Feng Wen Chen charges ahead on Day 2
Six levels, one bubble boy and 135 relieved players as another day of the MPC25 Red Dragon is in the books. Only 270 of a starting 1,145 returned for Day 2 this afternoon and they were whittled down even further to just 59.
Of those it was Feng Wen Chen who proved himself the most dominant by the conclusion of play. Chen started with 113,200 and rode the wave all the way up to 997,000 in chips when the clock was stopped.
Chen has five live cashes to his name. Four minor ones and a respectable HK$130,000 for his 10th place finish in the APPT Macau Main Event in 2014. He will have to come at least 12th here this week to eclipse that best score.
Before Chen cruised into the chip lead the money bubble burst earlier in the day when we got down to 135 remaining. It was a sick beat that left Hua Yang reeling and ultimately earned him the unfortunate title of Bubble Boy.
It was hand-for-hand and there were three simultaneous all-ins on different tables when the bubble burst. While the other two at-risk players managed to double up it was a different story for Yang. He got his money in good holding 8â™ 3♦ against Paphawin Laodee’s Q♥ Q♦ on a flop of 3♥ J♥ 3â™ .
With trip threes Yang looked primed for a double up until the Q♣ landed on the turn to crush his dreams of cashing the tournament. A deafening roar swept the tournament floor as the railbirds couldn’t believe the two outer had landed. While Yang could’ve spiked the case three to improve to quads and stay alive he failed to do so as the K♣ arrived on the end to seal his fate. Still in good spirits Yang sported a smile as he shook Laodee’s hand.
The other lucky 135 guaranteed themselves at least HK$23,790 before battling on until the end of the day. Another 76 would fall by the wayside before Day 2 was officially wrapped.
Among the 59 survivors returning tomorrow are Geoff Mooney (679,000), Jack Salter (475,000), Tom Alner (468,000), Daniel Lee (469,000) and Team PokerStars Pro Celina Lin (410,000).
That’s all from us here in Macau tonight. We’ll be back to do it all again tomorrow from 3pm local time for Day 3. In the meantime you can check out the Day 3 seating draw right here. Be sure to come back and join us for all the action from the tables in this MPC25 Red Dragon Main Event!
9:25pm: Two more hands
Level 18: Blinds – 4,000/8,000 (1,000 ante)
Only two more hands remain here on Day 2. We’ll have a full wrap of today’s proceedings soon right here on the PokerStars Blog. Stay tuned!
9:15pm: Wang walks away
Level 18: Blinds – 4,000/8,000 (1,000 ante)
Zhiheng Wang has been eliminated after making a good call but getting unlucky versus Tom Alner.
Wang was short and when it folded around to Alner in the small blind he jammed with enough to cover Wang in the big blind. Wang hesitated but ended up calling to see he was in front.
Wang: K♦ J♦
Alner: 10♣ 2♣
The 4♦ 9♣ 10♠saw Alner improve to top pair and Wang then with two overs and a gut shot straight draw.
“Any picture card!” Wang called for but the deck wouldn’t oblige as the 6â™ turn and 2â™ river signalled the end of his tournament run.
9pm: Celina Lin still kicking
Level 18: Blinds – 4,000/8,000 (1,000 ante)
The only surviving Team PokerStars Pro to make it to Day 2 has had a solid day at the felt. Celina Lin started the day with 84,300 and has turned that into 375,000 so far. With the blinds still at 4,000/8,000 (1,000) she looks a favourite to make it through another day of this MPC Red Dragon.
8:40pm: Lucky double for O’Donoghue
Level 18: Blinds – 4,000/8,000 (1,000 ante)
Liam O’Donoghue will be counting his blessings after a lucky break kept his tournament alive. He moved all in preflop for 106,000 and was called by Manuel Mascunana who was ahead.
O’Donoghue: Aâ™ Q♦
Mascunana: A♥ Kâ™
The 3♦ J♦ 10â™ meant players were chasing each other’s kickers to make Broadway and luckily for O’Donoghue he found the card he needed when the K♣ appeared on the turn. The J♥ river changed nothing and O’Donoghue kept his head off of the chopping block.
