ which gave our beloved pro a full house and she won the hand like a boss lady.

Vishal Ojha Out Of ME Race

Level 22, blinds 10K/20K, big blind ante v20K 

India’s Vishal Ojha moved all-in with his remaining 63,000 chips. Le Nhu An from the big blind matched the bet to put Ojha at risk. The Indian live and online reg had AJo and his rival had 74o. The board read K♦ 9♣ 7♥ 3♣ Q♠. This gave An a 7-pair and a win to send Ojha to the rail. 

Pratibh Saluja Mucks His Cards

Level 20, blinds 6,000/12,000, big blind ante 12,000

From UTG+1 position, Zhou Shou bet 24,000. Pratibh Saluja 3-bet to 74,000 from the hijack position. Other players folded, and Shou added the needed 50,000 for the call. 8♦ 3♣ 3♦ came on flop and Shou check-called a bet of 45,000 made by his rival. The same pattern occurred on the turn of J♥, this time the bet was 110,000. 5♠ came on the river and was checked by both players. Shou showed T♠ T♣ and Saluja mucked his cards. 

Siddharth Ran Straight Into Anh 

Level 18, blinds 4,000/8,000, big blind 8,000

On a flop of J♠ 9♦ 8♠, Anh Nguyen The threw in a bet of 15,000. A player on the small blind called. Siddharth Mundada raised it to 72,000. Nguyen made the call which led to the small blind player fold.

Turn brought 5♣ which saw Mundada move all-in and get snap-called. The Indian poker pro showed J♣ 9♣ and Nguyen had QTo.  

Nguyen had the straight and the spot he wanted to be in. A river card of 7♣ sealed the win for Mundada’s rival while the Indian lost his chips.

Jasven Saigal Loses Chips

Level 17, blinds 3,000/6,000, big blind ante 6,000 

Takaaki Arai opened with 12,000 from under the gun position. From the middle position, Indian live poker reg Jasven Saigal 3-bet with 32,000. Arai called and both players were waiting for the flop. 7♠ 8♠ Q♥ fell on the flop and the Indian pro fired a c-bet of 36,000  and his rival called again.

Turn of 9♣ saw Saigal keep the heat on with a bet of 85,000. Arai hit back with all his remaining chips and Saigal called. The Indian pro had Cowboys and Arai had JTs which meant Arai had a straight which beat Saigal’s hand.

Main Event Day 3: Intense Action Ahead

The record-setting APT Main Event will see its Day 3 unfold with players vying for the top prize. After four starting day flights and seven levels of game being played on Day 2, 351 remaining survivors (out of 2,350) are now in the money. 

This figure also includes the 31 Onlive qualifiers who are joining the action on Day 3. A final prize pool of VND 73,855,800,000 (~$3,033,430) has been generated. The Main Event winner will take home a pay cheque of VND 11,831,710,000 (~$485,880).

Vietnam’s Quang Hieu Nguyen Ends Day 2 As Chip Lead

Vietnamese player Quang Hieu Nguyen has become the chip leader at the end of Day 2 with a stack of 939,000 chips. Several Indian players have also survived teh Day 2 battle. Check out the list of Indians who have made Day 3 of the coveted APT Hanoi Billions Main Event 2023. 

APT Hanoi Billions ME Day 2 Ends

Level 17, blinds 3,000/6,000, big blind ante 6,000

APT Hanoi Billions Main Event (ME) Day 2 drew curtains with the money bubble being formed. Thai player Tanawat Burapapanuwong was the bubble boy of the much awaited ME. Keep watching this space to know which player is chip leading ahead of Day 3 and how many Indian poker players survived the Day 2 bloodbath.

J Raju Miss Money Bubble, Eliminated

Level 17, blinds 3,000/6,000, big blind ante 6,000

J Raju just fell short of two places before entering the money bubble. On Table 3, an all-in was announced and a call was made. Well-known Indian poker player J Raju locked horns with Vietnam’s Thinh Nguyen Duc. 

