Main Event Day 2b | 2017 Suncity Cup Finale Macau

11-30-2017 18:52 UTC+8

Tran Shoves on Shim

RazorSharpPro

Level 6 : 1,500/3,000, 500 ante

Linh Tran was looking a little short there for a while but has just won a pot to keep himself in the running. We picked up the action on the flop with the community cards reading and close to 50,000 already in the pot.

Tran, sitting in middle position, had just moved all-in and was playing around with the ‘All-in’ triangle on the table in front of him while his opponent in the hand, Korea’s Hyoung Suob Shim, mulled over his decision.

Eventually, Shim let it go and Tran pulled in the pot to climb to 110,000 while Shim dropped to 80,000.

Player	Chips	Progress
Linh Tran	110,000 -2,000	-2,000
Hyoung Suob Shim	80,000 13,000	13,000

Tags: Linh Tran Hyoung Suob Shim

11-30-2017 19:28 UTC+8

Big Stacks at the Break

RazorSharpPro

Level 6 : 1,500/3,000, 500 ante

There are 61 players out of the 115 initial Day 2 entrants still in contention and they have just headed off on a 40-minute dinner break. The current frontrunner is Yu Dong and the Chinese player has been hard at work since the last time we walked by his table – he had just over 300,000 then but has more than doubled that since and is now sitting on a mountain of chips with a stack of 630,000 – that is a massive 210 big blinds folks.

The only other player we could find with anything close to this is Hong Kong’s Sparrow Cheung, but he ‘only’ has a stack of 360,000 (120 big blinds). While Taiwan’s Chan An Lin wins the award for the most artistic chip stack – some sort of giant elaborate chip flower that he has spent the better part of the last level building – he only has a stack of 208,000. Here’s how some of the field’s other notables are stacking up:

Player	Chips	Progress
Yu Dong Yang	630,000 290,000	290,000
Sparrow Cheung	360,000 215,000	215,000
Justin Chan	350,000 49,000	49,000
Zhao Yanchao	325,000 10,000	10,000
Eugene Co	300,000 30,000	30,000
Canlin Chen	290,000 177,700	177,700
Xixiang Luo	270,000 224,500	224,500
Jinqiang Shi	255,000 -65,000	-65,000
Danny Tang	230,000 230,000	230,000

Vivian Im	220,000 141,000	141,000
Chen An Lin	208,000 208,000	208,000
Carson Wong	190,000 -117,000	-117,000
Pete Chen	150,000 40,000	40,000

Ka Ho Sun	150,000 68,000	68,000
Jack Wu	140,000 -70,000	-70,000
Oliver Saul	110,000 -4,000	-4,000
Chin Sun Tan	90,000 -73,000	-73,000
Jay Tan	70,000 32,500	32,500
Marcus Lau	70,000 -135,000	-135,000
Fredric Stephan	Busted

Level: 7

Blinds: 2,000/4,000

Ante: 500

11-30-2017 20:18 UTC+8

Saul Plays Big Two

RazorSharpPro

Level 7 : 2,000/4,000, 500 ante

For those unaware, Big Two is a card game extremely popular in this part of the world (Asia) and has very similar hand rankings to poker, only the highest card in the game is the deuce as oppose to the ace, so the is the highest card.

Ok, now our little lesson in Asian card games is over, let us get on to the hand in question. It was the UK’s Oliver Saul who was the initial aggressor, opening the action to 9,000 from the hi-jack. The big blind bumped it up to 24,000 and Saul thought it over for a minute or so before pulling the trigger for 180,000 in total.

Saul’s opponent made a reluctant fold and the UK-based Spaniard flashed the before throwing his hand away to climb back up to over 200,000.

Player	Chips	Progress
Oliver Saul	200,000 90,000	90,000

Tags: Oliver Saul Thomas Lee

11-30-2017 20:20 UTC+8

A Little Lull

RazorSharpPro

Level 7 : 2,000/4,000, 500 ante

We know there have been some bust outs as the number of players on the tournament clock has dropped down to 58, it’s just that our timing seems a little off and we have not caught a single one.

It’s getting to that time in the tournament where a lot of pots are decided pre-flop, or else folded out on the flop after a single bet.

Hong Kong’s Danny Tang, Carson Wong, Sparrow Cheung and Justin Chan are all seated at the same table and are all deep-stacked so there is potential for fireworks.

However, that has not really been the case at all as no one is really getting out of line. We caught a hand between Danny Tang and Justin Chan that is the perfect example of how a great deal of the current action is going.

Action folded around to Chan on the button and he made it 10,500 with Tang the only caller in the big blind. The flop came down and there was all of no betting with the turn and river completing the hand. Tang turned over and Chan mucked.

