WPT Vietnam Main Event Day 2 closes with 14 remaining; Malaysia’s Jin Yong in command

WPT Vietnam is just one day away from awarding its newest Main Event champion! What started as 686 entries over the course of three starting days, today’s Day 2 saw 170 players return to Pro Poker Club, each one battling to survive the scheduled 11 rounds. In the end, only 14 secured their spot into the final day. Amassing a commanding stack was Malaysia’s Jin Yong with 3,255,000.

Starting his day with only 22 bbs, Yong was well out of radar. It wasn’t until the last two hours of play with three tables remaining did he begin his incredible ascent to the leader’s seat. His first big collection was surviving the scare of Ashish Munot’s on a board of with all the chips out front at the flop.

After that double up, Yong proceeded to railroad the table, winning pot after pot, that included two knockouts, Louis Salter and Munot. This brought the field down to the final two tables. Yong was the only player to bag in the 3M range. He will enter the final day as the lone Malaysian waving the flag backed by 81 bbs.

Two players from Hong Kong also made the cut. Kwok Chun Yip closed the day running second-in-chips with 2,840,000. Down the rung was Raiden Kan, considerably the most decorated player remaining. Kan will have his work cut out on the final day with 720,000 equivalent to 18 bbs.

Another notable pro in the lineup was Singaporean Norbert Koh. Koh is one of the most successful international players in Vietnam with repeated deep runs at various festivals. Koh bagged a very healthy 1.705,000.

Despite a strong Indian force coming out with three of them entering Day 2 in the top 5, only Alok Birewar remains holding the torch for the country. Birewar had an impressive Day 2 run, bringing up his stack from just 16 bbs to a spot in the final day. He is in the same predicament though with 715,000 which is roughly 18 bbs.

Of course, the host country will be well represented coming the final day with six players finding their way into the lineup.

Detailed action of the day can be found below:

WPT Vietnam 2019 Main Event : Live Updates

Day 2 ending chip count

The Main Event will resume on Saturday, March 23. The hunt for the title and the VND 2,777360,000 (~US$119,734) first prize begins at 12:30pm.

Opening blinds: 20K-40K ante 40K

Level duration: 60 minutes

Level duration at heads up: reduced to 30 minutes

Total chips in play: 20,580,000

Average stack: 1,470,000

Updates on Somuchpoker starting 12:30pm.

Day 2 numbers and Main Event overview

The Main Event got underway on March 19. After three starting days, it drew 686 entries, and at VND 25 Million (US$1070) each, it set a record prize pool for the country amounting to VND 15,105,034,000 (~US$651,454). Of that juicy pot, only 86 were due to get paid. The money flowed at Day 2 after the fall of Linh Tran on the bubble.

Earning a piece of the pie were: Louis Salter (19th), Natalie Teh (24th), Tzu Chieh Lo (33rd), Hung Sheng Lin (34th), Marvin Rettenmaier (37th), Casey Kastle (38th), Richard Marquez (39th), Dhanesh Chainani (43rd), Benjamin Gonzva (55th), Rex Clinkscales (57th), Thai Ha (68th), Victor Chong (72nd), Phachara Wongwichit (73rd), and Sumit Sapra 86th.

Remaining payouts

1st VND 2,777,360,000

2nd VND 1,947,640,000

3rd VND 1,255,830,000

4th VND 919,900,000

5th VND 703,140,000

6th VND 561,150,000

7th VND 464,780,000

8th VND 369,920,000

9th VND 277,780.000

10th VND 230,350,000

11th VND 230,350,000

12th VND 230,350,000

13th VND 184,280,000

14th VND 184,280,000

WPT Asia Pacific Player of the Year race

With Dhaval Mudgal failing to advance to Day 2, and with Nikunj Jhunjhunwala falling early in Day 2, the WPT Asia Pacific Player of the Year race is very much up for grabs. The Main Event awards 1500 points which means one of the 14 finalists will overtake Mudgal and Jhunjhunwala for the lead. For one last attempt at getting back in the race, there is still WPT New Zealand in late May.

More : WPT Vietnam full coverage

Article by Tricia David