APPT Main Event ($1,650)

Day 1A of the APPT Cambodia Main Event wrapped up with 22 players remaining out of the 128 entry field. At the top of that list was Irish player Sven McDermott with a commanding 544,000 stack, equivalent to 136 bb at the end of day. This was 59 bb more than the closest finisher Ceesvin Abdulla with 306,000 (77 bb). Rounding out the top three was another Irish player, Frank Lillis with 265,000 (66 bb).

McDermott's rise began during the last five levels of the day. On an ace-high board, he had top pair queen kicker ahead of Dmitrii Belikov's jack kicker. Hands later, McDermott fueled in more chips by dusting Michael Falcon with a flush. And to close out the heat, McDermott checked down his Q♠ Q♥ full house on a board Q♠ 3♠ A♣ A♠ T♥ hoping to trap Seonghun Park who had K♥ K♠ . However, Park checked back throughout the board to win a small pot.

Also finding a bag was APPT Manila Championship winner Trong Hieu Ngo of 167,000 (42 bb), Mike Takayama (248,000 - 62 bb), Armon Van Wijk (87,000 - 22 bb), and Jinlong Hu (82,000 - 21 bb).

The remaining players now have a few night's off before returning to action on Sunday for Day 2. They are not yet in the money.

Up next is Day 1B which kicks off at 12pm on November 22, 2024. This is the second of three flights scheduled. Taking place at NagaWorld Integrated Resorts in Phnom Penh, and in partnership with Connaissance Management Group, the APPT Cambodia Main Event features a US$ 500,000 guarantee.

For a buy in of US$ 1,650, players start with 30,000 which is 300 times the opening blinds. All Day 1 heats play 15 levels of 40 minute blinds which increases to 60 minutes at Day 2 and 75 minutes on the final day.

Read up on the Day 1A action down below.

Hijack Sven McDermott raises 10,000 then calls Seonghun Park's button re-raise of 25,000. They proceed to check it down all the way Q♠ 3♠ A♣ A♠ T♥ . First to show McDermott shocks the table as he reveals his Q♣ Q♥ full house , Park also gets a shock as he shows K♥ K♠ and says to Park "if you went all in I would call you."

Rare moment with three players in a limped pot all check the flop 9♠ T♥ 3♦ . Big blind Supaki Anukoolpitaknil leads out 6500 on the turn 2♣ and only button Li Qi calls. This brings them to the river 7♣ . Anukoolpitaknil checks then calls Li's 25,000 bet. Li has to show the 5♥ 6♥ bluff, and Anukoolpitaknil wins the pot with A♦ 7♥ .

Sun's small pair doesn't improve to get the boot as Zheng claims a near triple up.

The 24 remaining players have just entered the last level of play for Day 1A. The level will be played out unless four players go bust.

Small blind Michael Bihari opens 9000 and big blind Li Qi defends. Both check to the turn K♦ 6♦ 7♣ T♠ . Bihari bets 10,000 then calls Li's 25,000 raise. On the river K♣ , it's checked to Li who bets 45,000, Bihari shoves 57,000, quick call from Li who opens up 8♣ 9♣ straight dusting Bihari's K♥ 9♠ trips.

Following a min-raise from hijack Shaoshuai Li, small blind Ceesvin Abdulla three-bets 22,000, Li calls for a bigger pot to the flop T♣ 7♦ 6♠ . Abdulla c-bets 25,000, Li answers with a 60,000 raise, Abdulla shoves 184,000 and just like that, takes down the pot without further challenge. Abdulla shows his K♣ 6♣ bottom pair.

The board favors the overcards, pairing both and holds to the end for a double up to Berger.

Supakit Anukoolpitaknil opens 6000, Mike Takayama calls, Shaoshuai Li three-bets 17,000, Anukoolpitaknil four-bets all in for 86,500, no callers and takes it down.

Three players in a raised pot go to a flop 8♠ 5♦ 5♠ , big blind Yunsheng Sun leads out 11,500, preflop aggressor Anshu Zheng folds and Sven McDermott continues to the turn 2♦ . Sun dips in his stack again and tosses in 26,000, McDermott calls once again and both proceed to check the river K♥.

Sun flips open 6♥ 7♦ missed draw, McDermott wins the pot with Q♠ J♠ better air.

