Gus Hansen Poker Tournament Updates

Final 4 Hour Five: Jake Cody Advances to Final

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 2 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Upcoming Match:

Jake Cody vs. Yevgeniy Timoshenko

Eliminations:

Gus Hansen

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Down to his Final Reload Chip

Gus Hansen raised to 56,000 preflop and Jake Cody reraised all in. Hansen made the all-in call for 316,000 and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: 8 8
Cody: K 10

Board: 10 4 2 3 Q

Hansen was forced to reach for his final 800,000 and Cody grew his stack up to 4 million and he is close to victory.

Gus Hansen Eliminated in Third Place ($283,966)

Jake Cody limped on the button and Gus Hansen raised to 98,000 preflop. Cody then moved all in and Hansen made the all-in call after some thought. Their cards:

Hansen: A 4
Cody: A 5

Board: K 8 6 5 6

Hansen was eliminated in third place and he will take home $283,966 in prize money. Cody advances to the finals.

Stay tuned for the final heads-up match that will pit Cody against Yevgeniy Timoshenko in a short time from now.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Hour Four: Gus Hansen Doubles but then has to Reload

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 3 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Gus Hansen (1,600,000) vs. Jake Cody (3,200,000)

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Doubles Up

The two players saw a limped and checked flop of Q 5 2 and then Jake Cody checked. Gus Hansen bet 12,000 and Cody made the call. The turn brought the 9 and Cody bet 29,000. Hansen raised to 106,000 and Cody reraised all in for 256,000. Hansen made the all-in call and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: Q 10
Cody: Q 7

River: 8

Hansen doubled up on the hand and was able to hold on to his first 800,000 chip in the process.

Hansen has to Reload

Jake Cody raised the pot preflop and Gus Hansen reraised to 60,000. Cody reraised to 145,000 and Hansen then reraised all in. Cody made the call to cover his opponent and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K Q
Cody: A 10

Board: 8 6 3 6 3

Hansen lost the hand and he was forced to reach for his second 800,000-chip and reload. Cody moved his lead up to 3.2 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Set -- Gus Hansen and Jake Cody Advance

Jun 02, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the elite eight is that the blinds begin at 2,500-5,000.

NOTE: Day 3 Will Continue Until the Conclusion of the Elite 8 Round. The Final 4 and Championship round will take place tomorrow.

Players Remaining: 4 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 1,200,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 400,000 and had 800,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Final Four Set!

Eliminations:

Anthony Guetti
Matt Marafioti

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances to Final 4

Gus Hansen checked a A 10 6 J board and Matt Marafioti then moved all in for 461,000 into a pot that held about 150,000. Hansen made the call to cover him and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: J 6
Marafioti: Q 8

River: 4

Marafioti was eliminated on the hand in fifth place and he will take home $138,852 in prize money. Hansen advanced to the final four, where he will face off with Jake Cody tomorrow.

Jake Cody Advances to Final 4

Jake Cody entered the pot with a raise and Anthony Guetti reraised to 105,000. Cody then moved all in and Guetti made the all-in call. Their cards:

Guetti: 7 7
Cody: 10 10

Board: K J 9 3 6

Cody advanced to the final four with the win and Guetti was eliminated in fifth place, taking home $138,852 in prize money.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody,   Matthew Marafioti,   Anthony Guetti

Round Four: Final 8 Remain

Jun 01, '11

Round Three: Elite Eight Set

Players Remaining: 8 out of 128

Starting Stacks for Round 4: 1.2 million broken up into three chances.

Eliminations:

Jonathan Jaffe
Mikhail Smirnov
Kunimaro Kojo
Oliver Busquet
Jonathan Duthie
Tom Dwan

Hands:

Gus Hansen Eliminates Tom Dwan, Play Ends for the Evening

Although he was short on numerous occasions in the match, Gus Hansen came back to finish off Tom Dwan. The final hand saw Hansen raise to 220,000 from the button, and Dwan shoved. Hansen called with the K 9 and was ahead of the Q 10 of Dwan. Hansen paired his nine on the flop and that was good enough to hold and eliminate Dwan.

Kunimaro Kojo Eliminated

Kunimaro Kojo and David Paredes saw a flop of K 9 2, and Kojo checked. Paredes bet 50,000, Kojo raised to 125,000. Paredes shoved, putting his opponent all in for 388,000, and Kojo called. Paredes tabled the K 7 and was good against the 9 6 of Kojo. The board bricked out for Kojo and he was gone.

Steve Billirakis Eliminated

Matt Marafioti raised to 48,000 on the button, and Billirakis moved all in. Marafioti called with the A J and was racing against the 8 8 of his opponent. The board brought the wheel for Marafioti and Billiarkis was gone.

Mikhail Smirnov Eliminated

With just about 30,000 left Mikhail Smirnov got all in preflop against Nikolay Evdakov with the Q 8, and was ahead of the J 9 of his opponent. However, the board brought four clubs, giving Evdakov a flush and the elimination.

Jake Cody Moves On

Jonathan Jaffe had all his money in the middle and turned over K Q and Jake Cody exposed pocket jacks. The board ran out 7 6 3 5 6, and Cody was the first player to advance to the round of 8.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   John Duthie,   Steve Billirakis,   Eric Froehlich,   Tom Dwan,   Richard Lyndaker,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Three: Hour One – Slow Start to Round of 32 Matches with More Chips in Play

Jun 01, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 3 is that the blinds begin at 600-1,200.

Players Remaining: 32 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 300,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 100,000 and had 200,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

David Benyamine vs. Anthony Guetti
Chris Moorman vs. Richard Lyndaker
Dani Stern vs. Jake Cody
Isaac Haxton vs. Jonathan Jaffe

Ashton Griffin vs. Tom Dwan
Daniel Alaei vs. Gus Hansen
Steve Blilirakis vs. Trevor Pope
Matt Marafioti vs. Maxim Lykov

Eric Froehlich vs. Steve Zolotow
John Duthie vs. Carlos Mortenson
Jason Smirnov vs. Darren Elias
Erik Cajelais vs. Nikolay Evdakov

Yevgeniy Timshenko vs. Amritraj Singh
Oliver Busquet vs. Andrew Robl
Kunimaro Kojo vs. Nick Schulman
David Paredes vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Hansen vs. Alaei

There was 10,000 in the pot and a board of 6 5 3 A sat on the table when Daniel Alaei bet 7,500 from the small blind. Hansen went into the tank for a minute and eventually tossed in the chips for the call. The 6 fell on the river and Alaei checked. Hansen bet 22,200 and Alaei made the call after some thought. Alaei revealed K 3 and Hansen mucked the 10 face up. Alaei took the lead in their match after the hand.

Juanda Down to his Final 100,000

John Juanda moved all in on a 8 4 3 A board with 10 8 in the hole but unfortunately for him David Paredes was waiting to make the call with J 8. His dominant hand faded the river and he won the pot, forcing Juanda to reach for his final 100,000 to reload.

Lykov vs. Marafioti Match Heating Up

The most interesting match at the start of day 2 so far has been between Matt Marafioti and Maxim Lykov. The two have been jousting early and often and that hasn’t gone so well for Lykov, who is currently out of rebuy chips.

