Barry Shulman Poker Tournament Updates

Level Four Update: Vanessa Selbst Eliminated

Jul 07, '11

NOTE: Levels are two hours in length and players are starting with 30,000 in chips.

Players on Day 1A: 700 of 897

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Notables in Field:

Jani Sointula
Scott Montgomery
Johhny Lodden
Brian Hastings
TJ Cloutier
Eli Elezra
Filippo Candio
Matt Glantz
Faraz Jaka
Tatjana Pasalic
Jason Alexander
Nam Le
Lex Veldhuis
Dutch Boyd
Olivier Busquet
Soi Nguyen
George Danzer
Billy Baxter
Maria Ho

Card Player Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 28,000
Josh Brikis — 81,000

Notable Eliminations:

Greg Raymer
Vanessa Selbst
Doyle Brunson
Adam Levy
Matt Affleck
Vinny Vinh
Josh Arieh
John Hennigan

Hands:

Vanessa Selbst Eliminated

The flop read 7 3 2 when the small blind checked before Vanessa Selbst bet 1,300 UTG+1. Jason Alexander then raised to 2,900 from middle position.

The small blind mucked and Selbst then went into the tank before moving all in for 18,625. Alexander made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Selbst: 7 6
Alexander: 2 2

Turn and River: 9 and Q

Alexander won the hand with his set of deuces and Selbst was eliminated on the hand. The Seinfeld star now holds over 100,000 in chips and he is near the top of the leader board.

Barry Shulman Takes a Hit

The cutoff raised to 800 and Barry Shulman reraised to 2,000. The cutoff reraised to 4,500 and Shulman made the call.

The flop brought the Q 5 2 and Shulman checked. The cutoff bet 5,200 and Shulman took a peak at his cards before tossing them into the middle. Shulman is still holding level at his starting stack.

Official Day 1A Field

There are officially 897 players who entered the main event on day 1A. There are now 700 of them still in the running coming back from the dinner break.

Meet Your Chip Leader — Ronnie Jackson

Middle position raised 900 preflop and Ronnie Jackson reraised to 2,600 from the cutoff. The button and the original raiser both called and the flop rolled out A 10 8.

Middle position checked and Jackson bet 7,000. Both of his opponents made the call and the turn fell 8. Middle position checked and Jackson bet 15,000 this time around. The button decided to get out of the way at this point but middle position decided to make an all-in call for his final 8,000. Their cards:

Jackson: 10 10
Middle Position: A J

No ace fell on the river so Jackson was good with a full house. Middle position was eliminated while Jackson grew his stack to 150,000.

Isaac Haxton Takes a Hit to 6,000

Isaac Haxton thought he was sailing smooth with a jack in the hole on a J 8 3 7 6 board but his opponent who was all in held pocket sixes to win the pot and double up. After he paid up to his opponent Haxton was down to 6,000.

Josh Brikis on the Boat

Middle position raised to 650 and Josh Brikis made the call from the cutoff, the small blind also made the call. The flop fell 9 9 6 and the small blind checked. Middle position bet 1,400 and Brikis and the small blind each made the call.

The turn fell 6 and all three players checked. The river fell K and Brikis opened up the betting with a bet worth 3,500. The small blind mucked and middle position made the call.

Brikis flipped over 6 5 for the full house and his opponent mucked his cards. Brikis climbed to 90,000 after the hand.

Featured Poker Tweet — Faraz Jaka

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Jason Alexander,   Vanessa Selbst,   Isaac Haxton,   Josh Brikis

Barry Shulman Eliminated by David Fox

Dec 19, '10

Barry Shulman has been eliminated from the tournament. We didn’t catch the action, but got the report from the man who claimed his bounty.

Shulman raised to 600 from under the gun and was called by Chris Reslock behind him. David Fox then made it 2,100 from the big blind and Shulman shoved for his last 7,600. Reslock folded, but Fox instantly called with pocket kings.

Shulman showed pocket tens, but failed to connect with the flop, turn or river. Fox now has 38,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   David Fox

John Moore Wins Big Pot

Dec 19, '10

Jason Dewitt raised to 500 and was called by Barry Shulman on the button and John Moore in the big blind. The flop fell 1052 and Moore checked.

Dewitt bet 1,000 and Shulman quickly raised to 3,000. Moore then made it 7,700, prompting Dewitt to raise to 13,000. Shulman folded, leaving himself with 24,000 and Moore quickly announced that he was all in.