Mascunana fell to 230,000 in chips.
8:20pm: So long for Su
Level 17: Blinds – 3,000/6,000 (1,000 ante)
Shinji Kashima kicked things off with a raise to 13,000 before Yu Zheng bumped it up to 32,000. Seow Lung Su moved all in over the three-bet for 57,000 and with Kashima out of the way, Zheng flicked in the extra and the cards went on their backs.
Su: 4♠4♦
Zheng: A♣ Q♣
It was a coinflip but Zheng shot to the lead on the 7♦ Aâ™ 2♦ flop. Needing a four or running cards to stay alive Su couldn’t do it when the 10â™ turn and 5♦ rolled off. He left the tournament area as Zheng collected the pot.
8:00pm: Xue hits the rail after three-way all in
Level 17: Blinds – 3,000/6,000 (1,000 ante)
It folded around to Wenyi Xue in the cutoff and he moved all in for his last 59,000. Yifu Zha was next to act and moved all in over the top with enough to cover the remaining active players. It got to Liang Song in the big blind and he called off to also put himself at risk.
Xue: Aâ™ 10â™ gg
Zha: 9♠9♥
Song: A♦ Qâ™
When all was said and done it was Song who had the best of it. The board came down 2♣ A♥ 4♦ 5♥ Q♣ to see him make two pair, eliminate Xue and take a chunk from Zha.
7:40pm: Zhong doubles through Alner
Level 17: Blinds – 3,000/6,000 (1,000 ante)
We arrived at the table to see all the cards face up and Zhun Zhong cheering and double fist pumping as the dealer counted down his stack. He had a total of 71,000 and Tom Alner had to match it in what appeared to have been a cooler.
The board read 3♣ A♥ J♠7♣ K♣ and while Alner had A♦ J♥ for two pair face up in front of him, Zhong held 3♥ 3♦ for a flopped set.
Alner was forced to pay Zhong before the former dropped back down to 145,000.
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7:15pm: Time for a break
Our remaining 107 players have just commenced a 10-minute break. Coverage will resume momentarily.
6:50pm: Bubble bursts as Hua Yang cops a sick beat
Level 16: Blinds – 2,500/5,000 (500 ante)
The room here at PokerStars LIVE Macau has been absolutely hectic this level. Multiple all-ins around the tournament floor and players all out of their seats attempting to see what’s transpiring on other tables as they wait for hand-for-hand.
That stage is over now, however, as the bubble just burst.
There were three all ins on different tables and while two of those shortstacked players doubled up, Yang wasn’t so lucky. Quite the opposite actually with Yang being sent home as our bubble boy after getting his money in good.
A huge crowd swarmed around the table to rail the action as a potentially guaranteed payday hung in the balance.
The flop showed 3♥ J♥ 3♠and Yang was all in against Paphawin Laodee. When they were given the all clear by tournament officials the pair of them tabled their cards.
Yang: 8♠3♦
Laodee: Q♥ Q♦
Yang was in great shape to double up and avoid bubbling – only needing to fade two outs.
A deafening roar erupted across the tournament floor as the dealer revealed the Q♣ – meaning it was all but over for Yang as he was down to the case three to keep his tournament alive.
It wouldn’t arrive as the K♣ completed the board and a round of applause swept the room before Yang left his seat.
The remaining 135 players have now all locked up at least $HK23,790.
6:30pm: Salter applies bubble pressure
Level 16: Blinds – 2,500/5,000 (500 ante)
Jack Salter just put Chunjie Liu to a decision for all his chips on the direct money bubble.
We caught the action on the turn where Salter bet 26,000 with the board reading 10♠6♦ A♣ 4♦ . Liu made the call and they went to the 8♥ river.
Liu checked from the big blind and Salter announced he was all in with enough to cover Liu’s 110,000 behind. Liu deliberated for around two minutes as players from nearby tables gathered around to sweat the action but in the end he threw it away.
“I folded a pair” Liu confessed to Salter.