In perhaps the largest confrontation between the two so far, Lykov bet 3,500 from the button preflop and Marafioti raised to 10,500. Lykov then reraised all in and Marafioti made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: 4 4
Marafioti: K K

Board: 7 5 4 K 9

Marafioti won the seesaw hand thanks to the king on the turn and Lykov was forced to reload after the hand.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Gus Hansen,   Daniel Alaei,   David Paredes,   Maxim Lykov,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Two: Hour Three -- Gus Hansen Advances and The Magician Vanishes

Jun 01, '11

Note: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 2 is that the blinds begin at 300-600.

Players Remaining: 34 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 150,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 50,000 and had 100,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Eric Froehlich vs. Scott Clements
Kenny Tran vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

Alexander Kravchenko
Lex Veldhuis
Justin Smith
Eugene Katchalov
Antonio Esfandiari
Gregory Brooks

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances

Gregory Brooks and Gus Hansen saw an unraised flop of K K 2 and then Hansen bet 3,000. Brooks raised to 8,000 and Hansen made the call.

The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The 8 fell on the river and Hansen bet 16,100. Brooks raised to 53,300 and then Hansen reraised all in. Brooks made the all-in call for his final 28,000 and then they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K 8
Brooks: 5 5

Hansen advanced to the round of 32 after the hand and Brooks was eliminated.

Antonio Esfandiari Eliminated by Maxim Lykov

Maxim Lykov limped on the button for 3,000 and Antonio Esfandiari raised to 18,000. Lykov reraised all in and Esfandiari made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: A Q
Esfandiari: J J

Board: K 6 2 3 Q

Lykov won the hand to double up and he was forced to shove with a short stack a short time later with J-8. He was far behind the A-K of Lykov and he was eliminated on the hand.

Alexander Kravchenko Eliminated

Alexander Kravchenko got the last of his chips all in preflop from the button and Armitraj Singh made the call. Their cards:

Kravchenko: A 10
Singh: A J

Board: K 4 3 8 7

Kravchenko was eliminated on the hand and an excited Singh advanced to tomorrow.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Alexander Kravchenko,   Maxim Lykov

Final 4 Hour Five: Jake Cody Advances to Final

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 2 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Upcoming Match:

Jake Cody vs. Yevgeniy Timoshenko

Eliminations:

Gus Hansen

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Down to his Final Reload Chip

Gus Hansen raised to 56,000 preflop and Jake Cody reraised all in. Hansen made the all-in call for 316,000 and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: 8 8
Cody: K 10

Board: 10 4 2 3 Q

Hansen was forced to reach for his final 800,000 and Cody grew his stack up to 4 million and he is close to victory.

Gus Hansen Eliminated in Third Place ($283,966)

Jake Cody limped on the button and Gus Hansen raised to 98,000 preflop. Cody then moved all in and Hansen made the all-in call after some thought. Their cards:

Hansen: A 4
Cody: A 5

Board: K 8 6 5 6

Hansen was eliminated in third place and he will take home $283,966 in prize money. Cody advances to the finals.

Stay tuned for the final heads-up match that will pit Cody against Yevgeniy Timoshenko in a short time from now.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Hour Four: Gus Hansen Doubles but then has to Reload

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 3 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Gus Hansen (1,600,000) vs. Jake Cody (3,200,000)

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Doubles Up

The two players saw a limped and checked flop of Q 5 2 and then Jake Cody checked. Gus Hansen bet 12,000 and Cody made the call. The turn brought the 9 and Cody bet 29,000. Hansen raised to 106,000 and Cody reraised all in for 256,000. Hansen made the all-in call and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: Q 10
Cody: Q 7

River: 8

Hansen doubled up on the hand and was able to hold on to his first 800,000 chip in the process.

Hansen has to Reload

Jake Cody raised the pot preflop and Gus Hansen reraised to 60,000. Cody reraised to 145,000 and Hansen then reraised all in. Cody made the call to cover his opponent and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K Q
Cody: A 10

Board: 8 6 3 6 3

Hansen lost the hand and he was forced to reach for his second 800,000-chip and reload. Cody moved his lead up to 3.2 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Set -- Gus Hansen and Jake Cody Advance

Jun 02, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the elite eight is that the blinds begin at 2,500-5,000.

NOTE: Day 3 Will Continue Until the Conclusion of the Elite 8 Round. The Final 4 and Championship round will take place tomorrow.

Players Remaining: 4 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 1,200,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 400,000 and had 800,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Final Four Set!

Eliminations:

Anthony Guetti
Matt Marafioti

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances to Final 4

Gus Hansen checked a A 10 6 J board and Matt Marafioti then moved all in for 461,000 into a pot that held about 150,000. Hansen made the call to cover him and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: J 6
Marafioti: Q 8

River: 4

Marafioti was eliminated on the hand in fifth place and he will take home $138,852 in prize money. Hansen advanced to the final four, where he will face off with Jake Cody tomorrow.

Jake Cody Advances to Final 4

Jake Cody entered the pot with a raise and Anthony Guetti reraised to 105,000. Cody then moved all in and Guetti made the all-in call. Their cards:

Guetti: 7 7
Cody: 10 10

Board: K J 9 3 6

Cody advanced to the final four with the win and Guetti was eliminated in fifth place, taking home $138,852 in prize money.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody,   Matthew Marafioti,   Anthony Guetti

Round Four: Final 8 Remain

Jun 01, '11

Round Three: Elite Eight Set

Players Remaining: 8 out of 128

Starting Stacks for Round 4: 1.2 million broken up into three chances.

Eliminations:

Jonathan Jaffe
Mikhail Smirnov
Kunimaro Kojo
Oliver Busquet
Jonathan Duthie
Tom Dwan

Hands:

Gus Hansen Eliminates Tom Dwan, Play Ends for the Evening

Although he was short on numerous occasions in the match, Gus Hansen came back to finish off Tom Dwan. The final hand saw Hansen raise to 220,000 from the button, and Dwan shoved. Hansen called with the K 9 and was ahead of the Q 10 of Dwan. Hansen paired his nine on the flop and that was good enough to hold and eliminate Dwan.

Kunimaro Kojo Eliminated

Kunimaro Kojo and David Paredes saw a flop of K 9 2, and Kojo checked. Paredes bet 50,000, Kojo raised to 125,000. Paredes shoved, putting his opponent all in for 388,000, and Kojo called. Paredes tabled the K 7 and was good against the 9 6 of Kojo. The board bricked out for Kojo and he was gone.

Steve Billirakis Eliminated

Matt Marafioti raised to 48,000 on the button, and Billirakis moved all in. Marafioti called with the A J and was racing against the 8 8 of his opponent. The board brought the wheel for Marafioti and Billiarkis was gone.

Mikhail Smirnov Eliminated

With just about 30,000 left Mikhail Smirnov got all in preflop against Nikolay Evdakov with the Q 8, and was ahead of the J 9 of his opponent. However, the board brought four clubs, giving Evdakov a flush and the elimination.

