Philippines National Cup
Final Day
Maggy Cenon Has Been Eliminated in 2nd Place for PHP 1,079,513 (~$18,513)
Maggy Cenon moved all-in for her remaining 2,285,000 from the button, putting her tournament life on the line. Marco Espela, after requesting a count, made the call, setting up a dramatic showdown.
Maggy Cenon: J♣ 8♦
Marco Espela: K♣ T♣
The dealer fanned out a flop of K♦ 6♣ 2♠ , giving Espela top pair and sending a wave of anticipation through the room. Cenon and her railbirds began packing up, exchanging handshakes with Espela as they braced for the end.
The turn brought the A♦ , followed by the 8♣ on the river, sealing Cenon’s fate. She made her way to the payout counter to claim her prize as Espela celebrated his victory!
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 10,875,000(36 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | busted |
Bluff Play
Marco Espela limped in on the button, and Maggy Cenon raised to 750,000 from the big blind. Espela called.
On the flop of 8♠ 2♥ 2♦ , the action went check-check. A 6♣ rolled off on the turn, where Cenon bet 500,000 and Espela called.
The river brought a board-pairing 8♦ , and both players checked to showdown. Cenon tabled J♥ T♠ for ten-high, but it was no match for Espela's queen-high with Q♣ 9♦ .
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 7,735,000(31 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 2,680,000(11 BB) |
Cenon Folds River
Maggy Cenon limped in from the button and Marco Espela checked to take it into the streets.
Both saw a flop of J♦ T♣ K♥ and checked through to see the 4♠ turn, where Espela bet 300,000 and Cenon called.
The river brought a J♠ which paired with the board, and Espela fired 500,000, forcing Cenon to fold.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 6,685,000(33 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 3,800,000(19 BB) |
Deal Finalized
After intense deliberation, Marco Espela and Maggy Cenon reached an agreement to battle it out for the Php 52,550 prize and the coveted trophy. With the remaining prize pool secured through ICM calculations, the stakes were set, and the final showdown was ready to unfold.
Cenon Making a Charge, Evens Out the Counts
Maggy Cenon just took down a few crucial pots, which almost evened out the counts!
First, Marco Espela raised to 410,000 from the button and Maggy Cenon made it 1,200,000 out of the big blind. Espela called.
They went to a flop of 4♦ 3♣ K♦ where Espela check-folded to Cenon's shove of around 2,000,000.
A few moments later, Espela raised to 320,000 and Cenon called.
On the J♠ A♥ 3♣ flop, Cenon checked and Espela bet 275,000. Cenon then put in a check-raise to 1,000,000, which got Espela to fold.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 5,700,000(36 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 5,200,000(33 BB) |
Cenon Gambles and Doubles Up
Maggy Cenon opened from the button for 400,000, a bold move against massive chip leader Marco Espela, who held a staggering 9:1 lead and called without hesitation. The dealer laid down a flop of 4♦ A♦ 7♣ , and Espela checked, giving Cenon the green light. She seized the moment, shoving all-in, and Espela snap-called.
Maggy Cenon: J♥ 9♥
Marco Espela: 6♥ 5♥
Cenon was ahead, but Espela had an open-ended straight draw, one card away from ending her tournament run. The tension spiked as the turn came 2♠ , followed by the T♣ on the river, leaving Espela’s draw incomplete. Cenon’s bold play paid off as she scooped the pot, doubling up and keeping her tournament hopes alive!
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 8,200,000(51 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 2,650,000(17 BB) |
Mack Lee Has Been Eliminated in 3rd Place For PHP 616,000 (~$10,470)
Mack Lee opened the button to 320,000 and only Marco Espela called from the small blind.
Both read a flop of J♠ 5♣ 3♣ , and Espela checked the action to Lee, who then fired 250,000. Espela made the call after a short time.
They saw a Q♥ land on the turn, where Espela checked again, and Lee fired out 650,000. Espela then shoved all in for around 5,575,000, which Lee called off his remaining chips, roughly 2,000,000.
Marco Espela: K♠ Q♦
Mack Lee: Q♣ T♣
Lee still got many outs to win the hand, but the dealer slammed a helpless A♠ on the river to complete the board, meaning Lee was sent to the rail and bagged up PHP 616,000 (~$10,470) payout.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 9,250,000(58 BB) |
ML Mack LeeSingapore | busted |
Ashley Patterson Has Been Eliminated in 4th Place For PHP 466,000 (~$7,920)
Ashley Patterson shipped for around 1,350,000 from the cutoff four-handed, and Marco Espela called from the button.