The Indian player went all-in on the flop of A♥ Q♥ T♦ and was snap-called by his rival in the hand. J Raju was heard asking his opponent, “What do you have? Aces? Queens? Straight?” 

Duc was calm the whole time and waited for the Tournament Director’s instructions to proceed further. Both players revealed their hand; J Raju had ATo and Duc had KJo. 

9♦ and 3♠ came on the turn and river respectively. Neither of these two cards could save J Raju who’s journey in the Main Event came to an end on Day 2. 

Level 16 Ends And Break Begins

The players who are still in contention are on a 15-minute break. Level 16 has ended and when the players return they will be grinding hand-for-hand till the bubble bursts. Since the live stream is running, the live updates will be delayed slightly. 

Rubin Labroo’s Bluff Turns Into A Blunder

Level 15, blinds 2,000/4,000, big blind ante 4,000 

Nguyen Quang Hieu bet 35,000 which was raised to 80,000 by Rubin Labroo (A♦ 8♠) on a flop of K♣ 5♦ 5♥.  Hieu from the button position made the call.

4♥ came on the turn and Labroo cut down his bet to 50,000; Hieu easily called. Ace of hearts came on the river and Labroo went for a maximum bet amount of 135,000. Hieu matched holding 4♠ 5♠ and flaunted a full house. Labroo chose a terrible spot to bluff and got caught in the storm.

Puneet Dua’s ME Journey Ends

Level 14, blinds 1,500/3,000, big blind ante 3,000 

A five-bet pot was played between Yadi Yao and Indian player Puneet Dua which led to the latter’s exit from the Main Event.

Yao led the action and Dua 3-bet 22,500. Yao went for a 4-bet of 61,000 only to see Dua hit back with a 5-bet shove of 130,000. Yao snap-called and both players revealed their cards. Dua had Fishhooks and his rival had Cowboys.

Dua looked pale and wasn’t confident that the board would favour him in any way. Q♦ 6♠ 7♥ T♦ T♠ was the runout and Yao’s Kings were good to go. Dua was out of the Main Event.

Payouts Are Out

Payouts have been announced and the top prize for the winner stands at a whopping VND 11,831,710,000. The runner-up will take home VND 6,366,370,000. The min-cash is VND 56,130,000. Check out the top 10 payouts below.

Jatin Sablani Making Swift Moves

Guy Taylor opened with 5,000 from under the gun position. Jatin Sablani made a 3-bet of 14,000. Other players on the table folded; Taylor called. Flop brought 3♣ 3♥ J♥ and Sablani c-bet for 8,000 and found a caller.

Turn saw 7♦ arrive. The Indian player fired 22,000 this time. This bet gave Taylor the jitters as he barely moved. Time was running and after some wait a player called the clock on Taylor who eventually mucked his hand.

Vishal Ojha Loses Chips 

Level 11, blinds 800/1,600, big blind ante 1,600 

India’s Vishal Ojha was among the top 10 stacks ahead of Day 2. But in a hand against Stanislav Halatenko he lost his chips. Ojha opened with 3,500 and his rival 3-bet, and the Indian player made the call. Both players saw a flop of K♠ 4♦ 2♣. Ojha checked and Halatenko fired a c-bet of 12,000. Ojha called again.

Turn brought 6♠ and Ojha checked again. Halatenko threw in another 28,000 and his rival followed suit of calling. 4♣ came on the river and Ojha checked once again. Halatenko went all guns blazing with 61,000 bet to which Ojha responded by throwing a chip in the middle to indicate a call. Ojha’s opponent showed K♦ Q♥ which meant the Indian pro lost a good chunk of his chips.

Siddharth Karia Makes A Wise Fold

Level 11, blinds 800/1,600, big blind ante 1,600

The community cards fell 7♥ 3♥ J♦ 7♦ 4♦. Indian poker pro Siddharth Karia made a bet of 5,200 and the pot was around 11,000. 