Jake Cody Moves On

Jonathan Jaffe had all his money in the middle and turned over K Q and Jake Cody exposed pocket jacks. The board ran out 7 6 3 5 6, and Cody was the first player to advance to the round of 8.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   John Duthie,   Steve Billirakis,   Eric Froehlich,   Tom Dwan,   Richard Lyndaker,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Three: Hour One – Slow Start to Round of 32 Matches with More Chips in Play

Jun 01, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 3 is that the blinds begin at 600-1,200.

Players Remaining: 32 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 300,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 100,000 and had 200,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

David Benyamine vs. Anthony Guetti
Chris Moorman vs. Richard Lyndaker
Dani Stern vs. Jake Cody
Isaac Haxton vs. Jonathan Jaffe

Ashton Griffin vs. Tom Dwan
Daniel Alaei vs. Gus Hansen
Steve Blilirakis vs. Trevor Pope
Matt Marafioti vs. Maxim Lykov

Eric Froehlich vs. Steve Zolotow
John Duthie vs. Carlos Mortenson
Jason Smirnov vs. Darren Elias
Erik Cajelais vs. Nikolay Evdakov

Yevgeniy Timshenko vs. Amritraj Singh
Oliver Busquet vs. Andrew Robl
Kunimaro Kojo vs. Nick Schulman
David Paredes vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Hansen vs. Alaei

There was 10,000 in the pot and a board of 6 5 3 A sat on the table when Daniel Alaei bet 7,500 from the small blind. Hansen went into the tank for a minute and eventually tossed in the chips for the call. The 6 fell on the river and Alaei checked. Hansen bet 22,200 and Alaei made the call after some thought. Alaei revealed K 3 and Hansen mucked the 10 face up. Alaei took the lead in their match after the hand.

Juanda Down to his Final 100,000

John Juanda moved all in on a 8 4 3 A board with 10 8 in the hole but unfortunately for him David Paredes was waiting to make the call with J 8. His dominant hand faded the river and he won the pot, forcing Juanda to reach for his final 100,000 to reload.

Lykov vs. Marafioti Match Heating Up

The most interesting match at the start of day 2 so far has been between Matt Marafioti and Maxim Lykov. The two have been jousting early and often and that hasn’t gone so well for Lykov, who is currently out of rebuy chips.

In perhaps the largest confrontation between the two so far, Lykov bet 3,500 from the button preflop and Marafioti raised to 10,500. Lykov then reraised all in and Marafioti made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: 4 4
Marafioti: K K

Board: 7 5 4 K 9

Marafioti won the seesaw hand thanks to the king on the turn and Lykov was forced to reload after the hand.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Gus Hansen,   Daniel Alaei,   David Paredes,   Maxim Lykov,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Two: Hour Three -- Gus Hansen Advances and The Magician Vanishes

Jun 01, '11

Note: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 2 is that the blinds begin at 300-600.

Players Remaining: 34 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 150,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 50,000 and had 100,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Eric Froehlich vs. Scott Clements
Kenny Tran vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

Alexander Kravchenko
Lex Veldhuis
Justin Smith
Eugene Katchalov
Antonio Esfandiari
Gregory Brooks

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances

Gregory Brooks and Gus Hansen saw an unraised flop of K K 2 and then Hansen bet 3,000. Brooks raised to 8,000 and Hansen made the call.

The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The 8 fell on the river and Hansen bet 16,100. Brooks raised to 53,300 and then Hansen reraised all in. Brooks made the all-in call for his final 28,000 and then they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K 8
Brooks: 5 5

Hansen advanced to the round of 32 after the hand and Brooks was eliminated.

Antonio Esfandiari Eliminated by Maxim Lykov

Maxim Lykov limped on the button for 3,000 and Antonio Esfandiari raised to 18,000. Lykov reraised all in and Esfandiari made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: A Q
Esfandiari: J J

Board: K 6 2 3 Q

Lykov won the hand to double up and he was forced to shove with a short stack a short time later with J-8. He was far behind the A-K of Lykov and he was eliminated on the hand.

Alexander Kravchenko Eliminated

Alexander Kravchenko got the last of his chips all in preflop from the button and Armitraj Singh made the call. Their cards:

Kravchenko: A 10
Singh: A J

Board: K 4 3 8 7

Kravchenko was eliminated on the hand and an excited Singh advanced to tomorrow.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Alexander Kravchenko,   Maxim Lykov

Final 4 Hour Five: Jake Cody Advances to Final

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 2 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Upcoming Match:

Jake Cody vs. Yevgeniy Timoshenko

Eliminations:

Gus Hansen

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Down to his Final Reload Chip

Gus Hansen raised to 56,000 preflop and Jake Cody reraised all in. Hansen made the all-in call for 316,000 and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: 8 8
Cody: K 10

Board: 10 4 2 3 Q

Hansen was forced to reach for his final 800,000 and Cody grew his stack up to 4 million and he is close to victory.

Gus Hansen Eliminated in Third Place ($283,966)

Jake Cody limped on the button and Gus Hansen raised to 98,000 preflop. Cody then moved all in and Hansen made the all-in call after some thought. Their cards:

Hansen: A 4
Cody: A 5

Board: K 8 6 5 6

Hansen was eliminated in third place and he will take home $283,966 in prize money. Cody advances to the finals.

Stay tuned for the final heads-up match that will pit Cody against Yevgeniy Timoshenko in a short time from now.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Hour Four: Gus Hansen Doubles but then has to Reload

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 3 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Gus Hansen (1,600,000) vs. Jake Cody (3,200,000)

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Doubles Up

The two players saw a limped and checked flop of Q 5 2 and then Jake Cody checked. Gus Hansen bet 12,000 and Cody made the call. The turn brought the 9 and Cody bet 29,000. Hansen raised to 106,000 and Cody reraised all in for 256,000. Hansen made the all-in call and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: Q 10
Cody: Q 7

River: 8

Hansen doubled up on the hand and was able to hold on to his first 800,000 chip in the process.

Hansen has to Reload

Jake Cody raised the pot preflop and Gus Hansen reraised to 60,000. Cody reraised to 145,000 and Hansen then reraised all in. Cody made the call to cover his opponent and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K Q
Cody: A 10

Board: 8 6 3 6 3

Hansen lost the hand and he was forced to reach for his second 800,000-chip and reload. Cody moved his lead up to 3.2 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Set -- Gus Hansen and Jake Cody Advance

Jun 02, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the elite eight is that the blinds begin at 2,500-5,000.

NOTE: Day 3 Will Continue Until the Conclusion of the Elite 8 Round. The Final 4 and Championship round will take place tomorrow.

Players Remaining: 4 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 1,200,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 400,000 and had 800,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Final Four Set!

Eliminations:

Anthony Guetti
Matt Marafioti

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances to Final 4

Gus Hansen checked a A 10 6 J board and Matt Marafioti then moved all in for 461,000 into a pot that held about 150,000. Hansen made the call to cover him and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: J 6
Marafioti: Q 8

River: 4

Marafioti was eliminated on the hand in fifth place and he will take home $138,852 in prize money. Hansen advanced to the final four, where he will face off with Jake Cody tomorrow.

