Toby Lewis is leading the $5,300 PCA 2016 Main Event at the end of Day 1a.

Other notable players with big stacks include Andrey Zaichenko (119,500), Anton Astapau (104,100), Taylor Paur (100,000) and Olivier Busquet (90,600).

PCA 2016 Main Event Day 1a top five chip counts:
1st - Toby Lewis, UK, PokerStars player, 188,000
2nd - Boyuan Qu, USA, 149,800
3rd - Kathy Lehne, USA, 130,100
4th - Andrey Zaichenko, Russia, PokerStars player, 119,500
5th - Ryan Blank, USA, 114,400

Source: EPT press

If ever proof were needed that skill wins out in poker, then the recent resumé of IPT Malta champion Georgios Zisimopoulos would be a more than adequate example. Since Season 12 got under way in Barcelona last August, he has acheived an astonishing 14 EPT cashes, with the majority coming from final table appearances. He cashed three times in Barcelona (two final tables), then a further three times at EPT12 Malta (two final tables). In November, he squeezed in a trip to Amsterdam where he was runner-up to Jussi Nevanlinna in the Master Classics - for a lifetime best cash of €178,616. At EPT Prague last month, the Greek pro cashed six times (winning the €5k NL Hyper Turbo for €75,000, two other final tables, two final table bubbles. Now in the Bahamas, he has already cashed twice – he was fourth in Wednesday’s $5k Win the Button turbo and last night took down the star-studded $5k NL Turbo event for $36,660. He won the IPT Malta Main Event back in March - for €142,205.

There were 18 runners in last night’s tourney, generating a $87,300 prize pool. Four got paid.

Japan, one of the largest untapped gambling markets in the world, will have yet another delay on potentially passing legislation to authorize Las Vegas-style brick-and-mortar casinos.

According to a report from the Macau Daily Times, lawmakers in the island nation have decided not to pass the so-called Integrated Resort Facilities Promotion Bill at a legislative session beginning Jan. 4.

Consequently, the bill likely will not pass before the House of Councilors election this summer, the report said.

In other words, this fall would be the earliest for the ban on casinos to be lifted.

Source: CardPlayer.com

According to its local government, December proved the 19th straight month that Macau’s gaming revenue has declined compared with figures recorded at the same time one year previous. Not good news when casino income accounts for over two thirds of the city’s economic activity.

From January 21 – 31 PokerStars is guaranteeing $15 million in prizes during the iconic Turbo Championship of Online Poker (TCOOP) that is back for its fifth year.

Players can expect 50 fast paced tournaments as part of the online poker series.

This year the TCOOP starts off with a three-phase tournament that culminates in a $1.5 million guaranteed event.

For a full TCOOP schedule click here

Source: pokerfuse.com

World Poker Tour's biggest buy-in tournament ever, a $200,000 buy-in re-entry No-Limit Hold'em event, taking place during WPT National Philippines at Solaire Resort and Casino kicked off yesterday.

So far, the event has attracted a total of 39 entries and Phil Ivey is the early leader with 476,000 in chips. Players like Tom Dwan, Mike McDonald, Brian Rast and Isaac Haxton are all still in the hunt as well.

Source: HighStakesdb.com

After losing a six-figure sum to Swiss pro Ronny "1-ronnyr3" Kaiser on New Year's Eve, TILTMENOT got his revenge yesterday, winning back $83.4k back at the $50/$100 PLO tables.

The pair played two sessions from yesterday morning to early afternoon, with a ten minute break separating the sessions. TILTEMENOT ended up as a +$40k winner in both sessions, and also took down the biggest pot of the day.

Source: HighStakesdb.com

PokerStars is in the midst of making sweeping changes to its site. As part of that effort, the iGaming giant has restricted the use of heads-up displays (HUDs) and banned the practice of datamining.

But as one 2+2 user recently pointed out, some players continue to violate PokerStars' new terms by scraping hand histories in the site's Spin & Go tournaments.

Source: pocketfives.com

The BetStars brand has gone live additionally offering eSports and poker while its range of sportsbetting markets is due to be expanded during 2016 beginning with horseracing.

PokerStars announced that in-play betting will also be a central plank of the strategy for BetStars with the service already live in the UK.

Source: bluffeurope.com

Amaya Gaming announced that it will be appealing a $870 million judgement in Kentucky, saying that the damages award “is notable only for its absurdity.”

Last week a judge in the state ruled that PokerStars should pay Kentucky the massive sum for allowing roughly 34,000 Kentuckians to spend money on the site from late 2006 to April 2015. PokerStars stopped allowing Americans to play when the federal government indicted its founders. Americans were cashed out their account balances.

Franklin Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate said that PokerStars willfully violated Kentucky anti-gambling laws during the period. PokerStars settled its case with the federal government in 2012 for nearly $731 million without admitting to any wrongdoing.

Source: cardplayer.com