India's Sangeeth Mohan has some impressive results on his poker resume and will be looking to improve on that here in Cebu. Well, it's been a good start for Mohan as he sits with just under 30,000 in chips at this early stage of the day.
When we came to Chris Edgar's table there was a board showing and Edgar was first to act in the small blind position against the player in the big blind.
There was already almost 3,000 in the pot at this point and Edgar bet 1,100. His opponent then made it 2,000 more and Edgar made the call. The river would see the board completed with a and Edgar would again check and this time his opponent would slow down and tap the table behind him.
When Edgar tabled his , for trips, his opponent would muck his hand and Edgar would take down the handy little pot.
It wouldn't have been the early start the runner-up finisher of the recent APPT Seoul Main Event was looking for, but Vincent Rubianes still has plenty of time to regain the chips we just witnessed him lose.
When we came to his table, Rubianes was involved in a hand with a board showing and coming up against one opponent. There was around 4,000 in the pot at this point and Rubianes was first to act on the turn. He flung out 2,325 and his opponent quickly called as the final card would be dealt on the river.
River:
The river card didn't change much on the board, but it would see Rubianes check to his opponent who bet 4,000. This was too much for Rubianes and he let go of his hand to take a hit to his stack early.
The players keep filing into the Waterfront Hotel and Casino as the tournament clock now flashes with 111 entrants today. That number brings the overall field to 238 - meaning that two more players have entered this year than last year's event.
We just saw Craig Cockburn flexing his muscles early over on his table. Throwing in a four-bet from the hijack after his opponent three-bet on the button. The players studied Cockburn for a few moments before letting his hand go and Cockburn raked in the chips.
It’s certainly the biggest field of the three opening flights here this afternoon as it’s everyone’s last opportunity to be a part of the APPT Cebu Main Event.
Some of those players we’ve spotted on our first orbit include Chris Edgar, Azusa Maeda, Michael Mariakis, Dave Ewing, Sammy Huang, Craig Cockburn, Hirotoshi Nakabo, Steve Yea, APPT Seoul runner-up Vincent Rubianes , ex-UFC fighter Heath “The Texas Crazy Horse” Herring, and a man who recently made headlines in the MMA world with a debut win in his first professional fight, Terrence “Not A Texas Crazy Horse” Chan.
There’s also a nice sprinkling of champions amongst us with October Macau Poker Cup champion Raiden Kan, ANZPT Sydney champ Gordon Huntly and the reigning Aussie Millions champion and player fresh off a final table in Manila just a few days ago, Oliver “Soul Crusher” Speidel all taking their seats today.
Finally we have the fourth and final Team PokerStars Pro member in action this afternoon, Singapore’s Bryan Huang.
The players have scrambled into their seats and APPT President Danny McDonaugh has made the call to shuffle up and deal. He has informed the room that it is looking like today's field will be over 90 players.