Money Bubble Looms to Begin Day 3 of the PokerStars Players Championship
Excitement and nervous energy will fill the room at the beautiful Baha Mar Resort in The Bahamas for Day 3 of the 2023 PokerStars Players No-Limit Hold'em Championship.
Krasimir Yankov leads the way as the only seven-figure chip stack heading into the third day of action. The Bulgarian poker pro is followed followed closely by Philipe Pizzari at the top of the leaderboard, while Jeremy Ausmus, Dylan Destefano and Day 1 chip leader Chris Moorman round out the top five.
The returning field of 255 players have bagged a stack and remain in contention for glory, but one big hurdle is expected to come early in the day. The money bubble will see the top 175 earn at least $35,100, while the eventual top six places pay over $1,000,000 each. A grand total of $24,843,000 will be handed out over the next three days, with the champion earning $4,053,200 along with the coveted PSPC title.
Top 10 Chip Counts Entering Day 3
| RANK | PLAYER | COUNTRY | CHIP COUNTS | BIG BLINDS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Krasimir Yankov | Bulgaria | 1,002,000 | 167 | |
| 2 | Philipe Pizzari | Brazil | 965,000 | 161 | |
| 3 | Jeremy Ausmus | United States | 791,000 | 132 | |
| 4 | Dylan Destefano | United States | 696,000 | 116 | |
| 5 | Chris Moorman | United Kingdom | 685,000 | 114 | |
| 6 | Justin Liberto | United States | 658,000 | 110 | |
| 7 | Tommy Nguyen | Canada | 642,000 | 107 | |
| 8 | Ignacio Gonzalez | Spain | 610,000 | 102 | |
| 9 | Renato Minicuci | Italy | 585,000 | 98 | |
| 10 | Christian Dressler | Germany | 562,000 | 94 |
Among the names still in pursuit are PokerStars ambassadors Sam Grafton, Arlie Shaban and Alejandro Lococo. Shaban is the shortest of the three but still carries more than 40 big blinds into Day 3.
Other familiar faces with their sights set on a big score include 2023 PCA Main Event champion Michel Dattani along with WSOP Main Event champs Chris Moneymaker, Martin Jacobson and Espen Jorstad.
Many eyes will also be on the remaining PokerStars Platinum Pass winners in the field looking to keep their runs going all the way to a massive payday, such as Ignacio Gonzalez and Renato Minicuci who sit in the top 10 on the leaderboard. Others include Amel Husnic, Victor Vargas, Bastian Hess and Glen Craigen.
2023 PSPC Payouts
| Place | Payout (USD) | Place | Payout (USD) | Place | Payout (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4,053,200 | 10-11 | $300,100 | 40-55 | $70,700 |
| 2 | $2,542,300 | 12-13 | $238,700 | 56-71 | $61,400 |
| 3 | $1,911,200 | 14-15 | $198,800 | 72-95 | $53,400 |
| 4 | $1,551,300 | 16-17 | $165,600 | 96-119 | $46,500 |
| 5 | $1,251,500 | 18-20 | $142,100 | 120-143 | $40,300 |
| 6 | $1,001,200 | 21-23 | $123,600 | 144-175 | $35,100 |
| 7 | $801,000 | 24-27 | $107,500 | ||
| 8 | $621,300 | 28-31 | $93,500 | ||
| 9 | $449,700 | 32-39 | $81,400 |
Day 3 will kick off at 12 p.m. local time on Level 15 with blinds of 3,000/6,000 and a 6,000 big blind ante. The day is expected to include eight levels of play, subject to change based on the pace of play. All levels remain 60 minutes in length, with a scheduled 20-minute break after every two levels.
Be sure to tune in here to follow the PokerNews live reporting team for up-to-date action throughout the event as we get closer to crowning a new PSPC champion in The Bahamas.
flop put Winter in the lead with a set of queens. 
runout filled Winter up and Heath was a notable early exit on Day 3.
flop and 
turn, but Lococo connected with the 
river to score the knockout and recover some lost chips.
with around 55,000 already in the middle. 
flop and Zajmovic raised all in for around 79,000. Duczak quickly called with a slightly bigger stack.
and Zajmovic secured the double. 
. She was on the verge of exiting after the 
flop but still had some hope. That then all disappeared after Eltz made a set on the 
river gave Margets a pair but it was not good enough to keep her PSPC journey going.
and Arieh bounced up from his seat after Krug-Basse flopped a set of queens. The 
on the river and Arieh exited the tournament.
and Marius Irimia called on the button with 
