Antonio Esfandiari Poker Tournament Updates

Level 26: Griffin Leads Final Four

Jun 28, '11

Blinds: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 2,890

Average Chip Count: 2,167,500

Chip Counts:

1. Kenneth Griffin – 3,250,000
2. Philip Hammerling – 2,350,000
3. Jean Luc Marias – 1,950,000
4. Eric Baudry – 1,525,000

Eliminations:

5th. Andrew Teng – $105,262
6th. Jonathan Lane – $77,873
7th. Antonio Esfandiari – $58,288

Antonio Esfandiari Eliminated in 7th Place ($58,288)

Kenneth Griffin opened the pot for 80,000 from under the gun, Antonio Esfandiari moved all in from late position, Philip Hammerling re-shoved from the button and Griffin folded.

Hammerling had A K against Esfandiari’s K 10.

The board came 9 7 4 4 3, no help for Antonio Esfandiari who was eliminated in 7th place ($52,288).

Jonathan Lane Eliminated in 6th Place ($77,873)

Andrew Teng raised before the flop, Kenneth Griifin flat called, Jonathan Lane moved all in, Teng folded and Griffin called.

Griifin lead with 8 8 against Lane’s A Q.

The board came J 10 9 4 2, no help Jonathan Lane who was eliminated in 6th place ($77,873).

Andrew Teng Eliminated in 5th Place ($105,262)

Andrew Teng button-raised to 85,000 before the flop, Kenneth Griffin reraised to 285,000 from the small blind, Teng moved all in for 1,215,000 and Griffin called.

Teng lead with 6 6 against against Griffn’s A Q.

The board came A K 9 8 K, giving Griffin top pair on the flop to win the pot. Andrew Teng was eliminated in 5th place ($105,262).

Be sure to check back hourly for level-by-level updates of this final table.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Teng,   Jonathan Lane

Level 25: Marias Leads Final Seven; Massey 8th, Siegmund 9th

Jun 28, '11

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 7 out of 2,890

Average Chip Count: 1,238,571

Chip Counts:

1. Jean Luc Marias – 1,975,000
2. Philip Hammerling – 1,430,000
3. Antonio Esfandiari – 1,400,000
4. Eric Baudry – 1,175,000
5. Kenneth Griffin – 1,150,000
6. Andrew Teng – 1,125,000
7. Jonathan Lane – 510,000

Eliminations:

8th. Aaron Massey – $44,138
9th. Jeremiah Siegmund – $33,813

Jeremiah Siegmund Eliminated in 9th Place ($33,813)

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 60,000 before the flop, Jeremiah Siegmund moved all in for 315,000, Eric Baudry re-shoved and Esfandiari folded.

Baudry lead with Q Q against Siegmund’s 9 9.

The board came A 63 10 2, ho help for Jeremiah Siegmund who was the first one eliminated in 9th place ($33,813).

Aaron Massey Eliminated in 8th Place ($44,138)

Aaron Massey came in for a raise, Andrew Teng moved all in and Massey called.

Massey lead with K K against Teng’s 6 6.

The board came A 10 2 7 K, giving Teng a flush on the turn to win the pot. Aaron Massey was eliminated in 8th place ($44,138).

Be sure to check back hourly for level-by-level updates of this final table.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Eric Baudry,   Andrew Teng,   Aaron Massey,   Jeremiah Siegmund

Level 22: Haiman Eliminated 10th, Final Table Now Underway

Jun 28, '11

NOTE: Play ended last night with 21 players and resumed today at 2:30pm. The final 10 players consolidated to one table, and with the elimination of David Haiman in 10th place ($26,192), the official nine-handed final table is now underway.

Blinds: 12,000-24,000 with a 4,000 ante

Players Remaining: 9 out of 2,890

Average Chip Count: 963,333

Chip Counts:

1. Jean Luc Marias – 1,831,000
2. Antonio Esfandiari – 1,600,000
3. Kenneth Griffin – 1,485,000
4. Philip Hammerling – 1,100,000
5. Eric Baudry – 735,000
6. Aaron Massey – 545,000
7. Andrew Teng – 535,000
8. Jeremiah Siegmund – 423,000
9. Jonathan Lane – 230,000

Payouts:

1st. $455,356
2nd. $282,676
3rd. $199,366
4th. $143,991
5th. $105,262
6th. $77,873
7th. $58,288
8th. $44,138
9th. $33,813

Be sure to check back hourly for level-by-level updates of this final table.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Eric Baudry,   Andrew Teng,   Aaron Massey,   Jonathan Lane

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

Hour One: $25K Heads-Up Event Kicks Off!

