Welcome back to the final day of LAPT8 Uruguay.
After three days of play, our initial field of 267 players has been hacked, sliced and shaved down to just eight players.
Our chip leader going back into play is Chadi Moustapha, who took large pots off of Mario Lopez and Eghi Ariel late yesterday to take the lead. This is Moustapha's second-consecutive LAPT final table after having final tabled LAPT8 Peru last stop.
Moustapha finished 2nd that stop and will be looking take it all the way today.
One player who wasn't able to get a second LAPT final table was Renata Teixeira. Teixeira finished 2nd in LAPT8 Chile earlier this year and became our final table bubble yesterday.
It was a quick day as the field shrunk from 24 to 8 players in just two-and-a-half levels.
Here are those final eight.
Seat 1: Ariel Eghi (Argentina) -- 423,000
A 37-year old sales agent, Ariel Eghi started playing poker just five years ago with his friends. From there, he made the shift online and hasn't stopped playing since. Aside from poker, Eghi likes playing soccer and tennis and is hoping to get heads-up against Mario Lopez.
So far, Eghi has $83,000 in live-tournament earnings and this is his first LAPT cash.
Seat 2: German Christiansen (Argentina) -- 960,000
This young, 26-year-old Argentinian has already made SuperNova Elite twice. Now a seasoned online pro, Christiansen started playing poker on PokerStrategy.com.
This is also Christiansen's first LAPT cash and he's doing it very close to his hometown of Mar del Plata, Argentina.
Seat 3: Hilario Quijada (Argentina) --513,000
Another Argentinian, another first time LAPT casher. 68-year-old Hilario Quijada is a businessman in Argentina that would also like to get heads-up against Mario Lopez.
Seat 4: Ruben Barros (Argentina) -- 563,000
This 43-year-old Argentinian has only been playing poker for the past two years. While he started playing poker with friends, he's now pitted against some of the LAPT's best.
Seat 5: Patricio Rojas (Chile) -- 173,000
Patricio Rojas one of two remaining LAPT champion in the field. Back in 2013, Rojas won LAPT6 Peru and nearly final tabled the event last stop.
Back in July, Rojas bubbled the LAPT8 Peru final table but has now squeaked by as one of the short stacks.
This is Rojas's second LAPT final table and he's hoping it'll turn into his second victory.
He too wants to get heads-up against Mario Lopez.
Seat 6: Mario Lopez (Argentina) -- 1,049,000
Dr. Mario Lopez, the man everyone wants to battle heads-up. Lopez had a large chip lead for a large portion of the tournament but dipped to second late in the day yesterday.
An medical doctor and businessman, this 37-year-old Argentinian has been playing poker for the past 10 years but has racking up lots of results recently.
Lopez won LAPT7 Chile last year and won the largest-ever Estrellas Poker Tour Main Event last month.
Now Lopez is looking to add another title to his resume.
Seat 7: Chadi Moustapha (Lebanon) -- 1,520,000
The only non-South American final tablist, Lebanon's Chadi Moustapha is at his second LAPT final table in a row.
Moustapha finished 2nd at LAPT8 Peru this July and is looking for redemption today.
Our chip leader is an IT consultant from Dubai who's now living in Brazil. Aside from poker, Moustpaha enjoys travelling and reading.
Seat 8:Jorge Alberto Cantos (Argentina) -- 102,000
Our tournament short stack, Jorge Alberto Cantos is a 56-year-old merchant from Neuquen, Argentina. Cantos has been playing poker since 2004 but is a recreational player who enjoys travelling and playing poker with his friends.
Photography from LAPT8 Uruguay by Carlos Monti. You can also follow the action in Spanish and in Portuguese.
Alexander Villegas is a freelance contributor to the PokerStars Blog.
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