MAIN EVENT (20,000,000 VND)

After an intense Day 2 at GLPC Hanoi, just nine players remain in contention for the Main Event title; it’s Vietnam’s Van Sang Nguyen who sits at the top of the counts heading into the final day, boasting 15,675,000 in chips.

Nguyen played a composed, confident game throughout the day, steadily building his stack before a pivotal hand late in the evening against Duc Duy Nguyen. Holding king-jack against pocket jacks, he found a king on the river to score a healthy boost to his stack. Later, he bubbled the final nine after eliminating Jun Kyu Park, whose pocket deuces couldn’t hold against Nguyen’s ace-king, which connected on the board to extend his lead even further.

Already sitting just shy of $1 million in live earnings, a victory tomorrow would see Nguyen surpass that milestone and record his first cash of 2025. Having made several deep runs at USOP Hai Phong last year, he continues to prove himself as one of the most consistent performers on Vietnam’s live circuit.

Close behind is Nguyen Thi My Phuong (14,275,000,) a lively presence at the tables despite her low-profile appearance. She was anything but low-profile in the late stages, adding a substantial boost to her stack when her queens held against Quang Duc Nguyen's jacks, sending him to the rail in 11th.

Rounding out the top three is Ferdinand Lu (7,375,000) of the Philippines, who displayed a disciplined performance that kept him steadily in the race. With experience and patience on his side, Lu will be looking to convert his solid stack into a title run tomorrow.

Also advancing is Le Viet Anh, who has enjoyed a breakout week in Hanoi. After winning the Mini Main Event just days ago, which is his first recorded live cash (HendonMob,) Anh finds himself deep again in the flagship tournament, and will certainly be looking to replicate his success tomorrow.

Representing the western hemisphere, Ireland’s Henri Hinds will also be one to watch. Hinds boasts more than $200,000 in career earnings, over half of which came from his career-best cash of $117,000 last year. Hinds nearly bowed out midway through the day, dropping to around 500,000 chips, but battled back brilliantly to close with 6,200,000, also winning a crucial hand when a seven on the river bumped him up to a full house over his opponent's flush. Already a three-time final tablist at this year's GLPC, he’s certainly proved he's got what it takes to take home the title.

All nine players have now guaranteed themselves VND 409,700,000 (~$15,550) but every eye will be fixed on the VND 4,097,500,000 (~$160,000) top prize and the prestige that comes with being crowned the GLPC Hanoi Main Event champion.

Play resumes at 12:30 p.m. local time tomorrow, with the final table livestream available on the USOP Facebook page. Tune back in to Somuchpoker for the full coverage tomorrow!

Just after moving to the feature table, Van Sang Nguyen opens and snap-calls the all-in of Jun Kyu Park for 3,200,000.

Jun Kyu Park: 2♥ 2♠

Van Sang Nguyen: A♦ K♥

Park hoped to double up after the flop T♣ 9♣ 3♦ , but the turn K♦ gives Nguyen a higher pair, leaving Park with only two outs. The river 9♥ misses, and Park is eliminated as the bubble to the final table. The rail erupts in celebration, while Park quietly exits the main event.

Facing a raise, Quang Duc Nguyen moves all in for 1,860,000. From the big blind, Thi My Phuong Nguyen re-shoves, forcing the initial raiser to fold.

Quang Duc Nguyen: J♣ J♠

Thi My Phuong Nguyen: Q♠ Q♦

The board K♦ 5♣ 3♦ 7♦ 4♠ runs dry for Quang Duc, who fails to find another jack and is eliminated in 11th place.

Fankai Li opened to 400,000 and Laksh Pal Singh called, both in the blinds.

On the 9♥ 2♣ T♣ flop Singh shoved for his last 1,000,000 chips and Li snap-called:

Laksh Pal Singh: A♦ 9♣

Fankai Li: A♠ T♥

Li had Singh with pair over pair, needing a miracle to stay in the game.

The remainder of the 7♣ J♠ runout failed to save him and he was sent to the payout desk in 12th place.

With 1,700,000 already in the middle after the flop T♥ 9♦ 2♦ , Yuequan Jia leads out for 600,000. Vuong Le Cong moves all in for 2,040,000, and after a long tank, Jia makes the call.

