Jennifer Steele leads Main Event's final 17 at Women's Winter Festival

Ireland's Jennifer Steele has continued her torrid run in London by surging to the top of the chip counts after Day 2 action in the PokerStars-sponsored Women's Winter Festival main event on Saturday. Steele, who finished as the runner-up to Charlie Waters on Thursday in the festival's high-roller tourney for a personal best live cash of £6,400, now leads the chase for this event's £20,000 first-place payout.

Steele began the day in the top half of 54 survivors of three Day 1 flights over the previous two days. She climbed forward in the counts throughout Saturday's abbreviated four-hour session, ending up with a 1,010,000 chip stack. 

Steele was the only player to bag over a million in chips and finished just ahead of three other players who also separated themselves from the remainder of the final 17. Day 1 overall leader Christina Jorgensen Solli finished with 955,000, while Ann-Roos Callens and Franky Green each ended up with 905,000.

Franky Green is in shouting distance of the lead.

Money bubble bursts in early action

Saturday's first order of business at London's Hippodrome Casino was winnowing the Day 2 field down to the 45-player money bubble. PokerStars brand ambassador Jennifer Shahade was short-stacked early but managed a double-up before busting. Another Stars-patched player, Georgina James, wasn't as fortunate, busting just a few spots out of the money,

When the Netherlands' Nataly Sopacuaperu busted in 46th place, the remaining players were each guaranteed a £570 min-cash. From there, the pace of bustouts rapidly increased, with several well-known players exiting before action ended. Americans Caitlin Comeskey and Shahade busted soon after the bubble burst, as did Canada's Kim Kilroy and the Day 1C flight leader, the UK's Laura Glasgow.

Women's Winter Festival Main Event Top 10 chip counts

^{Photos courtesy of PokerStars/Danny Maxwell}