Min-raising from utg+1, the blinds call Ceesvin Abdulla and they go see a flop 4♥ K♦ 5♥ . Abdulla c-bets 8000 and only small blind Shaoshuai Li wants to play further. Abdulla barrels again, this time for 20,000 on the turn 2♠ , and still Li sticks with him to complete the board 8♣ river. Abdulla fires 48,000 which is enough to win the pot without a showdown.

Sick flop improves Kim to trips which holds to the end to evade the rail.

Folded around to the button Jeremy Jehanne, he fires 6000 that small blind Donghyup Kim calls. Jehanne continues the aggression with a 5000 bet on the flop 2♥ K♦ 3♣ , again Kim is there to keep him honest. Both check the turn 6♦ for a free river 4♣ . Kim leads out 7000, Jehanne pumps it to 29,000, action back to Kim who tanks then gives up his hand.

Main Event is now on Level 14 1500/3000 (3000)

Seonghun Park picks up a larger pot by three-betting to 15,000 that's called by initial raiser Donghyup Kim. Both players check it to the turn K♦ 8♦ 7♣ 5♣ . Kim takes a stab for 15,000, called by Park. On the river K♠ , Kim steps on the brakes, Park presses the pedal for 22,000, Kim gives up his stake on the pot.

From cutoff, Seonghun Park calls Sven McDermott's raise then takes the reins on the flop and turn 9♥ A♣ T♥ K♦ with 7000 and 15,000 bets. McDermott folds on fourth street.

Mike Takayama sweats it as he is all in with pocket Queens up against Jacson Feng's big slick. Takayama goes on to survive for a double up.

On a raised pot preflop, Jeremy Jehanne bets 8500 on the flop 4♠ 8♣ T♣ , Agharazi Babayev calls and early aggressor Armon Van Wijk gets begs off. No action on the turn T♥ for a free river K♥ . Babayev comes out for 25,000, Jehanne shoves, Babayev is well covered and decides to hold on to his chips.

Main Event is now on Level 13 1000/2500 (2500)

Lu is way ahead until the river slaps down J♦ to send him packing in brutal fashion.

Michael Kim Falcon brings it up to 5000, Anshu Zheng thinks more and makes it 14,000, Falcon calls. At the flop 8♥ A♦ K♣ , Falcon bets 12,000, Zheng raises again and makes it 24,000, Falcon calls. On the turn 5♣ , Falcon passes to the aggressor Zheng who announces all in and pushes Falcon out of the pot.

Cutoff Zinan Xu three-bets 11,000 and initial raiser William Lius calls for a flop 7♠ A♥ A♠ . No bets land and off to the turn 8♥ . Lius bets 20,000, Xu shoves 46,000, Lius can afford it but chooses otherwise and folds.

Main Event is now on Level 12 1000/2000 (2000)

Utg Ferdinand Lu opens 3500, button Shaoshuai Li calls, small blind Michael Adam Bihari calls, then big blind Donghyup Kim re-raises 16,500. Only Lu pays it and heads to the flop 5♥ 3♠ J♦ . Kim jumps out for 13,000 and quickly wins the pot.

Three players in a raised pot preflop see the board run 5♠ 8♣ K♠ . Abdulla c-bets 5500 and only Christopher Mateo gives him action. On the turn 5♣ , same pattern with Mateo calling 13,000 from Abdulla then action changes on the river 7♠ with Mateo banging out 20,000. Abdulla calls then gets shown the bad news 5♥ 6♥ trips and mucks as Mateo scoops it up.

Sven McDermott three-bets from cutoff and Dmitrii Belikov defends his raise. On the flop and turn T♣ K♦ 7♠ A♥ , McDermott fires 5000 and 10,000, Belikov check-calls both then both players run out of energy on the river 3♦ and check.

First to show Belikov has A♣ J♣ , McDermott's kicker plays A♦ Q♦ to rake in the pot.

William Lius three-bets 8000 and still doesn't shake initial raiser Frank Lillis and caller Mike Takayama. On the flop T♣ 5♣ J♣ , Lius c-bets 12,000, Lillis calls and Takayama leaves them to it. The turn Q♦ Lius slows down and checks, Lillis is fired up and takes control for 15,500, Lius calls it to see the river 8♠ . Lillis barrels 35,000, and wins the pot without a showdown.

