Asian Poker Tour: A Thrilla in Manila

In June, the Asian Poker Tour landed in the vibrant city of Manila, Philippines, a teeming metropolis with huge tower blocks overlooking the bustling streets of the city. The opulent Dusit Thani hosted the country's biggest poker tournament, housing a total of 316 players in its inspiring grand hall. Day 1 saw poker luminaries Huck Seed, Willie Tann, and Mansour Matloubi in attendance, but the event was mainly dominated by the unknowns eager to take down the first-place prize money of $280,000. The total guaranteed prize pool of $1,000,000 was shy by some $270,000, and Chris Parker, chief executive officer of the APT, announced that they would make an overlay of $275,000 -- incredible value for such a small buy-in.

Day 1A was very cagey early on, but this didn't stop British player Vijay Bhojnawi from becoming the early chip leader. However, one bluff too many put paid to his tournament. Karina Jett, an American pro, had no such problems sustaining her ever-growing chip lead. Early on, Jett won a big pot from another early chip leader, Miguel Cuneta. Jett check-called the flop and turn, but then fired a big check-raise on the river, causing Cuneta to fold. Swedish hotshot Mikael Johansson continued to accumulate chips, too, with a miracle runner-runner on an A J 7 flop. His opponent fired a small bet at the pot that Johansson smooth-called. When the turn brought the 6, both players checked. The 8 on the river gave Johansson a straight with his 5 4, and it was enough to win the pot.

Day 1B was all about the amateurs, as pro after pro busted out. Early casualties included five-time bracelet winner Layne Flack, who was cruelly rivered before the break. The extreme aggression of Korean counter strike professional Kwang Soo Lee was relentless throughout the day. However, this appeared to backfire when all the chips went in preflop against Canadian Richard En. Soo Lee was holding K K against En's A A. A crowd flocked to the action, with Soo Lee's massive entourage in tow. The flop of J 9 5 was harmless, but when the K hit the turn, it caused the whole room to erupt. Soo Lee was now the big stack with 110,000.

Eighty-nine players moved on to the second day. The short stacks battled to double-up early, and 18 players fell in the first two levels. Notable exits included 1996 World Series of Poker main-event champ Huck Seed. His A 3 was looked up by Richard Matthews' 8 8; the board bricked out, and Seed trudged through the poker room contemplating where it all went wrong. Meanwhile, soft-spoken Italian Michele Ferrari became a firm favourite with the Filipino crowd and steadily accumulated chips; his no-nonsense style of poker won him many fans as he quietly moved up the leader board. Elsewhere, the wheels were starting to come off for one-time big stack Karina Jett as her dwindling chip lead stuttered; she eventually finished just out of the money. Well-known British journalist Mark Greenwood was looking good for the money when he raised from early position while holding two black aces. He was reraised all in with his opponent holding queens, and Greenwood instantly called; a third queen in the window meant another player was dealt a bad beat when holding aces.

David Saab, the vocal Australian, began to emerge as the late favourite, taking down a massive pot late in day 2. Brian Jeff Sombrero raised from the button to 20,000, and Saab went into the tank before reraising to 60,000. Sombrero instantly reraised to 120,000. Saab made the call and checked the flop of A J 4. Sombrero moved all in, and Saab called, saying, "We have the same hand," as he turned over the A♥ K♣. Sombrero was in a world of hurt as he rolled over the J 6, and Saab won the monster pot worth more than 700,000 to become the new chip leader.

Final Table in the Philippines

The final day saw a transformation of the main room to accommodate the TV crew and seating for a crowd of more than 200. David Saab of Australia came to the final table with 782,000, almost twice that of second-place competitor Chris Roh, who had 455,000.

The final-table chip counts were as follows:
David Saab: 782,000
Chris Roh: 455,000
Michele Ferrari: 444,000
Man Jin Yun: 426,000
Saturo Ishii: 396,000
Kwang Soo Lee: 255,000
Deres Gerasimus: 177,000
Terry Gonzaga: 164,000
Don Carmona: 64,000

Action was fast as Swedish professional Gerasimus moved all in with aces and was called by Roh. For the umpteenth time in the tournament, the strongest starting hand was cracked, as Roh's pocket fives hit a set on the flop. The turn card was a 7, followed by another 7 on the river, and the Swede exited. Deres took home $20,000 for ninth place. Remaining locals Gongaza and Carmona were next to hit the rail, both getting rapturous applause from the partisan crowd.

Saab continued his dominance with an excellent call: On a flop of Q Q 3, Yun moved all in holding the 6 6. Saab went into the tank, eventually calling with the 7 7. Yun failed to improve, and Saab moved into a commanding lead with more than 1 million in chips. Roh looked amazed, exclaiming, "David, what a crazy call!"

Saab replied, "Not at all, Chris; it's sexy poker!"

In the very next hand, Roh's A Q was looking anything but sexy, as Ferrari tabled A K, but the poker gods dealt a sickening beat as the board ran out 10 7 7 3 4, giving Roh a flush. Ferrari slapped his hands together and looked to the sky, nodding his head in disbelief. Ferrari was soon to exit, as he pushed with the 2 2 from the button, the clinical Saturo Ishii called with the 7 7, and the Italian was sent packing in fifth place. Soo was next to go in a battle of the blinds; Saab raised to 50,000, Soo reraised to 200,000, and Saab instantly moved all in, putting Soo to a decision for his tournament life. Soo was committed and reluctantly tabled the Q 9, and was way behind the A J of Saab. The board blanked, and after a great tournament, the young Korean was headed for the rail, picking up a cool $73,000.

