We almost don’t believe it but we have a winner in Manila! In the final hand of the tournament Tae Jun Noh bet $151,000. Van Marcus called and the flop came 8 6 3.

Noh bet $200,000 and Marcus went all-in. Noh tanked for a minute but then, for the first time in the heads-up match, we had an all-in and a call. The players revealed their respective hands:

Marcus: 9 7

Noh: J 8

Noh had top pair but Marcus had a straight draw, and with the way he’s been running today you almost wanted to give the edge to him.

It just so happened that the turn came T to give Marcus the straight and the tournament!

Marcus will take $162,856 back to Australia for his final-table heroics, while Noh has to settle for $103,142 for second place.

It’s been a wild ride of a final table that took place over the span of 16 hours and featured more suck-outs than we’ve ever seen.

We’d like to thank the exceptional staff at the Hyatt Manila and of course the folks at PokerStars.com who organized another fantastic tournament.

We’ll see you at the Grand Final of APPT Season 2, which takes place in Sydney on Dec. 3. Now if you'll excuse us we've got a plane to catch!

Check back for a recap blog and winner interview.

The final table of APPT Manila has transformed from a battle into an all-out marathon, with the two remaining players getting a serious test in stamina.

It’s roughly 4 a.m. local time and many members of the media are starting to rebook their flights, and most of the fans are asleep in their chairs.

To make matters worse the players have drawn even with each other and it’s still very much anybody’s game. Neither player seems willing to give up an inch and every blind is still fiercely defended as the sun starts to rise over the bay in Manila.

We've gotten to Level 27, and we've been holed up inside the Hyatt poker room for close to 14 hours now.

Van Marcus has begun to turn on the heat once again and has taken back control of the chip lead, partially thanks to following hand.

Tae Jun Noh completed and Marcus checked. The flop came 5 3 2 and Noh bet $100,000. Van made a massive reraise to $500,000.

Noh looked extremely frustrated by the raise and after a few minutes of thought he folded 3-2 face up. Marcus showed a single four as he raked the pot, looking somewhat frustrated. A few of the people in the audience think it was a good lay-down, but only Marcus knows for sure.

After the hand Noh has around $1 million and Marcus has approximately $1.8 million.

Tae Jun Noh has finally gotten himself all the way to level ground with Van Marcus. The most recent hand drew him even.

In the hand Marcus completed but Noh bet $100,000. Marcus made the call and the flop came J 8 4. Both players checked and the turn came Q. Noh led out for $200,000 and that was enough to secure Noh the pot.

Both players have around $1.3 million right now and we could be in for a hell of a long night.

We've made it to Level 26 and you may have noticed this is the last blind structure that is listed for this event. We don't know what they'll do next for blinds but we're sure tournament director Danny McDonagh will think of something.

The Level 26 blinds are $25,000/$50,000 with a $5,000 ante.

Tae Jun Noh is battling his way back into the tournament. He’s won the blinds several times in the last 10 hands or so and just won a decent pot post-flop.

In the hand Van Marcus bet $90,000 from the button and Noh called. The flop came A T 5 and Noh checked but Marcus bet 100k. Noh insta-called and the turn came 9. Both players checked and the river came 2.

Both players checked again and Noh flipped over K T, which inspired Van to muck his hand. After the hand Noh was over $1 million and closing in on Marcus.

Van Marcus has been pounding Tae Jun Noh in the first 20 or so hands of heads-up play. We’ve yet to have either player go all-in but the majority of the hands have been taken with a bet by Marcus either pre-flop or on the flop.

Noh will have to make a move relatively soon as he’s already down to $700,000 chips.

After four and a half hours of three-handed play we are finally down to heads-up. In his last hand Hyoung Jin Nam shoved from the small blind and Tae Jun Noh called from the big blind.

Nam revealed 5 4 and would need some help against Noh’s A 6. Unfortunately for Noh the board came J 8 2 Q 3 and that was enough to finish Nam. It was a great showing for the skilled Korean, who if not for a sick suck-out by Van Marcus might have won this event.

Here are the chip counts at the beginning of heads-up play:

1. Van Marcus	$1.6 million
2. Tae Jun Noh	$1 million

 

In a recent hand all three remaining players limped to a flop of A 6 4. All three players checked and the turn came 4. Tae Jun Noh bet $40,000 and both Hyoung Jin Nam and Van Marcus called. The river came 3.

Jun bet $40,000 but Marcus reraised to $110,000. Nam folded immediately and after a couple minutes of consideration so did Noh.

Marcus is starting to run away with this tournament. Here are the chip counts after the hand:

1. Van Marcus	$1.6 million
2. Tae Jun Noh	$800,000
3. Hyoung Jin Nam	$420,000