With the turn pairing up Falcon, he is awarded a full reload.

Sven McDermott heads to to the flop with two callers to his 3500 raise. He continues for 1500 on the flop 2♣ 2♥ K♠ , Michael Falcon check-raises 3500, Meerwais Hussaini begs off and McDermott calls. The turn T♠ has Falcon leading out 10,000, McDermott drives it up to 25,000, Falcon calls and both head to the river 8♦ . Falcon leads out again for 29,000, and again McDermott raises, this time putting it all on the line, Falcon folds giving up more than half of his stack.

When the flop lands, Bilodeau spikes the lucky two outer that holds to the end to avoid the rail.

No bad beat lands for a clean double up to Huynh.

Main Event is now on Level 11 1000/1500 (1500)

Main Event Day 1A registration closed at 128 entries. The remaining players continue for another five rounds before bagging up at the end of Level 15.

Frank Lillis raises preflop and is called by Mike Takayama. Both check it to the turn 4♣ A♥ 8♥ Q♣ , Lillis bets 10,000, Takayama pays it to see the river 6♥ . Lillis picks up chips again and bets 20,000, Takayama replies with a shove of 62,000, Lillis doesn't bite.

Feng pocket is ahead and stays that way on the river 5♠ to clean out Sonampuri.

Ferdinand Lu opens then calls Jeremy Jehanne's three-bet of 8500 then both check to the turn 2♠ J♠ A♣ 5♣ . Lu lays out an 11,000 bet and wins the pot uncontested.

Lu pairs up but not enough to overtake Kim's aces to pay the maximum.

Catching the action at the end, Shaoshuai Li rakes in a pot of 53,000 against Ferdinand Lu to enter the big stack zone.

With the turn A♥ and river 8♠ , Reskallah is relieved as he scoops up the pot.

Dmitrii Belikov re-raises 7000 preflop and Valeriy Fokin won't give up his raise that easy and makes the call. When the board runs J♠ A♣ K♦ 4♥ , Belikov bangs out 4000 and 5000, Fokin calls both. On the river 7♣ , Belikov makes it 20,000 to see his hand and well covers Fokin who doesn't risk it.

Main Event is now on Level 10 600/1,200 (1,200)

Sven McDermott raises 2600 then calls Trong Hieu Ngo's 11,000 three-bet from the small blind. McDermott is unfazed and calls. He calls as well the 8000 c-bet on the flop 7♥ 4♦ Q♣ . Switch up on the turn 8♦ with Ngo checking, McDermott bets 8500 and this time Ngo calls. No stopping McDermott with a jam at the 7♠ river , Ngo tosses his hand in the muck.

We missed the action, only catching Jacson Feng shipping in a pot of 64,000 against Nicola Spicher who dropped to 12 bb.

Three-bet pot pumped by Haisheng Qiu with two callers check it to the turn J♣ 3♦ J♦ T♣ . First to act Mike Takayama lays out 6000, Qiu and William Lius call. On the river Q♥ , it is checked to the button Lius who value-bets 15,000, Takayama folds, Qiu calls and shows 9♣ 9♠ . Lius has him beat with K♣ T♦ .

Defending the big blind, Frank Lillis check-calls aggressor David Anstice on a flop and turn Q♦ 2♠ A♠ 4♣ for 1800 and 7000. On the river 5♠ , Lillis puts the brakes on Anstice with an 8000 bet. Anstice folds.

Following that hand, Lillis rails Alexandra Vorobyeva and steals some from Haisheng Qiu to take the lead.

Main Event is now on Level 9 600/1,200 (1,200)

From utg, Supakit Anukoolpitaknil raises 2000, finds one customer in big blind Dmitry Nemiroysky. On a board that completed 7♦ K♥ 3♠ 2♠ 9♣ , Anukoolpitaknil bet 1600, 3500, and 5000, Nemiroysky calls it down then mucks to K♠ T♠ top pair.

Supakit Anukoolpitaknil opens, three players toss in the call, then all pass on the flop 4♣ T♠ Q♦ . On the turn 2♣ , Anukoolpitaknil sends in 5500, keeping two players to the river 2♠ . Anukoolpitaknil bets once more for 5000, called again by both Louis Bilodeau and Nicola Spicher. Anukoolpitaknil turns over A♥ Q♥ top pair and drags in the pot.

