Mike Vanier Leads Pack into Day 3 at PokerGO Studio
Another day of action from the BetMGM Poker Championship is set to begin at 1 p.m. PT inside the fabulous PokerGO Studio at the Aria Resort and Casino.
The plan today is to whittle the field of 56 down to the seven-handed official final table. Sitting in prime position to make it there is Mike Vanier (1,840,000) who surged into the chip lead during the last level of play on Day 2. The Nebraskan native has notched nearly $1,500,000 in recorded live tournament earnings, mostly helped by his $595,000 payday following his runner-up finish in the 2022 $5,000 Venetian Deepstack.
Tied for second with 1,650,000 chips are Joshua Boulton and Bradley Hinson and following close behind them is Anatoly Nikitin with 1,605,000.
Day 3 Restart Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Name | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MIke Vanier | United States | 1,840,000 | 92 |
| 2 | Joshua Bolton | United Kingdom | 1,650,000 | 83 |
| 3 | Bradley Hinson | United States | 1,650,000 | 83 |
| 4 | Anatoly Nikitin | Russia | 1,605,000 | 80 |
| 5 | Michael Stashin | United States | 1,570,000 | 79 |
| 6 | Paul Gunness | United States | 1,245,000 | 62 |
| 7 | Justin Young | United States | 1,200,000 | 60 |
| 8 | David Stamm | United States | 1,145,000 | 57 |
| 9 | Fernando Garcia | Spain | 1,135,000 | 57 |
| 10 | Mo Zhou | China | 1,120,000 | 56 |
Other notables still in the field include 2014 WSOP Main Event Champ Martin Jacobson, Jeremy Ausmus, Stephen Song, Brian Hastings, and Nadya Magnus.
BetMGM Poker had 104 qualifiers for the tournament, with 94 taking advantage of the opportunity. However, just four remain on Day 3. Dan Naponse (660,000), Elias Garney (420,000), Danny DeJesus and Yong Kwon (305,000) were all able to enter the event for a fraction of the price and are still in the running for a big score!
The players returning for Day 3 have all locked up $10,244 but all eyes will be on the $560,442 that waits for the eventual winner.
Play resumes on Level 20, with blinds set at 10,000/20,000/20,000. Levels continue to be 60 minutes in duration and there will be a 15-minute player break every two levels.
As always, be sure to be on the lookout for all PokerNews updates to keep up with all of the action!