This is an archive of previous coverage. Follow live updates from the tournament floor.
Day 1A of APPT Macau has attracted to a detailed after eight levels that suggest we can likely have a complete field of greater than 500 for this event. By the point registration slammed shut for the evening, there have been 222 players registered, of whom around 90 lasted the day. For the reason that Day 1B is usually significantly bigger, that 500 number is easily and actually in our sights.
It was a kind of days on which nobody really desired to be leader. Several players poked their heads above the parapet, but were soon chopped back off. But if the klaxon did finally bring play to an in depth at around 10:35pm local time, two players had almost identical stacks: Deok-yeong Lee, of South Korea, who had 162,800, which was 800 bigger than Yijun Lou's 162,000.
Deok-yeong Lee: Leading
They both have an eight-fold increase at the starting stack of 20,000, so that they might be well-armed for Friday's Day 2.
Lee took the steady path to his pile of chips, coming to our attention when he wriggled out of a trap set by Dajia Chen (see 7:40pm post). Meanwhile we noticed Lou way to his habit of stacking his chips at the back of his phone, which made his towers look even taller than they really were. But under closer examination he actually did have a pile.
Yijun Lou: Second, but only just
Other notable stacks this evening are rammed into bags bearing the names of Wu Fan (145,000) and Mikal Blomlie (103,800) among others. The entire counts at the moment are at the chip-count page.
Three Team PokerStars Pros made an appearance today, but by about 9:30pm, none were left. Yaxi Zhou outlasted Vivian Im and Kosei Ichinose, but there is not any financial consolation for that last-longer. They'll all now be free to take their shot on the High Roller, which starts on Saturday.
Before that, it will be that bumper Day 1B, which begins at 2pm tomorrow. Have a look back on today's coverage by scrolling through this page. After which check back for the whole end-of-day chip counts.
DAY 1A LIVE COVERAGE:
10:20pm: Six more handsLevel 8 - Blinds 500/1,000 (100 ante)
PokerStars LIVE Macau's Rex Cheong has announced that only six more hands can be played here on Day 1a.
Who will hang on and secure an afternoon 2 seat? Stick with us for the exciting conclusion of this opening flight. -- BK
10:10pm: Lou leading the wayLevel 8 - Blinds 500/1,000 (100 ante)
It looks as if we've a brand new chip leader here within the dying stages of Day 1a. Yijun Lou has emerged because the biggest stack after muscling his way through a up to date hand.
With the board reading 5♣3♣K♠4♣ the player within the cutoff made of venture of 20,000 and Lou instantly dropped a stack of 80,000 in chips in front of himself, with good enough to hide his opponent.
The player with the verdict stared Lou down but ultimately decided against a call, throwing his hand away and surrendering the pot.
Lou now stacks up a whopping 180,000 and appears a favorite to be our end-of-day chip leader. -- BK
| 8 | 500 | 1,000 | 100 |
9:35pm: Little need to sleepLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
The main event is also winding down for the night--we have about one hour left--but there is no want to visit bed. A turbo deepstack event kicks off at 10pm local time, with registration open until ten after midnight.
What's more, you although you are feeling tired, there are fridges here stocked stuffed with complementary Red Bull, official energy drink partners of PokerStars LIVE Macau.
Help yourself, sleep is for wimps
9:30pm: The Red Spade cull is completeLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
Number of Team PokerStars Pros left within the field: 0
Yaxi Zhu was recently seen spotted heading to the rail, following Vivian Im and Kosei Ichinose out of the door. Must try harder. -- HS
9:15pm: Li liftedLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
Yuan Li's stack has just doubled after he found aces concurrently a willing adversary had pocket sevens. They got all of it in--45,100 total for Li--and he now has no less than double that obtaining on the subject of the general level of the day. -- HS
9pm: Double NelsonLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
Our confirmed list of runners for today is now 222. Someone sneaked in right on the end. -- HS
9:00pm: Zhu shuts downLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
Our lone surviving Team PokerStars Pro Yaxi Zhu just lost a pot but she managed to attenuate the wear by toning down the aggression.
After Zhu raised from early position preflop, her opponent defended within the big blind and the 2 saw a flop of Q♠2♠K♠.
The big blind checked and Zhu continued for 1,800. The bet was called and the 3♣ arrived at the turn. The action quickly went check-check and the river brought the Q♠.
The big blind then led for 2,500 and Zhu instantly relinquished her hand.
"Nuts" came the announcement of the player who won the pot.
"Nuts?" Zhu asked.