Following a raise from David Erquiaga, cutoff player Ferdinand Lu makes it 6100 only to get repopped to 17,500 by small blind Yuan Fred Bensasson. Back to Erquiaga who opts to get out of the way while Lu calls to go post flop.

Dealer felts 8♣ A♦ 5♣ , Bensasson continues for 7000, Lu calls again, then both check the turn 9♣ and river 2♣ .

Bensasson shows Q♠ Q♥ but still behind Lu's K♥ K♦

With the river 8♠ , Simakin's cowboys do the job and clean out Suchkov.

Valeriy Fokin calls from cutoff then takes the reins throughout a board Q♥ T♠ T♦ 7♠ 3♦ by betting 1,500, 2,500, 9,700. Aladin Reskallah check-calls it down then mucks to Fokin's K♣ T♣ trips.

Lei Zhang sends it up to 2200 from hijack, two players call, and they all check it to the turn 4♦ Q♥ 6♣ 7♣ . Zhang returns to betting for 3000 and wins it easy.

The Main Event is now has its blinds at 500/1,000 (1,000).

In what initially started with five players interested to see a flop, a preflop betting war between China’s Hu Jinlong in the HJ and then BB of Jeremy Jehanne from France made it heads up to the flop.

That flop is 6♠ 6♥ 8♦ as suddenly after a heated preflop exchange, both players check. The turn is the 8♠ . Again, Hu and Jehanne don’t pull the trigger. The river is the Q♠ . Hu unloads a 15,500 bet. Jehanne goes into the tank but eventually folds.

With the win, Hu inches closes to the 90,000 chip mark.

Action begins with a raise from UTG by Aleksandr Simakin for 2,000. He gets four callers in fellow Russian Dmitry Suchkov in the +1, Japan’s Jun Mitani in the HJ, and a pair of Chinese players in the CO’s Qiu Weiren and Li Shaoshuai in the BB.

They all see the flop of 3♠ 6♦ 2♥ as Li and Simakin check. Suchkov leads out for 3,500 and gets calls from Mitani and Qiu. Li then check-raises to 11,000 forcing the original raiser and the flop aggressor out of the hand. Mitani and Qiu, however, makes the calls. The turn is the 6♣ and now Li goes all-in. Mitani calls all-in as Qiu folds.

Li shows 3♣ 3♦ for a set on the flop and a full house on the turn. Mitani reveals 4♣ 4♥ for a gutshot on the flop and now reduced to two outs to stay in the tournament.

The river card is the Q♣ sending the player from Japan to the rail and bringing Li’s stack over the 100,000 mark.

Somasekhar Sanampuri of India opens the action from UTG for 1,600 and gets a call from Korea’s Kim Donghyup in the CO. Meanwhile, Agharazi Babayev of Azerbaijan 3-bets to 6,400 from the D gets called by the two aforementioned gentlemen.

The flop comes 6♥ 8♥ 5♦ . Sanampuri and Kim check and Babayev continues firing for 5,500. Sanampuri calls but then Kim goes in the tank and then opts to check-raise all-in for his remaining 29,500. Babayev then re-raises all-in himself, forcing the Indian player out the hand.

Kim flips over A♥ J♣ for two over cards to the flop while the Azerbaijani brandishes A♦ A♣ .

The turn is the 9♣ and the river of the Q♠ solidified matters, eliminating Kim and bringing Babayev’s stack over the 100,000 chip mark.

Indonesia’s Roy Adi Putra opens from the +1 for 1,600 and draws in four customers in Taiwanese player Lin Yu-Sung in the HJ, Ferdinand Lu of the Philippines in the SB and Germany’s Oliver Schulze in the BB.

The flop is 6♠ 4♠ 9♠ as the blinds check. Adi Putra fires again, this time for 2,100. Lin folds, but Lu and Schutlze decide to stick around. The turn is the 3♥ as once again the blinds check. Adi Putra makes a bigger bet to 5,000. This time only the Filipino calls. Schultze steps aside. The river is the J♣ and now Adi Putra opts to check. Lu checks behind.

Adi Putra tables T♦ 9♦ for top pair on the flop while Lu shows J♠ 8♣ for a missed flush draw, but top pair on the river. Lu was buying something else and ended up winning with something else.

