The numbers are in.

Day 1b saw a total of 260 entrants, which brings the total number of entries up to 415.

This is five entries more than LAPT8 Chile and brings the prize pool up to $930,932. Only 63 players will get a slice of the prize pool. For surviving the always-arduous bubble, players will cash for a minimum of $3,960.

But it’s about the title, the prize up top, the passionate Latin American players don’t want to settle for anything else.

Our eventual champion will take home a grand total of $180,112 along with the LAPT8 Panama trophy.

While we won’t know who our eventual champion will be for a couple more days, we can safely eliminate a few players from the running.

Our reigning LAPT Panama champion, Fabian Ortiz, has also been eliminated from the title. Ortiz was also a two-time LAPT champion.

Ortiz and his 2nd LAPT trophyThis leaves Jose Ignacio “Nacho” Barbero as the only player in field hunting for an LAPT hat-trick. Barbero is also the only player with back-to-back titles after he took down LAPT3 Punta del Este and followed it up with a win in LAPT3 Lima.

Barbero is short-stacked but has more experience than anyone in the field when it comes to winning LAPTs.

Barbero with his 2nd LAPT trophyTrophies and money aren’t the only things you can win at LAPT8 Panama.

For the very low buy-in of take a picture with our props and post it on Facebook players have a chance of winning a hat and one of three different t-shirts.

You don’t even have to take the picture yourself. Renowned LAPT photographer Carlos Monti will be on hand with very expensive camera equipment to photograph players in a comically-oversized PokerStars hat and even larger playing cards.

All you have to do is tag yourself in the pictures and collect your prize.

The giveaway will be running until supplies last.

Those who do go through the arduous tasks will have the choice to choose between one of four prizes. One is a white-and-black flat-brim cap that says Natural Born Poker Player

Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari getting in on the funThe other prizes are t-shirts with poker-related Spanish phrases.

One reads I know what you’re thinking and you’re wrong. Another one has Born to Bluff sprawled across in fancy letters.

The third shirt option says Irresistibly Logical.

So if you’re somewhere in the tournament area and have a few minutes to spare, pose with some props, tag some photos and get some free swag.

Free.

What poker player can resist free stuff?

Head on over to the LAPT Facebook page to check out the album of those who’ve modelled before you and try to come up with unique ways to pose.

You won’t win anything extra, but we’ll feature your picture here on the blog.
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For multilingual coverage, check out our Spanish PokerStars Blog and our Brazilian PokerStars Blog. If you’re more of a watcher, head over to LAPT Live to check out the live stream. Updates are also available on the LAPT Facebook page.

All photos are snapped by Carlos Monti and all words are clacked by Alexander Villegas.

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