The day 2 field has been decided for the APPT Grand Final, with 207 players set to return to Star City in Sydney tomorrow in pursuit of a top 48 finish, then a shot at the AUD $1 million first prize.

Over the past three days, 477 players have taken their seats in one of the day 1 flights, and more than half have been eliminated.

One of the day 1C chip leaders was Anthony Rafter from Ireland (85,000), but he finished well behind the overall pacesetter Jason Gray, who takes a stack of 184,000 into battle tomorrow.

After yesterday’s lop-sided finish, today’s chip count was very even with 11 players finishing within 25,000 of the biggest stack.

Also returning from the day 1C field will be Team PokerStars Pro Chris Moneymaker, who looked at ease in compiling an impressive stack of 65,000.

Other notables to secure a day 2 berth include well known Melbourne players Jimmy Siu (70,000), Michael Guzzardi (56,000), David Gorr (46,000), Dory Zayneh (33,000) and Julius Colman (22,000).

Frank ‘The Bank’ Bianco (42,000) is aiming for another cash after sneaking into the money at the APPT Macau main event. Sydneysiders Scott ‘Punty’ Smith (58,000) and Patrick Fletcher (41,000) performed strongly as did our Big Brother contestant Nobbi Tanaka (38,000).

Carter Gill, who finished 28th here last year, remains in contention with 51,000 while John Juanda is still in the hunt to add an APPT title to his four WSOP bracelets but faces an uphill battle (13,000).

PokerStars Sponsored players Ivan Tan (53,000), Masa Kagawa (48,000) and Van Marcus (11,000) also progressed, but Team PokerStars Pro Joe Hachem, his brother Tony, Emad Tahtouh, Eddy Sabat, Bryan Huang, Daniel Craker and Brian McFadden were all eliminated.

Moneymaker joins Lee Nelson and Gavin Griffin as the only Team PokerStars Pros to return tomorrow, while PokerStars Sponsored player Eric Assadourian will also be waving the flag for the event sponsor.

We’ll be back from 12.30pm tomorrow as the race starts in earnest for the final title on season two of the PokerStars.net APPT.

Michael Guzzardi wasn’t really interested in playing the APPT Grand Final today after a tough session in the ‘big PLO’ game last night. But at the insistence of a mate, he decided to take a seat in the last satellite played yesterday. Sure enough, the Melbourne youngster won through and is sitting pretty late on 55,000 late on day 1C.

Guzzardi, known online as thebigsicko, made his major tournament debut in the WSOP earlier this year. He cashed in three WSOP events, including a tremendous seventh in the $1500 Pot Limit Omaha with rebuys event.

He started playing poker online with a $1 bankroll and ran that original dollar up to six figures over the course of two years. His live record could be set for another major score if he continues the form shown today.

With less than an hour remaining on day 1C, the number of 2008 APPT champions in the field is down to one. Eddy Sabat, the APPT Macau winner, bowed out when he found himself in agonising spot with eights against nines. No haircut just yet Eddy.

APPT Auckland champion Daniel Craker got into a tangle with Jason O’Brien, the money going on a board of 10s-2d-9c-Ah-7s. The Kiwi saw O’Brien’s pocket sevens and knew he was beaten, mucked his cards and left the tournament area.

In contrast to Jason Gray’s runaway result yesterday, the stacks in the room are very even tonight, with Jay Huxley back to 85,000 but still leading. However, there are more than 10 players within 15,000 of the lead.

By Jenn Barr

Although the time difference is only two hours from the now-frosty Tokyo, the jet-lag quickly settles in upon arriving in beautiful Sydney. The flight itself is at least 10 hours direct – more for players with stops in Seoul or Singapore on the way south. And yet when you take a look at Darling Harbour and the Sydney skyline, it all seems worth it.

There are three players representing Japan in the APPT Grand Final this year, and all are notable enough to be recognised on the regional poker scene. Aside from the obvious language barriers, the trio are having a ball.

Yoshihiro Tasaka won the APPT Seoul event this year and has played in the past two APPT events as a PokerStars Sponsored player. He’s come to Australia a few times in his life, but this time he hasn’t left the casino. He reckons Sydney is a great place though and likes the fact that it’s near the sea.

Masa Kagawa is a well-known high roller and is noted for his third-place finish at the 2007 Aussie Millions $100,000 buy-in event and a final table at the recent EPT London High Roller event. A frequent visitor to Australia for events like the Aussie Millions and last year’s APPT Grand Final, Masa loves Sydney. He finds it a great place to relax. He did some shopping yesterday just after arriving and there’s been a smile on his face ever since.

Wooka Kim won the All Japan Poker Championship Ladies’ Event in 2007 and has been at the centre of the Japanese poker scene ever since, gaining followers on her Ice Beer blog where she writes about her travels.

