The APPT 10 Manila Main Event concluded with Vietnam’s #1 ranked poker player, Linh Tran, overcoming a fully loaded final table to capture the PhP6,135,000 (US$130,774) first place prize and his first-ever APPT Main Event championship title.
With the Final 9 packed with heavyweight pros of Asia, it was hard to determine who would come out on top. Entering the final day with an incredibly monstrous stack (40% of the total chips in play) was Filipino pro Jessie Leonarez who hoped to surpass his third place performance from last year.
As soon as the clock started running, the table was nothing but bullets and fireworks with Filipino pro Mike Takayama doubling up, then Chinese Taipei’s Bruno Tzu Chieh Lo as the first casualty in 9th place. Next to fall was Korea’s Seongsu Kong in 8th place. Kong was the first of five players Tran would eliminate at the final table. Just before Tran eliminated Filipino Joven Huerto in 7th place, there was a celebration from a very happy fan after UK’s Samad Razavi doubled up through the leader Leonarez. Not long after, Hong Kong’s Alan King Lun Lau also fell to the leader. Lau tried his best to get some momentum going his way but instead he ended up getting served an ugly bad beat to bust out in 6th place. Razavi picked up more chips by sending Korea’s Sang Yong Lee to the rail in 5th place.
At four-handed, action was intense with the top two entering the final table and the bottom two facing off. All four pros were simply not giving in an inch. The shortest of the bunch was Takayama who proved too tough to eliminate despite his very short stack. He doubled up an impressive three times and in one of those moments, he avoided the boot by cracking Leonarez‘s pocket aces with 3-4 completing a straight. The most crucial hand at the table however was when both big stacks went head-to-head and Tran shipped in a massive double up with pocket jacks winning a coin flip against Leonarez’s ace-king.
With the leader’s torch switched over to Tran, he went to work quick, eliminating Takayama in 4th place. At three- handed, Razavi took advantage of a shaken Leonarez and doubled up, then Tran finished him off with a successful trap holding a set.
The heads up round between Razavi and Tran was very lopsided with Tran protected by 85% of the chips in play. It didn’t take long for the deed to be done. Tran rose to victory after eliminating Razavi with nothing but the best hand, pocket aces.
Final 9 Payouts
1st Linh Tran – Vietnam – PhP6,135,000 (US$130,774)
2nd Samad Razavi – UK – PhP3,466,000
3rd Jessie Leonarez – Philippines – PhP2,139,000
4th Mike Takayama – Philippines – PhP1,622,000
5th Sang Yong Lee – Korea – PhP1,180,000
6th Alan Lau – Hong Kong – PhP934,000
7th Joven Huerto – Philippines – PhP738,000
8th Seongsu Kong – Korea – PhP614,000
9th Bruno Tzu Chieh Lo – Chinese Taipei – PhP492,450
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Louis Hartwell
Graduated in Media Communication at the University of Lausanne, Louis Hartman is a co-founder of somuchpoker.com. He began his career in Cambodia as freelance journalist. In same time he was making his living by playing poker every night at that time. Intense learner, he read dozens of poker strategy books to improve his skills during many years. With a strong interest about poker "behind the scene" in Asia and his communication skills, Louis launched Somuchpoker in 2014.
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