"Well, second nuts" came the response as he tabled K♥Q♥ for a whole house.
Zhu lost just about the minimum but still dropped to 23,000 in chips. -- BK
8.55pm: Sun clouded overLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
Yunsheng Sun open-shoved from under the gun for not a lot more than 6,000 total, but players passed all of the way round. However, at the very next hand, action folded to Chang He within the small blind and he open-shoved, covering Sun. Sun decided to have another crack at this double up and called.
"Jesus Christ," Billy Argyros said because the two players revealed their hands. He had made his move with T♠8♣ and Sun had called for his tournament with J♥7♠.
Sun was right that he was beating He's range, but poker doesn't always reward calls like this one. And the 8♥ at the flop put He ahead, where he remained when the remainder of the board ran Q♠3♥ 4♥ 7♦. -- HS
8:35pm: Even worse for ZhouLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
A quick update/correction to our 8pm post: it seems that not just is Quan Zhou out of this tournament, but he has also now been deposed on the top of the Asia Player of the Year standings. Weiyi Zhang finished third in a PLO event that finished yesterday here in Macau and that was enough to assist him leapfrog Zhou.
In case you were wondering, the APOY leader board is actually worth winning. The highest player from the APPT season gets a season-long sponsorship package with PokerStars LIVE, and that's the reason a complete host of buy-ins to the largest events on this region.
Full details are over on the PokerStars LIVE page. Just don't look for your name is Quan Zhou. -- HS
8:35pm: Through to the endLevel 7 - Blinds 400/800 (100 ante)
That was the overall break of the day, meaning the rest players will now hope to stay of their seats for the following two hours before bagging for the night.
Registration is now closed for the day, and it sort of feels we got 221 players throughout the door for this opening flight. So that they can be confirmed in due course.
| 7 | 400 | 800 | 100 |
8:20pm: Scheduled break
The remaining players have stepped clear of the tournament area for the last break of the night. Play resumes in 10 minutes. -- BK
8:10pm: Zhu doubles throughLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Team PokerStars Yaxi Zhu have been working a brief stack for longer than she'd like but she found a slight respite after the former hand.
Zhu got the last of all of it in as a substantial favourite holding the most efficient preflop hand in poker.
Her A♠A♥ meant she had a commanding position over her opponent's J♦3♦. Seeking to fade a nasty beat to stick alive, the board obliged, as she found top set at the 9♥3♣A♦ flop and avoided any runner-runners when the K♠ turn and T♣ river sealed her a double up.
Zhu is the last remaining Team Pro here on Day 1a. She now has 14,400 in chips. -- BK
8pm: Leader board leader lostLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Quan Zhou could be leading the Asia Player of the Year standings, but he won't be adding to his tally more often than not event. He's out, send to the rail by Malaysia's Jun Wah Yap.
Zhou open-shoved for his last 4,725 from under the gun and was pretty-well armed along with his A♠Q♥. It even wasn't that bad for Zhou when Yap called and tabled T♠T♥ however the board of 2♥K♣5♠4♣6♥ was a whiff. The pocket pair held and Zhou headed off.
Quan Zhou: The end
Fan Wu is the captain on that table, however. He has the most productive a part of 120,000. -- HS
7:50pm: Alner outta hereLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Englishman Tom Alner final tabled the MPC24 Red Dragon on this very room earlier within the year, however it looks as if he won't be making another impressive finish on this Main Event.
Alner were peddling a brief stack for some time and after a button raise to 1,400, Alner moved all in from the small blind for his remaining 5,625. With the large blind out of ways the initial raiser made the decision to position Alner at risk.
Alner held A♥9♣ but was dominated by A♣Q♦. He did not improve when the community cards fell 2♣6♥5♥K♠5♠ and leaves us here halfway through Level 6.
7:40pm: Three tens good for ChenLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Dajia Chen didn't have the ability to get anyone to fall into his carefully constructed trap, allowing Deok-Yeong Lee to wriggle out with the minimum of damage.
Lee opened to 1,500 from the cutoff and Chen called from the small blind. It was only those two for whom the flop of 6♠8♣Q♥ was in anyway relevant. Chen checked, Lee bet 1,800 and Chen called.
The turn was the T♦ and, although we weren't to grasp it on the time, that was great for Chen's T♠T♣. He checked, baiting the trap, but Lee checked behind.