Vuong Le Cong: T♣ 8♠

Yuequan Jia: K♣ T♦

Both players hit top pair, but Jia improves on the turn K♠ to secure the win. The river A♣ is just a formality as Jia scoops the huge pot.

Jie Zheng opens to 1,500,000 and calls all in for 2,500,000 after Jun Kyu Park shoves.

Jie Zheng: J♦ T♦

Jun Kyu Park: K♦ Q♣

The flop K♥ 9♦ 3♦ gives Park top pair while Zheng picks up a flush draw, but the turn 6♣ and river 9♥ miss out, sealing the pot for Park and ending Zheng’s run.

Le Viet Anh opened to 350,000 from middle position and Lu Ferdinand called from the cutoff. Button Chengbei Li three-bet shoved for 2,300,000, and Ferdinand called with a similar-sized stack.

Chengbei Li: T♥ T♦

Lu Ferdinand: A♠ Q♠

Ferdinand paired his ace on the 8♦ Q♥ J♠ flop and made trips as the 7♠ Q♣ runout completed the board. After confirming he was covered, Li was eliminated in 15th place.

Action folds to the small blind, where Quang Duc Nguyen shoves, trying to steal the blinds from Robert Kiss. Hoping for a pay jump, Kiss uses all his time banks before finally making the call.

Robert Kiss: J♣ T♣

Quang Duc Nguyen: Q♣ 5♥

The flop Q♠ Q♥ 7♦ delivers trips for Nguyen, leaving Kiss drawing dead by the turn 6♣ . The river 7♠ is just a formality as Kiss is eliminated.

Van Linh Nong 3-bet shoves from the big blind for 1,285,000 after facing an open. The initial raiser folds, and Viet Anh Le makes the call.

Van Linh Nong: Q♥ J♥

Viet Anh Le: 7♦ 7♥

The board 8♦ 5♣ 5♠ K♣ 7♠ runs clean for Le, sending Nong out in 17th place.

Duc Duy Nguyen open shoved from the cutoff and found a lone caller in big blind Van Sang Nguyen, and they showed their hands:

Duc Duy Nguyen: J♦ J♥

Van Sang Nguyen: K♣ J♠

Nguyen was looking good for a double on the 2♦ 6♣ 8♠ T♣ flop and turn, but Sang Nguyen spiked a king on the K♥ river, eliminating Duy Nguyen in 18th place.

Van Sang Nguyen opens, and Duc Duy Nguyen defends his big blind.

On the flop J♥ 8♣ 5♠ , Van c-bets 280,000 and calls Duc’s check-raise to 700,000. On the turn A♣ , Duc leads out 700,000, Van calls. On the river A♠ , Duc moves all in, only to be snap-called by Van for his remaining 1,065,000.

Van Sang Nguyen: A♥ A♦

Duc Duy Nguyen: 5♥ 5♣

Duc looks stunned as Van completes an incredible runner-runner quads to scoop the massive pot.

Players are now on a 10-minute break. Twenty players remain, with six falling during the last level. Play will continue until the final table is set.

Action folds to the small blind, where Jia Shun Lee shoves for 890,000. After a quick count, Viet Anh Le calls from the big blind.

Jia Shun Lee: K♦ 9♥

Viet Anh Le: A♥ 6♣

The board J♠ T♠ T♥ A♠ 2♥ runs clean for Le, who wins the pot and eliminates Lee in 21st place.

Action was joined with Yuequan Jia all-in against Zhihao Chen, who was at risk. Jia held T♠ T♣ while Chen tabled Q♦ J♠.

The board ran out 3♥ 8♥ 2♣ 7♥, leaving Chen in great shape to double and cripple Jia - but the J♦ on the river flipped the script, sending Chen to the rail in 22nd place.

With around 1,700,000 already in the middle T♣ 4♠ 8♣ 3♦ 9♣ , Thi My Phuong Nguyen fires 700,000. Yuequan Jia goes into the tank before tossing in a single chip to call. Nguyen excitedly reveals her hand 7♥ 6♥ , showing she hit a gutshot straight on the river. Jia, visibly frustrated, mucks his cards.

UTG Jun Kyu Park opened for the minimum and picked up calls from Nguyen Tuan Anh and Patrik Demus in the small blind.

