Manila, Philippines, January 2017 – Day 2 of the APT Main Event saw local pro Czardy Rivera rise from a slightly below average stack to emerge as the chip leader with a towering 884K stack.

Day 2 began with 47 players returning to the tables led by chip leaders’ Japanese player GACKT and France’s Benjamin Gonzva. With many short stacks in the mix, it was no surprise to see some early dropouts. Rivera helped out by eliminating Seong Ryun Lee with his pocket jacks winning the coin flip against Lee’s ace-king.

Later, Rivera became one of the chip leaders after claiming a big pot against Germany’s Guido Budack that didn’t reach a showdown. On a board of 6♣ 8♣ 10♥, Rivera laid out a hefty three-bet that pushed Budack out of the pot. To cap his day, a pot that saw four players in until the river betting, earned him a massive pile to finish his day high above the rest. Click here for the hand report.

Finishing the night running second in command was the Day 1A chip leader, GACKT, with 729K in chips. GACKT was one of the most consistent players today. He maintained his leader status for a large majority of the day, relinquishing very little chips, and making it difficult for players to double up through him. When the field downsized to two tables, one of GACKT’s biggest pots was earned against Rivera with his K♥ Q♦ top pair on a board ofQ♥ 4♠ 8♣ 3♠ J♥. Click here for the hand report.