Won Chul Bae raised the bet to 16,000. Karia had 25,000 with him and thought it would be wise to make the fold instead of risking them. Bae turned over J♠ 7♠ showing Karia he had a full house. Good decision Karia.

ME Day 2: Get Ready For Bloodbath 

The survivors from the starting flights are ready to slog hard in Day 2 in the biggest and record-setting APT Main Event worth VND 36,000,000.

844 stacks qualified for Day 2 from a total 2,239 entries received. Vietnamese player Do Quang Thang was the chip lead across the four starting flights. He brings a stack of 397,800 chips. Next up is China’s Zhi Yuan Xu with a stack of 381,600 chips.

Other notable survivors left are APT Taipei Main Event winner and Natural8 Ambassador Punnat Punsri who brings a stack of 219,000 chips. WSOP bracelet winner Abhinav Iyer with a stack of 193,400 chips and Nguyen Thi Bao An who has 121,700 chips.

Kajornnut Prirungrueng Ends Day 1D As Chip Lead

Thai player Kajornnut Prirungrueng emerged as the chip lead at the end of Day 1D of APT Hanoi Billions Main Event. Prirungrueng has 301,800 chips in his kitty to fight for the top spot on Day 2. Day 1D saw 334 entries (277 unique) register for the play. A total of 163 players made it past the final starting flight.

The Main Event has seen a record-setting number of 2,239 entries. The advertised guarantee of VND 25,000,000,000 (~$1,000,000) has been crushed and the latest prize pool stands at VND 70,335,864,000 (~$2,893,830). 

Out of the massive 2,239 entries, 845 survived the initial 10 levels of the card game. Indian pro Kunal Patni fired multiple bullets but Day 2 was not in his destiny. Indian players who made Day 2 from Day 1D include names like Aman Parakh, Pratibh Saluja, Pranav Bagai, Shailesh Patel, Pratibha Arya, kabir Tandon, Vinay B, and Karan Gupta.

Last Break Before Day 1D Ends

Players grinding in the last starting day flight of the Main Event, are now on their last break for the day. After the 15-minute break gets over, players will grind in three more levels. 

Aman’s Ace-King Hold

Level 7, blinds 400/800, big blind ante 800

It feels good to have a premium hand like AK in a crucial Main Event flight. Aman Parakh was the player who landed AK against his rival Chanin Preeprem’s Cowboys.

Preeprem opened with 1,600 before Parakh 3-bet 8,000. Preeprem matched. Flop brought Q♣ A♣ 3♦. Preeprem c-bet 12,800. Parakh called. 8♣ came on the turn and both opponents checked their options. The river was 4♥ Parakh shoved 52,700 and Preeprem called. The Indian poker pro sailed through thanks to the Ace he caught on the flop to beat his rival’s pocket kings.

2,123 Entries, More To Join

Level 4, blinds 200/400, big blind ante 400 

APT Hanoi Billions Main Event has so far seen 2,123 sign up for the tournament and battle for the top spot. 

The APT Main Event record from the Taipei stop was crushed and history was made. The last flight is underway and registration is still open.

Vinay B Shows Sirawat Phanitikittiphat The Door

Level 3, blinds 200/300, big blind ante 300

The board of 6♠ T♠ 8♠ 5♣ turned into an all-in situation between Indian pro Vinay B and Thailand’s Sirawat Phanitikittiphat. The pot stood at around 10,000 when Phanitikittiphat made a bet of 14,000. Vinay B went all-in and the Thai player matched.

Vinay B had A♠ K♠ for the winning flush while Phanitikittiphat showed JTs for Ten-pair. The Thai player was out but was seen in the re-entry queue.