The flop came 4♠ J♦ 7♣, where Demus check-folded and Park check-called Anh’s 300,000 continuation bet.

After the 7♥ landed on the turn, Park checked again. Anh fired 750,000, only to face a check-raise to 1,900,000. What followed was a long tank: timebanks burned, chips counted, and intense staring, trying to get a read on Park by any means necessary.

Eventually, Anh folded with a frustrated “Fold!” before asking Park to show.

“You first,” came the reply.

Anh revealed pocket queens, and Park obliged, showing A♦ 7♦ for trips.

“Good fold,” came the murmurs from the table.

All-in pre-flop action at the feature table between Jan Peter Eickholt, who moved all in for 1,500,000, and Jie Zheng with the covering stack.

Jan Peter Eickholt: A♦ T♦

Jie Zheng: J♣ J♥

The flop 8♥ 5♥ 2♥ left Eickholt with just two outs, but he couldn’t find help on the turn 7♦ or river 9♦ , ending his run.

Chengbei Li opened to 160,000 from the cutoff and faced a three-bet to 400,000 from big blind Jun Kyu Park. Li called to see a flop of T♣ 4♦ K♣.

Both players checked, but after the T♠ landed on the turn, Park led out for 475,000. Li called once more.

On the 7♠ river, Park kept up the aggression with a 600,000 bet. Li went deep into the tank, burning through a couple of timebanks before folding, leaving his stack noticeably lighter.

Facing a raise, Laksh Singh 3-bets to 650,000. Thanh Do Nguyen responds by 4-bet shoving, prompting the initial raiser to fold. Laksh Singh takes a moment, then calls for 750,000.

Laksh Singh: A♦ K♦

Thanh Do Nguyen: 7♣ 7♠

The flop A♠ K♣ 5♦ gives Singh two pair, and the turn 9♦ and river J♦ complete the nut flush. Thanh Do Nguyen is eliminated after the next hand, leaving 25 players remaining.

Patrik Demus limps, the small blind calls, and big blind Yuequan Jia checks.

Demus fires 125,000 on the flop K♦ 9♦ 2♥ , then another 275,000 on the turn 4♥ , with both bets called by Jia. Demus slows down and checks the river 4♠ . Jia shows 9♥ 7♦ a pair to take the pot, while Demus mucks his hand.

Action was joined with both Henri Hinds and Nguyen Quang Duc all in. Duc was audibly calling for his cards as the dealer spread a board of T♣ T♥ A♥ K♣.

The hands were already shown on the table:

Nguyen Quang Duc: A♣ J♣

Henri Hinds: K♠ T♦

Hinds held a full house, tens full of kings, leaving Duc needing an ace to survive. The dealer duly delivered the A♦ on the river, improving Duc to a superior full house and securing him the double-up.

Hinds tapped the table as the pot was pushed across to Duc.

Henri Hinds opened to 130,000 from middle position and picked up a call from Nguyen Thi My Phuong on his left.

On the 3♠ 4♠ K♣ flop, Hinds check-folded to Phuong’s 155,000 continuation bet.

In the following hand, Phuong took the initiative herself, raising to 130,000 and facing a three-bet to 455,000 from small blind Patrik Demus. Phuong quickly moved all in, and Demus wasted little time folding.

Now that the field has been whittled down to 27 players, there will a a 3-table redraw.

Updated chip counts can be found here.

Thi My Phuong Nguyen opens from UTG, and Jan Peter Eickholt calls from her left, with the small blind also calling. Big Blind Tuan Anh Nguyen raises to 450,000. Thi and Eickholt call.

On the flop K♣ J♥ T♣ , Tuan Anh bets 450,000, and both players fold. He then proudly shows his hand A♣ Q♥ , revealing a flop nut straight.

Nguyen Duc Duy raised to 125,000 and was called by Nguyenb Thanh Do in the big blind.

On the Q♦ K♦ 9♦ flop, Do check-folded to a 75,000 continuation-bet from Duy.

In the next hand, Duy moved all in from early position and received a call from cutoff Jia Sun Lee with the covering stack:

Nguyen Duc Duy: A♠ 6♣

Jia Sun Lee: K♣ Q♠

The A♣ T♦ T♠ flop put Duy in good stead, and the 3♦ 2♣ runout secured his double up, as the field narrows to the last three tables.