“Good fold. You were already drawing dead before the river” came Salter’s reply.
6:15pm: Hand for hand on the bubble
Level 16: Blinds – 2,500/5,000 (500 ante)
We’ve already lost a horde of players today and we now find ourselves on the direct money bubble.
136 remain and with 135 places paid the action is now hand-for-hand. Who will come up one shy on a guaranteed $HK23,790 payday? Let’s find out!
6:05pm: Chong crushing
Level 15: Blinds – 2,000/4,000 (500 ante)
Victor Chong started the day with only 21,000 but after winning another pot he has spun that all the way up to over 200,000 – almost tenfold his starting stack!
Chong just eliminated Yuanlong Lei after getting all the money in preflop.
Chong: J♠J♥
Lei: 8♠8♣
Chong had the best of it at the beginning and the end of the hand with the 5â™ 5♦ 2â™ 4♣ 2♥ runout sealing Lei’s fate.
5:45pm: Li lives
Level 15: Blinds – 2,000/4,000 (500 ante)
Yuan Li had found himself very short stacked but just scored a triple up through Canlin Chen and Tsuyoshi Ishibashi.
Chen kicked things off with an early position raise to 10,000 before Li moved his last 19,000 into the middle. Ishibashi put in another raise to 28,000 when the action got to him, and Chen called to see a flop of 4♠A♣ 6♦ .
The action went check check on the flop before the 4♥ turn rolled off. Li was out of his seat with his hands clasped in prayer as the two active players checked again.
The 2♥ river completed the board and Chen led at it for 18,000. Ishibashi gave it some thought before flicking in a call and seeing he would take down the side pot.
Chen: Q♦ J♦
Ishibashi: 10♠10♦
Li: A♥ 10♣
It looked like Li’s prayers had been answered as his ace was good. He’ll stick around to fight another hand.
5:30pm: Zhang eliminated
Level 15: Blinds – 2,000/4,000 (500 ante)
Yifan Zhang has fallen by the wayside here after a preflop confrontation with Jia Miao.
Miao brought it in for a raise to 9,500 from the hijack seat before Zhang moved all in over the top from the cutoff for 31,000. The action folded back around to Miao and he made the call to put Zhang at risk.
Miao: A♠K♥
Zhang: J♣ J♦
Zhang was looking good to double up until an ace landed on the river when the cards fell 5♣ 4♥ 3♠8♠A♥ . He leaves us in Level 15 here while Miao takes his stack to 245,000.
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5:05pm: First break of the day
Players have just begun their first scheduled break. Action resumes in 10 minutes.
4:55pm: Chong doubles up
Level 14: Blinds – 1,500/3,000 (500 ante)
Victor Chong is still alive and chipping up after winning a flip against Yifan Zhang.
Chong three-bet jammed all in from the small blind over Zhang’s button raise and was met with a call. They were off to the races with Chong holding 8♥ 8♣ against Zhang’s A♦ J♥ .
Chong winced as he saw the ace on the 5â™ A♣ 8â™ flop but was relieved to see the accompanying eight. The set would prove too hard to beat with the 3♣ turn and 6♦ river offering no danger to Chong’s tournament life.
He moves up to 72,000 in chips while Zhang dips to 41,000.
4:35pm: Falcon flying as Fu departs
Level 14: Blinds – 1,500/3,000 (500 ante)
We arrived at the table to see the aftermath of a lot of action. From what we could decipher, Chuanfeng Fu had moved all in preflop and picked up Michael Falcon and Hoi Wong as callers.
On the 6♥ 10♥ 9♦ flop Falcon had pushed all in for more than pot with 124,500. The decision was back on the only other active player Wong and he was making it clear he had a big decision on his hands.
Wong engaged in dialogue with Falcon in a bid to acquire some information.
“I’m ahead I guarantee you” Falcon responded.
Wong sat and deliberated until the clock was called. Even with the extra minute he couldn’t make up his mind, with his hand being announced dead and mucked.
Fu showed the best of it with A♠A♣ while Falcon tabled K♥ K♣ .
