Will Marlon Laxamana Defend His MSE Main Event Title? Final Day Underway

After an action-packed Day 2 at the 2026 Metro Summer Event Main Event, the 127 returning players thinned fast and when the final two tables was formed, it was none other than the defending champion Marlon Laxamana sitting atop the counts.

Last year, Laxamana launched his 2025 campaign by capturing the MSE Main Event title, a victory that sparked a dominant run culminating in him topping the Metro Tournament Leaderboard and becoming the newest Metro Team Pro.

Now back in familiar territory and once again leading deep, he is in prime position to mount a serious title defense as the chase for back-to-back glory is now underway at the Metro Card Club.

In addition to the defending champion are 17 players looking to foil his plans. In second rank is Raymond Tiu, running third rank is James Moriles (Flight E leader), in fourth rank is Po-Hsun Liao, and in the top 5 is John Costiniano, one of the country’s most decorated players in the international scene. Also in the lineup is Jhun Aballa who is currently second in the MTLB standings.

Catch some of the Day 2 action via the live stream link below:

Metro Summer Event Day 2 

The 18 players are now guaranteed a minimum payout of ₱70,000 however the target is of course the ₱1,448,400 first prize and the bragging rights title.

Photo: Marlon Laxamana

Will Laxamana defend his title or will a new champion rise to victory? Cards are already in the air.

The 2026 MSE Main Event got underway on April 15 with 894 entries signing up across five flights for a prize pool of ₱8,940,000. This was the second largest MSE Main Event in history, just behind the 2024 turnout of 912 entries.

At Day 2, the money flowed starting at 127th place with Terje Bratberg as the lone double qualifier. The final day bubble burst on Adrian Lumbera finishing in 19th place.

Buy-in: ₱11,000
Guarantee: ₱6,000,000
Entries: 894
Prize pool: ₱8,940,000
ITM: 128 players (one double qualifier)

Payouts 19th-128th

Czardy Rivera Wins Mini High Roller

Photo:  Czardy Rivera

The Mini High Roller 500K GTD was another festival smasher with the prize pool doubled up by the 76 entries. The top 11 players walked away with a portion of the ₱1,094,400 prize pool.

Among the players that reached the final table were well known decorated local pros Marc Rivera, John Tech, Moses Saquing., and Czardy Rivera who went on to clinch the title for a payout of ₱322,400.

Catch the final table action via the live stream link below:

MSE Mini High Roller Final Table

Photo: Final Table 

For those on the sidelines hoping for a shot at winning, the 2026 MSE still has one side event remaining. The Closer event features a 300K guarantee. Buy-in is ₱4,000.  Starting stack is 20,000.