The 2♥ came at the river, which was hardly a scare card for Chen. But he checked again and presumably hoped to stand a chance. But those hopes were dashed by another check, forcing him to sheepishly expose the turned set and take a small pot. Lee mucked, in fact. -- HS
7.35pm: Ichinose departsLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Kosei Ichinose, the Team PokerStars Pro from Japan, is now out, having pushed one too again and again together with his short stack and finally getting picked off. Peiran Liu got him, calling Ichinose's shove with A♥T♠ and only improving on a board of 8♦A♣3♠K♥A♦. Ichinose's J♣Q♦ was behind all of the way.
It's not been what you'd call a red letter day for Team Pro. Vivian Im has also been knocked out, as detailed below, and although Yaxi Zhu remains to be in, she also has a brief stack. She just shoved pre-flop actually, for approximately 11,000 after an early-position open. If she wanted or call or not, she didn't get one. -- HS
7:30pm: Im out the doorLevel 6 - Blinds 300/600 (75 ante)
Team PokerStars Pro Vivian Im just took to Twitter to share together with her followers that she was eliminated by the use of bad beat.
Holding aces, she got a large stack in on a 5♠7♠9♠ flop against her opponent holding K♣9♣ and unfortunately for Im the opposite player improved to 2 pair. -- BK
| 6 | 300 | 600 | 75 |
7:10pm: Shabelnyk scoops one from ZhuLevel 5 - Blinds 200/400 (50 ante)
Valentyn Shabelnyk brought it in from a raise to 900 and it folded around to Team PokerStars Pro Yaxi Zhu within the big blind. She defended and the flop landed K♦4♥8♦.
Zhu checked and Shabelnyk made it 1,000 to compliment. a choice the dealer turned the Q♠. Another check from Zhu and Shabelnyk continued for 3,600. Zhu called again to peer the 5♠ river.
A final check from the Team Pro prompted a last bet from Shabelnyk, this time for 6,600. Zhu didn't hesitate long before calling to look she was beat when her opponent tabled Q♥8♥ for 2 pair.
"I have two pair too" Zhu said with a grin and he or she mucked her cards.
She drops to 10,400 while Shabelnyk gets a lift to 47,000. -- BK
7:00pm: Gu gone when Ward fills upLevel 5 - Blinds 200/400 (50 ante)
Huafeng Gu is headed to the rail after shipping the last of his chips over to Alex Ward.
On a flop of A♦5♠J♣, when checked to, Gu bet 3,200 and Ward called. The A♣ paired the board and Ward opted to guide for 3,500. Gu went into the tank, counting out a decision in the case of his stack. In any case he chose to lift to 10,000 and Ward asked how much he had behind.
Around 7,000 was the solution and Ward then moved all in. Ward snapped and the 2 tabled their cards.
Ward: J♠J♦Gu: A♠Q♦
Gu was behind Ward's jacks full and vulnerable to elimination. He couldn't find certainly one of his few outs because the 4♦ gave the impression to signal the top of his tournament.
Ward raked the pot and climbed to 49,000 in chips. -- BK
6:45pm: Lift off for LuoLevel 5 - Blinds 200/400 (50 ante)
Yijun Luo has his chips stacked at the back of his phone, which provides them a synthetic lift. But even without the boost, his is essentially the most lofty stack within the room. It sits at around 120,000, and it is not clear that any one else is even within 30,000 of him.
Luo has a good string of results, including victory within the Macau Millions in March 2014. This tournament is about to have a much bigger first prize than the HK$550,000 he picked up back then.
Other notable stacks at this stage include:
Fu Bang Huang: 81,000Fan Wu: 70,000Ting Ting Du: 67,000
6:40pm: Isn't nice for InotsumeLevel 5 - Blinds 200/400 (50 ante)
You need to feel for a player who hits the correct card they were hoping for, however it finally ends up costing them their tournament life. Such was the case for Kazuma Inotsume, who's now out of this event, busting to Zhang Lante.
Lante got the ball rolling, raising to 1,000 pre-flop from early position. Inotsume, two seats along, became one in all four callers. He led Fan Wu, Jiabin Cui and Quan Zhou into the pot, the latter within the big blind.
The five of them saw a flop of 4♠3♣8♥ and, after Zhou checked, Lante bet 2,400. Inotsume called, but everybody else gave it up.
The turn was the 7♥ and Lante rifled again. This time it was for 7,000 but Inotsume didn't surrender. He called for a 3♥ river. Lante now shoved all in, for approximately 18,000, and despite a shorter stack, Inotsume snap-called. He proudly tabled A♥9♥ for the ace-high flush.
