The tension creeps up another notch with blinds up to 4000/8000 with an ante of 500, and we're just four players short of the money in the PokerStars.net ANZPT Main Event.

Surprisingly, the action is still running thick and fast with the short stacks forced to make a stand or suffer the consequences. It proved a successful tactic for Chris Levick as his A-Q connected against pocket jacks but not so for PokerStars qualifier Nick Muzha, who pushed A-K into the pocket jacks of Lisa Walsh, but missed the board.

Matt Burgione also received a timely double-up when his A-K hit a king on the flop against the pocket nines of Monica Nguyen, although it barely put a dent in her massive stack.

We also have a new chip leader: Peter Ling. Talk about staying under the radar - Ling, who finished fifth behind Alexander Kostritsyn in the 2008 Aussie Millions Main Event, and cashed in the 2008 WSOP Main Event, has just smashed through the 800,000-chip barrier.

And we've just received a special request from Jeremy Norton, a PokerStars qualifier from Brisbane. Message to wife Linda: "Hi, I'm doing fine and sitting on about 125,000 in chips." Stick the Moet on ice Linda!

But for Andrew Jeffreys, Tolly Sakellariou and Adam Kane, the dream of reaching the money has been dashed - desperately close to the line.

The chip count currently reads Peter Ling (800,000), Phi Luu (510,000), Van Tran (500,000), Billy Argyros (465,000) and Lisa Walsh (460,000).

Saturday morning in Sydney - the Darling Harbour craft market is packed, yachts are popping up on Sydney Harbour like a disjointed pattern of cheesecake slices and the sun is bright enough to give a hungover poker player a nasty reminder of Friday night's festivities.

Welcome back to Star City Casino in Sydney for day two in the PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney Main Event. Over the past two days, we've watched the field of 493 reduced to 185, but the serious stuff is yet to come.

We're still 140 spots away from money and with the blinds about to seriously bite, the action should be fast and furious today. ANZPT big kahuna Danny McDonagh expects that players will face 10 one-hour levels today, which will leave us a fair way short of the final table.

Not only are players starting to think about making the money and going on to take down the AUD $246,500 first prize, PokerStars.net has added fabulous value with approximately AUD$85,000 in prizes being awarded to the three players who achieve the highest points at all ANZPT events.

The overall point leaders have the opportunity to become sponsored PokerStars.net players. The overall points' champion will win a PokerStars.net sponsorship to the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT).

Sponsorship includes Main Event entry, accommodation and return economy airfare from an Asia Pacific destination (or equivalent travel allowance if residing outside this area). Sponsorship will apply to all Season 4 APPT Main Events during 2010. Based on the projected number of APPT events in 2010, this prize is valued at approximately AUD $50,000.

The overall points runner-up wins an AUD $25,000 sponsorship package while the overall points third place player will be entitled to AUD $10,500 in sponsorship.

ANZPT Adelaide winner Karl Krautschneider currently leads the field, but Mike Stecker (fourth in Adelaide) and Tony Hachem (15th in Adelaide) are still in the hunt here in Sydney and have added incentive to go deep in this event.

Our blog team have made their footy tips, picked a winner or two in the formguide for the local races and stocked up on Aspirin and lozenges for a huge day in the Star City poker room. So join us live from 12.20pm for day 2 of the ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

The structure for today's play is:

Level 10: 600/1200 (ante 200)
Level 11: 800/1600 (ante 200)
Level 12: 1000/2000 (ante 300)
Level 13: 1200/2400 (ante 400)
Level 14: 1500/3000 (ante 500)
Level 15: 2000/4000 (ante 500)
Level 16: 3000/6000 (ante 500)
Level 17: 4000/8000 (ante 500)
Level 18: 5000/10,000 (ante 1000)
Level 19: 6000/12,000 (ante 1000)

Top 10 chip counts

Adam Cusenza (Australia) 177,200
Jai Kemp (Australia) 163,300
Joseph Moussa (Australia) 151,900
Johnny Huynh (Australia) 151,500
Ola Jernberg (Sweden, PS Qualifier) 147,200
Xin Zhao (Australia) 138,200
Thorsten Schafer (Australia) 130,800
Joey Lawrence (Australia) 130,000
Viet Nguyen (Australia) 127,100
Yue Wang (Australia) 121,300