Dewitt quietly mucked his hand, dropping his stack down to 25,000. Moore flashed the 2 as he dragged in the pot, increasing his chip count to 46,000.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Jason Dewitt,   John Moore

Festa al Lago Preliminary Event Highlights

Oct 15, '10

Highlights from the preliminary events include preliminary victories by John Cernuto in a $1,000 Omaha eight-or-better event (he also cashed in fourth place in a $1,000 no-limit hold’em event), and James Van Alstyne in a $1,000 pot-limit Omaha with rebuys event (he also cashed in fourth place in a $1,000 no-limit hold’em with rebuys event).

John Phan won a $1,000 limit hold’em event, and he was joined at the final table by Card Player father and son duo of Barry Shulman, who cashed in fifth place, and Jeff Shulman, who cashed in third place.

Card Player Player of the Year contender Thomas Marchese also cashed in fifth place in a $1,000 no-limit hold’em with rebuys event to take home 120 POY points and close the gap between him and current leader, Dwyte Pilgrim. The battle for the POY lead is now just separated by just 210 points.

Scott Clements capped off an exciting preliminary week at Bellagio when he won a $1,000 no-limit hold’em with rebuys event, topping a final table that also included Van Altsyne, Jon Turner, and Gavin Smith.

The largest preliminary event of the week was a $5,000 no-limit hold’em event that attracted 90 players and created a $436,500 prize pool. November Niner Joseph Cheong won the tournament, taking home $142,635 in prize money. He topped Brock Parker in heads-up play, and a final table that included Vivek Rajkumar. The professionals fared well in the preliminary events at Bellagio as you can see, and they will out in force at the WPT main event as well.

Player Tags: John Phan,   John Cernuto,   Jeff Shulman,   Barry Shulman,   Scott Clements

Barry Shulman Eliminated

Oct 01, '10

Card Player publisher Barry Shulman has busted out of the tournament.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Barry Shulman Takes a Hit

Oct 01, '10

Barry Shulman and one opponent made it to a Q-6-6 flop with two hearts for a 10,200 price of admission. The big blind bet 14,300 and Shulman raised to 35,000. His opponent moved all in for an additional 14,000 and Shulman made the call. Their cards:

Shulman: J 9
Big Blind: A 9

Turn and River: 7 and 2

Shulman doubled up his opponent and dropped to 41,500 after the hand.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Barry Shulman Takes a Hit

Sep 29, '10

Barry Shulman bet 300 from the hijack and the button made the call. Seat 10 made the call under the gun and the flop was dealt Q Q 10. Shulman bet 600 after seat 10 checked and both of his opponents made the call. The turn fell 8 and all three players checked. The 5 was delivered on the river and seat 10 fired out 3,000 under the gun. Shulman and the button mucked and Shulman’s stack fell below the current average after the hand.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Barry Shulman Eliminated

Oct 01, '10

Card Player publisher Barry Shulman has busted out of the tournament.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Barry Shulman Takes a Hit

Oct 01, '10

Barry Shulman and one opponent made it to a Q-6-6 flop with two hearts for a 10,200 price of admission. The big blind bet 14,300 and Shulman raised to 35,000. His opponent moved all in for an additional 14,000 and Shulman made the call. Their cards:

Shulman: J 9
Big Blind: A 9

Turn and River: 7 and 2

Shulman doubled up his opponent and dropped to 41,500 after the hand.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Barry Shulman Takes a Hit

Sep 29, '10

Barry Shulman bet 300 from the hijack and the button made the call. Seat 10 made the call under the gun and the flop was dealt Q Q 10. Shulman bet 600 after seat 10 checked and both of his opponents made the call. The turn fell 8 and all three players checked. The 5 was delivered on the river and seat 10 fired out 3,000 under the gun. Shulman and the button mucked and Shulman’s stack fell below the current average after the hand.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman

Level 11 Update: New Champion for 2010

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 800-1,600 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 82 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Viktor Blom — 430,000
2. Darren Woods — 310,000
3. Thomas Bichon — 290,000
4. Nick Schulman — 279,000
5. Dan Shak — 275,000
6. Phil Ivey — 270,000
7. Barny Boatman — 255,000
8. Andrew Pantling — 240,000
9. Bojan Gledovic — 226,000
10. Daniel Steinberg — 200,000

Average Chip Count: 126,585

Notable Eliminations:

Barry Shulman
Ludovic Lacay
Allen Cunningham
Antonio Esfandiari
McLean Karr

Big Hands:

Defending Champion Out

There will be a brand new champion this year as the last remaining WSOPE main event winner Barry Shulman has hit the rail. Card Player’s publisher and current 2009 WSOPE main event champion’s stack had taken a bit of a beating after Ludovic Lacay doubled up through him despite Shulman holding top pair and a flush draw on the flop when all the chips went in. Lacay had an inside straight draw and although Shulman made trips on the turn, Lacay made his straight on the river.