But it was not the nuts, as Lante's 7♦7♠, a rivered full-house, quickly demonstrated. That was all she wrote for Inotsume. -- HS
6:30pm: Chop pot as Ichinose at riskLevel 5 - Blinds 200/400 (50 ante)
Team PokerStars Pro Kosei Ichinose's stack is starting to dwindle. Right down to only 3,325 in chips from a start bank of 20,000 he looks as if he's going to need some help to outlive the day. He recently got that last 3,325 in with the most productive of it but ended up with little greater than a refund.
After a limp within the hijack, Ichinose moved all in from the cutoff with A♠3♠. He sat sucking a lollipop as his opponent pondered a call, and saw he was fit to outlive against A♥2♠ when the chips were committed.
The board ran out 4♣4♦T♣5♥6♣ with neither kicker playing and the pot split in two. -- BK
Kosei Ichinose: Refund
| 5 | 200 | 400 | 50 |
6:15pm: Break timeLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
That's the tip of Level 4. My guess is that it will be Level 5 when players return from a 10-minute break. -- HS
6:10pm: Crack a jackLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
Claudio Piedrabuena just got there with A♥3♥ against a frustrated Kai Yu Tse, whose pocket jacks were rivered by the ace.
Piedrabuena appeared to limp from the hijack after which called Tse's raise from the cutoff. Only those two saw the flop of 5♥5♦4♥. Piedrabuena, from Spain, check-called Tse's bet of 800 and the pattern repeated at the Q♣ turn. This time Tse's bet was 1,400.
The A♠ at the river meant both players checked, Piedrabuena because he had just got there; Tse because he clearly thought he'd been toasted. He frustratedly turned over his J♣J♦ after he was proved right. -- HS
6:05pm: Aces for CroccyLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
Billy 'The Croc' Argyros is within the running today and just scooped what he probably hoped was a larger pot.
Kah Boon Teh was on his direct right and opened to 750 before Argyros made it 2,400 to head. Teh made the decision and the flop fell 6♦J♥6♥.
After a snappy check from Teh, Argyros tossed another 2,600 into the center. Teh looked back as his cards and released his hand.
"Check! Check!" cried Argyros after losing his customer, flashing A♠A♦ to the table as he was awarded the pot.
The hand brings Argyros as much as 26,000 in chips. -- BK
5:55pm: Peiran Liu living the high lifeLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
A stack of 60,000-plus is nice going at this stage. Players only started with 20,000 and action is a trifling four levels deep. Peiran Liu has north of that, however, and is strong-arming his action table.
He won two pots back-to-back: the primary came when he raised to 700 from under the gun and collected only Aaron Lim as a caller within the big blind. Lim check-folded the 2♦K♣Q♠ flop when Liu bet 1,500.
The next pot was slightly bigger. Zhongwei Wang raised to 700 from the cutoff and Liu three-bet his big blind, making it 2,300 to play. Wang called and it was just the happy couple to a flop of 9♥A♣5♣.
Liu bet 1,500, which Wang called, they usually went to a turn of the 4♦. Liu had another stab, this time for 3,200, and that was enough for Wang to stroll away.
Liu has around 65,000. -- HS
5:40pm: Chen chipping back up Level 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
2014 Asia Player of the Year Pete Chen is on the table today and while his Main Event hasn't started in addition to he would've liked, he just scored himself some chips in a contemporary pot.
The flop was spread 9♦4♣K♣ and Chen checked from the massive blind before his opponent within the cutoff fired for 1,000. Chen called and the turn brought the 7♦.
Again Chen check-called, this time for 1,900 and the T♣ completed the board.
The river prompted Chen to guide out, sliding a neat 3,200 into the center. His opponent gave it up with a faucet of the table and Chen built back as much as 11,800 in chips. -- BK
Chipping back up - Pete Chen
5:35pm: Within the money within the $50K
The bubble has burst within the HK$50,000 freezeout, leaving 12 players to battle to the HK$1,208,000 first prize. I BELIEVE it was Thomas Ward, who spent long hours yesterday because the chip leader, who went out just wanting the cash.
At this stage, Houmao Hua is leading, with a stack of around 930,000. The overnight leader Ryan Yum remains to be close behind, with 890,000.
That first prize is greater than US $150,000, by the way, so certainly worth winning. A min-cash is HK$91,000 (on the subject of $12,000) so, yeah, you'd take that too. -- HS
5:25pm: Deuces losesLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
The video game has made poker betting patterns just about internationally recognised. You go raise, call pre-flop; check, c-bet, call at the flop; and also you both then check the turn. That much is broadly being followed here in Macau, but river action is slightly different. Within the small sample size of 3 levels of play today, it appears players are more likely to bluff the river, and in addition more likely to be looked up.