Just two days ago, Jai Kemp celebrated victory in the $550 six-handed event as part of the preliminary schedule for the PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney. It's said that winning form is good form, and Kemp took that saying to heart on day 1B of the ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

Just five levels into the day, Kemp, who finished fifth to Grant Levy in the 2007 PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final, had amassed a stack of more than 180,000. The day 1A chip leader Joseph Moussa finished with 152,000.

For a time, Kemp threatened to tear the field apart as he climbed above 200,000, but he steadily leaked chip throughout the evening and finished the day firmly back in the pack but still well positioned heading into day two.

It was an intriguing day with Kemp more than 100,000 clear of the next player for much of the afternoon until several challengers emerged in the last two levels to close the gap.

Adam Cusenza takes the overall chip lead into day two on 177,200, ahead of Kemp (163,300), Joseph Moussa (151,900), Johnny Huynh (151,500) and Swedish PokerStars qualifier Ola Jernberg (147,200).

Other notables to reach day two from day 1B included Ben Delaney, Harris Pavlou, Chris Levick, Monica Nguyen and Peter Ling. And special mention to Michael Confos, who called it a night with 30 minutes remaining in the day, left his chips for the staff to bag and will return tomorrow with 54,200.

The day 1B field of 260 took the total field to 493 and created a prize pool of AUD $986,000 - the biggest for an event up to $3000 buy-in local poker history.

The 96 survivors from day 1B will join the 89 who remain from day 1A for tomorrow's penultimate day of action, with the field first chasing a spot in the top 45 where they'll be guaranteed a payout; then the race starts for the first prize of AUD $246,500.

That race will start with only two of the five members of PokerStars.net Team Australia. Star City ambassador Grant Levy, Celina Lin and Emad Tahtouh all hit the rail, leaving Eric Assadourian and Tony Hachem to represent.

Hachem had been patient all day, and the payoff came in the final level when he flopped a set of jacks against his opponent's A-Q, sending him to a final tally of 101,100.

The 185 players still in contention will be back at 12.20pm AEST (3.20am GMT) tomorrow for day two of the PokerStars.net ANZPT. Good evening from the team in Sydney, Australia.

It's been a horror session for the PokerStars.net Team Australia contingent, with Tony Hachem left to wave the flag late into the evening on day 1B of the ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

Emad Tahtouh's stoic battle to survive into day two is over after he disappeared from the chip count shortly after the dinner break.

Grant Levy shared his tale of woe with all at the media desk: after calling out of the small blind with [ks] [js], the flop came down Ax-Kx-Jx with one spade. Levy check-called an opponent's bet of 4000. Everyone else got out of the way as the two men saw the turn of the [4s].

Levy open-shoved for his last 11,000 in chips and his opponent called, turning over Ax-Kx for a higher two pair. Needing either a jack or a spade to stay alive, the river didn't produce either, sending 2008 APPT Grand Final winner Grant Levy to the rail. He's human after all.

Celina Lin looked to be cruising around the chip average but found herself when she walked pocket queens into 6-5 on a flop of 6-6-4 and never improved. After final-tabling in the first ANZPT event in Adelaide Lin was hoping for another good showing but only added appearance points to the race for ANZPT Player of the Year honours.

Meanwhile tournament chip leader Jai Kemp has shown some charity and dropped down to 160,000 while PokerDome founder Chris Levick has moved up to 78,000, and Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series High Stakes champion Monica Nguyen has found more luck with the duck, moving up to well over 70,000 in chips.

Andrew Jeffreys has also recovered after a poor start earlier into today's session, with a sizeable 60,000 in his stack.

Play is about to tick into the final level for day 1B, with approximately 120 of the 260 players (chip average just under 43,000) chasing a spot in the day two line-up.

It might be casual Friday for Sydney's CBD crowd, but it's serious business for the 240-plus players expected to take their seats for today's day 1B flight of the PokerStars.net Australia New Zealand Poker Tour (ANZPT) Sydney Main Event.

