HANOI — Two unheralded Filipino players — one a professional videographer and the other trying to stage a big comeback — made it to Day 2 of the Main Event of the Asian Poker Tour's Summer Series 2023 which opened last 26 May and will run until Sunday, 4 June at the Grand Loyal Poker Club inside the luxurious Grand Vista Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Armando Cabardo, better known in local poker circles as Pkazo Perez, stole the thunder from the rest of the field by emerging with the second most number of chips at the end of Flight B while two-time APT titlist Ian Brion continued his quest for redemption after semi-retiring from the game, by joining the fray a level later.

Cabardo is the content editor of renowned poker guru Dave "Spade" Erquiaga who only last week captured the $20,000 Main Event title at the Queenco Hotel and Casino in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

The 28-year-old Cabardo said he underwent an intense coaching from Erquiaga prior to plunging into action. He managed to sell 60 percent of his action for his foray into the felt.

Brion is a former sportswriter who indulged in poker and managed to etch his name among Filipino frontrunners in the sport. He managed to win two APT titles during his early stint but took time off from the game after getting dealt life's blows, per a report by Noel Zarate at the Asian Poker Tour.com.

The two are hopeful of making it big as Day2 plays down to the champion and was to commence over the weekend as of press time.

The Asian Poker Tour Summer Series is the first scheduled to run since the APT new era relaunch and promises some spectacular summer poker action.

The 10-day, 45-trophy event poker festival boasts of an eclectic spread of tournament poker variants including Limit Badugi — Triple Draw, Super 3-card Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, Short Deck and Crazy Pineapple, and over VND 24 billion (~USD $1,000,000) in guaranteed prize money.