Jake Cody Advances to Final 4

Jake Cody entered the pot with a raise and Anthony Guetti reraised to 105,000. Cody then moved all in and Guetti made the all-in call. Their cards:

Guetti: 7 7
Cody: 10 10

Board: K J 9 3 6

Cody advanced to the final four with the win and Guetti was eliminated in fifth place, taking home $138,852 in prize money.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody,   Matthew Marafioti,   Anthony Guetti

Round Four: Final 8 Remain

Jun 01, '11

Round Three: Elite Eight Set

Players Remaining: 8 out of 128

Starting Stacks for Round 4: 1.2 million broken up into three chances.

Eliminations:

Jonathan Jaffe
Mikhail Smirnov
Kunimaro Kojo
Oliver Busquet
Jonathan Duthie
Tom Dwan

Hands:

Gus Hansen Eliminates Tom Dwan, Play Ends for the Evening

Although he was short on numerous occasions in the match, Gus Hansen came back to finish off Tom Dwan. The final hand saw Hansen raise to 220,000 from the button, and Dwan shoved. Hansen called with the K 9 and was ahead of the Q 10 of Dwan. Hansen paired his nine on the flop and that was good enough to hold and eliminate Dwan.

Kunimaro Kojo Eliminated

Kunimaro Kojo and David Paredes saw a flop of K 9 2, and Kojo checked. Paredes bet 50,000, Kojo raised to 125,000. Paredes shoved, putting his opponent all in for 388,000, and Kojo called. Paredes tabled the K 7 and was good against the 9 6 of Kojo. The board bricked out for Kojo and he was gone.

Steve Billirakis Eliminated

Matt Marafioti raised to 48,000 on the button, and Billirakis moved all in. Marafioti called with the A J and was racing against the 8 8 of his opponent. The board brought the wheel for Marafioti and Billiarkis was gone.

Mikhail Smirnov Eliminated

With just about 30,000 left Mikhail Smirnov got all in preflop against Nikolay Evdakov with the Q 8, and was ahead of the J 9 of his opponent. However, the board brought four clubs, giving Evdakov a flush and the elimination.

Jake Cody Moves On

Jonathan Jaffe had all his money in the middle and turned over K Q and Jake Cody exposed pocket jacks. The board ran out 7 6 3 5 6, and Cody was the first player to advance to the round of 8.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   John Duthie,   Steve Billirakis,   Eric Froehlich,   Tom Dwan,   Richard Lyndaker,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Three: Hour One – Slow Start to Round of 32 Matches with More Chips in Play

Jun 01, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 3 is that the blinds begin at 600-1,200.

Players Remaining: 32 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 300,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 100,000 and had 200,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

David Benyamine vs. Anthony Guetti
Chris Moorman vs. Richard Lyndaker
Dani Stern vs. Jake Cody
Isaac Haxton vs. Jonathan Jaffe

Ashton Griffin vs. Tom Dwan
Daniel Alaei vs. Gus Hansen
Steve Blilirakis vs. Trevor Pope
Matt Marafioti vs. Maxim Lykov

Eric Froehlich vs. Steve Zolotow
John Duthie vs. Carlos Mortenson
Jason Smirnov vs. Darren Elias
Erik Cajelais vs. Nikolay Evdakov

Yevgeniy Timshenko vs. Amritraj Singh
Oliver Busquet vs. Andrew Robl
Kunimaro Kojo vs. Nick Schulman
David Paredes vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Hansen vs. Alaei

There was 10,000 in the pot and a board of 6 5 3 A sat on the table when Daniel Alaei bet 7,500 from the small blind. Hansen went into the tank for a minute and eventually tossed in the chips for the call. The 6 fell on the river and Alaei checked. Hansen bet 22,200 and Alaei made the call after some thought. Alaei revealed K 3 and Hansen mucked the 10 face up. Alaei took the lead in their match after the hand.

Juanda Down to his Final 100,000

John Juanda moved all in on a 8 4 3 A board with 10 8 in the hole but unfortunately for him David Paredes was waiting to make the call with J 8. His dominant hand faded the river and he won the pot, forcing Juanda to reach for his final 100,000 to reload.

Lykov vs. Marafioti Match Heating Up

The most interesting match at the start of day 2 so far has been between Matt Marafioti and Maxim Lykov. The two have been jousting early and often and that hasn’t gone so well for Lykov, who is currently out of rebuy chips.

In perhaps the largest confrontation between the two so far, Lykov bet 3,500 from the button preflop and Marafioti raised to 10,500. Lykov then reraised all in and Marafioti made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: 4 4
Marafioti: K K

Board: 7 5 4 K 9

Marafioti won the seesaw hand thanks to the king on the turn and Lykov was forced to reload after the hand.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Gus Hansen,   Daniel Alaei,   David Paredes,   Maxim Lykov,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Two: Hour Three -- Gus Hansen Advances and The Magician Vanishes

Jun 01, '11

Note: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 2 is that the blinds begin at 300-600.

Players Remaining: 34 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 150,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 50,000 and had 100,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Eric Froehlich vs. Scott Clements
Kenny Tran vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

Alexander Kravchenko
Lex Veldhuis
Justin Smith
Eugene Katchalov
Antonio Esfandiari
Gregory Brooks

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances

Gregory Brooks and Gus Hansen saw an unraised flop of K K 2 and then Hansen bet 3,000. Brooks raised to 8,000 and Hansen made the call.

The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The 8 fell on the river and Hansen bet 16,100. Brooks raised to 53,300 and then Hansen reraised all in. Brooks made the all-in call for his final 28,000 and then they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K 8
Brooks: 5 5

Hansen advanced to the round of 32 after the hand and Brooks was eliminated.

Antonio Esfandiari Eliminated by Maxim Lykov

Maxim Lykov limped on the button for 3,000 and Antonio Esfandiari raised to 18,000. Lykov reraised all in and Esfandiari made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: A Q
Esfandiari: J J

Board: K 6 2 3 Q

Lykov won the hand to double up and he was forced to shove with a short stack a short time later with J-8. He was far behind the A-K of Lykov and he was eliminated on the hand.

Alexander Kravchenko Eliminated

Alexander Kravchenko got the last of his chips all in preflop from the button and Armitraj Singh made the call. Their cards:

Kravchenko: A 10
Singh: A J

Board: K 4 3 8 7

Kravchenko was eliminated on the hand and an excited Singh advanced to tomorrow.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Alexander Kravchenko,   Maxim Lykov

Final 4 Hour Five: Jake Cody Advances to Final

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 2 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Upcoming Match:

Jake Cody vs. Yevgeniy Timoshenko

Eliminations:

Gus Hansen

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Down to his Final Reload Chip

Gus Hansen raised to 56,000 preflop and Jake Cody reraised all in. Hansen made the all-in call for 316,000 and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: 8 8
Cody: K 10

Board: 10 4 2 3 Q

Hansen was forced to reach for his final 800,000 and Cody grew his stack up to 4 million and he is close to victory.

