APC Tanzania Main Event Cut to 39 After 193 Entries
Sami Matar led Day 1c as the inaugural Dar es Salaam tournament moved to its final day.
The inaugural African Poker Championship Tanzania Main Event was down to 39 players after Day 2, following 193 entries across its three starting flights at Le Grande Casino in Dar es Salaam. The final day begins Sunday, Oct. 4, at 10 a.m. local time.
Day 1c drew 95 entries, taking the field to 193 before Day 2’s remaining late-registration and re-entry period. Eighty players made it through the opening flights, and the Day 2 survivors returned with an average stack of 65 big blinds, one table away from the money.
Sami Matar led the final starting flight with 631,000 chips, which was also the second-largest stack overall entering Day 2. Tutu Russon bagged 517,500, while Ryan James advanced with 483,000.
The final flight ran for eight 60-minute levels and eliminated more than half its entrants. Day 2 began at blinds of 1,500-2,500 with a 2,500 big-blind ante, while five levels remained for players to register late or re-enter.
The $200,000 guaranteed Main Event was described as close to meeting or surpassing its guarantee when the 193-entry count was reached. PokerNews’ Day 1c coverage listed the buy-in as $1,100, while the pre-festival event preview advertised it as a $1,000 tournament.
As we reported in September, the Main Event is the centerpiece of the African Poker Championship’s first Tanzania stop, an 11-day Le Grande Casino festival carrying more than $500,000 in guaranteed prize pools.
The APC is a new African live-poker brand powered by the Monster Jam Poker Tour and its founder, Marc Joseph. Its stated aim is to bring together poker communities across the continent while attracting players internationally.