Here's another example of a sigh-call at the end that turned out to be right.
Ming Cui opened from UTG+1 and Chong Hua Wen, one seat to his left, three-bet to 2,000. Everyone else folded, but Cui called to take them to a flop. It came J♥9♠4♦. Cui checked, Wen bet 1,500 and Cui called. That meant they were both capable of check the A♣ turn, as dictated by those betting patterns.
The J♣ at the turn prompted of venture of 5,000 from Cui, which put Wen into the tank.
After toying for a short while with a pile of 5 1,000-denomination chips, Wen flicked them over the road and Cui resignedly exposed his 2♦2♣. Wen turned over T♦T♠ and that was ok. -- HS
5:20pm: Chan chops down TollefsenLevel 4 - Blinds 150/300 (25 ante)
Norway's Henrik Tollefsen was one in all Level 4's first casualties here after he clashed with Justin Chan in a hand just gone.
On a flop of 4♥2♥8♠ Tollefsen checked and Chan fired for what seemed to be 2,000. Tollefsen bumped it as much as 4,300 to head but Chan came back excessive with an all-in move just shy of 20,000 - enough to have Tollefsen covered.
The Norwegian called with T♥9♥ for a flush draw but saw the bad news when Chan tabled A♥Q♥ for an effective one. Tollefsen was dead when the Q♣ turn paired Chan and Tollefsen was out of his seat because the inconsequential 3♠ rolled off.
That hand moves Chan as much as 36,700 in chips. -- BK
| 4 | 150 | 300 | 25 |
5:10pm: Tevis's hero call at the (Ichi-)noseLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Not sure how this one played out in full, but Vitaly Tevis just made a hero call against Kosei Ichinose that turned out to be bang on.
I arrived after they were already on the turn. The nearly-complete board read 6♣J♣8♠3♠. It looked as if Ichinose had checked, prompting a big gamble of 1,600 from Tevis, but then a check-raise to 3,800 from the Team PokerStars Pro. Tevis called.
The 8♥ came at the river and Ichinose flicked out a yellow 5,000-denomination chip, announcing his bet as 2,800. Tevis took a couple of seconds to make a decision what to do but called eventually. His instincts were rewarded when Ichinose turned over A♦7♠, for nothing but ace high. Tevis's 4♥6♥ was a winner. -- HS
5:05pm: Mai says goodbyeLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Jie Mai was recently eliminated once you have his last 2,725 within the middle preflop against the dominant hand of Reginald Rowan.
Mai: A♦7♠Rowan: A♣J♦
Mai was in bad shape and chasing a seven to outlive. The 8♣A♥4♦ brought some backdoor straight possibilities but nothing would eventuate at the T♣ turn and Q♠ river.
Tapping the table Mai was up from his seat and heading out of the tournament area as Rowan moved as much as 19,800, just shy of starting stack. -- BK
4:55pm: Im back in five figuresLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Vivian Im was down below 10,000, but she has just crept the correct side of the five-figure line after picking up a small pot from Cheng Cheng.
Cheng opened to 800 from under the gun and Im raised to 2,500 from one seat to his left. Nobody else was desirous about joining the 2 early-position players and action folded back to Cheng. He called.
Team PokerStars Pro Vivian Im
The flop came 2♣9♥5♠ but prompted nothing but passivity from both players. They checked to a turn of 5♥ and both checked again. After Cheng also checked the Q♣ river, Im had seen enough. She shoved for 7,075 and looked as if it would know what was coming. Cheng folded.
The chip-leader at that table is Ronny Schenk, who's sitting with about 46,000. -- HS
4:50pm: Orange crushLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
No one goes to overlook Thomas Shelley today. He's dressed as if straight from a Wall Street trading floor, where he could be representing a Dutch bank. To translate: he's head to toe in vibrant orange, including orange pinstripe suit and orange hat.
He has a stack of around 25,000 too, having just won a small pot from his neighbour Stephen Zhou.
Zhou bet 1,000 at a flop of 4♣J♣K♣ and Shelley called. (Only those two were involved at this stage.) Then after the K♦ turned, Shelley called Zhou's bet of 2,100.
The distinctive stylings of Thomas Shelley
Zhou gave up after the Q♠ river, check-folding to Shelley's 3,000 bet. -- HS
4:45pm: Chen chewed upLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
The 2014 Macau Millions champion Hao Chen just met a comparatively early demise here upon getting his short stack all in preflop against Zhong Zhang.