Gus Hansen Eliminated in Third Place ($283,966)

Jake Cody limped on the button and Gus Hansen raised to 98,000 preflop. Cody then moved all in and Hansen made the all-in call after some thought. Their cards:

Hansen: A 4
Cody: A 5

Board: K 8 6 5 6

Hansen was eliminated in third place and he will take home $283,966 in prize money. Cody advances to the finals.

Stay tuned for the final heads-up match that will pit Cody against Yevgeniy Timoshenko in a short time from now.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Hour Four: Gus Hansen Doubles but then has to Reload

Jun 03, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the final four is that the blinds begin at 5,000-10,000.

NOTE: The final day will continue until we have a champion. The final four matches will be staggered and the championship round is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Players Remaining: 3 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 2,400,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 800,000 and had 1,600,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Gus Hansen (1,600,000) vs. Jake Cody (3,200,000)

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Doubles Up

The two players saw a limped and checked flop of Q 5 2 and then Jake Cody checked. Gus Hansen bet 12,000 and Cody made the call. The turn brought the 9 and Cody bet 29,000. Hansen raised to 106,000 and Cody reraised all in for 256,000. Hansen made the all-in call and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: Q 10
Cody: Q 7

River: 8

Hansen doubled up on the hand and was able to hold on to his first 800,000 chip in the process.

Hansen has to Reload

Jake Cody raised the pot preflop and Gus Hansen reraised to 60,000. Cody reraised to 145,000 and Hansen then reraised all in. Cody made the call to cover his opponent and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K Q
Cody: A 10

Board: 8 6 3 6 3

Hansen lost the hand and he was forced to reach for his second 800,000-chip and reload. Cody moved his lead up to 3.2 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody

Final 4 Set -- Gus Hansen and Jake Cody Advance

Jun 02, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in the elite eight is that the blinds begin at 2,500-5,000.

NOTE: Day 3 Will Continue Until the Conclusion of the Elite 8 Round. The Final 4 and Championship round will take place tomorrow.

Players Remaining: 4 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 1,200,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 400,000 and had 800,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Final Four Set!

Eliminations:

Anthony Guetti
Matt Marafioti

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances to Final 4

Gus Hansen checked a A 10 6 J board and Matt Marafioti then moved all in for 461,000 into a pot that held about 150,000. Hansen made the call to cover him and they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: J 6
Marafioti: Q 8

River: 4

Marafioti was eliminated on the hand in fifth place and he will take home $138,852 in prize money. Hansen advanced to the final four, where he will face off with Jake Cody tomorrow.

Jake Cody Advances to Final 4

Jake Cody entered the pot with a raise and Anthony Guetti reraised to 105,000. Cody then moved all in and Guetti made the all-in call. Their cards:

Guetti: 7 7
Cody: 10 10

Board: K J 9 3 6

Cody advanced to the final four with the win and Guetti was eliminated in fifth place, taking home $138,852 in prize money.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Jake Cody,   Matthew Marafioti,   Anthony Guetti

Round Four: Final 8 Remain

Jun 01, '11

Round Three: Elite Eight Set

Players Remaining: 8 out of 128

Starting Stacks for Round 4: 1.2 million broken up into three chances.

Eliminations:

Jonathan Jaffe
Mikhail Smirnov
Kunimaro Kojo
Oliver Busquet
Jonathan Duthie
Tom Dwan

Hands:

Gus Hansen Eliminates Tom Dwan, Play Ends for the Evening

Although he was short on numerous occasions in the match, Gus Hansen came back to finish off Tom Dwan. The final hand saw Hansen raise to 220,000 from the button, and Dwan shoved. Hansen called with the K 9 and was ahead of the Q 10 of Dwan. Hansen paired his nine on the flop and that was good enough to hold and eliminate Dwan.

Kunimaro Kojo Eliminated

Kunimaro Kojo and David Paredes saw a flop of K 9 2, and Kojo checked. Paredes bet 50,000, Kojo raised to 125,000. Paredes shoved, putting his opponent all in for 388,000, and Kojo called. Paredes tabled the K 7 and was good against the 9 6 of Kojo. The board bricked out for Kojo and he was gone.

Steve Billirakis Eliminated

Matt Marafioti raised to 48,000 on the button, and Billirakis moved all in. Marafioti called with the A J and was racing against the 8 8 of his opponent. The board brought the wheel for Marafioti and Billiarkis was gone.

Mikhail Smirnov Eliminated

With just about 30,000 left Mikhail Smirnov got all in preflop against Nikolay Evdakov with the Q 8, and was ahead of the J 9 of his opponent. However, the board brought four clubs, giving Evdakov a flush and the elimination.

Jake Cody Moves On

Jonathan Jaffe had all his money in the middle and turned over K Q and Jake Cody exposed pocket jacks. The board ran out 7 6 3 5 6, and Cody was the first player to advance to the round of 8.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   John Duthie,   Steve Billirakis,   Eric Froehlich,   Tom Dwan,   Richard Lyndaker,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Three: Hour One – Slow Start to Round of 32 Matches with More Chips in Play

Jun 01, '11

NOTE: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 3 is that the blinds begin at 600-1,200.

Players Remaining: 32 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 300,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 100,000 and had 200,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

David Benyamine vs. Anthony Guetti
Chris Moorman vs. Richard Lyndaker
Dani Stern vs. Jake Cody
Isaac Haxton vs. Jonathan Jaffe

Ashton Griffin vs. Tom Dwan
Daniel Alaei vs. Gus Hansen
Steve Blilirakis vs. Trevor Pope
Matt Marafioti vs. Maxim Lykov

Eric Froehlich vs. Steve Zolotow
John Duthie vs. Carlos Mortenson
Jason Smirnov vs. Darren Elias
Erik Cajelais vs. Nikolay Evdakov

Yevgeniy Timshenko vs. Amritraj Singh
Oliver Busquet vs. Andrew Robl
Kunimaro Kojo vs. Nick Schulman
David Paredes vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

NONE

Key Hands:

Hansen vs. Alaei

There was 10,000 in the pot and a board of 6 5 3 A sat on the table when Daniel Alaei bet 7,500 from the small blind. Hansen went into the tank for a minute and eventually tossed in the chips for the call. The 6 fell on the river and Alaei checked. Hansen bet 22,200 and Alaei made the call after some thought. Alaei revealed K 3 and Hansen mucked the 10 face up. Alaei took the lead in their match after the hand.

Juanda Down to his Final 100,000

John Juanda moved all in on a 8 4 3 A board with 10 8 in the hole but unfortunately for him David Paredes was waiting to make the call with J 8. His dominant hand faded the river and he won the pot, forcing Juanda to reach for his final 100,000 to reload.

Lykov vs. Marafioti Match Heating Up

The most interesting match at the start of day 2 so far has been between Matt Marafioti and Maxim Lykov. The two have been jousting early and often and that hasn’t gone so well for Lykov, who is currently out of rebuy chips.

