Chinese Businessman Wins Macau Poker Cup

A 37-year-old local businessman named Rui Chen won the Pokerstars Macau Poker Cup Championship 2012 held last week, Chinese gambling news
sources report.

The Chinese businessman entered the HKD 20,000 buy-in competition through a HKD 1,100 PokerStars satellite. His bank balance grew by HKD $1,108,500 (around $143,000) after a tense 12 hour final table battle.

Chen commented on the rise of the Chinese poker rooms: “The past few years have seen a huge development for poker in China. Poker is suited for the Chinese because we are particularly good at mind games.”

Rui Chen’s final table comprised Yosuke Sekiya, Wenlong Jin, Sunny Jung, Kevin Kung, Jessica Ngu, Lisi Wei, Ryan Hong and Robert Streatfield.

The final heads-up was between Chen and Yosuke Sekiya from Japan, with Chen holding a 3 to 2 chip advantage. Finally, the Japanese player was sent to the cashier with a second place reward of HKD 759,000.

The special administrative region of Macau is considered to be the one of world’s most lucrative casino spots. The Chinese city’s gambling revenue rose 5.5 percent to $3.3 billion in August compared to the similar month last year. The former Portuguese colony’s laws, unlike Chinese gambling laws, allow casinos and gambling.