Another big flip action pre-flop at the feature table. Ferdinand Lu shoves all in for 1,560,000.

Ferdinand Lu: 5♣ 5♠

Van Sang Nguyen: K♥ Q♥

The board T♥ 2♦ 3♦ 3♣ J♦ runs clean for Lu, giving him a massive double up.

UTG Tuan Anh Nguyen opens and then calls the all-in from Junjie He for 735,000.

Junjie He: K♠ K♣

Tuan Anh Nguyen: A♥ Q♣

The flop A♣ A♦ 6♥ gives Nguyen trips, which he secures on the turn 6♣ . The river T♦ is just a formality.

In the prior hand, cutoff Ravi Piyush raised to 100,000 before folding to small blind Jaeki Choi’s 285,000 three-bet.

He went again in the very next hand, this time from the hijack, only to face a three-bet shove from Pham Van Huy in the big blind with the covering stack. Piyush snap-called and the cards went on their backs:

Ravi Piyush: A♥ K♣

Pham Van Huy: 2♣ 2♠

Huy’s pocket twos couldn’t fade the overcards, as Piyush paired his ace on the 3♠ 8♠ A♣ J♣ Q♠ board to secure a crucial double-up.

One of the craziest hands of Day 2! Four-way all-in, all with monster hands. UTG Van Linh Nong open-shoved for 550,000. UTG+1 Viet Anh Le called, cutoff Guangrui Meng called all-in for 530,000, and small blind Dang Tien Dat excitedly pushed all his chips in for 625,000. Le called to create a massive pot.

Van Linh Nong: A♠ Q♦

Viet Anh Le: A♦ J♦

Guangrui Meng: J♠ J♣

Dang Tien Dat: K♥ K♣

Players and spectators gathered around the table as the dealer revealed the board T♦ 9♠ 8♣ A♣ 3♠ , an ace appeared, giving Nong the best hand. He quadrupled up while Guangrui Meng and Dang Tien Dat were eliminated from the Main Event.

After a couple of uneventful hands where the preflop raiser (Jia Shun Lee and Thanh Do Nguyen) got folds around the table, Aditya Agarwal and Lee found themselves in a relatively tense hand just before the field was trimmed to the final four tables.

Phan Tien Dung raised to 120,000, and both Lee and Agarwal called, sending them three-ways to the flop.

Dung bet 125,000, then folded after Lee raised to 350,000 on the 3♠ A♥ 6♣ board - Agarwal called both times.

On the 6♦ turn, Lee led for 300,000, and Agarwal stuck around again.

Both checked the 2♦ river, only to reveal matching ace-jack holdings and chop the sizeable pot.

After losing two flips, first with sixes against ace-queen, and then with ace-king against pocket sixes, Kyle Bao Diep exited the Main Event in 48th place.

Button Junjie He raised to 80,000 and was called by small blind Nguyen Thi My Phuong.

Phuong check-called He’s 50,000 continuation-bet following the A♦ Q♣ K♦ flop.

Action repeated on the 4♥ turn, this time to the tune of 125,000.

Both checked the 5♣ river, with Phuong revealing queen-jack offsuit, losing to the king-three of He.

Chitnuphong Wirachairattana got the last of his 210,000-chip stack into the middle following a min raise from Nguyen Tuan Anh, who called with the covering stack:

Chitnuphong Wirachairattana: Q♥ J♥

Nguyen Tuan Anh: A♥ 8♥

Hearts were out of the question for Wirachairattana, and the J♦ A♠ T♦ flop kept Anh ahead. The 8♣ 3♣ only improved him, sending Wirachairattana to the payout desk.

Saahib Bawa opened for two big blinds and was called by Ferdinand Lu on his left. The big blind also joined to see the flop A♠ A♣ 3♣ . Bawa c-bet 40,000, Lu called, and the big blind folded.

On the turn 2♦ , Bawa fired again for 70,000. Lu didn’t back down and raised to 220,000. Bawa asked the dealer for the minimum raise amount and made it 370,000. After using two time banks, Lu folded.

Zong Xian Lim open-shoved for 600,000. Action folded to the big blind Pan Xu, who called for his 120,000.