In perhaps the largest confrontation between the two so far, Lykov bet 3,500 from the button preflop and Marafioti raised to 10,500. Lykov then reraised all in and Marafioti made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: 4 4
Marafioti: K K

Board: 7 5 4 K 9

Marafioti won the seesaw hand thanks to the king on the turn and Lykov was forced to reload after the hand.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Gus Hansen,   Daniel Alaei,   David Paredes,   Maxim Lykov,   Matthew Marafioti

Round Two: Hour Three -- Gus Hansen Advances and The Magician Vanishes

Jun 01, '11

Note: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long. The only difference in round 2 is that the blinds begin at 300-600.

Players Remaining: 34 out of 128

Starting Stacks: 150,000 broken up into three chances — meaning that the players started with 50,000 and had 100,000 additional on the side that they could add on at anytime before a hand. If their additional chips were not in play when a hand begins, those chips couldn’t be used to wager with.

Ongoing Matches:

Eric Froehlich vs. Scott Clements
Kenny Tran vs. John Juanda

Eliminations:

Alexander Kravchenko
Lex Veldhuis
Justin Smith
Eugene Katchalov
Antonio Esfandiari
Gregory Brooks

Key Hands:

Gus Hansen Advances

Gregory Brooks and Gus Hansen saw an unraised flop of K K 2 and then Hansen bet 3,000. Brooks raised to 8,000 and Hansen made the call.

The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The 8 fell on the river and Hansen bet 16,100. Brooks raised to 53,300 and then Hansen reraised all in. Brooks made the all-in call for his final 28,000 and then they flipped over their cards:

Hansen: K 8
Brooks: 5 5

Hansen advanced to the round of 32 after the hand and Brooks was eliminated.

Antonio Esfandiari Eliminated by Maxim Lykov

Maxim Lykov limped on the button for 3,000 and Antonio Esfandiari raised to 18,000. Lykov reraised all in and Esfandiari made the call to cover him. Their cards:

Lykov: A Q
Esfandiari: J J

Board: K 6 2 3 Q

Lykov won the hand to double up and he was forced to shove with a short stack a short time later with J-8. He was far behind the A-K of Lykov and he was eliminated on the hand.

Alexander Kravchenko Eliminated

Alexander Kravchenko got the last of his chips all in preflop from the button and Armitraj Singh made the call. Their cards:

Kravchenko: A 10
Singh: A J

Board: K 4 3 8 7

Kravchenko was eliminated on the hand and an excited Singh advanced to tomorrow.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Alexander Kravchenko,   Maxim Lykov

Gavin Smith Defeats Gus Hansen

Mar 04, '11

Gus Hansen was short stack and forced to move in with middle pair, but Gavin Smith made the call with top pair, putting Hansen’s tournament life in jeopardy.

The turn and river were blanks and Hansen was eliminated. Smith will now play James Bord in the next round.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Gavin Smith

Bustout Bonanza

Jan 24, '11

Many big names have fallen after the dinner break and they include some of the most popular players in today’s field. Joe Hachem, Gus Hansen, Carlos Mortensen, and Derek Cheung have all recently busted.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Joe Hachem

Gus Hanses Gains Some Ammo -- Brendon Rubie Eliminated

Jan 21, '11

Shortly after he was moved up to Studio 3 from the poker room, former Aussie Millions champion Gus Hansen eliminated an opponent at his new table. That opponent was Brendon Rubie. He raised to 4,000 preflop and Hansen reraised to 11,000. Rubie reraised to 34,000 and Hansen moved all in. Rubie made the all-in call and they flipped over their cards:

Rubie: 9 9
Hansen: A Q

Board: Q 6 4 5 8

Rubie was eliminated on the hand while Hansen grew his stack to 150,000.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   Brendon Rubie

Level 4 Update: Into the Dinner Break

Sep 24, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. Play will resume at 8:40 p.m. local time (12:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 162 out of 210 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Sam Trickett — 97,000
2. Phil Laak — 95,000
3. JP Kelly — 95,000
4. Barry Shulman — 85,000
5. Ludovic Lacay — 82,000
6. Marc Inizan — 80,000
7. Andrew Pantling — 80,000
8. James Mitchell — 75,000
9. Matt Stout — 70,000
10. Markus Golser — 68,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 85,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count: 36,800

Notable Eliminations:

Brandon Adams
David Steicke
Men Nguyen
Chino Rheem
Max Pescatori
Bernard Lee
James Akenhead
William Thorson

Big Hands:

Melanie’s More The “Weisner”

With around 14,000 in the pot and a board of 10-9-2-6-6 showing havoc broke loose between Melanie Weisner and David Benyamine. Benyamine had bet 7,500 on the river and Weisner raised to 16,500. She thought Benyamine had called and so flipped over 10-8, but in fact he had shoved and now turning red in frustration she said, “You put your stack in and didn’t say anything!” “I did say something,” said Benyamine. “I said I’m all in.” “I didn’t hear him say that,” Weisner appealed to the tournament director.

The TD said the hand was still alive and she could call his all in or fold. She called and Benyamine quickly showed 6-6. “Are you serious?” asked Weisner. Benyamine has 45,000 while Weizner slips to 15,000.

Shortly after this however, a set increased her stack to 27,000.

Confusion then broke out elsewhere between Noel Furlong and Dan Shak ⎯ another mix up about going all in or just calling. Shak won the fight and took a nice big pot down.

It could just be hunger frustration before dinner, but a break is well needed at this stage of the evening.

Shulman Knocks One Out

The player under the gun +1 bets 750 and another in middle position calls. Dan Fleyshman calls from the button, as does the small blind, and Barry Shulman on the big blind. The flop comes Q 5 4 and it is checked to the player in mid-position who bets 2,200. Fleyshman steps out of the way, as does the small blind, but Shulman calls, and so does under the gun +1. The turn is the 9 and it is again checked to the mid-position player. He bets 5,500 and Shulman makes it 16,000. Under the gun +1 folds and mid-position moves all in for around 14,000. Shulman snap-calls and shows 5-4, while his opponent flips over A Q. The river is a king and the player’s stack increases Shulman’s chip count to 85,000. Gus Hansen who is happily playing Angry Birds on his iPad beside Shulman, turns to his neighbour and says, “You’re a force to be reckoned with.”

One For Gus

Andy Frankenberger bets 625 from late position and the player to his left, Dan Fleyshman, calls. Shulman calls from the button and Gus Hansen on the small blind makes it 2,275. Frankenberger folds and Fleyshman calls. Shulman asks Hansen how much he has left. It’s about 19,000 and so Shulman folds. The flop comes K 7 6 and it’s between Hansen and Fleyshman. Hansen makes his move all in and Fleyshman insta-folds. Fleyshman has 14,000 while Hansen has just over 24,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   David Benyamine,   Barry Shulman,   Dan Fleyshman

Level 6 Update: Day 1A Ends

Sep 23, '10

NOTE: Day 1A has come to an end. Stay tuned for official chip counts and a recap of the day’s events. Day 1B will begin at noon local time (4 a.m. PST). Check back in at that time for more live coverage. Card Player’s Barry Shulman will begin the defense of his 2009 WSOP Europe main event title tomorrow.