China’s Yu Dong still holds the chip lead and we were hoping to catch him in action but instead were treated to a masterclass in poker with Dong winning three hands in a row, just by opening to 11,000. No one wants to tangle with the big stack apparently and Dong took down all three pots pre-flop to make 31,500 in blinds, all without a flop being dealt.

11-30-2017 20:42 UTC+8

Trips For Fei

RazorSharpPro

Level 7 : 2,000/4,000, 500 ante

Lu Fei's fortunes are on the rise and the Chinese player’s stack has been moving in the right direction since he eliminated the Netherland’s Bos Wim shortly before the dinner break.

We caught Fei in action once again in a sizable pot against a tablemate. The action had reached the river with close to 50,000 in the pot already and the community cards were spread .

Fei’s opponent in the cutoff fired for 25,000 and Fei made the call. The cutoff turned over for two pairs, tens and sixes but this was not enough to beat Fei’s and the Chinese player raked in the pot to climb to 190,000 in chips.

Player	Chips	Progress
Lu Fei	190,000 190,000	190,000

Tags: Lu Fei

11-30-2017 21:00 UTC+8

Double Double for Ichinose

RazorSharpPro

Level 7 : 2,000/4,000, 500 ante

Kosei Ichinose is hitting form at just the right time and this level has seen the Japanese player grind his stack from 60,000 all the way up to the giddy heights of 250,000 for a 400 percent increase in chips. Not bad going at all.

The man responsible for giving Kosei his first double was the Philippines Ty Delfino but it was a player in the cutoff who was the initial instigator, making it 8,500 to go. Kosei moved all-in from the button for 59,500 and Delfino peeked down at his cards in the small blind and re-shoved to isolate. The original raiser took the hint and folded and the cards were turned over.

Kosei Ichinose:
Ty Delfino:

Seeing her better half all-in (that would be Kosei) Hazel Chui came running over from one of the other tables to give Kosei a lucky kiss and call in the ace. It seemed to work as well, though maybe this is just confirmation bias as the flop came down to bring both players a pair.

It must have been quite a kiss as the turn was the and the river saw the Japanese player climb to 125,000.

An orbit later and this was 250,000 with another Filipino player, Eugene Co, granting the Japanese player the double this time around.

It was Kosei who was the initial raiser this time around, raising from the cutoff and Co re-raised from the big blind. The Japanese player called and the flop was exactly the one he was looking for, as you will discover shortly.

Co led out from the big blind, Kosei moved all-in and was quickly called and the cards were turned over.

Eugene Co:
Kosei Ichinose:

While the Japanese pro missed his flush he paired his queen to earn yet another double and Co dropped to 280,000.

Player	Chips	Progress
Eugene Co	280,000 -20,000	-20,000
Kosei Ichinose	250,000 135,000	135,000
Ty Delfino	103,000 103,000	103,000

Tags: Eugène Xo Hazel Chui Kosei Ichinose Ty Delfino

Level: 8

Blinds: 2,500/5,000

Ante: 500

11-30-2017 21:24 UTC+8

Battle of the Chen’s

RazorSharpPro

Level 8 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

We caught a blind on blind confrontation between small blind Canlin Chen and big blind Pete Chen and picked up the action on a flop of which Canlin led for 8,500.

Pete made the call and the turn paired the board and brought another bet from Canlin, this one a little larger 15,500. Pete took a bit longer over his decision this time but made the call and the river completed the hand.

Canlin fired a third barrel, this one for 25,000 and Pete shrugged and made the call. Canlin turned over and while he had Pete’s dominated pre-flop, post-flop Pete had the best hand and raked in the pot to climb to 200,000 while Canlin dropped to 80,500.

Player	Chips	Progress
Pete Chen	200,000 50,000	50,000

Canlin Chen	80,500 -209,500	-209,500

Tags: Canlin Chen Pete Chen

11-30-2017 21:45 UTC+8

Paik Doubles Hui

RazorSharpPro

Level 8 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Sparrow Cheung kicked off the action with a raise to 12,500 from middle postion and a short-stacked Dong Hui moved all-in from the cutoff for 25,500. Small blind Albert Paik re-shoved to isolate, Cheung took the hint and got out of the way and the cards were turned over.

Dong Hui:
Albert Paik:

It was off to the races once again and the flop was a good one for a man holding jacks. The turn and the river saw Hui double to 55,000 but Paik seemed unconcerned and still has a very healthy stack of 320,000 in front of him.

Player	Chips	Progress
Albert Paik	320,000
Dong Hui	55,000

Tags: Albert Paik Dong Hui