May 31, '11

Note: Three blind levels will be played each hour, as each is just 20 minutes long.

Players Remaining: 128 out 128

Note: WSOP tournament staff said the event has been capped at 128 and that no one was locked out.

Key Matches:

Phil Laak vs. Jonathan Duhamel
David Peters vs. Antonio Esfandiari
Tom Dwan vs. Peter Jetten
Vanessa Selbst vs. Chris Moorman
Bertrand Grospellier vs. Daniel Cates
Daniel Negreanu vs. Alex Kostritsyn
Daniel Alaei vs. Thomas Marchese
Galen Hall vs. Ashton Griffin
Vivek Rajkumar vs. Praz Bansi
Isaac Haxton vs. Robert Mizrachi
Jason Mercier vs. Gus Hansen

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Tom Dwan,   Daniel Cates

Jonathan Duhamel Defeats Antonio Esfandiari

Mar 05, '11

Jonathan Duhamel made quick work of Antonio Esfandiari over at the featured table thanks to a bit of a cooler.

Both players saw a flop of 984 before the money went in. Esfandiari turned over K2 for a flush draw, but it was no good against Duhamel’s AQ.

The turn and river fell 10J, giving Duhamel the flush and the win. Duhamel will now advance to take on the winner between Barry Greenstein and Ayaz Mahmood.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Jonathan Duhamel

Antonio Esfandiari Defeats Nicolas Chouity

Mar 04, '11

Nicolas Chouity limped in and Antonio Esfandiari raised. Chouity moved all in and Esfandiari called with AK.

Chouity showed pocket jacks, but they failed to hold on a board reading 84235. Esfandiari will now gear up for a match with the winner between Jonathan Duhamel and Melburn Whitmire.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Nicolas Chouity

Jonathan Duhamel Defeats Antonio Esfandiari

Mar 05, '11

Jonathan Duhamel made quick work of Antonio Esfandiari over at the featured table thanks to a bit of a cooler.

Both players saw a flop of 984 before the money went in. Esfandiari turned over K2 for a flush draw, but it was no good against Duhamel’s AQ.

The turn and river fell 10J, giving Duhamel the flush and the win. Duhamel will now advance to take on the winner between Barry Greenstein and Ayaz Mahmood.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Jonathan Duhamel

Antonio Esfandiari Defeats Nicolas Chouity

Mar 04, '11

Nicolas Chouity limped in and Antonio Esfandiari raised. Chouity moved all in and Esfandiari called with AK.

Chouity showed pocket jacks, but they failed to hold on a board reading 84235. Esfandiari will now gear up for a match with the winner between Jonathan Duhamel and Melburn Whitmire.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Nicolas Chouity

Antonio Esfandiari Wins 2010 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($870,124)

Dec 09, '10

Congratulations to Antonio Esfandiari who has just become a two-time World Poker Tour champion… on his birthday no less.

It was a grueling final table with many ups and downs, but it was the 32-year-old former magician who came out on top nearly 11 hours after it started.

For the win, Esfandiari banks $870,124, a WPT bracelet and a $25,000 seat into the WPT Championship.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Andrew Robl Eliminated in Second Place ($549,003)

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Andrew Robl quickly moved all in. Esfandiari instantly called with KJ and was excited to see that he was ahead of Robl’s Q10.

The flop came AK6 and Esfandiari retained the lead. Robl could catch any jack or diamond to win, but the turn and river bricked with the 65 and he was eliminated.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Back On Top

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Robl called. The flop came down 932 and Robl checked. Esfandiari bet 1,150,000 and Robl called.

The turn was the 5 and both players checked. The river was the 9 and they checked again. Esfandiari showed Q-2 and took the pot, increasing his stack to 10,000,000. Robl is now down to 7,650,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Robl Takes Back The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised too 850,000 on the button and Robl called. Both players checked the flop of QJ2.

The turn was the 5 and Esfandiari bet 825,000. Robl called and both players checked the 6 on the river. Robl showed A5 and took down the pot to increase his stack to 10,845,000. Esfandiari is down to 6,810,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Takes The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 600,000 and Andrew Robl called. The flop came Q63 and Robl checked.

Esfandiari bet 820,000 and Robl called. The turn was the 4 and Robl checked again. Esfandiari bet 1.9 million and Robl folded. With that pot, Esfandiari took a 9.4 million to 8.2 million lead.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Vanessa Rousso Eliminated in Third Place ($358,964)

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso moved all in for her last 1.95 million from the button and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the big blind.

