2023 888poker LIVE London

£1,100 Main Event
Day: 1a
Event Info

2023 888poker LIVE London

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
aj
Prize
£83,100
Event Info
Buy-in
£1,100
Prize Pool
£367,500
Entries
385
Level Info
Level
30
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
100,000
Players Info - Day 1a
Entries
114
Players Left
33

Jiaze Li Dominates Day 1a of the £1,100 Main Event to Hold Commanding Lead

Level 12 : Blinds 800/1,600, 1,600 ante
Jiaze Li
Jiaze Li

It was a boisterous Day 1a of the £1,100 Main Event at the 2023 888poker Live London stop that saw plenty of players including many of the 888poker ambassadors take to the felt. A total of 114 entries were recorded during the opening of three flights with just 33 players advancing to Day 2 with a chip stack.

There was no question who the chip leader by the end of the day was as Jiaze Li dominated the last few levels of the night to accumulate a whopping stack of 375,500 chips. Li was quietly going about his business through much of the day but a massive three-way pot broke out where Li made a full house to eliminate one opponent and take a large chunk from the other.

Li continued his dominance by cracking the pocket aces of a fresh stack just moments later. To cap off the night, Li was faced with an all-in from Ajay Kejriwal who put the last of his chips in the middle without looking at his cards. Li made the call and found out that his nine-high was actually ahead. Both players made a pair but Li's was the better of the two, adding even more to his growing stack.

The next closest stack belongs to Steven Game who brought his "A-Game" to the tables today. Game mustered up a stack of 219,500 chips, good enough for second place on the day. Rounding out the top three stacks is Raymond Caabay with 179,500 which was rather impressive considering Caabay joined the field in the second half of the day.

There were plenty of 888poker ambassadors in the field for Day 1a but only one was able to make it through to Day 2. That honor was given to Lucia Navarro who scathed her way through on just one bullet en route to bagging up 46,000 chips. As for Ian Simpson, Josh Manley, Vivian Saliba, and Nick Eastwood, they will be forced to enter one of the latter flights or at the start of Day 2 if they wish to keep their hopes of a title still alive.

One of the feel-good stories of the tournament belonged to Adam Gilbert who won the opportunity for himself and his two friends, David Swain and Thomas Hayton, to enter the Main Event after winning a $5 Royal Squad tournament on 888poker. The three players had their entry fee, flight, and accommodations all paid for along with a VIP experience to a football game later this week. Unfortunately, none of the three players were able to find a stack in order to advance to Day 2.

The cards will be back in the air for Day 1b at 12:00 p.m. noon local time at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino and the field is expected to be at least twice the size. There will also be a turbo flight taking place at 6:00 p.m. local time where the levels will only be 20 minutes in length. The PokerNews live reporting team will be back on the tournament floor to bring you all of the live updates as the action unfolds.

Tags: Adam GilbertAjay KejriwalDavid SwainIan SimpsonJiaze LiJosh ManleyLucia NavarroNick EastwoodRaymond CaabaySteven GameThomas HaytonVivian Saliba

Li Scoops a Massive Pot to Take the Lead

Level 11 : Blinds 600/1,200, 1,200 ante
Jiaze Li
Jiaze Li

Christopher Day was on the short stack with around 17,000 chips and pushed all in from the cutoff. Jiaze Li called on the button and Manh Nguyen also called from the big blind.

The flop came J102 and Nguyen check-called a bet of 10,000 from Li to create a side pot. The J paired the board on the turn and Nguyen checked again. Li sized up a bet of 28,000 this time and Nguyen still called.

The river was the A and Nguyen checked for the third time. Li reached back for a bet of 63,000 and Nguyen mulled it over before dropping in a call. Li tabled AJ for a full house and Nguyen's AK was not enough to beat that. Day was also eliminated after showing his QJ, sending a massive pot and the chip lead to Li.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Jiaze Li gb
Jiaze Li
300,000
222,000
222,000
Profile photo of Manh Nguyen us
Manh Nguyen
47,500
47,500
47,500
Profile photo of Christopher Day gb
Christopher Day
Busted

Tags: Christopher DayJiaze LiManh Nguyen

Navarro Hits One of Her Many Outs

Level 11 : Blinds 600/1,200, 1,200 ante
Lucia Navarro
Lucia Navarro

Lucia Navarro raised to 2,500 in the cutoff and Ajay Kejriwal three-bet to 6,500 on the button. The blinds folded and Navarro pushed all in for 30,300 which was instantly called by Kejriwal.

Lucia Navarro: A10
Ajay Kejriwal: AK

The flop came QJ5 and Navarro picked up straight and flush draws. The 9 on the turn gave her even more outs and the 8 on the river made her straight as Navarro doubled up.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Lucia Navarro es
Lucia Navarro
63,600
27,200
27,200
Profile photo of Ajay Kejriwal gb
Ajay Kejriwal
28,000
28,000
28,000

Tags: Lucia NavarroAjay Kejriwal

Kirby Fires the River

Level 9 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante
Oscar Kirby
Oscar Kirby

Victor Ilyukhin limped in from middle position which allowed Oscar Kirby to come along on the button and Ross Posner checked his option in the big blind.

The flop came QJ2 and Ilyukhin tossed in a bet of 3,000. Kirby called and Posner quickly folded. The turn was the 6 and both players checked to the K on the river.