Pan Xu: A♥ 3♥

Zong Xian Lim: 9♣ 9♥

Lim was looking to eliminate Xu after the flop T♣ 6♦ 4♥ and turn J♦ , but the river A♠ brought an ace, giving Xu a lucky double-up.

Hand 1

Le Viet Anh shoved from the small blind and got it through.

Hand 2

Le Cong Vuong raised to 60,000 from early position then folded to Anh's 150,000 three-bet from the button.

Hand 3

Vuong raised to 60,000, then called next seat over Dang Tien Dat's 150,000 three-bet. On the 8♦ 3♥ 5♥ flop, Vuong check-shoved for 1,500,000 after Dat's 150,000 bet. Dat used multiple timebanks before slamming his cards to the muck in frustration.

Hand 4

Le Dinh Hung raised to 60,000 from middle position to folds around the table.

Hand 5

UTG Ravi Piyush raised to 60,000, then shoved for 650,000 when Laksh Singh three-bet to 140,000 in the cutoff.

Players are now on their second 10-minute break of the day.

Action folded to the button, Phan Tien Dung opened and faced a 3-bet shove from Van Phu Nguyen for 625,000. Dung used a time bank and made the call.

Van Phu Nguyen: 8♠ 8♥

Phan Tien Dung: A♥ Q♠

A classic flip, Dung hit his ace on the flop A♠ J♠ 4♥ , and Nguyen missed the turn T♦ and river 6♥ .

From Pokémon figures to Minions and shiny good-luck charms, players have brought all sorts of mascots to the tables today. Whether for fun or superstition, these small totems add a touch of personality to the felt at the Main Event.

Hijack Hyosung Kim raised to 50,000 and was called only by big blind Chengbei Li.

Li check-raised Kim’s 25,000 bet on the 5♠ J♠ 2♥ flop up to 75,000, and Kim stuck around with a call.

The 5♣ landed on the turn and Li checked once again. Kim fired 100,000 into the middle this time, and Li eventually relinquished his hand.

The flop 9♠ 7♦ 2♥ was up with 660,000 in the middle. After the dealer revealed the turn 4♣ , Zhihao Chen checked from the small blind, then called Jie Zheng’s bet of 265,000. Zheng slowed down and checked back on the river 5♣.

Chen showed his hand J♠ J♦ , and Zheng mucked. Chen scooped a big pot and crossed the 2 million mark.

After just around three hours of play, Henri Hinds has almost doubled his stack after winning multiple pots. From 960,000, he’s now sitting with 1,960,000, one of the current top stacks.

Hinds added even more after winning a pot against Sergei Korzhenko. Hinds opened, Korzhenko called from his left, and the big blind also defended. After the flop T♦ 8♦ 4♣ , Korzhenko bet 80,000, and only Hinds called. Both checked the turn J♠ and river A♥ . Hinds showed Q♦ T♣ middle pair, and it was good.

Cutoff Robert Kiss raised to 40,000 and was three-bet to 125,000 by button Jie Zheng. Kiss scanned Zheng's stack before he moved all in, and Zheng quickly made the call:

Jie Zheng: K♣ K♥

Robert Kiss: 5♠ 5♥

Zheng looked good to double and only needed to fade a five or spade by the time the A♦ A♠ Q♠ 9♠ flop and turn were on the felt. The A♥ completed the board, giving Zheng the superior full house and doubling up his 700,000 stack.

Facing a raise, Chengshan Wu 3-bet shoved for 250,000. Big blind Xinze Li called, and the initial raiser folded.

Chengshan Wu: 4♥ 4♠

Xinze Li: A♥ K♦

The board Q♠ 6♠ 5♥ Q♥ 4♦ ran clean for Wu, and he doubled up. Some players at his table joked, “You’re so lucky!” after he dodged Li’s draws.

Action was joined heads-up between big blind Taowei Chang and Van Hao Tran in middle position.

It was a cautious affair on the 2♣ 6♥ K♠ 2♥ board, until the 5♥ river brought some action. Chang checked, and Tran fired 80,000 into the middle - about 75% of Chang’s remaining stack.

After a brief think, Chang decided to fold, and let out a sigh of relief when Tran flipped over K♦ K♣ with a laugh.