Chen: K♥J♣Zhang: Q♠Q♦
Chen needed help to stick alive but couldn't improve at the 6♠A♦7♦9♥8♦ runout.
Zhang's queens held and he climbed to 22,000 as Chen found the exit. -- BK
4:30pm: Three-way accounts for ChenLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Another wander, another three-way all in. They love this type of stuff over here.
Jianyu Chen opened to 700 from under the gun and, two seats to his left, Raymond Dye called. Action then skipped a chair to Yauheni Zenkivich--manning Belarus's Macau outpost--and he raised to 2,000.
As soon because the decision came back to Chen, he announced that he was all in, for a bit greater than 8,000. Seconds later, Dye announced that he was all in too, with a covering stack, and Zenkivich also snap-called all in, with about 6,000 back.
Dye: T♥T♠Zenkivich: J♦J♣Chen: A♠K♠
Fair enough, I suppose.
The board then bricked, running entirely dry for they all. That meant that Zenkivich picked up a triple up, Dye won the side pot and Chen headed out the door. -- HS
4:25pm: Myrmo no moreLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Norway's Espen Myrmo was just sent packing by the hands of Ukraine's Valentyn Shabelnyk after a preflop confrontation.
The two got all of the money in before any community cards to look that Myrmo's fate can be decided by a coinflip.
Myrmo: A♥K♥Shabelnyk: Q♠Q♦
Myrmo found an ace at the 9♥Q♣A♠ but Shabelnyk spiked middle set to nearly already lock up the hand. The 7♣ turn and K♠ couldn't save Myrmo and he hit the rail here on Level 3.
Meanwhile Shabelnyk climbs to 36,000 in chips. -- BK
| 3 | 150 | 300 |
3:55pm: Yu flushedLevel 3 - Blinds 150/300
Three players were at a flop of 5♥7♥3♣ and without reference to how long they took to get there, the remainder of the hand played out in an issue of seconds. Those were the overall seconds of Xunhuan Yu's tournament too as what appeared like a gin card for him at the turn turned out to spell disaster.
Yu, who would has been within the small blind pre-flop, bet 3,100 at that board, which persuaded Chang He to fold. But Yifan Zhang called from what would was the cutoff and the pair saw the K♥ fall at the turn.
Yu checked. Zhang bet 6,400 and almost instantly, Yu moved all in. Much more quickly, Zhang called and the 2 hands were exposed. Yu had K♦K♣ and had turned a collection. But Zhang's Q♥J♥ was a flush that was not out-drawn at the total blur of a river.
Yu skittered away as Zhang stacked up about 40,000. -- HS
3:55pm Break timeLevel 2 - Blinds 100/200
That's the top of the day's second level, and players are heading for his or her first break of the day. -- HS
3:50pm: Liu's mis-GivensLevel 2 - Blinds 100/200
More than 200 players have now registered for today's action--204 to be precise--of whom a minimum of six have already been eliminated. I'm yet to witness anyone spiralling out of contention first hand, but it isn't for want of trying.
William Givens nearly became that man, inquiring for the red all-in triangle within the 10 minutes before Level 2 drew to an in depth. He got keen on slightly a peculiar hand, started by Daniel Laidlaw's open to 600 from mid-position.
Douglas Chan called from the hijack after which Chunjie Liu made it 2,100 to move from the button. Givens was within the small blind and, after some time to ponder his options, he raised to 6,000. The large blind got out of how and both Laidlaw and Chan had also seen enough. But Liu, with position, called.
The flop brought the 3♥6♠7♣ and, with it, a nearly immediate shove for precisely 10,000 from Givens. Liu seemed anguished and pondered a choice for a protracted while. But he eventually thought best of it, leaving Givens wanting the double up but with chips to fight another day. -- HS
3:45pm Im collects a potLevel 2 - Blinds 100/200
Much like her teammate Kosei Ichinose, Team PokerStars Pro Vivian Im had a coarse start but is doing well to acquire chips because the day progresses.
A recent hand saw Im climb back over the 20,000 starting stack with a well-timed check-raise.
We arrived on the table with three active players, the board reading 8♠6♥2♦ and around 4,500 within the pot indicating considerable preflop action.
Im, first to act, checked her option as did the player in late position. Ben Cade at the button, however, bet 1,800. Im made the decision and with the third party out of how the dealer turned the T♥.
