Days: Day 1 / Day 2
More info: Chip Counts / Payouts & Results / Tournament Info
Red hot Josh McCully clinches first USOP title at the Superstar Challenge
Just one day after finishing runner up at the USOP Danang 2024 High Roller Championship, Australia’s Josh McCully found redemption at the Superstar Challenge, where he came from less than 1 bb to champion.
“Ya I went from like 200K in chips to 9K, I thought I was out. Ivan Lee all in pocket Six versus pocket Eights, I had one big blind. From one big blind I went to bag the chip lead with a quarter of the chips in play with 18 players left. What a spin up.“
Indeed what a comeback. Due to the three hour heads up marathon at the High Roller Championship, McCully signed up to this event very late. Tired and near empty in chips, a flurry of double ups gave him renewed life. He then delivered the bubble and bagged up an enormous chip lead.
At Day 2, McCully kept the pace, widening his lead until the final table where multiple players vied for the top spot. At three-handed, McCully dropped to the shortest but a failed bluff by Nguyen Truong Giang sent him back up then faced Dao Minh Phu for the title.
“He’s a very aggressive player so heads up was shorter than yesterday. I was behind quite a bit but two big hands – my full house and pocket King – changed it and I took it from there. Ya, it definitely feels good to win it.”
This was McCully’s career first USOP title. He earned VN₫ 3,222,800,000 (~USD 130K) which he adds to his 2nd place payout at the HR Championship for VN₫ 2,160,200,000 (~USD 87K). He is currently the festival’s richest earner of around USD 200K in winnnings.
Date: March 24 to 25, 2024
Buy in: VN₫ 120,000,000 (~USD 4,938)
Guarantee: VN₫ 3,000,000,000 (~USD 121,000)
Entries: 118 (72 unique)
Prize pool: VN₫ 12,819,500,000 (~USD 517,000)
ITM: 18 players
| Place | Player | Flag | Payout in VN₫ | ~USD |
| 1 | Josh McCully | Australia | 3,222,800,000 | 130,009 |
| 2 | Dao Minh Phu | Viet Nam | 2,148,900,000 | 86,688 |
| 3 | Nguyen Truong Giang | Viet Nam | 1,501,800,000 | 60,583 |
| 4 | Jang Dong Min | Korea | 1,079,100,000 | 43,531 |
| 5 | Christian Harder | USA | 797,900,000 | 32,188 |
| 6 | Matt Bevin | Australia | 607,700,000 | 24,515 |
| 7 | Teoh Kok Wei | Malaysia | 477,100,000 | 19,246 |
| 8 | Nguyen Trung Quan | Viet Nam | 386,400,000 | 15,588 |
| 9 | Hoang Hai Nam | Viet Nam | 323,300,000 | 13,042 |
Follow the final table livestream!
Chips in play: 23,600,000
Final 9 Players
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
| Seat | Player | Flag | Stack | BB |
| 1 | Teoh Kok Wer | Malaysia | 1,660,000 | 28 |
| 2 | Hoang Hai Nam | Viet Nam | 1,680,000 | 28 |
| 3 | Josh McCully | Australia | 7,185,000 | 120 |
| 4 | Nguyen Trung Quan | Viet Nam | 1,285,000 | 21 |
| 5 | Nguyen Truong Giang | Viet Nam | 2,220,000 | 37 |
| 6 | Christian Harder | USA | 3,980,000 | 66 |
| 7 | Jang Dong Min | Korea | 2,965,000 | 49 |
| 8 | Matt Bevin | Australia | 1,510,000 | 25 |
| 9 | Dao Minh Phu | Viet Nam | 1,150,000 | 19 |
15:09: Adam Kharman falls in 10th place – VN₫ 323,300,000 (~USD 13,000)
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
Down below 4 bb, Adam Kharman calls a raised preflop, then shoves on the flop 
. Kharman shows 
, Jang Dong Min looking to eliminate with 
. The turn {5} and river 
is no help to Kharman to miss the final table by one spot.
