It was an action-filled opening day of the $1,100 Main Event at the 2026 PokerStars Open Philadelphia series, as 125 entries were recorded in the first of four starting flights.
After play concluded at Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia, just 16 players were left standing having secured a bag for Day 2 along with a shot at the $500,000 guaranteed prize pool.
The final hand of the night was won by Abel Gebeyehu, bringing an end to hand-for-hand play while increasing his impressive chip lead. The Maryland native bagged up a commanding chip advantage, collecting 992,000 to lead the pack by a wide margin after 16 levels of play.
Sitting in second is Angel Lopez (651,000), who scored a double knockout on the second-last level of the night to vault up the leaderboard. Rounding out the top three is Aaron Shapiro (470,000), who found a triple-up with aces to stay alive and build from there.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Abel GebeyehuUnited States992,000165
2Angel LopezUnited States651,000109
3Aaron ShapiroUnited States470,00078
4Casey HatmakerUnited States433,00072
5Joseph GrodowskiUnited States382,00064
6John MachenUnited States329,00055
7Donald Himpele JrUnited States255,00043
8Alberto SabogaliUnited States247,00041
9Steven ChristopherUnited States227,00038
10Percy AbrahamUnited States200,00033
Arlie Shaban
Opening Day Action
Some familar faces joined the field on Day 1a, including PokerStars AmbassadorArlie Shaban. The day did not go as planned, as Shaban used two bullets but could not build any momentum before late registration closed.
Defending champion Edward Leonard, who conquered the field last year at Live! Philadelphia, also saw his day come to an early end when David Semless flopped an ace to score the knockout. Semless went on to bag up 116,000 chips, sitting among the short stacks after the opening flight.
Jordan Ludwick
The loudest hand of the night came in the double knockout for Lopez, hitting the river to send Jordan Ludwick out in disbelief. Ludwick had seen his pocket kings lose on the river twice in a span of three hands earlier in the day, and vented his frustration after watching his stack disappear late in the night.
The bubble burst late in Level 16, when Louis Lu shoved into Gebeyehu’s flopped straight to exit in 17th place. That left the remaining 16 players in the money, bagging up for a chance at the title on Sunday, March 22.
Louis Lu
$1,100 Main Event Remaining Schedule
DateDayTime
Mar. 19Day 1b11:15 a.m.
Mar. 20Day 1c11:15 a.m.
Mar. 21Day 1d10:15 a.m.
Mar. 22Day 211:15 a.m.
The second flight begins on Thursday, March 19 at 11:15 a.m. local time. Players will once again start with 40,000 chips, looking to reach the final 12.5% of their field on Day 1b.
Levels will continue to be 40 minutes long, with unlimited reentries available until late registration closes at the start of Level 13.
Blinds start at 100/100 with a 100 big blind ante, and 15-minute breaks are scheduled after every two hours of play. Players will also get a 40-minute dinner break after Level 9.
Don’t miss any of the action, as the PokerNews team will have continuing coverage during every flight of the PokerStars Open Philadelphia Main Event.