Shulman had less than 25,000 when he moved all in with A 5 running into Guy Gorelik’s 8 8. The board came K 7 3 2 K and the eights were enough to take it.

Lacay was soon crippled by Daniel Steinberg, and left shortly after at the hands of Guy Gorelik.

Ivey Bleeding Chips

Phil Ivey has had a bit of a rough level. In his latest encounter, we caught the action with a board of K 5 10 2 6 and about 53,000 in the pot. Bojan Gledovic bets 40,000 and Ivey goes into the tank. He does not look happy. Ivey stares at Gledovic and eventually Gledovic puts his heads in his hands and looks down. After a good few minutes Ivey makes the call but mucks his hands when Gledovic flips over pocket sixes for a set. Ivey now has 210,000 in chips just before the end of the level.

Tough Time for Tilly

Jennifer Tilly’s stack is another that is dwindling. Tilly bets 4,500 from the hijack and Darren Woods (one of the current chip leaders) raises it to 12,000 from the button. Tilly puts another 20,000 out making it 24,500 and Woods tanks for a few minutes. He then puts out a 100,000 stack of reds while declaring, “All in.” Tilly thinks for a bit and then mucks. Woods is now on over 380,000.

It hasn’t helped Tilly that Viktor Blom is now sitting on her left. Many have been at the mercy of Blom throughout the day on the upper level of the Casino at The Empire, and now he is taking on the downstairs area. With 25,000 in the pot and the board showing A 5 2 3 Tilly bets 11,000 and Blom makes it 36,500. Tilly folds and sits back in her chair. Blom drags in the chips to his ever-growing stack.

J.C. Busted by Golser’s Quads

Markus Golser bet 3,600 preflop on the button and J.c. Tran made the call on the small blind. The flop rolled out 10 9 4 and Tran checked. Golser bet 5,000 and Tran raised to 15,000. Golser moved all in and Tran made the all-in call. Their cards:

Tran: Q J
Golser: 9 9

Turn and River: brick and 9

Golser scored quads on the river and Tran was sent home before the final break of the night began.

Daniel Negreanu Takes a Hit but Still Kicking

Daniel Negreanu raised to 4,600 preflop and Remy Biechel made the call. The flop fell J 10 3 and Negreanu bet 4,500. Biechel made the call and the river fell 9. Both players checked and Negreanu flipped over J 10. Biechel revealed pocket threes for a set and he took down the pot to grow his stack to 100,000. Negreanu fell slightly to 115,000, but the player with the best performance record in the history of this event is still doing fine as he plays deep into the WSOP Europe field once again.

Player Tags: J.C. Tran,   Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman,   Phil Ivey,   Jennifer Tilly,   Ludovic Lacay,   Viktor Blom

Level 8 Update: Phil Ivey Near the Top

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 153 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 190,000
2 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
3 Nicolas Levi — 183,000
4 John Dolan — 175,000
5 Darren Woods — 161,000
6 James Keys — 160,000
7 Phil Ivey — 160,000
8 McLean Karr — 160,000
9 Hoyt Corkins — 150,000
10 Steven van Zadelhoff — 146,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 95,000

Average Chip Count: 67,843

Notable Eliminations:

Ben Roberts
Sam Trickett
Erik Seidel
Sam Stein
Jason Mercier
Faraz Jaka
Isabelle Mercier
Kevin MacPhee
Alexander Kravchenko

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman on the Comeback Trail

On a board that read Q 7 4 3 Barry Shulman moved all in for 54,300 under the gun and Ludovic Lacay went into the tank on the big blind. Lacay considered the call with a nice pot already sitting on the table but he mucked his cards and Shulman collected the chips.

A few hands later Shulman bet 5,000 from the small blind into a 6,500 pot with a J 10 5 3. The cutoff made the call and the river fell J. Both players checked and Shulman flipped over K J. His opponent mucked and Shulman grew his stack to 95,000 after the hand.

Phil Ivey Rising

Phil Ivey bet 3,600 on a 10 9 8 flop and Simon Haggins made the call. The 2 fell on the turn and Ivey bet 11,000. Haggins made the call again and the river fell 3. Ivey bet 30,000 and Haggins mucked Q Q face up on the table. Ivey added the chips to his stack and he now holds 160,000 as one of the chip leaders.