Kunal Patni Joins The Fold

Level 1, blinds 100/100, big blind ante 100 

Natural8 India brand ambassador Kunal Patni has registered for Day 1D with a hope to make Day 2 and battle it out for the top spot. The hoodie which states his poker hobby as ‘cracking Aces’ has got everyone’s attention. 

Pranav Bagai Eliminates Xiaohu Liu

Level 1, blinds 100/100, big blind ante 100 

Pranav Bagai claimed a victim in the Main Event flight Day 1D. This was pretty quick considering it’s just 20 minutes into the first level of game play.

Bagai played with AJo while his rival Xiaohu Liu had A4o. The board read A♠ J♣ 5♦ 9♥ 9♣. Bagai’s AJ were good to go and Liu was sent to the rail. So far, 108 entries have been registered out of which 107 players are in contention. 

Main Event Day 1D Begins

The final flight for the prestigious APT Hanoi Billions Main Event flight Day 1D has kicked off with players looking to make the most of this last chance to qualify for Day 2. The highly anticipated Day 2 kick-starts tomorrow (7th December) at 11 AM (local time). 

Talking about flight Day 1D, it features 10 levels which will last for 30 minutes each. For those who have just landed on our live updates page, Day 1C broke the record for the biggest APT Main Event field ever recorded in the brand’s history and Day 1D could also follow suit. Players will also have a chance to buy-in before Day 2 begins. 

Main Event Day 1C Concludes

Level 10, blinds 600/1,200, big blind ante 1,200 

The surviving players from Main Event flight Day 1C are now bagging and tagging up as the play has ended. The next flight, Day 1D, kicks-starts at 5 PM (local time). This is the last flight to qualify for the coveted Main Event Day 2.

Day 1C To End After Five Hands

The Main Event Day 1C flight has reached a stage where only five more hands are to be played. Post this all the surviving players will be bagging and tagging up for the day. 

New Records Made!

Level 9, blinds 600/1,200, big blind ante 1,200

The game has now entered the last leg of its play. Yes, the final level has kicked in and currently we have 486 entries clocked in with 275 players still grinding. 

This Main Event starting day flight is the biggest-ever Day 1C flight ever witnessed. Congratulations to team APT for achieving this milestone at the Hanoi Billions 2023. Onwards and upwards APT.

430 Entries Are In

The much awaited flight Day 1C has so far registered 430 entries. The late registration is still open and more players could join the fold to push this number up. Will this starting day flight break the records? Only time will tell.  

Kunal Patni Reveals Hobby

The well-known Indian poker pro Kunal Patni wore a hoodie which shed light on his hobby of cracking aces and we couldn’t be more impressed with Patni’s sartorial choices. Sadly for fans of this Indian pro, he busted ME Day 1C but re-entered the flight.

ME Day 1C: High Expectations To Break Records

APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event Day 1C flight kicked off amid high energy at the National Convention Center. A massive number of entries is expected at this flight as only the last two flights remain via which the players can participate and qualify for the Main Event Day 2. 

Indian poker pro and Natural8 India brand ambassador Kunal Patni is grinding in flight Day 1C. Many Indian pros have qualified for Day 2 and hopefully some more will make it to Day 2 via the two flights, Day 1C and Day 1D. 

South Korea’s Jun Young Park Ends Day 1B As Chip Lead 

South Korean poker player Jun Young Park has become the end of Day 1B chip lead with 361,100 chips to his name. The second flight to the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event recorded a total of 535 entries (442 unique). A total of 211 players survived the battle field making Day 2 (7th December). 

Today’s player entry figure puts the cumulative total of entries at 1,205 with an additional 213 Natural8 OnLive players pushing the total to 1,418 with two flights still remaining. 

Among the Indian players who survived Day 1B’s bloodbath are names like Harsh Bubna, Avneesh Munjal, Abhishek Goindi, Jasven Saigal, Jatin Sablani, Ritwik Khanna, and Siddharth Jolly.