She hasn’t had a chance to see much of the city but she appreciates the fact that things in Sydney are concentrated and easily accessible. Hopefully she will make it to days 2 and 3 and not have much of a chance to see the sights.

By James Potter

Irishman Anthony thepirat Rafter enjoyed his dinner on Day 1C of the APPT Grand Final after amassing 70,000 in chips. Rafter bought into the event directly from his winnings on PokerStars.

Rafter has had some excellent performances online including a final table in a $1000 buy-in WCOOP event in which he finished eighth and won just under USD $20,000. He is a well travelled poker player with trips to the WSOP and EPT in Monte Carlo while this is his fourth APPT event, having previously played twice in Macau and Korea.

“It my first time in Australia and I just love it. Yesterday I even went scuba diving,” he said. After all, he is thepirat!

Another who’s enjoyed his day at the tables is Tom Guise. Like your experienced blog team (yeah right), Tom comes from a professional writing background, which included a stint as editor-in-chief of Penthouse. He hasn’t exactly traded in his pen for a life of poker but he is far from a poker Playboy bunny.

“It’s great to be playing in this event. I am living back in Sydney now and I won the package on PokerStars. Pro poker player? Get out of here! I am still writing but I have to admit I am playing a lot of poker at the moment,” he said, reflecting on a five-month stint in Macau from which he’s only recently returned.

The steady stream of PokerStars Sponsored players has continued out of the poker area at Star City Casino in Sydney as we enter the evening session on day 1C of the PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final.

On the last hand before the dinner break, APPT Seoul winner Yoshihiro Tasaka added an extra few thousand chips to the ever-growing stack of Jay Huxley. With the board showing Kc-5s-10d-5c-7d, Huxley bet enough to put the Japanese player all-in, and he duly obliged after a long time in the tank. But his A-10 fell short of Huxley’s 8d-5d, good for trips.

Then minutes after the hungry horde had returned to their seats, Emad Tahtouh was freed to return to the buffet for a snifter of cognac and a cigar when his A-J stayed dominated by A-K. It was an unhappy day for the PokerStars Sponsored player, who never looked comfortable as he nursed a painful hand injury. It can be a dangerous game.

A quick wrap of the other PokerStars folk still in contention reveals 2003 world champ Chris Moneymaker leading the bunch on 60,000, while three of this year’s APPT champions – Eddy Sabat (18,000), Daniel Craker (19,000) and Van Marcus (14,000) – are all below the chip average. Ivan Tan has 21,000 but Masa Kagawa is looking solid with more than 35,000 in front of him.

Huxley is now a clear leader with the only stack north of 100,000 as play ticks into level six (blinds 250/500 with an ante of 50) and just one level to play this evening.

Before his exit, Tahtouh told our video team how he thought events might shape up...

Watch APPT Sydney S2: Emad Tahtouh isn't a target on PokerStars.tv

By Rachel Healey

Adding more celebrity glamour to the tables today in the PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final is Nobuyuki Tanaka, known around Australia as simply ‘Nobbi’. A contestant in reality television show Big Brother, Nobbi is a regular online poker player who won his entry to the APPT Grand Final through a satellite on PokerStars (he actually won two seats).

His interest in poker began three or four years ago through casual games with his mates "using shrapnel" (or small change) and progressed to regularly playing in live and online tournaments.

His enjoyment of the game led him to a job as a dealer at Crown Casino in Melbourne where he worked until he took his place on the 2008 Big Brother series. As one of the most dynamic characters on the show, Nobbi is remembered for spending two months banished outside the house in a Kombi Van and his constant clashes with the eventual winner, 53-year-old grandmother Terri Munro.

With the threat of his television personality making him a target for other players, Nobbi is has been playing slowly but aggressively when the cards are good. "I hope they target me. It wouldn’t be such a bad thing," he said. Sitting on 30,000 just before dinner, Nobbi will be one to watch this evening. At least he can't get voted out of this game!

It’s a long way to come from London for four hours of poker, but Peter Eastgate has proved a popular visitor to Sydney for the PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final.

The 2008 WSOP main event winner didn’t really get much going today and the final nail was delivered when he pushed pre-flop with Ah-8s, only to find Jarred Grimshaw wake-up with pocket aces.

Despite his short stay at the tables, a round of applause from the other players in the room showed they appreciated the appearance of poker’s newest ambassador.

Another PokerStars Sponsored player Bryan Huang has had his hot streak put on hold after bowing out during level four. Huang, who cashed in a record breaking three APPT events this season, made his last stand with K-10 but the board brought no assistance against his opponents pocket queens.

It’s been a case of mixed fortunes for the two Team PokerStars Pros in the past few minutes, with the elimination of Joe Hachem and a double-up for Chris Moneymaker.