ANZPT chief Danny McDonagh confirmed the field would be at least 463 last night, but that was before qualifiers from a "last chance" live satellite and players buying in directly this morning were added to the tally. There's even a slight chance the prize pool could crack AUD $1 million, which would be a staggering result for a new event on an increasingly crowded tournament schedule.

After yesterday's grey and drizzly weather, the sun is out this morning for players to enjoy brekky at one of the many harbourside eateries before taking their seats at 12.30pm.

The sole PokerStars.net Team Australia representative in action yesterday, Eric Assadourian, cruised through to day two. Today, the other four PokerStars.net Team Australia reps - 2008 APPT Grand Final winner and Star City ambassador Grant Levy, Celina Lin, Emad Tahtouh and Tony Hachem - will be in action.

Others we expect to see playing on day 1B include PokerStars.net Team Asia player Bryan Huang, 2009 Aussie Millions winner Stewart Scott, 2008 Melbourne Champs victor James "Jabba" Broom, 2008 APPT Grand Final fifth-place finisher Tim English, 2009 NZ Champs high roller winner Dennis Huntly and Sam Capra, who was fifth behind Scott in the Aussie Millions Main Event back in January.

Sydney's young guns will be out in force, with Ali Khalil, Monica Nguyen, Tim Horan and Michael Mayar (fifth in the recent NZ Champs) leading the charge while the New Zealand invasion is headed by James Honeybone, Martin Cardno and Brooke Howard-Smith.

We're also expecting big things from some of Australia's top online players, with Jonathan Karamalikis, Ben Delaney, Harris Pavlou and Andrew Jeffreys spotted around the tables last night.

Like day 1A, the structure for today's play (starting stack 20,000) will be nine 60-minute levels:

Level 1:50/100
Level 2: 75/150
Level 3 100/200
Level 4: 100/200 (25 ante)
Level 5: 150/300 (25 ante)
Level 6: 200/400 (50 ante)
Level 7: 300/600 (75 ante)
Level 8: 400/800 (100 ante)
Level 9: 500/1000 (100 ante)

Join us live from Star City in Sydney from 12.30pm for day 1B of the first ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

With only one level and 120 players left on day 1A of the PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney Main Event, there's some serious all-in action popping up left, right and centre.

Notables still in contention include PokerStars.net Team Australia player Eric Assadourian (69,700), Billy "The Croc" Argyros (86,500) and Jeff Lisandro (74,500), who is clearly the boss on table 24, constantly pushing his stack in post-flop having hit either top pair or two pair and busting opponents.

On the other hand, there are some minnows eating the sharks, with Mike Mantan and Bruce Nguyen striding out to the chip lead with 135,000 and 120,000 respectively. Joseph Moussa is nipping at their heels on 103,000, Yue Wang has recovered from a hiccup to be back above 100,000 followed by Thorsten Schaefer (98,600) and Ben Barclay (74,500).

Some of those still hanging in there include Max Veenhuyzen (14,300), Andrew Scott (52,000), 2009 APL Wild Turkey Poker Classic runner-up Majed Haddad (14,500), Kimberley Manning (15,100) and Niro Peer who, after moving up to 90,000 before the dinner break, took a serious hit to his stack from another player. Peer is now dwindling on 24,800 in chips.

The players are now on their final 10-minute break before returning to playing one more level. The blinds will recommence at 500/1000 with a 100 ante, after which the chips will be bagged and tagged.

"It was a tough steak": that was the reply from Bruce Nguyen when we inquired to his whereabouts during the first 20 minutes of level seven on day 1A of the PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

But his extended absence over the dinner break did little to dent his stack of 114,000, easily the biggest in the room as we enter the latter stages of the opening day here at Star City.

Close behind Nguyen is one of only five Australians to have won a WSOP bracelet, Jeff Lisandro. Born in Perth but now best described as a resident of the world, Lisandro just claimed another victim when his [jc] [4s] made two-pair on a flop of [js] [4h] [kh] against his opponent's [as] [kd], with the turn [7c] and river [6c] bringing no change. Lisandro, who also finished 17th in the 2006 WSOP Main Event, is now up to 75,000.