Greenstein Triples Up

Dan Shak raises to 2,100 from under the gun + 1 position and Canadian Yann Dion next to him makes it 5,900. Barry Greenstein bets 31,000 and Shak moves all in. Dion who covers both players calls and the cards are flipped over:

Shak: A A
Dion: K K
Greenstein: A Q

The board comes out 9 6 5 8 4 giving Greenstein a flush and tripling him up to 95,000. Shak now has 80,000, while Dion’s stack has been decimated. He now has just 38,000 in chips remaining.

Faraz Jaka all but Eliminated

Bryn Kenney raised to 2,000 under the gun and Faraz Jaka, Markus Golser and J.C. Tran made the call. John Eames raised to 30,000 from the small blind Kenney mucked. Jaka went into the tank and after a few moments he moved all in. Golser and Tran mucked and Eames made the all-in call. Their cards:

Jaka: 9 9
Eames: A K

Board: A 3 2 10 4

Eames doubled up and Jaka was left with just 3,800, which he soon shipped into the middle and lost to bust out of the tournament.

Left in the Deck

CardPlayer TV — Intro to Day 2

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Barry Shulman,   Ludovic Lacay

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 3 Update: Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 150-300

Players Remaining: 189 out of 210 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Andrew Pantling — 85,000
2. Markus Golser — 82,000
3. Antonio Esfandiari — 66,000
4. Brian Powell — 60,000
5. Nikolay Evdakov — 59,000
6. Eli Elezra — 58,000
7. Jim Collopy — 55,000
8. Steve Brecher — 54,000
9. Carlos Mortensen — 53,000
10. JP Kelly — 53,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 50,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count: 33,333

Notable Eliminations:

Richard Ashby
Dan Heimiller
Frank Kassela
Robert Mizrachi
Vanessa Rousso

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Barry Shulman doubled up during the third level of the day when he flopped a set of sixes on an 8-7-6 flop. An opponent tried to make a move against Shulman with nothing in the hole but blanks and Shulman snapped him off. Shulman doubled up to 50,000 after the hand, which sets him up for a nice run through the rest of day 1B.

Dan Heimiller Eliminated

Dan Heimiller limped from the small blind and Dan Shak raised to 1,100 from the big blind. Heimiller made the call and the flop ran out 4-3-2 with two spades. Hemiller bet 1,200 and Shak raised to 3,500.

Heimiller made the call and the turn brought another 4. Heimiller checked, Shak bet 6,000, and Heimiller called. The river brought a 10 and Heimiller checked again. Shak bet enough to put Heimiller all in and he made the call for his final 12,000.

Shak flipped over pocket tens and Heimiller was knocked out of tournament.

David Steicke Takes a Hit

Brian Powell raised to 800 from the cutoff and David Steicke reraised to 2,000 from the button. Both players checked through a J 9 9 10 board before Steicke bet 3,600 on the turn and Powell made the call.

The 9 fell on the river and both players checked. Powell flipped over J 7 for a full house and Steicke mucked. Powell grew his stack to 60,000 after the hand while Steicke fell back to where he started with 30,000.

Lacay Takes a Hit

Ludovic Lacay bets 800 from the hijack and the cut-off raises it to a little more than 2,000. Lacay calls and the chips are quickly pulled into the pot. The flop falls A Q 10 and Lacay bets 3,150. The cut-off calls and the turn is the 9. Lacay bets 6,600 and the cut-off goes into the tank. He counts out 6,600 and puts it to one side. He then counts the rest of his chips and takes the 6,600 up in his hand. Suddenly he moves all in and Lacay looks bewildered. He gestures as if to say, “What the ??!!”

After a minute of thought he calls, flipping over Q Q. His opponent shows A A for the better set, and then an unnecessary K is dealt on the river, giving him a straight. Lacay has 26,000 and his opponent exhales deeply while counting out his 64,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Daniel Shak,   Ludovic Lacay,   David Steicke,   Dan Heimiller

Level 1 Update: Early Movers and Shakers

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 50-100

Players Remaining: 200 out of 200 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. David Benyamine — 65,000
2. Andrew Pantling — 55,000
3. Carlos Mortensen — 44,000
4. Ludovic Lacay — 42,000
5. Eli Elezra — 41,000
6. John Dolan — 35,000
7. Tom Dwan — 30,000
8. Phil Ivey — 30,000
9. Daniel Negreanu — 30,000
10. Phil Laak – 30,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 34,000

Average Chip Count:

30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Saar Wilf

Big Hands:

Defending Champ Chops It Up

Defending champion Barry Shulman found himself all in in the first level against Andy Frankenberger. However, fortunately both players were left relatively unscathed. With blinds at 50-100, the player in mid-position raised to 300. Frankenberger called, as did Shulman from the small blind. The big blind also came along for the ride and the flop came down 10-10-4.