China’s Qiu Weiren limps from UTG and is met with a raise from William Lius of Indonesia from the HJ for 3,000. However, China’s Li Shaoshuai is also ready with another surprise from the D: a 3-bet shove. Qiu folds and Lius calls the all-in for his tournament and last 14,500.

Li reveals 9♣ 9♦ while Lius crushes him with J♠ J♣.

The first three community cards were harmless to the Indonesian: 6♠ 4♣ 5♥ while the turn card provided a chop sweat when the 3♣ showed. However, the river card dealt the death blow to Lius as the 9♠ arrived to give the Chinese player a set and give Lius his walking papers.

Onward to Level 7 where the blinds are now 400/800 (800).

In another preflop raising war that saw all the chips go in the middle, Michael Falcon of Denmark is fighting for his tournament life against Russian monster stack Dmitrii Belikov.

Falcon turns over 9♥ 9♦ while Belikov shows he’s ahead with J♣ J♠ .

The flop is a safe one for the Russian: 7♠ A♦ T♦ , However, the turn is the 6♣ and the river is the 8♦ giving the Danish player a miraculous backdoor straight to not only extend his tenure in the Main Event, but to make him breach the 100,000 chip mark for the first time. Belikov has momentarily lost his chip dominance.

John Kelly of the United Kingdom opens from the HJ for 1,200 and gets a call from David Erquiaga of the Philippines on the D.

The flop comes K♠ J♥ 6♥ as Kelly continues barreling for another 1,200. Erquiaga proceeds to raise it to 4,000 and Kelly decides to call. The turn is the 5♣ as Kelly this time checks. The Filipino keeps the pressure on by betting 11,000. Kelly walks away.

Crafty Philippine veteran Pro Christopher “Big Time” Mateo makes a raise from the +1 position to 1,200 and the action is folded to the D of Russia’s Vladimir Litasov who 3-bets it to 4,200. Mateo decides to call.

The flop brings the 8♣ 2♦ Q♦ as the Filipino checks. Litasov continues for 2,700 as Mateo calls. The turn is the A♥ as Mateo checks anew. The Russian a bet of 5,000 and is greeted with a check-raise shove from Mateo for 23,100. Litasov calls.

Mateo shows J♦ 7♦ for a flush draw while Litasov tables A♣ 9♦ for top pair on the turn. Needing to avoid a diamond, Litasov did just that when the 4♣ hit the river.

With the triumph, Litasov not only rid his table of a threat but also allowed to garner a six-figure stack.

After the action is folded to him on the D, Howard Barry Appledorf of the United States raises to 1,500 but gets calls from the blinds in Huseyin Akgul of Turkey in the SB and the BB of fellow American Shane Saito.

The flop shows 9♦ J♥ 8♥ as all check. The turn is the T♦ and once again everyone elects to skip this street. The river is the Q♣ as Akgul checks, Saito takes a shot by betting 3,000. Appledorf suddenly wakes up and raised to 7,500. Eventually both Akgul and Saito opt to fold.

In a preflop raising war akin to a cash game with deep stacks, Quan Qiu of China called the 5-bet shove of Azerbaijan’s Agharazi Babayev and the latter’s tournament life was on the line. The cards are tabled and Quan shows A♠ 2♥ while Babayev holds A♦ 4♦ — much to the surprise of the members of the table.

The flop immediately gave Babayev the edge: 6♦ 6♠ 8♦. However, the turn card is the 8♠ and what looks to be a certain split pot turns into a victory for the Azerbaijani as the 9♦ shows up on the river, giving the nut flush. Quan’s stack dropped to below 14,000 while Babayev fortunate win puts him above the 65,000 chip mark.

Level 6 is upon the Main Event and the blinds are now 300/600 (600).

After recently taking down a huge victory in Vietnam, China’s Hu Jinlong opens from the +1 for 1,200 and the cascade of folders ends with Jeremy Jehanne as the Frenchman 3-bets to 5,200 from the SB. Hu decides to call.

The flop is 5♥ 7♣ J♠ as Jehanne continues for 2,500. Hu raises to 6,500 which sends Jehanne into the tank and he eventually chooses to fold.