Jang Dong Min 3,000,000 (50 bb)
Adam Kharman – eliminated in 10th place
15:08: Blinds battle: Matthew Bevin dominates for a double up
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
Action folds to the small blind Dao Minh Phu who shoves, big blind Matthew Bevin calls it and is covered. Phu has 
, Bevin is ahead 
, the board fans 
.
Matthew Bevin – 1,510,000 (25 bb)
Dao Minh Phu – 1,000,000 (16 bb)
15:06: Nam Hyung Kim eliminated in 11th place – VN₫ 279,400,000 (~USD 11,270)
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
The desperate Nam Hyung Kim shoves his las 8 bb on the button holding 
but doesn’t get past small blind Nguyen Trung Quan’s 
with the board running 
.
Nguyen Trung Quan – 1,300,000 (21 bb)
Nam Hyung Kim – eliminated in 11th place
15:00: Jin Hoon Lee eliminated in 12th place – VN₫ 279,400,000 (~USD 11,270)
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
From cutoff, Jin Hoon Lee opens 120,000, big blind Christian Harder three-bets 450,000, Lee four-bets all in for 1,160,000, Harder calls.
Lee 
Harder 
Lee pairs up on the flop 
but the turn 
and river 
offer no further help to fall in 12th place.
Christian Harder – 3,600,000 (60 bb)
Jin Hoon Lee – eliminated in 12th place
14:57: Czying Rui eliminated in 13th place – VN₫ 249,100,000 (~USD 10,000)
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
End of the line for Czying Rui who three-bets his last 7 bb with , Dao Minh Phu has 
which goes on to command the board 
.
Dao Minh Phu – 1,700,000 (28 bb)
Czying Rui – eliminated in 13th place
14:55: Shung Er Sua eliminated in 14th place – VN₫ 249,100,000 (~USD 10,000)
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
From small blind, Shung Er Sua three-bets all in 720,000, initial raiser Josh McCully calls and opens 
. Shung has outs with and gets a bit of help on the flop 
but the turn and river dont add strength to fall in 14th place.
Josh McCully – 7,400,000 (123 bb)
Shung Er Sua – eliminated in 14th place
14:54: Dao Minh Phu doubles through Teoh Kok Wei
Level 21: 30,000-60,000 ante 60,000
Facing a raise of 120,000, button player Dao Minh Phu three-bets all in for 530,000, initial raiser Teoh Kok Wei calls. Phu , Teoh , board comes 
for a double up to Phu.
Dao Minh Phu – 1,210,000 (20 bb)
Teoh Kok Wei – 1,900,000 (31 bb)
14:44: Jang Dong Min bets to win it
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
Utg+2 Shung Er Sua opens 105,000, cutoff Jang Dong Min calls, both player check it to the river 
. Sua checks again, Jang bets 155,000, Sua folds.
Jang Dong Min – 1,900,000 (47 bb)
Shung Er Sua – 820,000 (21 bb)
14:35: Matthew Bevin doubles up
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
Utg+1 Czying Rui opens 110,000, acting next is Matthew Bevin with a three-bet to 485,000, Rui answers with a four-bet all in, Bevin calls and is covered.
Rui
Bevin
The board lands 
, Bevin doubles up.
Matthew Bevin – 1,145,000 (28 bb)
Czying Rui – 850,000 (21 bb)
14:25: Victor Chong chunked then out in 15th place – VN₫ 229,200,000 (~USD 9,245)
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
From utg+1, Victor Chong sends out 515,000 leaving just one 5K chip behind. Cutoff Teoh Kok Wei calls then both players proceed to check down the board 
. Teoh claims the pot with dominating Chong’s .
Teoh Kok Wei – 2,000,000 (50 bb)
Victor Chong – 5,000
Chong manages to triple up to 15,000 but on the next shove, Dao Minh Phu gives him the boot with 
dominating on board 
.
Dao Minh Phu – 600,000 (15 bb)
Victor Chong – eliminated in 15th place
14:11: Lights on, Pham Tien Dung’s exits in 17th place – VN₫ 217,900,000 (~USD 8,790)
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
As soon as lights were switched back on, Pham Tien Dung went bust. He three-bet shoved with and initial raiser Hoang Hai Nam called with . Board ran wild with spades .
