Mike Takayama

Mike Takayama opened for 2,600 from middle position and was quickly met with a three-bet to 9,000 by Yayun Liu in the cutoff. Takayama made the call, and they went to the flop.

The dealer spread 3 9 K flop, and Takayama check-raised to 16,500 after Liu continued for 6,000. Not backing down, Liu responded with a three-bet to 37,000, only to be met with an all-in shove from Takayama for his tournament life. Liu snap-called, and the cards were revealed:

Mike Takayama: K J

Yayun Liu: A K

Both players paired the board, but Liu held the better kicker. However, the J turn gave Takayama two pair, flipping the advantage in his favor. Liu still had outs, but the Q river didn’t bring any help.

With that, Liu’s stack was crippled to about 20 big blinds, while Takayama secured a crucial double-up.