Guo Goes Top, Li Making Macau Run Sans Lucky Fruit

Short and sweet, something you don’t often associate with the late stages of major poker tournaments. Day 4 of the PokerStars Championship Macau Main Event was though, as just five hours of play brought the 37-player field down to the final 16, who will return to play down to the final table tomorrow.

The short day got off to a quick start, when David Peters ran a mistimed bluff against Dong Guo, to shoot the Canadian to the top of the leaderboard. Guo then held the chip lead for the better part of Day 4, until the United Kingdom’s Aymon Hata took the lead at the death. Hata will now pace the final two tables into Day 5, with 2,188,000.

While the PokerStars Championship Macau Main Event has a fair share of local players still alive, with half of the remaining field carrying Asian flags, there are still plenty of other countries represented in the final 16. Thibaut Blondel represents France and currently sits in third, while Australia’s Daniel Laidlaw has laid low and progressed through to the event’s penultimate day near the middle of the leaderboard.

PokerStars qualifier Avraham Oziel is another Canadian that is headed to Day 5, while France’s Fabrice Soulier, who may be the most experienced player remaining in the field, is also still alive, albeit with a short stack.

Moving back to the Asian contingent, Yan Li, the player responsible for Steve O’Dwyer’s lucky mango, is still alive with a top-five stack. We cannot confirm, nor deny, that Li has her own magical fruit but regardless, she will be a contender when play resumes tomorrow.

The better part of the $2,500,000 prize pool is still up for grabs and the eventual champion, to be crowned this weekend, will earn just over $400,000. A complete list of payouts and all things Poker Stars Championship Macau Main Event, can be found on the PokerStars Blog.