Blinds: 250-500 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 75 out of 137

Chip Counts:

1. Nicolas Levi — 153,850
2. Adam Fletcher — 136,025
3. Arnaud Mattern — 135,000
4. Matt Waxman — 120,000
5. Guillaume Gignac — 109,650
6. Leo Margets — 102,000
7. Simon Persson — 91,600
8. Almira Skripchenko — 90,000
9. Bruno Fitoussi — 90,000
10. Pascal LeFrancois – 88,000

Average Chip Count:

54,800

Notable Eliminations:

John Cernuto
Allen Kessler
Joe Serock
Brandon Cantu
Jonathan Duhamel
Dario Alioto

Big Hands:

Cunningham Doubles Up

Allen Cunningham raised to 1,500 preflop and three players made the call. The flop fell A K 6 and Eugene Katchalov checked. Cunningham bet 2,500 and the player right behind him made the call. The fourth player in the pot and Katchalov mucked, leaving two players in contention.

The turn fell 3 and Cunningham bet 7,000. His opponent went into the tank and he eventually raised all in for 27,000. Cunningham had 28,000 behind at that point and he decided to make the call for what was effectively his tournament life. Their cards:

Cunningham: A Q
Opponent: J J

River: 7

Cunningham won the hand to eliminate his opponent and almost double up. He held 6,700 after the hand.

Matt Waxman and the Four Kings

Matt Waxman bet 9,500 and Filippo Candio made the call. The flop fell K K 7 and both players checked. The 3 fell on the turn and both players checked again. The K fell on the river, Candio checked, and Waxman opened the action for 22,900. Candio made the call but he mucked his cards when Waxman turned over A K for quads.

Blanco Blanks Out

Cristiano Blanco makes it 1,300 from under the gun and the player on the button makes the call. The small blind pops it to 4,600 and Blanco moves all in for 17,125. The button folds but he gets a caller in the remaining player and the two flip over their cards. It’s K K versus Blanco’s A Q and with a king as one of the first cards down it’s all over for the Italian pro – K-4-2-2-9.

Juanda Versus Lefrancois

John Juanda bets 1,350 from the hijack position and once again finds himself in a battle against Pascal Lefrancois in the cut-of. The flop is K 8 7 and both players check. The turn is the Q and Juanda bets 2,050. Lefrancois calls and they see the 6 river. Juanda bets 4,850 and Lefrancois once again makes the call. Juanda shows K 6 for two pair and Lefrancois mucks his cards. Juanda is now on 42,500 while Lefrancois drops a little to 81,200.

High Roller Heads-Up Report — First Match Drags

The £10,350 heads-up high roller event has reached the final match between Gus Hansen and Jim Collopy from an initial field of 103. The winner will take home the top prize worth £288,409 and the runner-up will take home £178,211 and some deflated hopes.

First Match: The first round saw Hansen take control but Collopy held on to battle for quite some time before succumbing to a first-game loss. On the final hand he shoved on the button preflop and Hansen made the call. Their cards:

Hansen: 9 9
Collopy: Q 8

Board: J 10 8 7 7

Hansen took a 1-0 lead after the hand and then the two charged forward to game 2. This match delivered some déjà vu with Hansen chipping away at the start and Collopy now finds himself in a hole once again.

Here are the results so far for this event:

3: Ram Vaswani — £96,212
3: Andrew Feldman — £96,212
5: Daniel Negreanu — £47,045
5: Kevin Eyster — £47,045
5: Huck Seed — £47,045
5: Neil Channing — £47,045
9: Howard Lederer — £22,847
9: Martin Kabrhel — £22,847
9: McLean Karr — £22,847
9: Saar Wilf — £22,847
9: Andrew Robl — £22,847
9: Phil Ivey — £22,847
9: Marius Torbergson — £22,847
9: Sondre Svaniek — £22,847

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Allen Cunningham,   Gus Hansen,   Cristiano Blanco,   Pascal LeFrancois,   Jim Collopy

Level 4 Update: Into the Dinner Break

Sep 24, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. Play will resume at 8:40 p.m. local time (12:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 162 out of 210 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Sam Trickett — 97,000
2. Phil Laak — 95,000
3. JP Kelly — 95,000
4. Barry Shulman — 85,000
5. Ludovic Lacay — 82,000
6. Marc Inizan — 80,000
7. Andrew Pantling — 80,000
8. James Mitchell — 75,000
9. Matt Stout — 70,000
10. Markus Golser — 68,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 85,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count: 36,800

Notable Eliminations:

Brandon Adams
David Steicke
Men Nguyen
Chino Rheem
Max Pescatori
Bernard Lee
James Akenhead
William Thorson

Big Hands:

Melanie’s More The “Weisner”

With around 14,000 in the pot and a board of 10-9-2-6-6 showing havoc broke loose between Melanie Weisner and David Benyamine. Benyamine had bet 7,500 on the river and Weisner raised to 16,500. She thought Benyamine had called and so flipped over 10-8, but in fact he had shoved and now turning red in frustration she said, “You put your stack in and didn’t say anything!” “I did say something,” said Benyamine. “I said I’m all in.” “I didn’t hear him say that,” Weisner appealed to the tournament director.

The TD said the hand was still alive and she could call his all in or fold. She called and Benyamine quickly showed 6-6. “Are you serious?” asked Weisner. Benyamine has 45,000 while Weizner slips to 15,000.

Shortly after this however, a set increased her stack to 27,000.

Confusion then broke out elsewhere between Noel Furlong and Dan Shak ⎯ another mix up about going all in or just calling. Shak won the fight and took a nice big pot down.

It could just be hunger frustration before dinner, but a break is well needed at this stage of the evening.

Shulman Knocks One Out

The player under the gun +1 bets 750 and another in middle position calls. Dan Fleyshman calls from the button, as does the small blind, and Barry Shulman on the big blind. The flop comes Q 5 4 and it is checked to the player in mid-position who bets 2,200. Fleyshman steps out of the way, as does the small blind, but Shulman calls, and so does under the gun +1. The turn is the 9 and it is again checked to the mid-position player. He bets 5,500 and Shulman makes it 16,000. Under the gun +1 folds and mid-position moves all in for around 14,000. Shulman snap-calls and shows 5-4, while his opponent flips over A Q. The river is a king and the player’s stack increases Shulman’s chip count to 85,000. Gus Hansen who is happily playing Angry Birds on his iPad beside Shulman, turns to his neighbour and says, “You’re a force to be reckoned with.”

One For Gus

Andy Frankenberger bets 625 from late position and the player to his left, Dan Fleyshman, calls. Shulman calls from the button and Gus Hansen on the small blind makes it 2,275. Frankenberger folds and Fleyshman calls. Shulman asks Hansen how much he has left. It’s about 19,000 and so Shulman folds. The flop comes K 7 6 and it’s between Hansen and Fleyshman. Hansen makes his move all in and Fleyshman insta-folds. Fleyshman has 14,000 while Hansen has just over 24,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Gus Hansen,   David Benyamine,   Barry Shulman,   Dan Fleyshman

Level 6 Update: Day 1A Ends

Sep 23, '10

NOTE: Day 1A has come to an end. Stay tuned for official chip counts and a recap of the day’s events. Day 1B will begin at noon local time (4 a.m. PST). Check back in at that time for more live coverage. Card Player’s Barry Shulman will begin the defense of his 2009 WSOP Europe main event title tomorrow.

