Quentin Lecomte Wins Unibet Open in Cannes

Unibet Pro Quentin Lecomte took down the €1,650 buy-in Unibet Open in Cannes after turning around a massive heads-up chips deficit to collect the €100,000 prize

313 players rolled into Cannes last weekend for the Unibet Open at the magnificent Casino Barriere Le Croisette in Cannes and, at the end of four days of action, it was Unibet´s own sponsored pro – Quentin Lecomte – who walked away with the €100,000 first prize.

Inasmuch as Lecomte was naturally delighted with his win, he was exhausted at the end of a three-hour duel in the heads-up against Sweden´s Linus Hjulstrom, during which both players experienced incredible swings of fortune in nerve-shattering coin flips

Indeed, it was a major achievement for either player to be involved in the heads-up after overcoming a final table which included Unibet Open London Champion (and sponsored pro) Paul Valkenburg, Unibet Open Troia Champion Dmitry Varlamov and WSOPE and WPT finalist Paul Tedeschi – Tedeschi particularly well stacked as the players took their seats for the conclusion of the tournament:-

Varlamov and Silva Bust but Lecomte on the Rise

The game resumed in Level 21, with blinds of 10,000/20,000 (ante 2,000), and no player at immediate risk. However, in one of the first hands of the final table, Dmitry Varlamov saw an opportunity to shove from the Small Blind with J♣ 10♠ and was called by Joni Salo who was sitting in the Big Blind with A♥ Q♥. Varlamov´s situation was not helped by the A♣ on the flop and was made impossible by the A♠ on the Turn – the Russian out in ninth.

The other two short stacks enjoyed better fortune – Linas Laurinenas chipping up nicely with K♣ K♠ against Thierry Morel´s A♠ J♥, and Quentin Lecomte (A♦ Q♠) forcing a fold from Morel (A♣ Q♦) on a flop of 3♠ 4♠ 5♣. However, Thierry Morel quickly regained his advantage at the top of the leaderboard when his A♣ A♥ held on against Joao Silva´s A♦ K♦ shove to eliminate the Portuguese player in eighth.

A Pause in the Action and then Things Happen in Threes

Other than a double-up by Linas Laurinenas against Thierry Morel (K♠ Q♣ > Q♦ 10♣), very little changed during the following two levels, but as Level 24 started (blinds now 20,000/40,000 ante 4,000) a trio of quick eliminations occurred – the first being Paul Valkenburg (K♦ Q♠), who looked good to double-up against Linus Hjulstrom (A♦ J♣) on the board of 2♥ 8♦ 6♥ / Q♥ until the A♠ spiked on the River to send Valkenburg out of the tournament in seventh.

Joni Salo joined Valkenburg on the rail ten minutes later when his K♣ 7♠ failed to improve past Paul Tedeschi´s 8♠ 8♣, and Thierry Morel´s demise was completed when he ran his A♦ 8♦ into the black Aces of Linus Hjulstrom. Hjulstrom never had a sweat on as the board ran 3♦ 7♠ 6♣ / 2♣ / Q♠ and the game went four-handed with Hjulstrom having half the chips in play.

Try to Keep up to Speed!

Things happened very quickly at the beginning of Level 25 (blinds 30,000/60,000 – ante 5,000). After several unanswered shoves from both Linus Hjulstrom and Linas Laurinenas, Laurinenas eventually found a called in Paul Tedeschi and doubled up K♥ J♦ > 10♦ J♠. Quentin Lecomte found runner-runner trip Aces to double up against Linus Hjulstrom A♣ 10♠ > 7♠ 7♦ before Tedeschi found the 6♣ on the flop to double back against Laurinenas A♠ 6♥ > A♦ 8♦.

Then an incredible hand occurred in which Linas Laurinenas shoved for his last 655,000 chips from under the gun and Quentin Lecomte re-shoved for 1.1 million chips from the button. In the Big Blind, Linus Hjulstrom reckoned it was worth a call, and they all turned over their cards in a massive three-way showdown:-

• Laurinenas: 6♠ 6♦
• Lecomte: K♥ J♦
• Hjulstrom: Q♥ 8♠

The flop came down 4♥ 8♣ A♣, putting Hjulstrom into the lead and looking like the leads-up would be Hjulstrom -v- Tedeschi. However, a King on the Turn put Lecomte ahead until the 6♣ spiked on the River to give Laurinenas Trip Sixes and the three-way main pot – Lecomte taking the 1 million chip side pot, yet Hjulstrom still retaining the chip lead.

Tedeschi and Laurinenas Out in Fourth and Third

Even before the dust had settled on that amazing hand, Paul Tedeschi was bust from the tournament in fourth place. In a blind -v- blind battle, Tedeschi got all his chips in the middle with A♥ Q♦, but failed to improve passed Linus Hjulstrom´s 9♦ 9♠ – Hjulstrom subsequently doubling up Quentin Lecomte 7♥ 7♠ > A♣ 10♣ when it was his turn to miss all the outs.

Linas Laurinenas´ doubling up skills eventually evaporated, and he was eliminated from the Unibet Open in third place when shoving his A♠ 5♦ into Linus Hjulstrom´s A♥ 7♥ – the 7♣ on the flop sealing Laurinenas´ fate and enabling Linus Hjulstrom to take a 4.1 million -v- 1.9 million chip advantage into the heads-up against Quentin Lecomte.

Lecomte in Seventh Heaven as Victory Finally Arrives

Linus Hjulstrom started the heads-up like a man on a mission and had reduced Quentin Lecomte to 12 Big Blinds before Lecomte had got to a showdown. Lecomte won his first shove Q♣ 10♦ > A♣ 8♠ when he flopped two pairs, and got on almost level terms when his second shove with 3♥ 3♦ caught trips on the flop to best Hjulstrom´s A♠ 9♦.

The relative chip stacks returned to their opening position when Hjulstrom (A♠ 4♥) flopped two pairs to best Lecomte´s 7♥ 7♠, but he chipped back up and took the chip lead when the 9♦ spiked on the river to luck his 10♦ 9♠ passed Hjulstrom´s A♥ Q♦. Hjulstrom himself enjoyed a little good fortune to double back into the chip lead when his A♣ 6♠ flopped the 6♦ to best Lecomte´s A♥ 7♠ but – for the sixth time in the heads-up – the player at risk won a double-up when Quentin Lecomte´s 5♠ 5♣ held against Linus Hjulstrom´s A♦ 10♠.

Ironically, it was at the seventh time of asking that a winner was found – and the winner had pocket Sevens! Linus Hjulstrom moved all-in from the Small Blind with A♣ K♠ and received the call from Quentin Lecomte (7♥ 7♠). The flop of 9♦ 5♠ 9♣ improved neither hand, but the 7♦ gave Lecomte a set and made the River card (6♥) meaningless – Lecomte had won the Unibet Open in Cannes for €100,000.