2009 PokerStars.net APPT Macau

APPT Macau Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info

2009 PokerStars.net APPT Macau

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
10k
Prize
$541,089
Event Info
Buy-in
$5,000
Prize Pool
$2,081,000
Entries
429
Level Info
Level
27
Blinds
40,000 / 80,000
Ante
5,000

Potter Exits

James Potter eliminated
James Potter eliminated
The PokerNews blogging desk was unfortunately visited by James 'Welcome Back' Potter.

Potter gave us a breakdown of the hand saying that he squeezed a lone Ace and moved his last 39,000 into the pot.

It was folded right round to the other short stack, and he managed to pick up a wired pair of Jacks to make the call against Potter's {A-?}{6-?}.

Potter found a gutshot straight-draw but nothing else as he made his way to the rail just a few places shy of the money.

Tags: James Potter

Makasovski Doubles

Shawn Buchanan opened to 11,000 before Tom Rafferty pushed it to 28,000.

Tony Makasovski started talking up both players before moving all in for his last 65,200. Buchanan quickly folded, but Rafferty made a reluctant call.

Rafferty: {A-Diamonds}{8-Diamonds}
Makasovski: {J-Clubs}{J-Diamonds}

The board ran out {3-Clubs}{6-Spades}{10-Diamonds}{8-Hearts}{2-Hearts} to see Rafferty slip to 143,000 as Makasovski doubles through to 150,000 in chips.

Tags: Shawn BuchananTom RaffertyTony Makasovski

Te Sets Up To Double Through Tran

With already 30,000 in the pot after a preflop tangle between William Te and Theo Tran, the two poker personalities took a flop of {4-Hearts}{9-Diamonds}{3-Hearts}.

Tran was in the big blind and moved all in but Te beat him into the pot with a call for his last 31,000 chips as he flipped {9-Hearts}{9-Clubs} for top set. Tran was left drawing to a miracle with his {9-Spades}{10-Spades}.

The turn was the {j-Hearts} and river the {a-Hearts} to double Te up to around 90,000 chips, much to the delight of his supporters clinging to the rail.

Tags: Theo TranWilliam Te

Agarwal Eliminated

Aditya Agarwal eliminated
Aditya Agarwal eliminated
We're getting close to the bubble now, when every elimination is even more painful than it might otherwise be. Aditya Agarwal is the latest bust-out. He opened all in preflop with {K-Hearts} {J-Clubs} for 68,700 and ran into the button player's {A-Diamonds} {A-Spades}. The flop gave Agarwal a decent sweat, {Q-Spades} {7-Hearts} {10-Clubs}, but the button had two blockers to Agarwal's straight draw. The turn {2-Diamonds} was a total brick; the river {J-Diamonds} was not enough to give Agarwal the pot. He's out.

Tags: Aditya Agarwal

Schreiber Ships a Big'un; Turns Lin into Roadkill

PokerStars Team Asia Pro Jonathan Lin
PokerStars Team Asia Pro Jonathan Lin
A very short-stacked Jonathan Lin, member of PokerStars Team Asia Pro, has just been eliminated from the tournament by fellow Team Asia Pro Dan Schreiber -- the result of an action-heavy preflop battle.

Action folded around the table to Darkhan Botabayev in the cutoff, who made it 12,000 to go. Next to act, Roel Pijpers upped the ante to 34,000 from the button. Action then fell to Schreiber in the small blind, who moved all in for a total of 103,200.

Lin had already committed over half of his stack (4,000) to the big blind, and obligatorily tossed his last 3,000 chips into the mess that had unfolded before him.

Both Botabayev and Pijpers let go of their cards, meaning Schreiber was guaranteed to take down the sidepot and face Lin heads-up for the main.

The cards were then tabled and Schreiber's {K-Diamonds}{Q-Hearts} had Lin's {K-Diamonds}{8-Clubs} crushed. The board panned out {A-Spades}{3-Clubs}{J-Clubs}{K-Spades}{6-Diamonds} and Schreiber's queen kicker played to earn him the rest of the pot, subsequently sending his Team Asia Pro colleague to the rail.

After the hand, Schreiber stacked up just under 170,000 in chips.

Tags: Jonathan Lin

Hou's Call Pays Dividens

We're getting to that point of the tournament. The nerve-wrecking bubble. The time where the cream rises and dreams are shattered.

Often it's the time where the big stacks will apply maximum pressure and bully to short stacks, knowing that the short stacks want to desperately reach the money. The short stacks know this, but still, it requires either big cards or big kahunas to do something about it.

Stanley Hou fell into one of those categories after making a tremendous call to stay alive in this tournament. Brandon Demes (aka the big stack) raised it up to 9,000 from middle position and Hou decided to make the call in the big blind.

They saw a flop of {4-Spades}{K-Spades}{5-Clubs} and Hou came out swinging with a bet of 15,000. Demes immediately declared himself all in, and here was that moment. Hou knew he was being picked on by the big stack, and with about 50,000 chips behind Hou managed to find the courage to call and put his tournament life at risk within sight of the money.

It was a great call as Demes tabled {7-Diamonds}{5-Diamonds} to trail Hou's {K-Diamonds}{10-Clubs}. The turn was the {2-Hearts} and river the {9-Clubs} and Hou doubles through to around 115,000 as Demes was left shaking his head.

Tags: Brandon DemesStanley Hou

Ang Gets the Last Laugh

Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for. The cutoff opened a pot to 11,200 before big blind Josh Ang re-raised to 27,000.

"Ok, good luck to me," the cutoff said as he moved all in. Ang quickly called -- from behind.

Ang: {A-Clubs} {10-Clubs}
CO: {A-Diamonds} {K-Spades}

The flop came down all deuces, {2-Clubs} {2-Spades} {2-Diamonds}. "Ok, that's good for me," said Ang's opponent. We were thinking the opposite -- that there are many far better flops out there for ace-king in that situation.

The point was proven when the {A-Hearts} hit the turn, but Ang's opponent didn't seem to realize it. He was overjoyed to see the ace hit the turn. "That's really good for me!"

"No it's not," said Ang. The table burst into laughter as the cutoff realized he was chopping the pot. He fell into his chair with a laugh.

"I've never seen someone so happy to chop a put from so far ahead," said Ang after the river fell {J-Spades} and the pot was chopped.

Tags: Josh Ang

Tan Crippled

Ivan Tan picked a bad time to get bad-beated. We're approaching the money bubble now and Tan is in desperate straits with just 20,000 chips after losing a huge pot worth 160,000. His opponent jammed into him from the small blind with {K-Hearts} {6-Hearts} and Tan snap-called with pocket kings. All was OK for Tan on of {5-Clubs} {A-Spades} {4-Clubs}, but the turn and river were disaster: {8-Diamonds} {7-Diamonds} to give his opponent a runner-runner eight-high straight.

Tags: Ivan Tan

He's No Pretender...

Chip leader Preetinder Bhayana
Chip leader Preetinder Bhayana
Our current top five chip counts:

Preetinder Bhayana - 406,000
Kyle Cheong - 390,000
Dermot Blain - 324,000
Tom Hall - 313,000
Darkhan Botabayev - 298,000