Ilyukhin checked again and Kirby seized the opportunity to make a bet of 8,300. Ilyukhin thought for a brief moment but decided to send his cards to the muck.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Victor Ilyukhin gb
Victor Ilyukhin
108,000
30,000
30,000
Profile photo of Oscar Kirby gb
Oscar Kirby
47,000
2,000
2,000

Tags: Oscar KirbyRoss PosnerVictor Ilyukhin

Fortunate River for Simpson

Level 7 : Blinds 200/500, 500 ante
Ian Simpson
Ian Simpson

Ian Simpson raised it up on the button and Alexandru Andrei defended from the big blind. The flop fell 854 and Andrei check-called a bet of 2,000 from Simpson.

The 4 paired the board on the turn and both players checked to the 9 on the river. Andrei fired out a bet of 4,500 and Simpson quickly called. Andrei showed A8 but Simpson made a better pair on the river with A9.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Ian Simpson gb
Ian Simpson
46,000
17,300
17,300
Profile photo of Alexandru Andrei
Alexandru Andrei
30,000

Tags: Alexandru AndreiIan Simpson

Taking a Look at the 888poker Team

Level 5 : Blinds 200/300, 300 ante
888poker team
888poker team

Joining the five 888poker ambassadors in the field is the Royal Squad winner Adam Gilbert along with his two friends David Swain and Thomas Hayton. Unfortunately for Swain, his Main Event came to an end early on as he was seen leaving the tournament area.

Rory Jennings is also supporting the 888poker brand this week and found himself seated at Table 18 with three of the ambassadors.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Vivian Saliba br
Vivian Saliba
52,000
25,500
25,500
Profile photo of Josh Manley gb
Josh Manley
48,000
8,000
8,000
Profile photo of Lucia Navarro es
Lucia Navarro
34,600
34,600
34,600
Profile photo of Rory Jennings gb
Rory Jennings
30,000
30,000
30,000
Profile photo of Ian Simpson gb
Ian Simpson
28,700
-1,300
-1,300
Profile photo of Adam Gilbert gb
Adam Gilbert
28,000
28,000
28,000
Profile photo of Thomas Hayton gb
Thomas Hayton
23,500
23,500
23,500
Profile photo of Nick Eastwood gb
Nick Eastwood
20,000
-10,000
-10,000
Profile photo of David Swain
David Swain
Busted

Manley's Min-Raise Forces a Big Fold

Level 3 : Blinds 100/200, 200 ante
Josh Manley
Josh Manley

Adam Lawler and Josh Manley went heads-up to a flop with around 4,000 in the middle already. The flop came 844 and Lawler led out with a bet of 3,300. Manley min-raised to 6,600 and Lawler tanked for nearly two minute before releasing his cards to the muck.

"Big fold," Lawler said as Manley raked in the pot.

"Tens? Jacks?" Manley questioned.

"Queens," Lawler responded.

"Queens?! Good fold," Manley nodded with a grin.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Josh Manley gb
Josh Manley
40,000
10,000
10,000
Profile photo of Adam Lawler gb
Adam Lawler
22,800

Tags: Adam LawlerJosh Manley

Kirby Calls Down Berko

Level 2 : Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Scott Berko
Scott Berko

Scott Berko opened to 300 from the hijack and Oscar Kirby defended from the big blind. The flop came A104 and Kirby check-called a bet of 300 from Berko.

The turn brought the A and Kirby checked again. Berko tossed in a bet of 800 and Kirby stuck around to see the 2 on the river. Kirby led out with a bet of 600 this time and Berko raised to 3,500. Kirby thought for a minute before flicking in a chip to call.

"Just a ten," Berko announced which led to Kirby showing his A6 for the best hand.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Oscar Kirby gb
Oscar Kirby
37,700
37,700
37,700
Profile photo of Scott Berko gb
Scott Berko
27,600
27,600
27,600

Tags: Oscar KirbyScott Berko

Welcome to the Start of 888poker Live London £1,100 Main Event

888poker LIVE 2023
888poker LIVE 2023

The 888poker festival has made its way to the heart of the United Kingdom and is being held at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino in London, England. The £1,100 Main Event kicks off today with Day 1a at 12:00 pm noon, the first of three starting flights taking place.

Many of the 888poker ambassadors will be taking part in the festival including the likes of Ian Simpson, Vivian Saliba, and Josh Manley. They will be joined by many of the local British poker community along with many satellite winners. Another name to keep an eye on is Adam Gilbert who won a massive VIP package from 888poker. Gilbert won the opportunity for himself and two friends to enter the Main Event, including travel and accommodations, all from just $5.

The action will be getting underway shortly with each starting stack given 30,000 chips with the blinds beginning 100/100 and a 100 big blind ante. The levels will be 45 minutes in length throughout Day 1 with a total of 12 levels being played. There will be a 20-minute break after every three levels and a 40-minute dinner break after level six.

An unlimited number of reentries will be permitted in this event which could make for a lot of action in the early going. Late registration will remain open until the start of Day 2 which will take place on Saturday, April 22nd at 12:00 pm. Day 1b will be at the same time tomorrow with Day 1c being a turbo flight in the evening. The 888poker festival also has the 2,200 High Roller taking place which has attracted many notable names and will wrap up later today.

The PokerNews live reporting team will be here to bring you all of the live updates throughout the Main Event en route to crowning a champion in just a few day's time.

Tags: Adam GilbertIan SimpsonJosh ManleyVivian Saliba