With three left and no hint of a deal, play continued, with Saab still applying pressure on the felt as well as vocally. The lively Aussie appeared to misfire midway through level 24, when Ishii raised from the button and was reraised by Saab from the big blind. Ishii made the call. The flop came 9 9 6, and Saab instantly moved all in. Ishii went into the tank before eventually making the call of the tournament with the A 7. Saab was visibly stunned as he turned over the K 5. The turn was the 8, and Saab had picked up a flush draw and straight draw. Despite having a lot of outs, Saab was unable to hit when the 2 came on the river, and Ishii was the new chip leader. In poker, things can turn around rapidly, and again as Saab and Ishii tangled, a huge pot would again make Saab the chip leader: All of the chips went into the middle on a flop of J 5 3. Saab was holding the A A and best Ishii's Q J, and we were heads up. With Saab's 3-to-1 chip lead, it was going to be tough for Roh, and when he pushed with the K 4, Saab made the call with the A 8. The ace connected with the flop, and Saab was crowned the champion of the Asian Poker Tour, Manila. Saab proved to be a deserving and popular champion, playing some excellent, measured poker throughout the tournament. "I think this is one of the most exciting tournaments I have played in. The Asian Poker Tour has something special," said a delighted Saab after lifting the trophy and pocketing a $280,000 cheque.

My Experience
By Nick Ferro



This was my first "big" overseas tournament, and I was quietly confident; my aggressive style seemed to instantly pay off, as I won most of the early pots. The table was very soft, and I felt in total control; if this was the standard throughout, it was going to be easier than I thought! Fifteen minutes in and our table was broken up, to my disappointment. My next table was made up of Scandinavian, American, and Japanese players. I took the option to continue playing aggressively, picking my spots, playing very deliberately, and again this seemed to work. I had built my 10,000 starting stack up to 14,000 when I peered down at the K K on the button; this was a perfect opportunity to fire out a nice raise of 1,200, as the players would assume I was stealing. The trap worked, as a Japanese player decided to bump it up to 3,000. I moved over the top for another 7,000, putting his tournament life on the line. He thought hard, eventually showing me the J J. I didn't show, and mucked my cards. Eventually, they broke up the table, and I was surprised to find out that I was playing with a World Series of Poker bracelet winner and a European Poker Tour champion; this boosted my confidence and further demonstrated the need to play without fear. I took the opportunity to get an amazing 30-minute back massage for just £3.

Midway through level six, I was one of the top stacks. However, my good run was soon to end; a new dealer put me on tilt. His constant misdealing and tortoise-like pace found me getting impatient, and this had a massive impact on my play. My stack dwindled to a lowly 12,000, and I was sliding fast. The last level was upon us, and I was desperate to make day two, when poker pro Karina Jett was seated at our table. Jett was the chip leader, which she used very well -- bullying every pot and winning without any confrontation. When a player open-raised for 2,400, Jett flat-called. I had the A K. I thought about shoving here; however, I wanted to see a flop to try maximizing my return. The flop came K 8 2. Bingo! She checked, I fired 8,000 into the pot, the other player folded, she instantly put me all in, and I called for another 8,000. She tabled the K Q, and I was about to win a 45,000 pot and move into a commanding position. Unfortunately, fate had another plan for me as a queen hit the turn; my Asian Poker Tour had come to a painful end. The feeling of busting out was sickening, and dragged up old memories of missing a penalty in our under-16 cup final. Many players consoled me by saying I had played great poker, which gave me some comfort. I also knew I could rely on my "rock" in times of need: Poker Manager Martin Elliott (affectionately known as Pigeon). The conversation went something like this:

Nick Ferro: I'm out!

Martin Elliott: Told you, didn't I?

NF: How do you mean?

ME: You're s---!

Eager to prove Elliott wrong, I decided to play the $300 side event. I was happy to be seated next to the best-looking girl in the room: a cute Asian now residing in Manila. I don't think the feeling was mutual, as I took all of her chips in the very first hand with top two pair. I have a feeling we won't be pen pals. The tournament was going well for me. I had doubled up early, and my raises went uncontested. However, unbeknownst to me, in Manila you are able to join a tournament four levels in without losing your blinds. My heart sank as I saw Willie Tann sitting down to join the tournament.

A mixture of good cards and timing saw me head to the final table in second position, with Willie Tann in the pole position. Willie was bossing things, and slowly built up a commanding lead. He had won the previous day's side event; unable to play a cash game, he was merely playing out of boredom rather than choice (a likely story, Mr. Tann). Eight hours on and there were now three: me, Erik Friden (a young, aggressive Swede), and Tann. Willie suggested a deal, which we accepted, but added that we had to abide by one term: We had to leave a good tip for the dealers and staff. What a gentleman.

The Asian Poker Tour returns on Aug. 26 in Macau. For more details, log on to www.asianpt.com.