Day 1B Of Main Event Ends

Level 10, blinds 600/1,200, big blind ante 1,200 

It was finally time when  APT Main Event flight Day 1B concluded. The day ended on Level 10 with 527 entries and surviving players looking to bag and tag for Day 2 of the coveted Main Event. Now two more flights remain, namely flight Day 1C and Day 1D.  

Time For A Short Break

Level 8, blinds 500/1,000, big blind ante 1,000 

The remaining players are on their last break which will last for 15 minutes. 506 entries were registered so far and play will go on for two more levels. Will this flight break Day 1A’s entries record? We will find out soon. 

Alok Birewar Misses Out On A Flush, Eliminated

Level 8, blinds 500/1,000, big blind ante 1,000 

Indian poker pro Alok Birewar was at risk when he went all-in holding A♣ 5♦. Birewar’s rival Sumate Aramkul had A♦ Q♦. The community card fell as T♠ 7♣ J♣ K♣. The Indian poker pro missed out on hitting a flush and surviving ahead. Birewar was eliminated from Main Event Day 1B. Aramkul inched closer to the 60,000 chip stack mark.

Laksh Pal Singh Out Of Day 1B

Former IOPC Main Event champion Laksh Pal Singh has been eliminated from the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event flight Day 1B. He busted on Level 5 when he and Le Guan battled it out. Guan had ATo and Singh had KQo. An Ace dropped on the flop which was good enough to send Singh to the exit door.

Flight Day 1B Hits The 400 Entries Mark

Level 5, blinds 200/500, big blind ante 500

We have reached Level 5 which is the nearly half day done of the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event flight Day 1B. The player field now stands at 400 mark which is a milestone for this starting day flight. Late registrations are still open; it would be interesting to see how this flight ends with respect to the number of entries.

Laksh Pal Singh In Trouble

Former India Online Poker Championship (IOPC) Main Event winner Laksh Pal Singh locked horns with Australian player Alan Zhengwe in an all-in situation. 

All the chips were in the middle and Singh had the Big Slick. The board was king-high. Zheng to Singh dismay had Pocket Rockets and ended up winning the hand and left Singh fuming despite having a premium hand.

297 Players In The Field

Currently there are 297 players slogging hard to qualify and get past the flight and make Day 2 of the coveted Main Event of APT Hanoi Billions 2023. The total entries recorded earlier stood at 329 out of which 297 remain. Late registrations will conclude in about 5 hours and 27 minutes. Indian pros like Laksh Pal Singh and Natural8 India brand ambassador Kunal Patni are among those grinding in Day 1B.  

Can Day 1B Break Records?

The Main Event Day 1B has a lot of expectations to live up to. The flight kicked off at 11 AM local time and saw many players and pros joining the fold to grab a seat in Day 2 of the Main Event. 

Many Indians qualified yesterday via Day 1A and more will be grinding today. Can Day 1B set another record and become the biggest Main Event flight in terms of entries received? Only time will tell. 

Get Ready For Main Event Day 1B

After a record-breaking Main Event flight Day 1A, APT Hanoi Billions 2023 is ready for the second starting day flight—Day 1B. The flight kicks off at 11 AM local time. The Day 1A flight ended with Vietnam’s Thang Do Quang leading the pack of survivors. The top 10 stacks also includes Indian poker pro Vishal Ojha. Gaurav Sood was eliminated from Day 1A.

Other Indian pros who survived include names like Deepak Bothra, Jaideep Sajwan, Sanish Chhabra, Rajashekhar Puttamsetty, Romit Advani, Nishant Sharma, Rishab Malik, Siddharth Mundada, Ayush Garg, Chiraag Patel, Amit Kaushik, Zarvan Tumboli, Ashish Munot, Meherzad Munsaf, Kanishka Samant, Mohit Bohra, Sandeep Singh, Raghav Bansal, Sreekanth Krishnamoorthy Narayanan, Siddharth Karia, and Akshay Nasa.