“I had ace queen of hearts” Wong said as the 3♣ turn and 10â™ river completed the board.
Falcon took his all-in chips back and Fu scored himself a triple up.
4:15pm: Luo leaves us
Level 14: Blinds – 1,500/3,000 (500 ante)
Wei Luo was eliminated in the second level of the day at the hands of Jason Lo.
Luo moved all in preflop for his last 22,500 from middle position before being called by Lo who had the superior hand. The rest of the table folded and the cards went on their backs.
Luo: A♠6♥
Lo:9♣ 9♦
Luo was chasing an ace but it wouldn’t come on the 5♦ 8♣ 5â™ 5♥ 10♥ runout. He was up and out of his seat as Lo stacked up a new total of 205,000 in chips.
3:55pm: Shi sent home after sick runout
Level 13: Blinds – 1,200/2,400 (400 ante)
Corine Shi was eliminated in the first level of the day after a fair fight turned into a rollercoaster runout.
Shi got it all in preflop with 9♠9♦ against the A♣ J♦ of Wilson Fu. They were flipping but Shi fell behind on the 3♥ J♥ J♣ flop when Fu hits trips. The miracle 9♥ arrived on the turn to improve Shi to a full house but the 3♣ river turned the tables again with Fu improving to an even better full house.
Shi exited the tournament area and Fu built to around 190,000 in chips.
3:35pm: Lin loses some to Shen
Level 13: Blinds – 1,200/2,400 (400 ante)
Our final remaining Team PokerStars Pro Celina Lin is in contention today but she just lost a pot to tablemate Liubo Shen.
The two went to a flop of 6♣ 4♠J♣ and both checked through to the 9♥ turn.
Lin was in the big blind and checked again before Shen fired for 7,700. The Team Pro made the call and the A♦ appeared on the river.
The action went check check on the end and Lin revealed K♦ 9â™ for a turned pair of nines but it was no good against Shen’s Qâ™ Q♣ .
3:20pm: Clark KO’d
Level 13: Blinds – 1,200/2,400 (400 ante)
Canada’s Chris Clark was just eliminated after some bad luck.
It was Victor Chong who moved all in preflop before Clark moved all in over the top. With the rest of the table folding the two players tabled their hands.
Clark: A♥ K♣
Chong: Q♣ J♣
Clark was in front and looked good to send Chong packing until the river landed on a 6♥ 9♠5♣ 5♥ J♦ runout. The jack on the end saw Chong improve to a pair to stay alive.
“Come on. That’s so brutal” Clark said with a sigh.
He was left with only 2,000 in chips while Chong moved up to 61,000.
The very next hand Clark tossed in the rest of it and chip leader Hao Shen tried to isolate with a raise to 5,300. Jack Salter wanted to play for more, however, and popped it up to 11,700. Shen made the call and the three players saw a flop of 3♣ K♠A♦ .
The two active players checked and the dealer turned the 7♦ .
The action went check check again and the 6♣ completed the board. Shen checked a final time and quickly folded when Salter bet around 13,000. Clark tabled 9♦ 5♣ which was way behind Salter’s K♦ Qâ™ .
Salter stacked up his newly acquired chips and Clark headed for the exit.
3:05pm: Shuffle up and deal
Level 13: Blinds – 1,200/2,400 (400 ante)
Cards are in the air for Day 2!
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MPC25: Day 2 beginning shortly
We’re back at PokerStars LIVE Macau for Day 2 of the MPC25 Red Dragon Main Event!
There will be 270 players returning today – they’ll be doing what they can to make it through to the final 135 places and secure themselves at least HK$23,790. The top prize on top of the magnificent Red Dragon trophy is HK$2,509,000 which includes a HK$100,000 2016 ACOP Main Event seat.
Leading the pack at the start of play will be Hao Shen who bagged up 254,300 last night.
We’ll have all the action from right here on the tournament floor. Be sure to keep your browser locked to PokerStars Blog!
PokerStars Blog reporting in Macau brought to you by Brad Kain. Photos by Kenneth Lim Photography courtesy of PokerStars LIVE Macau.
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