Rousso showed Q2, but she was in bad shape against Esfandiari’s AQ. The board ran out 76538 and Rousso was eliminated.

Here’s a look at the chip counts entering heads up play.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 8,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 3rd Place ($358,964)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,500,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Takes The Chip Lead

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso limped on the button and Antonio Esfandiari checked his option from the big blind. The flop came down K97 and both players checked.

They both checked again when the 7 hit the turn. The river was the 3 and Esfandiari bet 1 million. Rousso called, but mucked when Esfandiari showed A9. He now has 8.2 million and she is in trouble with 2.5 million.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Esfandiari Doubles Through Vanessa Rousso

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari moved all in for 2,555,000 from the small blind and Vanessa Rousso called from the big blind after a few minutes of thought.

Esfandiari leaped from his chair after seeing her K8 and turned over the K9, having her dominated.

The flop, however, came K62, giving Rousso a flush draw. The turn was the 2, giving her even more outs to a chop. But the river was the 3, giving Esfandiari the pot with his higher kicker.

Take a look at the chip counts after that hand.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 5,060,000
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 7,340,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

John Racener Eliminated in Fourth Place ($232,271)

Dec 08, '10

John Racener moved all in from under the gun for his last 1,005,000 and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the small blind.

Racener showed Q8, but was dominated by Esfandiari’s KQ. The board fell K6378 and Racener was eliminated, banking $232,271.

Check out the updated chip counts below.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,660,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 2,790,000
Seat 4 — John Racener — 4th Place ($232,271)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,205,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   John Racener

Happy Birthday To Antonio!

Dec 08, '10

As the dealer is shuffling the deck for the first hand, the crowd breaks into a rendition of Happy Birthday for Antonio Esfandiari. The former WPT champion is 32 years old today.

During the action, Tournament Director Jack McClelland playfully ribs at Esfandiari, claiming he got his nickname as “the magician” for winning a WPT title and then disappearing from the winner’s circle for good.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Antonio Esfandiari Wins 2010 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($870,124)

Dec 09, '10

Congratulations to Antonio Esfandiari who has just become a two-time World Poker Tour champion… on his birthday no less.

It was a grueling final table with many ups and downs, but it was the 32-year-old former magician who came out on top nearly 11 hours after it started.

For the win, Esfandiari banks $870,124, a WPT bracelet and a $25,000 seat into the WPT Championship.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Andrew Robl Eliminated in Second Place ($549,003)

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Andrew Robl quickly moved all in. Esfandiari instantly called with KJ and was excited to see that he was ahead of Robl’s Q10.

The flop came AK6 and Esfandiari retained the lead. Robl could catch any jack or diamond to win, but the turn and river bricked with the 65 and he was eliminated.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Back On Top

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Robl called. The flop came down 932 and Robl checked. Esfandiari bet 1,150,000 and Robl called.

The turn was the 5 and both players checked. The river was the 9 and they checked again. Esfandiari showed Q-2 and took the pot, increasing his stack to 10,000,000. Robl is now down to 7,650,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Robl Takes Back The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised too 850,000 on the button and Robl called. Both players checked the flop of QJ2.

The turn was the 5 and Esfandiari bet 825,000. Robl called and both players checked the 6 on the river. Robl showed A5 and took down the pot to increase his stack to 10,845,000. Esfandiari is down to 6,810,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Takes The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 600,000 and Andrew Robl called. The flop came Q63 and Robl checked.

Esfandiari bet 820,000 and Robl called. The turn was the 4 and Robl checked again. Esfandiari bet 1.9 million and Robl folded. With that pot, Esfandiari took a 9.4 million to 8.2 million lead.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Vanessa Rousso Eliminated in Third Place ($358,964)

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso moved all in for her last 1.95 million from the button and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the big blind.

Rousso showed Q2, but she was in bad shape against Esfandiari’s AQ. The board ran out 76538 and Rousso was eliminated.

Here’s a look at the chip counts entering heads up play.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 8,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 3rd Place ($358,964)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,500,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Takes The Chip Lead

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso limped on the button and Antonio Esfandiari checked his option from the big blind. The flop came down K97 and both players checked.

They both checked again when the 7 hit the turn. The river was the 3 and Esfandiari bet 1 million. Rousso called, but mucked when Esfandiari showed A9. He now has 8.2 million and she is in trouble with 2.5 million.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Esfandiari Doubles Through Vanessa Rousso

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari moved all in for 2,555,000 from the small blind and Vanessa Rousso called from the big blind after a few minutes of thought.