Im checked her option again but this time when faced with a chance of 2,800 she installed a raise to 5,800 - leaving herself only 1,275 behind. Cade shuffled his chips and thought of his options before ultimately throwing his hand within the muck.
Tablemates laughed and debated whether Im had 7-9 or a collection of eights because the Team Pro stacked up 21,000 in chips. -- BK
3:30pm: Kosei climbs backLevel 2 - Blinds 100/200
Japanese Team PokerStars Pro Kosei Ichinose is one of the action today and is fighting back after a lower than desirable start.
Ichinose looked as if it would have fallen to nearly 1/2 the 20,000 start stack before the hand that just transpired. We caught the action at the flop of 3♦9♣4♣ where he checked from the large blind and his opponent did the similar behind.
Ichinose checked again after the Q♦ turn peeled off and when faced with a raffle of 700, he reraised to 2,000. The Team Pro's repop was called and the 4♥ arrived at the river.
"4,500" announced Ichinose throwing in a 5,000 denomination chip.
The final wager was called and Ichinose tabled Q♠9♠ for prime two pair to win the pot. With that he's with regards to starting stack again with 18,500. -- BK
3:15pm: Tough to read these twoLevel 2 - Blinds 100/200
Here's an intriguing pot from Table 21, where Kai Chen demonstrated quite clearly that he's a non-believer and Zhenhua Lu showed precisely why he isn't to be believed.
Chen was under the gun and he opted only to name the 200 big blind. Action folded to Lu at the button and he raised to 700. The blinds folded, but Chen called.
Those two took a flop of 6♥A♠8♦ and Chen now found his betting rhythm. He moved 700 over the line, which Lu called. That drew the Q♦ at the turn and Chen bet again, this time 1,300. Lu responded with a raise, making it 2,800. Chen called and this was now getting big.
The 8♥ came at the river and Chen opted to test. Lu, however, had another stab. He bet 4,500. Chen responded by asking his opponent to boost his hands in order that he could see what number of chips he had remaining, quickly learning it was within the region of 14,600.
Chen threw out what appeared like a sigh-call, more out of curiosity than expectation. But curiosity on this instance rewarded the cat: Lu showed 6♣2♣ for a couple of sixes. Chen got to turn his slow-played K♠K♥.
The cowboys could have got him into trouble on an ace-high flop, but somehow Chen got with regards to the utmost with them. -- HS
| 2 | 100 | 200 |
3:05pm: Set over set goes Ashitianizarandi's wayLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
A sizable pot just went down on Table 3. The hand began with Bassel Zammar opening from early position to 250 before the player within the cutoff, Shahin Ashitianizarandi within the small blind and Henrik Tollefsen within the big blind all called to look the T♠6♦5♦ flop.
The action checked to Zammar who continued for 425. The cutoff tossed his hand away but Ashitianizarandi quickly moved all in for 5,550. Tollefsen surrendered his hand before Zammar snapped it off to look he'd been hit by a chilly deck.
Ashitianizarandi: 6♥6♣Zammar: 5♠5♥
The flop had brought a collection over set scenario and left Zammar chasing one lonely out to scoop the pot. It wouldn't arrive because the 4♦ turn and 9♣ river completed the board and Ashitianizarandi doubled up.
"I was so with reference to having a cigarette" said Zammar with a sigh, lamenting at the fact he'd even been dealt in. After a superb run early in proceedings Zammar remains to be fit with 28,000 in chips. -- BK
3pm: Tong gets toughLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
Somehow, Zhou Tong found himself with only about 5,500 in his stack and located an outstanding spot to get it in. Cheng Cheng limped for 100 from under the gun and Vivian Im, one seat to his left, maybe hoped to continue a limping party. She called too.
However, after action folded through another couple of players, Tong shipped all of it in, about 55 blinds. The table chuckled because it folded, one-by-one. Tong turned over A♣K♣ to turn that he was packing. -- HS
2:55pm: HK$50,000 resumes
In addition to the commencement of the primary event, the two-day HK$50,000 plays to a winner this evening at PokerStars LIVE Macau. Its 100-strong field was sliced to its last 32 over yesterday's eight hours, but there's still far to move until a champion is crowned.
The top five at this stage are:
Ryan Mingho Yum (China) - 621,500Dong Zhao (China) - 369,000Houmao Hua (China) - 312,000Jordan Kaplan (Malaysia) - 282,000Matthew Moss (Hong Kong) - 263,500
The field also still features Juicy Liu and Billy Argyros. -- HS
2:50pm: 2 hundred in our sightsLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
The tournament entry board shows 171 players already registered for today's action, with an expectation now pervading the room that we must always comfortably surpass 200 for this primary flight. Day 1Bs are always significantly larger, so there's every chance we're on for a 500+ tournament. -- HS
2:45pm: Slow tank, chopLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
A ponderous hand played out on Table 11, with probably the most frustrating of all results for fans of giant swings: a chopped pot. This one had potential, but fizzled out.
