Wai Tung Lo Wins 2014 Asia Championship of Poker Warm-Up for $154K; Main Event Begins
The 2014 Asia Championship of Poker (ACOP) at PokerStars LIVE Macau recently concluded the last of its warm-up events. Event #9: HK$25,000 ACOP Warm-Up attracted 277 players and created a prize pool of HK$6,179,870. After two days of intense play, it was 25-year-old Wai Tung Lo, a Hong Kong native, who emerged victorious to capture the HK$1,197,350 (USD $154,453) top prize.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (HK) | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wai Tung Lo | Hong Kong | $1,197,350 | $154,385 |
| 2 | Louis Salter | UK | $1,197,350 | $154,385 |
| 3 | Ami Barer | Canada | $587,100 | $75,700 |
| 4 | Kiyokazu Nishikawa | Japan | $463,500 | $59,763 |
| 5 | Markus Garberg | Norway | $370,800 | $47,810 |
| 6 | Edison Nguyen | Australia | $309,000 | $39,842 |
| 7 | Mikhail Mazunin | Russia | $247,270 | $31,883 |
| 8 | Kitty Kuo | Chinese Taipei | $185,600 | $23,931 |
| 9 | Dong Guo | Canada | $154,700 | $19,947 |
The two-day tournament attracted some big names including Team PokerStars Pros Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Eugene Katchalov, Liv Boeree, Randy Lew, Raymond Wu, Vivian Im, Naoya Kihara, and Celina Lin. Unfortunately, Lin was the only Team Pro among the 58 Day 1 survivors. Leading the way in that pack was Japan’s Kazuhiko Yotsushika (175,200), while Louis Salter (172,000) and Ami Barer (166,300) rounded out the top three.
Lin failed to make the money at the top 31, while Yotsushika bowed out fairly early on Day 2, finishing 24th for HK$46,300. As for Barer and Salter, they used their big stacks to make it all the way to the final table. Along with Lo, the triumvirate battled well into the morning hours, but eventually Barer exited, broken and exhausted, at 4 a.m. At that point, Lo and Salter struck a deal to split the money and play for the trophy, which Lo went on to win.
The completion of the this event means the five-day HK$100,000 Main Event, which features a HK$15,000,000 prize pool guarantee, is upon us. PokerNews is live reporting that event now, and you can follow all the action by clicking here.
Photo courtesy of PokerStars.
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PR & Media Manager for PokerNews, Podcast host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.