Esfandiari leaped from his chair after seeing her K8 and turned over the K9, having her dominated.

The flop, however, came K62, giving Rousso a flush draw. The turn was the 2, giving her even more outs to a chop. But the river was the 3, giving Esfandiari the pot with his higher kicker.

Take a look at the chip counts after that hand.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 5,060,000
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 7,340,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

John Racener Eliminated in Fourth Place ($232,271)

Dec 08, '10

John Racener moved all in from under the gun for his last 1,005,000 and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the small blind.

Racener showed Q8, but was dominated by Esfandiari’s KQ. The board fell K6378 and Racener was eliminated, banking $232,271.

Check out the updated chip counts below.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,660,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 2,790,000
Seat 4 — John Racener — 4th Place ($232,271)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,205,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   John Racener

Happy Birthday To Antonio!

Dec 08, '10

As the dealer is shuffling the deck for the first hand, the crowd breaks into a rendition of Happy Birthday for Antonio Esfandiari. The former WPT champion is 32 years old today.

During the action, Tournament Director Jack McClelland playfully ribs at Esfandiari, claiming he got his nickname as “the magician” for winning a WPT title and then disappearing from the winner’s circle for good.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Antonio Esfandiari Wins 2010 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($870,124)

Dec 09, '10

Congratulations to Antonio Esfandiari who has just become a two-time World Poker Tour champion… on his birthday no less.

It was a grueling final table with many ups and downs, but it was the 32-year-old former magician who came out on top nearly 11 hours after it started.

For the win, Esfandiari banks $870,124, a WPT bracelet and a $25,000 seat into the WPT Championship.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Andrew Robl Eliminated in Second Place ($549,003)

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Andrew Robl quickly moved all in. Esfandiari instantly called with KJ and was excited to see that he was ahead of Robl’s Q10.

The flop came AK6 and Esfandiari retained the lead. Robl could catch any jack or diamond to win, but the turn and river bricked with the 65 and he was eliminated.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Back On Top

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Robl called. The flop came down 932 and Robl checked. Esfandiari bet 1,150,000 and Robl called.

The turn was the 5 and both players checked. The river was the 9 and they checked again. Esfandiari showed Q-2 and took the pot, increasing his stack to 10,000,000. Robl is now down to 7,650,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Robl Takes Back The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised too 850,000 on the button and Robl called. Both players checked the flop of QJ2.

The turn was the 5 and Esfandiari bet 825,000. Robl called and both players checked the 6 on the river. Robl showed A5 and took down the pot to increase his stack to 10,845,000. Esfandiari is down to 6,810,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Takes The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 600,000 and Andrew Robl called. The flop came Q63 and Robl checked.

Esfandiari bet 820,000 and Robl called. The turn was the 4 and Robl checked again. Esfandiari bet 1.9 million and Robl folded. With that pot, Esfandiari took a 9.4 million to 8.2 million lead.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Vanessa Rousso Eliminated in Third Place ($358,964)

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso moved all in for her last 1.95 million from the button and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the big blind.

Rousso showed Q2, but she was in bad shape against Esfandiari’s AQ. The board ran out 76538 and Rousso was eliminated.

Here’s a look at the chip counts entering heads up play.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 8,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 3rd Place ($358,964)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,500,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Takes The Chip Lead

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso limped on the button and Antonio Esfandiari checked his option from the big blind. The flop came down K97 and both players checked.

They both checked again when the 7 hit the turn. The river was the 3 and Esfandiari bet 1 million. Rousso called, but mucked when Esfandiari showed A9. He now has 8.2 million and she is in trouble with 2.5 million.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Esfandiari Doubles Through Vanessa Rousso

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari moved all in for 2,555,000 from the small blind and Vanessa Rousso called from the big blind after a few minutes of thought.

Esfandiari leaped from his chair after seeing her K8 and turned over the K9, having her dominated.

The flop, however, came K62, giving Rousso a flush draw. The turn was the 2, giving her even more outs to a chop. But the river was the 3, giving Esfandiari the pot with his higher kicker.

Take a look at the chip counts after that hand.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 5,060,000
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 7,340,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

John Racener Eliminated in Fourth Place ($232,271)

Dec 08, '10

John Racener moved all in from under the gun for his last 1,005,000 and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the small blind.

Racener showed Q8, but was dominated by Esfandiari’s KQ. The board fell K6378 and Racener was eliminated, banking $232,271.

Check out the updated chip counts below.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,660,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 2,790,000
Seat 4 — John Racener — 4th Place ($232,271)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,205,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   John Racener

Happy Birthday To Antonio!