Ashley Patterson: Q♠ J♥
Marco Espela: Q♣ Q♥
Patterson started to stand up after the 8♦ 4♥ 4♣ flop left him drawing extremely thin. A T♦ on the turn did give him some outs, but the 7♣ river wasn't what he needed, and he was out in fourth, just shy of the podium places.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 6,000,000(50 BB) |
AP Ashley PattersonUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | busted |
Lee Continues to Accumulate
Ashley Patterson limped in from under the gun and Marco Espela followed suit from the next seat. When the action got to Mack Lee in the small blind, he made it 350,000 to go. Both Patterson and Espela called.
The three players went to a flop of 6♥ 8♦ 2♣ where Lee requested the all-in triangle and shoved for around 800,000. Patterson rechecked his cards and folded, and Espela also got out of the way.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 2,800,000(28 BB) |
ML Mack LeeSingapore | 2,000,000(20 BB) |
AP Ashley PattersonUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 1,300,000(13 BB) |
Final Table Chip Counts
The chip counts are in for the final table, and it's Marco Espela who surged up the leaderboard and holds a commanding lead over the field.
Espela is one of three local players who reached the final table, along with Maggy Cenon and Alvir Inocentes.
The average stack is 1,210,000, which is just fifteen big blinds, so expect the action to be fast-paced.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 3,150,000(39 BB) |
AP Ashley PattersonUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 1,670,000(21 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 1,495,000(19 BB) |
1,070,000(13 BB) | |
AI Alvir InocentesPhilippines | 930,000(12 BB) |
KS Kiwanont SukhumThailand | 850,000(11 BB) |
LL Lun LuoChina | 700,000(9 BB) |
ML Mack LeeSingapore | 585,000(7 BB) |
PC Poyu ChenTaiwan | 500,000(6 BB) |
Chen Gets a Much-Needed Up
Po Yu Chen moved all-in from the button for 170,000, risking his tournament life, and Marco Espela made the call from the small blind.
Po Yu Chen: A♥ K♠
Marco Espela: J♣ 9♣
The flop came down T♠ 2♠ Q♣ , giving Espela an open-ended straight draw and a shot at eliminating Chen. Tension mounted as the turn brought the 5♠ , followed by the river T♥ , leaving Chen’s ace-high as the winning hand. Chen survived, holding his breath as he doubled up and stayed in the tournament!
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 3,100,000(39 BB) |
PC Poyu ChenTaiwan | 490,000(6 BB) |
Espela Cripples Luo
Lun Luo opened from late position with a raise to 120,000, drawing a call from Marco Espela in the small blind after a few minutes of contemplation. Maggy Cenon in the big blind stepped aside, setting the stage for a tense heads-up showdown.
On a flop of 7♣ K♥ 6♦ , Espela checked, and Luo continued with a 110,000 bet. Espela called once more, keeping the pot brewing.
The turn brought the A♠ , and with action back on Luo, he jammed all-in. Espela, at risk, snap-called, setting up a dramatic reveal.
Marco Espela: A♣ T♠
Lun Luo: 9♥ 8♠
With his tournament life on the line, Espela had top pair, while Luo was hoping to hit his open-ended straight draw. The river card, J♣, dashed Luo’s hopes, failing to complete his draw and forcing him to surrender a huge chunk of his stack to Espela, who doubled up in thrilling fashion.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 2,270,000(38 BB) |
LL Lun LuoChina | 1,100,000(18 BB) |
Chip Counts With Ten Remaining
Here are the current counts with ten remaining. Lun Luo's lead has been eaten into a little, but he still remains the chip leader with a stack of 2,000,000.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
LL Lun LuoChina | 2,000,000(33 BB) |
MC Maggy CenonPhilippines | 1,400,000(23 BB) |
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 1,150,000(19 BB) |
AP Ashley PattersonUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 1,100,000(18 BB) |
900,000(15 BB) | |
AI Alvir InocentesPhilippines | 850,000(14 BB) |
ML Mack LeeSingapore | 850,000(14 BB) |
KS Kiwanont SukhumThailand | 800,000(13 BB) |
SL Suya LeeKorea (Republic of) | 700,000(12 BB) |
PC Poyu ChenTaiwan | 600,000(10 BB) |
Luo Puts Espela in a Tough Spot
Marco Espela raised from the hijack to 110,000 and Lun Luo defended from the big blind.
They went to a flop of 3♠ A♥ 6♣ where Luo check-called a bet of 100,000 from Espela.
