Vince Lam Leads the First Flight of the NLH $670; Malm Dominates in the $300 PLO Hyperturbo

Day 1a of Event #3: $670 No-Limit Hold’em saw 79 entries hit the felt, but by the end of the night, only ten remained. It was Vince Lam who bagged the top stack with 381,000, following a day defined by sharp reads, fearless aggression, and timely calls.

Lam’s path to the lead wasn’t without resistance. Late in the evening, he clashed with Weston Pring. Pring flopped top pair, but Lam’s turned pair of nines sent Pring home just shy of the money. Lam was catapulted to nearly 400,000 found a sizeable gap between him and the next closest players.

Just behind him was Johnny Dalphond with 299,000, who joked that his table was “too good” after everyone snap folded to his small bet with a flopped flush. Kris Steinbach rounded out the top three with 297,000, following a valiant comeback from under 50,000 to end the night nearly tied for second in chips.

The bubble burst in shocking fasion, when Steinbach called off Cody Trottier’s all in. Trottier was a massive favourite with A♦8♣, against Steinbach’s A♠7♠. However, the all spades flop gave the checkmark to Steinbach with Trottier drawing dead.

With that, the remaining ten players secured their spots for Day 2 and a share of the $45,030 prize pool. Other notable stacks include Kim Graham (230,500), Antonio Ma (206,500), and Benny Sarnelli (165,000), each finding key pots to survive the volatile middle stages.

Event #3: NLH $670 Day 1a Stacks

Mike Malm Puts on a Masterclass in Event #4: $300 PLO Deepstack Hyperturbo ($7,145)

The late-night action belonged to Mike Malm, who continued his sensational run by taking down Event #4: $300 PLO Deepstack Hyperturbo. He bested the 87 player field that drew a prize pool of $22,316. For his efforts, Malm took home $7,145 along with his third trophy of the week.

Malm’s decision to skip a re-entry into the $670 NLH in favor of the fast-paced four-card event proved brilliant. Within fifteen minutes, he had climbed near the top of the counts and never looked back. By the second break, he held 180,000, and before long, became the first player to cross one million chip threshold.

Heading into the final table, Malm held half the chips in play and used that advantage ruthlessly, claiming every elimination but two. His final opponent, Leon Doublet, managed to score a pair of knockouts of his own, but he was ultimately no match for Malm’s hot streak.

The final hand summed up the night perfectly. Doublet flopped an ace and nut flush draw against Malm’s pair of queens. However, the case queen shipped the pot to Malm along with the trophy. Malm, who has shown his prowess across both hold’em and mixed formats, expressed his goal to defend his API Player of the Year title.

Event #4: PLO Deepstack Hyperturbo $300 Final Results