ME Day 1A Ends In Vietnam’s Thang Do Quang Leading The Pack

Vietnamese player Thang Do Quang is chip leading in the APT Main Event flight A. After the conclusion of 10 60-minute levels of play in the ME Day 1A, a record-breaking 670 entries (520 unique) were registered in the event. The previous record for the biggest starting day Main Event flight was in APT Taipei 2023 which had 437 entries. Three more flights remain and many more records can be broken in the coming time. The top 10 stacks at the end of Day 1A also include Indian poker pro Vishal Ojha who was last seen in U Series of Poker (USOP) Da Nang 2023. 

Day 1A – Top 10 Stacks

Deepak Bothra Derails Haitao Luan’s Train

Level 10, blinds 600/1,200, big blind ante 1,200

Deepak Bothra claimed a victim in Haitao Luan just before Day 1A concluded. The board ran out 5♣ 2♠ 4♥ 9♥ 3♠ and Bothra threw in 24,000 chips. The Chinese player was thinking for a while and then went for a jam. 

Bothra thought of this move (shove of 52,000) as a confusing one. But in the end the Indian pro matches and the hand goes to showdown. Bothra had pocket tens and Luan had 9-pair and obviously the former survived.

Gaurav Sood Eliminated From Day 1A

Level 10, blinds 600/1,200, big blind 1,200 

Table 54 had some action going with Indian pro Gaurav Sood and Chatcharn Sutthipisal locking horns. The board ran out as T♠ 9♦ 7♣ K♥ 8♦. The Indian pro made a bet worth 17,000. The pot was inflated and stood at over 60,000 chips. Sood was in a tight spot as his rival Sutthipisal rivered a better straight. Sood had 8♥ 6♦ which did him no good.

Ashish Munot Has Killer Aces 

Well-known Indian poker pro Ashish Munot is having a good day during the Main Event Day 1A. Earlier during the day, he had Aces versus Kings, and the player with Cowboys was shown the door. Munot now locked horns in a 3-way pot with Pham Duy Anh.

On a flop which read 9♣ 8♥ J♥ Anh went all-in. Munot called without any delay. The 4♦ on the turn was checked by Munot and Anh. The 6♠ on the river was good for Munot who fired 13,000. Anh called and tabled A♣ J♠. The Indian pro had Pocket Rockets which sent Anh to the rail. Munot is steadily collecting chips and going strong.

Philippines No.1 All Time Money List Joins The Game

Level 7, blinds 400/800, big blind ante 800 

Marc Rivera, the player who’s number one on Philippines’ All Time Money List joined Day 1A of the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event at National Convention Center.

The Filipino poker pro has earned over $2,800,000 in his poker career and is surely looking to hit the $3 Million with his performance at the ongoing APT Hanoi Billions 2023 series.

Dinner Break Kicks In

Players who are still in contention are now on an one-hour dinner break. Hong Kong players Alan Wong and Horace Leung both have a stack of roughly 220,000 chips. This puts both the players in chip lead position. A total of 503 entries registered for the starting flight of Day 1A. Only 350 players have made it so far. After the break, Level 7 will start with blinds standing at 400/800, big blind ante 800.

336 Players Remain In Day 1A

The APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event flight Day 1A has 336 players left from a pool of 471. The late registrations end in around 5 hours and 28 minutes. 

Royal Flush Graces Day 1A

Level 6, blinds 300/600, big blind ante 600

When the community cards read T♣ K♣ 8♦ 2♥ A♣, Japanese player Yuichi Sumida showed off a hand which occurs 0.000154 percent of the time. Yes, we are talking about the coveted royal flush. Sumida had Q♣ J♣ which beat his rival’s set of tens to scoop the pot which occurs very rarely.

Pan Ruhua Inching Closer To The Chip Lead

Level 5, blinds 300/500, big blind ante 500 

The heads-up action on table 28 saw the community cards read K♠ 2♦ Q♠ 4♥. Pan Ruhua checked and Kenji Harada fired back 17,000 into a pot worth around 50,000.