Both then checked the 4♠ turn to the 7♦ river, where Luo led out with a bet of 290,000. Espela went deep into th tank and was thinking for around two minutes before he eventually laid it down.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
LL Lun LuoChina | 2,700,000(54 BB) |
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 1,000,000(20 BB) |
Mitchell Tsang Has Been Eliminated in 14th Place for PHP 71,000 (~$1,210)
Mitchell Tsang opened to 235,000, leaving himself with a single 1,000 chip behind, and was called by Marco Espela directly to his left.
Tsang tossed in his last chip on the 9♣ T♦ 8♦ flop, and Espela quickly called.
Mitchell Tsang: A♣ T♥
Marco Espela: Q♠ Q♥
Although Tsang paired his ten, it wasn’t enough to overcome Espela’s pocket queens. The 5♣ on the turn and K♣ on the river didn’t improve Tsang’s hand, and he was eliminated in 14th place, heading to collect his payout.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 600,000(15 BB) |
MT Mitchell TsangUnited States of America | busted |
Big Slick Helps Lee to a Double-Up
Marco Espela made it 85,000 from middle position and Mack Lee shoved from the hijack for 360,000. Once the action got back to Espela, he made a quick call.
Mack Lee: A♦ K♣
Marco Espela: A♠ Q♣
In a tale as old as time, ace-queen was all-in against ace-king, with the expected result as the 4♠ 4♣ 8♥ 3♥ 9♣ runout kept Lee in the lead, and earned him a double-up.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 850,000(21 BB) |
ML Mack LeeSingapore | 820,000(21 BB) |
Park Eliminated, Sixteen Remain
Jeongmin Park was all in from the button for around 375,000 and Marco Espela called from the small blind.
Marco Espela: K♠ A♠
Jeongmin Park: K♣ 8♥
The board filled out 7♥ 5♣ A♦ 5♠ 3♦ , eliminating Park out of the field, and left just two tables of eight remaining.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 1,175,000(39 BB) |
JP Jeongmin ParkKorea (Republic of) | busted |
Ace High Wins
In a tense heads-up clash, Federico Peralta went all-in for his tournament life, risking 140,000 against Marco Espela, who had him covered.
Federico Peralta: K♦ Q♣
Marco Espela: A♣ J♥
The board revealed 7♠ 7♣ 6♣ 3♥ T♠ , which left both players unimproved, and sent Peralta to the rail with four tables remaining.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 560,000(35 BB) |
FP Federico Peralta (3)Philippines | busted |
Sebatini Applies Pressure on the River
Marco Espela opened to 22,000 from under the gun, and Dino Sabatini called from the small blind.
The action went check-check on the flop of A♣ J♣ T♦ . A K♦ fell on the turn, and both players kept the pace and checked through.
The river brought a board-pairing K♠ , and Sebatini shoved all in for 97,000, sending Espela into the tank. After a long time, Espela checked his cards again before he tossed them in the muck.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 335,000(34 BB) |
DS Dino SabatiniIreland | 165,000(17 BB) |
A Few Chip Counts
Player | Chips |
---|---|
AP Ashley PattersonUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 600,000(60 BB) |
BG Ben GurIsrael | 540,000(54 BB) |
FL Frank LillisIreland | 500,000(50 BB) |
LL Lun LuoChina | 460,000(46 BB) |
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 400,000(40 BB) |
375,000(38 BB) | |
YT Yen TingChina | 370,000(37 BB) |
170,000(17 BB) |
Espela Puts on His Cape, Correctly Hero Calls With Ace-High
Marco Espela raised from the cutoff and Jeorge Lagatuz defended his big blind.
They went to a flop of K♥ 4♥ 5♣ where Lagatuz check-called a bet of 15,000 from Espela, then they both checked the K♠ turn.
A 9♠ dropped on the river and Lagatuz reached for chips and fired out 35,000. Espela went into the tank and was trying to piece together the puzzle, and after some time, he called.
Lagatuz showed Q♥ J♥ for a missed flush draw, and Espela tabled A♠ 8♦ for just ace-high to claim the pot.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 350,000(44 BB) |
JL Jeorge LagatuzPhilippines | 170,000(21 BB) |
Espela Stays in the Tournament
The action picked up with two players all-in, with Marco Espela at risk against Antonio Abesamis, and their hands tabled.
Marco Espela: K♣ J♥
Antonio Abesamis: K♦ 9♦
The board ran out 3♣ A♣ T♠ 7♠ A♥ , securing Espela the win and boosting his stack for another shot in the tournament.
Player | Chips |
---|---|
AA Antonio AbesamisPhilippines | 160,000(27 BB) |
ME Marco EspelaPhilippines | 50,000(8 BB) |