However, Moneymaker can consider himself lucky after he found himself all-in with pocket jacks against pocket kings on a flop of 10-4-8, only for a tournament-saving jack to appear on the turn, taking him to 45,000 in chips.

Hachem’s tournament ended almost immediately after that hand was played when his pocket nines came up against Marcus Bechara’s A-K, with an ace on the flop sending the 2005 WSOP winner and Aussie poker icon to the trail.

We’re coming up to the dinner break on day 1C, with 144 of the 197 who started play still in their seats. Blinds are currently at level 5 (200/400 with a 25 ante). Wang Che Jung (108,000) and Jay Huxley (104,000) to have cracked the six-figure barrier today.

The key numbers have just been confirmed for the final event of the 2008 PokerStars.net APPT, and for the second year in-a-row, players in the APPT Grand Final will be playing for a first prize of AUD $1 million.

The field of 197 players today takes the total to 477, meaning a total prize pool is AUD $2,862,000. The top 48 players will be assured a payout.

One of the players who’s been quick to put up his hand for a slice of that prize pool is Jay Huxley. Just three levels into day’s play, Huxley’s stack is just under 100,000 after he took down a massive pot against Brad Milinkovic when their chips went in on a flop of 10d-Qd-7c. Huxley showed pocket 10s, Milinkovic had pocket sevens and the champagne corks were cracking when the final 10 sailed down the river.

To rub salt into the wound, Milinkovic was sent to the rail just a few hands later when he ran A-K into pocket nines on a flop of 9-A-8. Sometimes, it’s just not your day.

Tony Hachem appears to have purchased a loop ticket for his roller coaster ride today, and recently tested the tolerance of the tournament staff with an expletive-filled rant when his opponent rivered a flush. The PokerStars player is down to just 3000.

Meanwhile, Tony’s older brother Joe isn’t faring much better and is down to just 7000 after a frustrating session at the feature table for the Team PokerStars Pro.

Another set of brothers in the field, Perth’s Nik and Petar Lackovic, are travelling much better than the Hachems. The siblings even spent a few minutes sitting together before APPT tournament director Danny McDonagh delivered a tap on the shoulder to separate them. Nik is on 21,000 while Petar has 25,000 in his stack.

Any of these players have a chance to win this thing, but they'd better listen to the advice of someone who's pretty good at winning big tournaments - here former world champion Joe Hachem talks tournament strategy...

Watch APPT Sydney S2: Joe's advice on tournaments on PokerStars.tv

By James Potter

Mike Comer is one of the more interesting personalities in the poker world. He was involved in the creation of the first Australian poker room many years ago in Adelaide but now calls Africa home. He has set up casinos and card rooms in Sierra Leone and Liberia and is currently setting up shop in Ghana.

“Sydney is still technically home, I suppose but poker is really the only thing I ever come back for. I like it in Africa,” he said.

Mike’s brother Martin is also one of Australia’s most successful poker players but he busted out on the first hand of play on day 1A. “I can’t comment on that, I wasn’t here and it’s too close to home,” Mike joked.

Joseph Moussa doesn’t boast the glamourous travel lifestyle of Mike Comer, but Sydney’s own could be keeping his travel agent should he continue the start he’s made today.

Moussa only entered the event at the last minute and has already run his stack up to 50,000. He’ has been playing poker for two years and describes it as his passion, along with supporting his much loved rugby league team St George Dragons.

“I travelled to Macau earlier this year and didn’t really like it as much. I love Sydney, it’s home and everyone is really friendly and the food is more to my liking,” Moussa said.

It’s not possible to win the PokerStars.net APPT Grand Final during level one of the opening day, but your chances can sure end.

Sadly, we’ve just spotted a forlorn Brian McFadden wandering by after tangled with Gursel Ali shortly before the first break. In three-way action and with the board showing K-8-5-2, Ali bet 10,000, McFadden pushed all-in, the third player folded and Ali called.

The former Westlife singer showed A-K for top-pair, but Ali’s pocket eights (for a set) meant an end for the PokerStars Sponsored player before track one had even finished.

In contrast, Carter Gill could easily have followed McFadden to the rail but made a stellar move on a flop of A-J-6. With an opponent all-in, Gill folded pocket sixes and celebrated when the other player showed pocket sixes.

But pocket jacks did Tony Hachem no favours as he lost three-quarters of his stack in the early going today. Three players saw a flop of 7c-7s-3h, Brendan Edmonds bet 600 and both players called. The turn was Jd, Edmonds bet 1200 after Hachem checked, the third player folded and Hachem called.

The river was 9s, Edmonds bet 12,000, Hachem pushed all-in and Edmonds called, and showed pocket jacks for a full-house. Hachem showed pocket threes for a smaller full-house, leaving him just over 5000. However, the smile is back on the face of the affable PokerStars Sponsored player after his pocket aces just grew into quads, pushing him back over the 12,000-chip mark.