The ball was in Ruhua’s court. He tanked for a bit and then went all-in for 51,800. Harada wasn’t  happy to see his rival’s move but matched.

Ruhua had 2♠ 2♣ and ahead of Harada’s J♠ T♥. Only an ace card or a nine would get rid of Ruhua. 7♦ came on the river which translated into a double up for the Chinese player. With over 150,000 Ruhua is inching very close to the chip leader position towards the halfway mark of flight 1A.

Free Chips For Shashank Shekhar

Level 5, blinds 300/500, big blind ante 500 

On table 44, the small blind and big blind players were missing after the break was over. Their respective seats were empty and blinds were left without any defense.

Making the most of this opportunity, Paris Sitzoukis opened with 1,000 from the high-jack spot. But Indian poker pro Shashank Shekhar did not let Sitzoukis steal the blinds as he went for a 3-bet of 3,500. Sitzoukis folded grudgingly.

Thang Do Quang Leading Ahead Of The Second Break

A Vietnamese player named Thang Do Quang is currently leading the player field as the game approaches its second break.

Hacine Took Away Kunal’s Chips

Level 4, blinds 200/400, big blind ante 400

The community cards read 3♦ 4♥ 5♦ 5♠ 8♠, Hacine Chatteur’s threw in 1,800 was matched by Indian poker pro and Natural8 India ambassador Kunal Patni. Chatteur had 8♣ 2♣, narrowly beating the pocket sevens of Patni. In the following hand

Patni opened with 1,000 from under the gun (UTG) position. Chatteur matched from the small blind position.

The flop brought A♦ 9♣ 3♠, Patni’s made a bet of 1,000 and his rival. Then the Indian pro bet 3,600 when 4♦ came on the turn. His opponent again matched. River card was K♦ and Chatteur bet 7,700 and Patni thought for a bit and folded.

Patni also added, “I’d have gone all-in if you checked.” Chatteur replied back saying, “I’d have called.” “I’d have called,” replied Chatteur.

It Is Time For A Break

Players are on a break from grinding. This is the first break of the day and so far a total of 283 entries have joined the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event flight A. Players can register throughout the day.

Bryan Tries To Bluff Meherzad

Level 2, blinds 100/200, big blind ante 200

When the board read T♠ 5♣ 2♦ 9♠ 7♥, Bryan Wong went for a shove of 23,000. The pot then stood at 18,000 with two players locking horns. The action moved on to Indian poker player Meherzad Munsaf.

Munsaf was seen counting his chips and then made the call but also gave Wong a look many times before doing that. Wong was heard saying, “Deuce.”

Wong revealed his cards as A♠ 2♠ and then stood up to see what his rival had. Munsaf happily showed off his 5♦ 2♥ which was the winning hand (two pairs

When the board read T♠ 5♣ 2♦ 9♠ 7♥, Bryan Wong went for a shove of 23,000. The pot then stood at 18,000 with two players locking horns. The action moved on to Indian poker player Meherzad Munsaf.

Munsaf was seen counting his chips and then made the call but also gave Wong a look many times before doing that. Wong was heard saying, “Deuce.”

Wong revealed his cards as A♠ 2♠ and then stood up to see what his rival had. Munsaf happily showed off his 5♦ 2♥ which was the winning hand (two pairs).

Welcome To The APT Hanoi Billions 2023 ME Flight A 

The much awaited Main Event of the APT Hanoi Billions 2023 has kicked off. The tournament comes with a guarantee of VND 25,000,000,000 and a buy-in of VND 36,000,000. The tournament will see many known players from the Asian circuit grinding along with the Indian contingent which has marked its attendance in strong numbers. How many Indian pros will manage to bag and tag today? Only time will tell. Stay tuned for all the updates from APT Hanoi Billions 2023 Main Event Flight A.