Dec 08, '10

As the dealer is shuffling the deck for the first hand, the crowd breaks into a rendition of Happy Birthday for Antonio Esfandiari. The former WPT champion is 32 years old today.

During the action, Tournament Director Jack McClelland playfully ribs at Esfandiari, claiming he got his nickname as “the magician” for winning a WPT title and then disappearing from the winner’s circle for good.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Antonio Esfandiari Wins 2010 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($870,124)

Dec 09, '10

Congratulations to Antonio Esfandiari who has just become a two-time World Poker Tour champion… on his birthday no less.

It was a grueling final table with many ups and downs, but it was the 32-year-old former magician who came out on top nearly 11 hours after it started.

For the win, Esfandiari banks $870,124, a WPT bracelet and a $25,000 seat into the WPT Championship.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Andrew Robl Eliminated in Second Place ($549,003)

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Andrew Robl quickly moved all in. Esfandiari instantly called with KJ and was excited to see that he was ahead of Robl’s Q10.

The flop came AK6 and Esfandiari retained the lead. Robl could catch any jack or diamond to win, but the turn and river bricked with the 65 and he was eliminated.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Back On Top

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised to 800,000 and Robl called. The flop came down 932 and Robl checked. Esfandiari bet 1,150,000 and Robl called.

The turn was the 5 and both players checked. The river was the 9 and they checked again. Esfandiari showed Q-2 and took the pot, increasing his stack to 10,000,000. Robl is now down to 7,650,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Robl Takes Back The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Esfandiari raised too 850,000 on the button and Robl called. Both players checked the flop of QJ2.

The turn was the 5 and Esfandiari bet 825,000. Robl called and both players checked the 6 on the river. Robl showed A5 and took down the pot to increase his stack to 10,845,000. Esfandiari is down to 6,810,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Esfandiari Takes The Lead

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari raised to 600,000 and Andrew Robl called. The flop came Q63 and Robl checked.

Esfandiari bet 820,000 and Robl called. The turn was the 4 and Robl checked again. Esfandiari bet 1.9 million and Robl folded. With that pot, Esfandiari took a 9.4 million to 8.2 million lead.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Andrew Robl

Vanessa Rousso Eliminated in Third Place ($358,964)

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso moved all in for her last 1.95 million from the button and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the big blind.

Rousso showed Q2, but she was in bad shape against Esfandiari’s AQ. The board ran out 76538 and Rousso was eliminated.

Here’s a look at the chip counts entering heads up play.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 8,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 3rd Place ($358,964)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,500,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Takes The Chip Lead

Dec 09, '10

Vanessa Rousso limped on the button and Antonio Esfandiari checked his option from the big blind. The flop came down K97 and both players checked.

They both checked again when the 7 hit the turn. The river was the 3 and Esfandiari bet 1 million. Rousso called, but mucked when Esfandiari showed A9. He now has 8.2 million and she is in trouble with 2.5 million.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

Antonio Esfandiari Doubles Through Vanessa Rousso

Dec 09, '10

Antonio Esfandiari moved all in for 2,555,000 from the small blind and Vanessa Rousso called from the big blind after a few minutes of thought.

Esfandiari leaped from his chair after seeing her K8 and turned over the K9, having her dominated.

The flop, however, came K62, giving Rousso a flush draw. The turn was the 2, giving her even more outs to a chop. But the river was the 3, giving Esfandiari the pot with his higher kicker.

Take a look at the chip counts after that hand.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,155,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 5,060,000
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 7,340,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Vanessa Rousso

John Racener Eliminated in Fourth Place ($232,271)

Dec 08, '10

John Racener moved all in from under the gun for his last 1,005,000 and Antonio Esfandiari made the call from the small blind.

Racener showed Q8, but was dominated by Esfandiari’s KQ. The board fell K6378 and Racener was eliminated, banking $232,271.

Check out the updated chip counts below.

Seat 1 — Antonio Esfandiari — 5,660,000
Seat 2 — Vanessa Rousso — 2,790,000
Seat 4 — John Racener — 4th Place ($232,271)
Seat 6 — Andrew Robl — 9,205,000

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   John Racener

Happy Birthday To Antonio!

Dec 08, '10

As the dealer is shuffling the deck for the first hand, the crowd breaks into a rendition of Happy Birthday for Antonio Esfandiari. The former WPT champion is 32 years old today.

