Home43 players returned to the APT Philippines Championships II 2018 – MAIN EVENT – at Resorts World Manila each one in pursuit of a seat to the final day. After nearly 8 hours, the Final 8 players emerged with the defending champion, Lester Edoc, amassing the largest stack.
You can read up on the Day 3 action posted in the Live Updates. We also have a short bio on the finalists below along with a few of the most memorable moments of Day 3.
Final 8 players
Main Event – Final 8 players
Lester Edoc – Philippines – 1,775,000
William Ysmael – Philippines – 1,353,000
Jiajun Wang – China – 1,192,000
David Chargualaf Sr. – Guam – 889,000
Trygve Leite – Norway – 811,000
Czar Ian Marcos – Philippines – 601,000
Richard Marquez – Philippines – 512,000
Jessie Leonarez – Philippines – 491,000
It wasn’t until the field collapsed to one final table of ten players did Lester Edoc take the chip lead for the first time all day. He eliminated Chan Shan Hui in 10th place with A-A over K-K to bring his stack to 1.5M. Several hands later, he muscled Jessie Leonarez off a pot by shoving his massive stack to end the day with a dominating 1,775,000.
Not only will Edoc trumpet in as the most decorated player of the Final 8, he will also be the only one gunning for his second APT championship title. If he achieves this, he will join an exclusive group of players that have reached this milestone: Henrik Tollefsen, Jeon Seung Soo, Mike Takayama, Samad Razavi, Iori Yogo, and Sam Nee Aik Chuan.
Finishing in second command was Metro Team Pro William Ysmael with 1,353,000. Ysmael started the day a bit shaky; he doubled up Menchu Razavi to bring him down to 11bbs. After a couple of double ups, he was out of trouble and rising. Among his biggest pots were exposing Lim Yohwan’s bluff and doubling up with his set of fours against Jiajun Wang’s two-pair. Having reached the Final 8, Ysmael has set a personal APT Main Event record surpassing his deepest finish of 10th place last year.
Jiajun Wang also bagged up over seven-figures with 1,192,000. Alike Ysmael, he had a fantastic comeback going from 5bbs to 3rd in chips. Among the big names he railed were Joseph Talamayan (14th), and Dhanesh Chainani (15th).
Next down the line was David Chargualaf Sr. with 889,000. Chargualaf had a huge day at the felt. He entered at the very bottom of the count with just 7bbs then later became the first player to cross a million. He did so by railing German pro Marvin Rettenmaier, spiking quads on the river to crush nut flush.
For Trygve Leite, he was playing in his first-ever APT event. The Norwegian nearly fell with A-4 dominated by Ysmael’s A-J but when his small card paired up, it was northbound from there. He closed with 811,000.
The next three players were Czar Ian Marcos, Richard Marquez, and Jessie Leonarez. These players have produced numerous deep results in the APT circuit. Two years ago, Marcos finished 10th at the APT Main Event making this his first official APT Final 8 table. Marquez, on the other, no matter where he places, he will have earned his first APT Main Event payout. But of the three, it was Leonarez who shined the brightest. Despite sitting at bottom rank, he brought about the Final 8. He railed Martin Corpuz in dramatic fashion by completing a full house on the river to overtake trips. In 2012, Leonarez placed 7th at the main. He will be looking to best that finish.
Congratulations to the finalists!
The Final 8 race takes place on Wednesday, September 19 at 130pm. To witness all the action, be one of the railbirds at the scene or you can also tune in to APT Twitch and APT YouTube as we bring the Final 8 to you live.
Memorable moments of Day 3
In addition to the Final 8, Day 3 had plenty of memorable moments. Hands down, at the top was David Chargualaf Sr.’s elimination of German pro Marvin Rettenmaier. Hand history.
Prior to Rettenmaier’s fall, he too stunned the table by calling down Baey Kian Guan on every street and winning with just ace high. Hand history
Another choice moment was Konstantin Pogodin’s double up through newcomer Joseph Talamayan. Pogodin gambled his suited bad boys preflop and landed a straight on the flop to avoid the rail against Talamayan’s pocket queens. Hand history
Full details of all those stories can be found in our Live Updates posts.
Main Event prizepool
Day 1A recap
Day 1B recap
Day 2 recap