Michael Falcon of Denmark is once again in the news as his raise to 1,200 from the CO is met with a 3-bet in the BB to 6,700 by China’s Zheng Xiaosheng. The Danish player makes the call.

The flop is J♦ 7♥ 4♣ as Zheng checks. Suddenly, Falcon goes all-in and gets the call from the Chinese player for remaining 17,100.

Falcon shows K♥ J♥ for top pair on the flop while Zheng has A♦ 7♠ for second pair on the flop.

The last two community cards did nothing to help Zheng’s cause: 3♠ 2♥ .

Zheng hits the rail and Falcon is still hovering above the 50,000 chip mark.

Korea’s Lim Yongoh raises from the CO and is called by Meerwais Hussaini of Australia in the D and Russia’s Dmitrii Belikov in the BB.

The flop comes T♥ 8♣ A♥ as Belikov checks. Lim CBets to 2,100 as Hussaini folds. Belikov then procceds to check-raise to 6,500 as Lim makes the call. The turn is the T♦ and this time, the Russian continues bombarding for 6,500 to which Lim still calls. The river is the 2♣ and Belikov declares he is all-in. The Korean calls.

Belikov shows 8♣ 8♦ for a bottom set on the flop. Lim mucks and walks away from the table as he is busted from the Main Event, for now.

The action is folded to the CO where Canada’s Louis Bilodeau opens for 1,500. Daijiro Fukuoka of Japan makes the call from the D but Sven McDermott of Ireland re-raises to 7,700. Bilodeau gets out of the way and Fukuoka decides to stick around.

The flop is 6♣ 4♥ 5♥ as McDermott decides to check. Fukuoka bets 9,000 but the Irishman check-raises all-in for 29,800. Fukuoka tanks but eventually opts to fold.

Australia’s Danny Huynh open from UTG for 1,100 and gets calls from Michael Flacon of Denmark and Brit John Kelly.

The flop is 6♦ T♥ J♦ as Huynh continues for 1,300. Falcon calls, but Kelly steps aside. The turn is the T♠ and this time, Huynh checks. Falcon takes the betting lead for 3,500 and the Australian makes the call. The river is the T♦ as Huynh checks again. Falcon now fires 6,000 and is quickly called by his opponent.

Falcon shows A♠ 9♦ while Huynh tables Q♥ Q♣ for a full house on the river and withstanding the Danish player’s aggression.

Vladimir Litasov of Russia opens from UTG to 1,100 and the action is folded to the HJ of England’s David Paul Anstice who 3-bets to 3,600. Litasov makes the call.

The flop is K♦ 3♣ 7♠ as the Russian checks, Anstice continues firing for 2,200. Litasov calls. The turn is the 4♥ and the Englishman now makes it 5,600 to go. Litasov does not continue in the hand.

The Philippines’ David Erquiaga announces his arrival by raising from the +2 to 1,100. He gets calls from Danny Huynh of Australia in the D and Denmark’s Michael Falcon.

The flop comes Q♣ T♣ 6♠ as Falcon checks. Erquiaga CBets to 2,800 and gets called by Huynh. Falcon, however, goes for a check-raise to 6,800 and eventually gets calls from both his opponents. The turn card is the 4♠ as now the Danish player declares he is all-in for his remaining stack of 15,800. Erquiaga and Huynh decide to fold.

It is now Level 5 with the blinds at 200/500 (500)

The action is folded to the CO where Ireland’s Frank Lillis raises to 900. Renniel Galvez of the Philippines is his last hurdle but chooses to defend his BB.

The flop is 5♦ 9♦ A♦ as Galvez checks. Lillis CBets 800 and the Filipino makes the call. The turn is the 7♦. The Irishman unloads 1,400. This time, Galvez opts to fold.

Uzbekistan’s Azizjon Rakhimov opens the action from the CO for 1,000 and is joined by Daijiro Fukuoka of Japan in the SB and China’s Quan Qiu in the BB.

The flop shows 3♥ J♠ 5♣ as the blinds check it back to the original raiser who CBets to 2,000. Fukuoka calls, but Quan exits. It is heads up to the turn and the J♣ arrives. Fukuoka checks anew and the Uzbek barrels again for 5,000. Fukuoka calls. The river is the J♥ and this time both check.

Fukuoka tables A♠ 5♠ for a full house on the river. Rakhimov mucks.