During the action, Tournament Director Jack McClelland playfully ribs at Esfandiari, claiming he got his nickname as “the magician” for winning a WPT title and then disappearing from the winner’s circle for good.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari

Level 6 Update: Battle Lines

Nov 12, '10

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 234 of 330

Eliminations:

Cornel Cimpan
Greg Raymer
Joseph Cheong
Michael Katz

Big Hands:

Esfandiari vs. Fischman

The flop read Q 6 4 when Antonio Esfandiari bet 3,700 from the big blind. Scott Fischman raised to 7,400 UTG+1 and the 7 fell on the turn. Esfandiari checked, Fischman moved all in, and Esfandiari mucked.

Smith vs. Habib

Hasan Habib bet 1,100 from middle position and Eric Baldwin made the call from the small blind. Justin Smith made the call from the big blind and the flop fell J 9 6. Smith bet 2,600 and Habib made the call. Baldwin mucked and then both players checked the 6 on the turn and the 10 on the river. Smith flipped over K 10 and Habib mucked.

Jarvis Doubles Up Opponent

The flop read K 7 2 when Matt Jarvis bet 2,250 from the big blind. The cutoff raised for 2,550 on top and then Jarvis reraised another 4,600 on top of that. The cutoff reraised again and then Jarvis reraised 15,000 more. The cutoff made the all-in call for 13,700 and they flipped over their cards:

Jarvis: 8 4
Cutoff: A A

Turn and River: 3 and 3

The cutoff double up on the hand and Jarvis took a hit.

Erik Cajelais Doubles Up

Erik Cajelais got the last of his chips into the middle preflop and the cutoff made the call. Their cards:

Cajelais: 8 8
Cutoff: A 10

Board: 10 8 7 10 2

Cajelais doubled up on the hand right before the break and survived.

Player Tags: Hasan Habib,   Scott Fischman,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Erik Cajelais,   Eric Baldwin,   Matt Jarvis,   Justin Smith

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. They will return at 8.45 p.m. local time.

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Viktor Blom — 450,000
2 Darren Woods — 310,000
3 Phil Ivey — 296,000
4 Thomas Bichon — 290,000
5 Dan Shak — 285,000
6 Barny Boatman — 255,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 240,000
8 Rob Akery — 225,000
9 Bojan Gledovic — 220,000
10 Nick Schulman — 218,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

Magnus Persson raised preflop UTG+1 and Viktor Blom reraised preflop. Persson made the call and the two saw a flop of 9 6 5. Both players checked and then the 2 fell on the turn. Persson checked, Blom bet 13,500, and Persson made the call. The river fell 5 and Persson checked again. Blom bet 49,000 and Persson made the call. Blom flipped over AA and Persson mucked. Blom held 480,000 after the hand as he continues to increase his chip lead. He ended the level with 450,000 in chips.

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

Nicolas Levi raised to 3,000 UTG +1 and Nick Schulman made the call from late position. Ivey made the call from the big blind as well. The flop fell A 4 3 and Ivey and Levi check. Schulman bet 6,500. Ivey mucked and Levi called. The 8 fell on the turn and Levi checked. Schulman bet 15,000. Levi called. The river fell 2. Levi checked and Schulman bet 25,000. Levi called and mucked when Schulman flipped over 4 4. Levi held 100,000 after the hand. During happier times at the start of the day he was one of the chip leaders. Schulman rose above 200,000 after the hand.

Shak and Awe

On a flop of J 9 5, Antonio Esfandiari had led out, only to be raised to 18,000 by Dan Shak. Esfandiari went into the tank, only to eventually announce all-in for around 140,000 in total. Shak called without hesitation, and the players revealed their hands.

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

With a dominant flush draw, gut shot straight draw, and the currently good king-high, Esfandiari was a strong favorite with all but a few thousand of his chips in the middle.

The turn came the 2, leaving Shak drawing only to the remaining non-diamond threes and sixes.

The 3 did roll off on the river, and Esfandiari exploded out of his seat in shocked disgust. As the dealer laboriously counted out the stacks, Esfandiari politely said “Nice hand.” Shak apologized about the bad beat, but unsurprisingly this did little to salve Esfandiari’s wounds.

Shak’s stack grew to around 280,000 after the hand.

Show The Bluff

Phil Laak bets 3,000 from mid-position and Andy Frankenberger calls from the cut-off. Dan Fleyshman calls also, from the big blind. The flop is dealt A J 2 and it is checked around. The turn comes the 7. Fleyshman checks, Laak bets 5,000, Frankenberger calls, and Fleyshman folds. The river is the Q, Laak bets 11,000 and Frankenberger thinks for some time. He then raises it to 26,000, putting the decision back to Laak. Laak goes into the tank – he has about 58,000 behind his original bet. Eventually Laak passes and instantly starts trying to get Frankenberger to show his cards, “Show the bluff and make me crazy. I’ll pay you, just say the number!” He takes out some sterling notes and places them on the table. “I’ll give you £40 to show me the bluff,” he says smiling. Frankenberger stays quiet as the others debate what he had. He now has 147,000 in chips.

