Americas Conference Final
Day 1 Completed
2016 Global Poker League Finals
Americas Conference Final
Day: 1
Montreal Nationals Starts Slow, But Finish On Top of Americas Conference
The Montreal Nationals are heading the first ever GPL Grand Final after defeating the LA Sunset in six games. The final match saw team managers, Marc-Andre Ladouceur of the Montreal Nationals beat Maria Ho of the LA Sunset.
The day started with the Nationals playing against the fourth seed San Francisco Rush. The Nationals went down 0-2 and it looked like the Rush might upset the top seed. Pascal Lefrancois had travel issues and missed his first match. Mike McDonald filled in and lost to Jonathan Jaffe. But McDonald would go on to win two of the next three matches, including a game seven victory over Jonathan Jaffe to help the Nationals take the series. Lefrancois also showed up in time to win game four against Jaffe as well.
The next series of the day was the second seed LA Sunset led by team manager Maria Ho playing against the third seed Sao Paolo Mets. The Mets brought in probably the hottest player in Thiago Nishijima, who was riding a heads up winning streak that continued when he beat Ho in games three and six. However, in the deciding game Olivier Busquet bested Nishijima to send his team through to the Americas Conference Final to face the Montreal Nationals.
The Conference finals started with the Sunset falling to 0-2 after McDonald and LeFrancois continued their winning ways beating Chance Kornuth and Busquet in games one and two. It was Ho that got things turned around in game three, defeating Ladouceur to bring the series to 2-1.
Kornuth followed up Ho's win by defeating McDonald in an epic 74 hand match. Lefrancois then beat Busquet for the second time in the series, going undefeated on the day. Ladouceur finished the Sunset off when he defeated Ho in a match where she got the Hot Seat for the third time today. With only four seconds to make her decisions, the Hot Seat had at least some influence on the outcome of the match.
The Montreal Nationals finished the regular season with the most points in either division and will await the winners of the Eurasia Conference. The Eurasia Conference Playoff starts at noon and the winners will face the Nationals on Thursday for the first-ever GPL Championship.
Marc-Andre Ladouceur Beats Maria Ho to Send Nationals to the GPL Final
Marc-Andre Ladouceur took a slight lead after both him and Maria Ho flopped a pair. He got paid off on the river and took down the huge pot. On the next hand, Ho bluffed the river and Ladouceur called with top pair, giving him a big chip lead.
Then Ho had 
and shoved all in, putting herself and the LA Sunset's chances of making the first-ever GPL Final at risk. Ladouceur called with 
and hit a six on the river to win the series send the Montreal Nationals into the GPL Final to meet the winner of the Eurasia Conference, to be determined tomorrow.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
500,000 | 229,000 |
|
Busted |
Maria Ho Slightly Behind and Approaching Hot Seat
Maria Ho just called a river bet by Marc Andre Ladouceur. She lost the pot and is now slightly behind and running out of time. She is approaching the Hot Seat once again, and soon will only have four seconds to make each decision.
Ladouceur held 
and Ho held 
. The board read 
and Ladouceur bet 42,000 on the river. Ho called and lost a big pot that put Ladouceur slightly in the lead.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
271,000 | 11,000 |
|
|
208,000 | -32,000 |
Game #6: Maria Ho v. Marc Andre Ladouceur
Maria Ho got a win in game three of this series after her team went down 2-0. She now heads back to the cube to play Marc Andre Ladouceur again, but this time it is a win or be eliminated scenario.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
260,000 | 260,000 |
|
|
240,000 | -260,000 |
Pascal Lefrancois Beats Olivier Busquet Again, Nationals Up 3-2
Pascal Lefrancois took out "hired gun" Olivier Busquet for the second time in the series to give his team a 3-2 series lead.
Lefrancois is now 4-0 on the day. The two players went back and forth, until eventually the cards and chip stacks made the decisions. Lefrancois got 
and Busquet was second best with 
. Lefrancois flopped broadway and improved to a flush by the river. That hand left Busquet with less than two big blinds. He had king-high, but couldn't hold against the five-high of Lefrancois.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
500,000 | 185,000 |
|
Busted |
Olivier Busquet Comes From Behind
Olivier Busquet was down to about ten big blinds and got all in behind holding 
against the 
of Pascal Lefrancois.
Busquet flopped a pair and stayed ahead to earn the double up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
315,000 | 55,000 |
|
|
163,000 | -77,000 |
Game #5: Olivier Busquet v. Pascal Lefrancois
With the series tied 2-2, Olivier Busquet and Pascal Lefrancois are set to play again. Lefrancois won the first match to get the Nationals off to a 2-0 start, but now the series is tied and the two heads up specialists enter the cube again.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
260,000 | -240,000 |
|
|
240,000 | 240,000 |
Chance Kornuth Takes Out Mike McDonald Ties the Series 2-2
Mike McDonald ran out of his allotted time back as he and Chance Kornuth played more than 70 hands in game #4. McDonald shoved all in with 
and Kornuth called with 
. Kornuth caught a king on the flop and stayed ahead, leaving McDonald with one big blind and 
, Kornuth had 
. Kornuth rivered a seven to win the match and tie the series at 2-2.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
500,000 | 154,000 |
|
Busted |
Deuce on the River Gives Kornuth the Lead
Chance Kornuth and Mike McDonald both flopped a pair of kings. McDonald had the better kicker, holding king-six. Kornuth was the ony betting the whole way and hit a two on the river to take the lead. On the river he bet 38,850 and McDonald called.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
346,000 | 106,000 |
|
|
125,000 | -135,000 |