Blinds: 250-500 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 75 out of 137

Chip Counts:

1. Nicolas Levi — 153,850
2. Adam Fletcher — 136,025
3. Arnaud Mattern — 135,000
4. Matt Waxman — 120,000
5. Guillaume Gignac — 109,650
6. Leo Margets — 102,000
7. Simon Persson — 91,600
8. Almira Skripchenko — 90,000
9. Bruno Fitoussi — 90,000
10. Pascal LeFrancois – 88,000

Average Chip Count:

54,800

Notable Eliminations:

John Cernuto
Allen Kessler
Joe Serock
Brandon Cantu
Jonathan Duhamel
Dario Alioto

Big Hands:

Cunningham Doubles Up

Allen Cunningham raised to 1,500 preflop and three players made the call. The flop fell A K 6 and Eugene Katchalov checked. Cunningham bet 2,500 and the player right behind him made the call. The fourth player in the pot and Katchalov mucked, leaving two players in contention.

The turn fell 3 and Cunningham bet 7,000. His opponent went into the tank and he eventually raised all in for 27,000. Cunningham had 28,000 behind at that point and he decided to make the call for what was effectively his tournament life. Their cards:

Cunningham: A Q
Opponent: J J

River: 7

Cunningham won the hand to eliminate his opponent and almost double up. He held 6,700 after the hand.

Matt Waxman and the Four Kings

Matt Waxman bet 9,500 and Filippo Candio made the call. The flop fell K K 7 and both players checked. The 3 fell on the turn and both players checked again. The K fell on the river, Candio checked, and Waxman opened the action for 22,900. Candio made the call but he mucked his cards when Waxman turned over A K for quads.

Blanco Blanks Out

Cristiano Blanco makes it 1,300 from under the gun and the player on the button makes the call. The small blind pops it to 4,600 and Blanco moves all in for 17,125. The button folds but he gets a caller in the remaining player and the two flip over their cards. It’s K K versus Blanco’s A Q and with a king as one of the first cards down it’s all over for the Italian pro – K-4-2-2-9.

Juanda Versus Lefrancois

John Juanda bets 1,350 from the hijack position and once again finds himself in a battle against Pascal Lefrancois in the cut-of. The flop is K 8 7 and both players check. The turn is the Q and Juanda bets 2,050. Lefrancois calls and they see the 6 river. Juanda bets 4,850 and Lefrancois once again makes the call. Juanda shows K 6 for two pair and Lefrancois mucks his cards. Juanda is now on 42,500 while Lefrancois drops a little to 81,200.

High Roller Heads-Up Report — First Match Drags

The £10,350 heads-up high roller event has reached the final match between Gus Hansen and Jim Collopy from an initial field of 103. The winner will take home the top prize worth £288,409 and the runner-up will take home £178,211 and some deflated hopes.

First Match: The first round saw Hansen take control but Collopy held on to battle for quite some time before succumbing to a first-game loss. On the final hand he shoved on the button preflop and Hansen made the call. Their cards:

Hansen: 9 9
Collopy: Q 8

Board: J 10 8 7 7

Hansen took a 1-0 lead after the hand and then the two charged forward to game 2. This match delivered some déjà vu with Hansen chipping away at the start and Collopy now finds himself in a hole once again.

Here are the results so far for this event:

3: Ram Vaswani — £96,212
3: Andrew Feldman — £96,212
5: Daniel Negreanu — £47,045
5: Kevin Eyster — £47,045
5: Huck Seed — £47,045
5: Neil Channing — £47,045
9: Howard Lederer — £22,847
9: Martin Kabrhel — £22,847
9: McLean Karr — £22,847
9: Saar Wilf — £22,847
9: Andrew Robl — £22,847
9: Phil Ivey — £22,847
9: Marius Torbergson — £22,847
9: Sondre Svaniek — £22,847

Player Tags: John Juanda,   Allen Cunningham,   Gus Hansen,   Cristiano Blanco,   Pascal LeFrancois,   Jim Collopy

Level 11: Seed Hanging On

Jun 07, '10

Blinds: Ante 500, Bring-In 700, 2,500-5,000 Limits

Players Remaining: 79 out of 170

Average Chip Count: 62,963

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Sirous Jamshidi – 134,000
2. Christopher George – 130,000
3. Neal Friets – 121,000
4. Alexander Dovshenko – 120,000
5. Marco Johnson – 120,000
6. Dan Heimiller – 117,000
7. Frank Kassela – 100,000
8. John Hoang – 93,000
9. David Singer – 92,000
10. Max Pescatori – 91,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Jennifer Harman — 75,000
Phil Hellmuth — 47,000
Steve Zolotow — 62,000
Barry Shulman — 52,000

Notable Eliminations:

Hasan Habib
Howard Lederer
Phil Ivey
Yuval Bronshtein

Player’s Twitter Accounts:

Barry Shulman
Cyndy Violette
Kristy Gazes

Big Hands:

Seed Chops To Stay Alive Again

Huck Seed had the last of his chips in the middle again on seventh street, this time against the player in seat 2.

Seat 2 thought for a bit before finally calling. Seed chopped last time with the low end of the hand. This time, he tabled JJ44(JKK) for jacks-full.

Seat 2 tabled an 8-7 low for the other half of the pot and Seed was sticking around some more with his short stack of 4,800.

Schulman Scoops With Diamonds

Nick Schulman bet 5,000 after seventh street was dealt and the player in seat 5 made the call. Sirous Jamshidi was also in the hand but mucked after the bet.

Schulman announced he had a flush, showing (933)A6210.

Seat 5 shook his head and then threw his hand in the muck. Schulman scooped a nice pot and was around 60,000.

Hellmuth Bests Hansen

Phil Hellmuth led out with 2,500 on fourth street and Gus Hansen made the call. Hellmuth led out for 5,000 on fifth street and Hansen tagged along again.

It was the same story on sixth and Hellmuth fired another 5,000 on seventh showing A778.

Hansen released his hand, KJ32, relatively quickly and surrendered the pot to Hellmuth.

Hellmuth was at 47,000 after the win while Hansen was at 68,000.

Habib, Lederer Eliminated

We did not catch the two players boards, but Hasan Habib was eliminated by Dario Minieri halfway through level 11. Minieri was at 57,000

At another table, Howard Lederer was ousted by Richard Ashby, who was at 74,000 after the elimination.

Gus Takes Pot From Bach

Entering the action on 5th street, David Bach beet and was called by Gus Hansen. Hansen continued calling Bach on 6th and 7th streets, and they showed their hands:

Hansen: (86)-5923-(4)
Bach: (X-X)-43A6-(X)

Hansen showed a straight and the best low hand to scoop the entire pot. Hansen had 80,000 after the hand, while Bach fell to around 52,000.

Player Tags: Hasan Habib,   Huck Seed,   Gus Hansen,   Howard Lederer,   Phil Hellmuth,   Sirous Jamshidi,   Nick Schulman