Up and Down Day for Lacay

Coming in late into the action, Ludovic Lacay has moved all in for 22,000 on a J 8 4 5 8 board with about 15,000 already in the middle. The decision is on Daniel Steinberg and he takes his time. He finally calls and mucks when he sees Lacay’s A A for the nut flush. Steinberg has 120,000 remaining while Lacay reaches the 74,000 mark. He soon loses a good few chips however when he calls Eugene Katchalov’s all in with pocket nines. Katchalov has A Q and the board falls Q 5 8 8 J. “It’s been like this all day!” says Lacay.

Present for Praz

Allen Cunningham bets 3,500 from UTG and Roland de Wolfe calls from the small blind. Praz Bansi calls from the big blind and the flop comes 9 6 5. De Wolfe and Bansi check and Cunningham bets 6,000. De Wolfe folds but Bansi pops it to 14,800. “What do you have behind?” asks Cunningham. It’s about 33,000. After a few minutes Cunningham passes and Bansi mucks. The British pro is nearing the 60,000 mark just before dinner time.

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

Guy Gorelik bets 3,000 from late position and Roland de Wolfe calls from the hijack. Martin Davis makes it 9,500 and Gorelik steps aside. Players begin to make their way out for the dinner break as de Wolfe and David go head to head. De Wolfe asks Davis, “A-K?” “Yep, I have,” answers Davis, and then sadds, “Maybe.” De Wolfe calls and the flop is dealt K Q 6. Davis bets 9,000 and smiles. De Wolfe sighs and debates whether he wants to come back after dinner with 10 big blinds. “I know I’m behind,” he says. As the room eventually clears, de Wolfe moves all in for 17,300. Davis calls and shows A K. De Wolfe reveals Q J. The turn is the A and the river is the 10 giving de Wolfe a straight. He smiles mischievously as Davis simply says, “Shit!”

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

The last two levels of the tournament have truly created a new hierarchy within the chip counts. Viktor Blom, the alleged “Isildur1” has been crushing it today and he now holds more than 400,000 to lead the way. We have two players at the 300,000 level and they are Phil Ivey and Darren Woods. The 200,000 club can count Barny Boatman, Nick Schulman, Thomas Bichon and Andre Pantling among its members.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Laak,   Daniel Shak,   Eugene Katchalov,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nick Schulman,   Martin Davis,   Nicolas Levi,   Praz Bansi,   Ludovic Lacay,   Andy Frankenberger,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 6 Update: Brits Make Moves

Sep 24, '10

Note: Play has ended for tonight. Please tune back in at noon local time tomorrow (4 a.m. PST) as we go deeper into this year’s WSOPE main event.

Blinds: 100-200

Players Remaining: 122 out of 200 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 178,850
2 John Dolan — 173,700
3 Antonio Esfandiari — 130,000
4 Brian Powell — 111,000
5 Yann Dion — 110,000
6 Eli Elezra — 100,000
7 Carlos Mortensen — 99,000
8 Andrew Pantling — 97,000
9 Phil Ivey — 94,350
10 David Peters — 92,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 86,325

Average Chip Count: 52,250

Notable Eliminations:

Allyn Jaffrey Shulman
Noel Furlong
Melanie Weisner

Big Hands:

Pantling Trips Up

A table that has attracted a crowd is one which involves Antonio Esfandiari, John Dolan, Andrew Pantling, JP Kelly, and Jim Collopy. In between playing “Johnny Lodden Thinks”, there is definitely some explosive poker going on. Esfandiari bets 1,500 from under the gun and Roland de Wolfe makes the call from the hijack. Andrew Pantling calls from the small blind and Yevgeniy Timoshenko folds, donating his big blind. The flop comes K K 6 and it’s checked to de Wolfe who bets 3,500. Pantling calls and Esfandiari folds. The turn is the 9 and Pantling checks. De Wolfe bets 8,500 and Pantling calls. The river is the 4 and both players check. Pantling shows K J and de Wolfe mucks his hand. His stack takes a hit and he now has 28,000. Pantling has 97,000.