Likewise, Michael Guzzardi's stack has headed north since the dinner break, with his latest pot taking his stack above 40,000. Max Veenhuyzen also dropped by tell us his delight that A-K didn't suck out on his 7-3, which leaves the affable Sandgroper just below his starting stack of 20,000.

In contrast, the hopes of securing the ANZPT Sydney title have ended for Melbourne cult poker figure Steve "The Big Show" Topakas. Tired of Thorsten Schafer's constant bluffing, Topakas made a stand with pocket fives, only to find Schafer waiting with pocket aces. The board ran out [4s] [jd] [7d] [3c] [10d], and the curtain had fallen on "The Big Show".

Likewise, Sydney bookmaker Stewart Davidson has been eliminated after his pocket threes were smashed by a set of fours.

PokerStars.net Team Australia player Eric Assadourian delivered the KO blow in his verbal stoush with Martin Comer when the money went in on a board showing [ks] [8s] [ad] [js[. Comer showed [kd] [jh] for two-pair, while Assadourian's [as] [2s] needed help, which duly arrived in the shape of the 2s on the river.

More than 100 of the 233 starters have now been sent to the rail, and with two hours remaining, that figure is sure to increase. Blinds will soon be at 400/800 with a 100 ante for the penultimate level of the day's play.

Half a world away from the spring sunshine radiating down on the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo, the Australasian poker spotlight returns to Sydney for the second event in the inaugural season of the PokerStars.net Australia New Zealand Poker Tour (ANZPT).

We're at Star City Casino in Sydney, home of the PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final. It's one of the most spectacular settings for a poker tournament anywhere in the world, with players overlooking the Sydney CBD, the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Darling Harbour precinct, home to scores of waterside restaurants and bars.

For players who may have experienced Sydney in December for the finale of the APPT in either of the past two years, let's hope they left the board shorts and zinc cream at home this time around.

It's late autumn in Sydney and a far cry from the images of sunseekers lounging on Bondi Beach or catching a wave at Manly or Dee Why. Indeed, the first day of the PokerStars.net ANZPT will kick-off under a grey sky and steady drizzle.

It might be gloomy outside, but things couldn't be brighter indoors where Aussie poker players have been flying in from around the country in recent days, packing the Star City poker room to overflow.

Preliminary events have been capped, huge numbers have been turning out for the nightly mega satellites and we're expecting a 400-plus field for the AUD $2200 ANZPT Sydney Main Event.

Considering this is a new event on an increasingly packed local tournament schedule and amid the economic gloom that Australia has not escaped, it's a staggering achievement for the ANZPT to attract such healthy numbers - underlining the strength of the poker scene Down Under.

Our two highest profile players - Team PokerStars Pros Joe Hachem and Lee "Final Table" Nelson - may be waving the Antipodean flag in Monte Carlo, but that's not to say the field for the ANZPT Sydney Main Event is lacking for quality.

There are APPT event winners Grant Levy and Eric Assadourian, their PokerStars' Team Australia teammates Emad Tahtouh, Tony Hachem and Celina Lin, ANZPT Adelaide champ Karl Krautschneider (who won his way to Sydney in the final online qualifier on PokerStars), 2009 Aussie Millions winner Stewart Scott plus scores of PokerStars qualifiers; most Australians and New Zealanders but several have made the long trek from the US and Europe.

The structure for today's play (starting stack 20,000) will be nine 60-minute levels:

Level 1: 50/100
Level 2: 75/150
Level 3 100/200
Level 4: 100/200 (25 ante)
Level 5: 150/300 (25 ante)
Level 6: 200/400 (50 ante)
Level 7: 300/600 (75 ante)
Level 8: 400/800 (100 ante)
Level 9: 500/1000 (100 ante)

The first players are starting to file into the room to collect their credentials, and we'll be underway at 12.30pm AEST (3.30am GMT) with the opening hand of the 2009 PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney Main Event.