Hoang Hai Nam – 1,500,000 (37 bb)
Pham Tien Dung – eliminated in 17th place
14:08: Lights out
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
A roar is heard as the lights suddenly go out….
14:05: Josh McCully rails Guy Taylor in 18th place – VN₫ 217,900,000 (~USD 8,790)
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
And just like that, it is down to 17 players. The first casualty of the day was Guy Taylor who raised preflop then jammed the flop and was called both times by the leader Josh McCully. Taylor turned over , McCully top pair, the turn and river ensured Taylor’s elimination.
Josh McCully – 6,800,000 (170 bb)
Guy Taylor – eliminated in 18th place
14:00: Cards in the air!
Level 20: 20,000-40,000 ante 40,000
Cards in the air for the final day of the Superstar Challenge! 18 players back on the hunt with minimum pay at VN₫ 217,900,000 (~USD 8,790) while up top is a hefty VN₫ 3,222,800,000 (~USD 130K).
Superstar Challenge – Day 2
The two-day Superstar Challenge resumes with 18 players returning to Pullman Danang Beach Resort to battle for the coveted title and the substantial first prize of VN₫ 3,222,800,000 (~USD 130K). The player to catch is none other than Australia’s Josh McCully who is on fire, having finished 2nd at the High Roller Championship.
At Day 1, McCully signed up late to this event and was down to 1 bb when he won a flurry of double ups against Anton Lu. This sparked his incredible rise to the top. To close the day, McCully delivered a brutal bubble to amass a commanding stack. He enters the final day with a 106 bb advantage over his closes challenger.
Once the field is down to the final 9, it will be livestreamed in the U Series of Poker YouTube channel with Noel Zarate and Ron Regis on commentary.
Date: March 24 to 25, 2024
Buy in: VN₫ 120,000,000 (~USD 4,938)
Guarantee: VN₫ 3,000,000,000 (~USD 121,000)
Entries: 118 (72 unique)
Prize pool: VN₫ 12,819,500,000 (~USD 517,000)
ITM: 18 players
| Rank | Player | Flag | Stack | BB |
| 1 | Joshua McCully | Australia | 6,465,000 | 162 |
| 2 | Jang Dong Min | Korea | 2,225,000 | 56 |
| 3 | Nguyen Truong Giang | Viet Nam | 2,150,000 | 54 |
| 4 | Christian Harder | USA | 2,120,000 | 53 |
| 5 | Teoh Kok Wei | Malaysia | 1,560,000 | 39 |
| 6 | Czying Rui | China | 1,235,000 | 31 |
| 7 | Jin Hoon Lee | Korea | 1,160,000 | 29 |
| 8 | Nguyen Trung Quan | Viet Nam | 1,125,000 | 28 |
| 9 | Hoang Hai Nam | Viet Nam | 920,000 | 23 |
| 10 | Matthew Bevin | Australia | 835,000 | 21 |
| 11 | Pham Tien Dung | Viet Nam | 720,000 | 18 |
| 12 | Sua Shung Er | Malaysia | 530,000 | 13 |
| 13 | Dao Minh Phu | Viet Nam | 520,000 | 13 |
| 14 | Adam Kharman | Australia | 465,000 | 12 |
| 15 | Nam Hyung Kim | Korea | 410,000 | 10 |
| 16 | Victor Chong | Malaysia | 315,000 | 8 |
| 17 | Guy Taylor | UK | 245,000 | 6 |
| 18 | Milan Stojkovic | Australia | 215,000 | 5 |
Payouts
Tricia David
Tricia David has long experience as a recreational poker player and has been covering poker events since 2010 for numerous outfits in Asia. She spent one year working part time with Poker Portal Asia then became editor and lead writer for all event coverage of the Philippine Poker Tour (PPT). Under the PPT, she overlooked content for their website, and produced live updates on all their events. In addition, she served as the live and online events website content writer for the Asian Poker Tour. Currently, she does live events reporting in Asia for online news site Somuchpoker and is also one of their news contributors.
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