De Wolfe also just lost $1,000 to Esfandiari in a “Johnny Lodden Thinks” moment involving John Dolan and this question – How much would you need to be paid to not show up on November Nine? Perhaps tomorrow will be a better day for the Brit.

Quietly Collecting Chips

JP Kelly bets 1,400 from the small blind and Andrew Pantling calls from the big blind. The flop falls J 10 7 and Kelly bets 1,600. Pantling makes the call and the turn is the 5. Kelly bets 4,600 and Pantling mucks. Kelly moves on up to a respectable 67,900 in chips.

Across the room, Kathy Liebert bets 1,500 from the hijack and Andy Black calls from the big blind. The flop is A K 10 and Black bets 2,000. Liebert folds and Black adds her chips to his stack which is now at 38,800. Liebert has 55,000.

Trickett Loses Some

Sam Trickett has been on some run of late and today he reached the top spot of unofficial chip counts, but dropped off slightly towards the end of play. One hand that helped his downfall was against Mike Browne. On a flop of 8 6 4 with a healthy little pot in the middle, Trickett bet 12,000 and Browne moved all in. Trickett made the call and flipped over 7 6 while Browne revealed 6 6. The turn was dealt the A, and the river the J. Browne’s stack doubled to 72,500.

Railbird Challenges Ivey

While Phil Ivey slows down a little in the last level of the night, he should still be safe in the knowledge he is among chip leaders at close of play. One uneasy moment however developed when a man made his way to the front of the rail and shouted, “Yo Phil! Yo Phil!” Getting everyone’s attention, the man then proceeded to point to his own face and exclaim, “You see this face? Remember this face! Remember this face! In 12 months time I’m going to take your stack!” “Okay,” said Phil laughing, and as the man walked abruptly away, wide-eyed, the area abrupted into laughter and conversation. “You better watch out Phil!” said Barry Greenstein smirking.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Ivey,   Roland de Wolfe,   John Dolan,   Andrew Pantling,   Sam Trickett

Level 2 Update: Dwan Gone

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 100-200

Players Remaining: 200 out of 200 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Andrew Pantling — 90,000
2. Antonio Esfandiari — 60,000
3. Markus Golser — 57,000
4. Carlos Mortensen — 53,000
5. Jim Collopy — 52,000
6. Jennifer Tilly — 48,000
7. Brian Powell — 47,000
8. Andrew Scott — 46,000
9. Amnon Filippi — 44,000
10. David Benyamine — 44,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 31,600
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count:

30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Tom Dwan
Jeff Madsen
Juha Helppi
Jason Senti

Big Hands:

Juha Helppi Eliminated

Juha Helppi made the call for his final 12,000 on a board that read K K J 2 after Eli Elezra made a big enough bet to put his opponent all in. Their cards:

Elezra: K J
Helppi: A 10

River: 10

Helppi was eliminated on the hand and Elezra grew his stack to 57,500.

Tom Dwan Eliminated by Antonio Esfandiari

Tom Dwan was recently eliminated when he was all in with pocket sevens against Antonio Esfandiari who held pocket kings on a 8-6-5 flop. The kings held for Esfandiari and he grew his stack to 60,000. Dwan was eliminated on the hand.

Todd Terry Doubles Up

Todd Terry raised to 500 from the hijack and the cutoff made the call. Christophe Benzimra made the call on the button and Jason Wheeler then reraised to 2,250 from the big blind. Terry made the call after a moment’s thought and the cutoff and Benzimra mucked.

The flop fell 6 5 3 and Wheeler bet 3,500. Terry took some time to collect his thoughts once again and he moved all in for 17,300. Wheeler made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Terry: 8 7
Wheeler: 4 2

Turn and River: 4 and J

Terry doubled to 40,000 after the hand.

Jeff Madsen Eliminated

Jeff Madsen got it all in against Eli Elezra on a flop that read 7 3 2. Their cards:

Madsen: 7 5
Elezra: 7 2

Turn and River: 2 K

Madsen was eliminated from the tournament after the hand.

High Roller Heads-Up Report — Extra Day Added

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.

Second Match: This match started the same as the first with Hansen jumping out to a lead and Collopy struggling to catch up. Things went differently when he moved all in though. He doubled up twice to even up the chip counts and then he took control to win the second match and tie things up 1-1.

When the score was evened it was 3 a.m. local time last night and the two decided to stop play and return today at a time to be determined. We will bring you updates from when play finally does begin anew and then keep you posted until a winner is crowned in this prestigious tournament.

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: Juha Helppi,   Antonio Esfandiari,   Eli Elezra,   Todd Terry,   Tom Dwan,   Jeff Madsen