APPT National ($1,000)

The 4th Annual APPT Cambodia taking place at NagaWorld in Phnom Penh, concluded its second of three flights to its featured APPT National with 179 runners added to the 61 Flight A entries to crack the $150K guarantee with another flight yet to complete.

When the bubble burst, Vietnam’s Manh Tuong Ha emerged as chip leader among the final 27 players, bagging a commanding 516,000. Ha climbed steadily throughout the day, capitalizing on short stacks at his table to claim the top spot in the Day 2 cumulative counts.

Hot on his heels was Mystery Bounty crusher Hao Lin, who kept the momentum going with a 497,000 stack. Also advancing with healthy stacks were notables Donghyup Kim — last year’s APPT Cambodia Main Event runner-up — and 2023 APPT Manila Main Event champion Yuanning Wu.

Players return to action on Wednesday, May 7 at 11:30am for the next stage in the chase for the title. Each one is now guaranteed a payout, easing the pressure as they continue their climb.

With around 20,000 already brewed and a flop showing K♣ 3♦ 7♦ , Jean Testa rips it all in from the big blind, putting Adam Lydford to the test. A♠ Lydford ponders the call, he tries to extract information, engaging Testa in table talk.

With a grin, Testa replies, “I don’t understand English,” drawing laughter from everyone. “I think you have a set,” Lydford guesses aloud. But Testa remains unreadable. In the end, Lydford opts to fold, and Testa kindly shows AK top pair. Lydford returns the gesture showing KQ.

Juyeol Lee opens the action to 600, gets called by Zhengong Zhou, and big blind Jean Philippe Testa joins for a three-way to the flop 3♥ K♣ 7♠ . After a check, Lee fires 3,000 and only Testa calls then both players tap felt on the 3♠ turn. On the river 2♥ , Testa leads for 6,700. Lee folds and reveals a surprising K♦ for top pair, giving Testa the pot without showdown.