Friday, 29th March 2024 15:09
Home / Uncategorized / APPT7 Melbourne: Yan drowns on the river

Four hours, thirty minutes had passed since Ashley Mason was eliminated in fourth place. But finally, and thankfully, the three-handed deadlock has been broken with the elimination of David Yan.

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There were multiple double ups and a few suckouts in the three-handed war, but no one would budge an inch. It took the blinds to reach the dizzy heights of 50,000/100,000/10,000 before the players were really forced to gamble.

Billy Argyros started to get a little more aggressive, playing back at the two young guns, and his moves demanded respect. It left Bowdy Tolhopf and David Yan as the short stacks, and they would collide in another preflop duel. Yan opened with a raise, before Tolhopf moved all in. Argyros stepped aside but Yan made an easy call with A♥ K♣ to have Tolhopf’s Aâ™  9â™  in deep trouble.

The first four community cards were spread 8â™  5â™  3♥ 2♦ and it looked like we were in for our umpteenth double up. That was, until the 9♣ appeared on the river to pair Tolhopf’s kicker for the crushing blow.

It was a great tournament for David Yan. He was dominant at stages on Day 2, Day 3 and again today on the final table, but ultimately the blinds got hold and luck went against him. Following the three-handed ICM deal, Yan still collects $133,000 for his time in Melbourne.

And with that we are now finally heads-up for the title! It will be Australian Poker Hall of Famer Billy “The Croc” Argyros gunning for his first APPT title against the brash youngster in Bowdy Tolhopf. Argyros holds a narrow chip advantage as heads-up play gets under way.

Billy Argyros – 5,120,000
Bowdy Tolhopf – 4,150,000

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Photos provided by Kenneth Lim Photography

Heath “TassieDevil” Chick is a Freelance Contributor for the PokerStars Blog.

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