Main Event
Day 2 Completed
2017 PokerStars Festival Korea
Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2017 PokerStars Festival Korea
Buy-in
1,650,000 KRW
Entries
285
Level
27
Blinds
30,000 / 60,000
Ante
10,000
Yuki Ko Takes Massive Lead into Final Table
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
The PokerStars Festival Korea Main Event is down to a final table, and a clear favorite has emerged heading into the final day of play. Korean player Yuki Ko, who started the day with the chip lead, will hold more than 30 percent of the chips when official final table play begins on Day 3.
Ko used an extremely aggressive, unpredictable style of play that absolutely stymied his opponents and allowed him to build up a stack that's more than double that of Scott Janik (1,367,000) and Taehoon Han (1,345,000), who are essentially tied for second place. It seemed like every time Ko's opponents tried to play back at him, they ran into a buzzsaw as he either had the goods or simply ran well when the cards were tabled.
For instance, Mitsuru Sano had a big stack and tried butting heads with Ko when there were 14 left. He check-raised the turn on a three-flush board with second pair that was he was turning into a bluff, following up with a big river bet. However, Ko had the flush with a six-four of diamonds that he played under the gun and won a huge pot.
In another spot, Ko opened and got three-bet small by small blind Wei Hsiang Yeu. Ko stuffed it to put Yeu all in, and the latter sighed and called it off with pocket threes. A king-jack-three flop looked great for Yeu, and he even turned a queen of spades to add a flush draw. However, Ko hit an offsuit ten on the river to make a straight.
A couple of representatives of Team PokerStars were among the players coming into the day with high hopes but having them dashed early. Team Online's Randy "nanonoko" Lew busted early when he ran pocket jacks into the pocket kings of Dmitrii Kovalevskii, who advanced to the final table with the short stack of 403,000. Team Pro Celina Lin lasted only a little longer.
Among the 98 players who started the day, there were a few notables who advanced into the money in the top 39 places. Alan Lau, Albert Paik, Jack Wu, Justin Chan and Sparrow Cheung all cashed, though none reached the final table.
A subplot coming into Day 2 was the possibility of Lau, Cheung and Pete Chen, the top three respectively in Asia Player of the Year rankings, seeking points. Cheung would be the last to fall, going out 12th, so all three missed the chance to accrue points by finishing top 10.
The remaining eight players will return at noon local time on Monday for the final table, which will begin with the following setup:
| Seat | Player | Stack |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mitsuru Sano | 865,000 |
| 2 | Yuki Ko | 2,820,000 |
| 3 | Jwahyoung Kim | 509,000 |
| 4 | Taehoon Han | 1,345,000 |
| 5 | Dmitrii Kovalevskii | 403,000 |
| 6 | Scott Janik | 1,367,000 |
| 7 | Weikuo Hsiao | 722,000 |
| 8 | Harunobu Kojima | 456,000 |
Just under 19 minutes remain in Level 23 (12,000/24,000/4,000). Come back to PokerNews to see who claims the ₩83,130,000, or about $75,000, that will go to the winner.
End of Day 2 Counts
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,820,000 | 125,000 |
|
1,367,000 | 50,000 |
|
1,345,000 | -28,000 |
|
865,000 | 148,000 |
|
722,000 | -74,000 |
|
509,000 | 20,000 |
|
456,000 | -60,000 |
|
403,000 | 32,000 |
Official Final Table Reached; Day 2 Play Concluded
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
Since the official final table has now been reached with Xingbiao Zhu's elimination, the remaining eight players are now bagging chips for the night. A recap of the day's action will be posted shortly.
Xingbiao Zhu Eliminated in 9th Place (₩8,670,000)
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
Yuki Ko opened to 48,000 from the button and Xingbiao Zhu moved his short stack into the middle from the small blind. Ko quickly called to put Zhu at risk and the two players tabled their hands.
Ko: 
Zhu: 
Ko had the preflop advantage with the better ace and Zhu needed help from the deck in order to double up. The board ran out 
to give Ko the nut flush and he took the pot to end Zhu's deep run in this event.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |
Final Table Draw and Counts (full)
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
| Seat | Player | Stack |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mitsuru Sano | 717,000 |
| 2 | Yuki Ko | 2,695,000 |
| 3 | Xingbiao Zhu | 224,000 |
| 4 | Jwahyoung Kim | 489,000 |
| 5 | Taehoon Han | 1,373,000 |
| 6 | Dmitrii Kovalevskii | 371,000 |
| 7 | Scott Janik | 1,317,000 |
| 8 | Weikuo Hsiao | 796,000 |
| 9 | Harunobu Kojima | 516,000 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,695,000 | -225,000 |
|
|
1,373,000 | -137,000 |
|
|
1,317,000 | 197,000 |
|
|
796,000 | 1,000 |
|
|
717,000 | -13,000 |
|
|
516,000 | -29,000 |
|
|
489,000 | -106,000 |
|
|
371,000 | -214,000 |
|
|
224,000 | -1,000 |
Hiroyuki Noda Eliminated in 10th Place (₩7,250,000)
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
Hiroyuki Noda got his short stack in the middle before the flop against both Weikuo Hsiao and Xingbiao Zhu, both of whom had him covered.
Zhu and Hsiao checked all the way down as the board ran out 
. Noda announced "queen high" and Hsiao tabled 
, which had both players beat since Zhu flipped over 
, so Hsiao took the pot to end Noda's deep run in this tournament.
With Noda's elimination, the remaining nine players have reached the unofficial final table. The clock is presently paused and the final table seat draw will be posted shortly.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
795,000 | -5,000 |
|
|
225,000 | -285,000 |
|
Busted |
Sano Takes From Ko
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
Yuki Ko raised to 48,000 from under the gun and Mitsuru Sano called from the big blind.
The flop fell 
and both players checked.
The turn brought the 
and Sano checked. Ko bet 90,000 and Sano check-raised to 220,000, sending Ko into the tank. After about a minute, he folded and Sano took the chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,920,000 | 220,000 |
|
|
730,000 | 295,000 |
Wei Hsiang Yeu Eliminated in 11th Place (₩7,250,000)
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
Yuki Ko opened to 44,000 in middle position. Wei Hsiang Yeu three-bet to 103,000 in the small blind. Ko shoved all in and Yeu sighed, counted out his stack of about 400,000, and pushed it in.
Yeu: 
Ko: 
The flip was on and it looked like it would go to Yeu without a sweat when 
flopped to give him a set. The turn even gave him a flush draw, but everyone at the table was shocked when the 
fell to make Ko a backdoor straight.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,700,000 | 550,000 |
|
Busted |
Sparrow Cheung Eliminated in 12th Place (₩6,350,000)
Level 23
: 12,000/24,000, 4,000 ante
On the first hand dealt after cards were back in the air, Sparrow Cheung opened to 60,000 from middle position and Taehoon Han three-bet to 145,000 from the cutoff. Cheung shoved and Han called instantly with a very slightly larger stack to put Cheung at risk.
Cheung:
Han: 
Cheung found himself trailing Han's pocket aces and needed help from the deck in order to preserve his tournament life. The board ran out 
which wasn't what Cheung wanted to see. After the stacks were verified, Han took the pot to end Cheung's deep run in this event.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,510,000 | 908,000 |
|
Busted |