There were four players to a flop of T♠3♠A♠, each having contributed 250 each to the 1,000-value pre-flop pot. After Jia Zhou and Deok-yeong Lee checked, Hui Zhang bet 700. Only his neighbour to the left, Kin Wai Tang, called.
Those two saw a turn of 5♦ and Zhang bet 1,600. Tang, after a protracted and deliberate pause, called they usually saw the river: 6♦.
Zhang now checked--I think he was possibly the outlet raiser too, but now bogged down a bit--and Tang checked behind. Zhang turned over his A♦J♠ but was only getting half it after Tang showed his A♥J♥. -- HS
2:40pm: Demlakian loses some to LeeLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
Australian Ken Demlakian made an outstanding 7th place finish within the PCA Main Event earlier this year but he isn't faring besides to this point today after losing some chips to Korea's Deok-yeong Lee.
Demlakian opened the cutoff to 250 before Lee three-bet to 650 from the small blind. After a choice from Demlakian players went to a flop of 5♠A♣K♦.
Ken Demlakian: From the PCA back to Macau
Lee continued for 700 which was met with a choice before the dealer turned the 8♣. Lee fired again, this time for 1,100 but Demlakian played back at him for 2,800. Lee popped it as much as 7,600 sending Demlakian into the tank.
After a pair minutes deliberation Demlakian sighed and exposed the A♠ as he threw the hand away. --BK
2:25pm: Team Pro pulls up a seatLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
Day 1a is purely just kicking into gear and we've already spotted our first Team PokerStars Pro a number of the field. Korean Team Pro Vivian Im is without doubt one of the action, but with six hours of late registration and another flight tomorrow we're expecting a couple of more to sign up for the hunt.
Fellow team members Chen An Lin, Celina Lin, Bryan Huang and Yaxi Zhu were all on the tables for earlier events within the festival so it's likely they'll show their faces for the principle Event. -- BK
2:15pm: Gift boxLevel 1 - Blinds 50/100
When action got under way, there have been 119 players registered for this opening flight. It's sure to grow considerably, and there is a line still on the registration desk to shop for in.
In addition to a stack of chips, players sitting down on the table also receive a call for participation to the APPT Macau players' party, going down tomorrow night, in addition to a sparkly gold card souvenir card protector on top of a mysterious gift box.
Welcome to the table at APPT Macau
That slim, black envelope actually features a display holder for the memento card protector, with four other slots. There is a different gift on offer at all of the APPT events on Season 10, meaning a player competing at each destination can complete the set.
Full details of the APPT schedule are at the APPT page. -- HS
2:00pm: Cards within the air!Level 1 - Blinds 50/100
PokerStars LIVE Macau's Fred Leung just took to the microphone to welcome now only our players but additionally to introduce Mark Blake, the brand new APPT president, who was given the "Shuffle up and deal" duties. With that we're underway and in store for eight one-hour levels here on Day 1A.
Fred Leung, left, and Mark Blake
Tables listed here are filling up quick and with a line still on the registration booth it looks as if players can have a large field to contend with.
Now it is time to head to the tournament floor to catch the action.
1.30pm: Welcome to town of Dreams
Good afternoon everybody and welcome to Macau. That isn't specific enough. In particular, welcome to the PokerStars LIVE poker site on the City of Dreams Casino, home for the following five days to the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) main event.
The buy-in for this one is HK$25,000 (approximately US$3,200) and, with around 500 players expected, it is going to be worth winning. The entrants can be split across two opening flights--today and tomorrow--with a 2pm start time on both days.
Players get a 20,000 starting stack and registration is open until the top of the sixth one-hour level, round about 8.30pm. Blinds start at 50-100 and you'll see how they progress, in addition to viewing all of the festival information, within the APPT10 Macau Player's Guide.
Stick around here on PokerStars Blog, the one English-language outlet with coverage until the bitter end.
PokerStars Blog reporting team in Macau: Brad Kain and Howard Swains. Photos by Kenneth Lim.
The APPT Macau festival at PokerStars LIVE on the City of Dreams runs until Sunday, May 29. Full details can be found at the official APPT website or via the PokerStars Macau page.
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