Shulman checked, the big blind bet 450, and the original bettor folded. Frankenberger made the call and then Shulman raised it up to 2,000. The two players called and the turn was a 7. Shulman bet 10,000 and the big blind folded. Frankenberger called and the river was a 4. Shulman then shoved all in and saw a call from Frankenberger. The river card meant the two would see a chopped pot as Shulman held A-10 and Frankenberger held Q-10.

A lucky escape for Frankenberger as both players’ stacks hover around the 35,000 mark.

Early Skirmish

An unusually large pot transpired during the opening minute of play when Eli Elezra bet 1,000 on a 9 6 2 flop. Juha Helppi made the call under the gun and Robert Cooper raised to 3,000.

The turn fell A and all three players checked. The 4 was brought down the pipe by the river and Elezra bet 7,000. Helppi made the call and Cooper mucked K K face up on the table. Helppi flipped over the A but Elezra countered with A 6 and he won the pot to take an early lead with 41,000.

David Benyamine Eliminates Saar Wilf

After minimal action to open the pot, a 10-8-6 flop sat on the table with two hearts when David Benyamine bet and Saar Wilf made the call. The turn brought a 4 and Benyamine bet again. This time Wilf raised and Benyamine reraised all in.

Wilf made the call for his tournament life and flipped over pocket tens for the set. Benyamine revealed 7-5 for a straight and he won the hand, grew his stack to 65,000, and eliminated Wilf.

Carlos Mortensen on the Rise

Carlos Mortensen bet 10,000 into a pot of equal size with a board of A 10 5 8 A sitting on the table. Elijah Berg went into the tank and eventually made the call. Berg when Mortensen revealed A 10 to win the pot and grow his stack to 45,000.

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,   Carlos Mortensen,   Eli Elezra,   Barry Shulman,   Andy Frankenberger

Day 1A Begins at 7 a.m. EST

Sep 23, '10

The World Series of Poker Europe £10,000 no-limit hold’em championship event kicks off Thursday at the Casino at the Empire in London.

Day 1A begins at noon BST (4 a.m. PDT) and day 1B will begin at the same time on Friday. The 6-day event will conclude on Sept. 28.

Players will begin with 30,000 in tournament chips, and blinds start off at 50-100. Each level will last 90 minutes, with a 20-minute break after each. A 90-minute dinner break will take place after 4 levels of play each day.

Last year’s main event featured 334 players and was won by Card Player publisher Barry Shulman after a grueling heads-up war with Daniel Negreanu. Shulman took home WSOP gold and the £801,603 (US $1,321,534) first-place prize.

Previous WSOP Europe main event winners include Annette Obrestad in 2007 and John Juanda in 2008.

Here’s a look at the 2010 WSOPE championship structure

Thursday, Sept. 23: Day 1A (Play 6 levels)
Friday, Sept. 24: Day 1B (Play 6 levels)
Saturday, Sept. 25: Day 2 (Play 6 levels)
Sunday, Sept. 26: Day 3 (Play down to 27 players)
Monday, Sept. 27: Day 4 (Play down to final table)
Tuesday, Sept. 28: Final Table

Card Player will feature full live coverage from the championship event, including live updates, chip counts, photos, and videos from CardPlayer TV.

Player Tags: Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman

Level 11 Update: New Champion for 2010

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 800-1,600 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 82 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Viktor Blom — 430,000
2. Darren Woods — 310,000
3. Thomas Bichon — 290,000
4. Nick Schulman — 279,000
5. Dan Shak — 275,000
6. Phil Ivey — 270,000
7. Barny Boatman — 255,000
8. Andrew Pantling — 240,000
9. Bojan Gledovic — 226,000
10. Daniel Steinberg — 200,000

Average Chip Count: 126,585

Notable Eliminations:

Barry Shulman
Ludovic Lacay
Allen Cunningham
Antonio Esfandiari
McLean Karr

Big Hands:

Defending Champion Out

There will be a brand new champion this year as the last remaining WSOPE main event winner Barry Shulman has hit the rail. Card Player’s publisher and current 2009 WSOPE main event champion’s stack had taken a bit of a beating after Ludovic Lacay doubled up through him despite Shulman holding top pair and a flush draw on the flop when all the chips went in. Lacay had an inside straight draw and although Shulman made trips on the turn, Lacay made his straight on the river.

Shulman had less than 25,000 when he moved all in with A 5 running into Guy Gorelik’s 8 8. The board came K 7 3 2 K and the eights were enough to take it.

Lacay was soon crippled by Daniel Steinberg, and left shortly after at the hands of Guy Gorelik.

Ivey Bleeding Chips

Phil Ivey has had a bit of a rough level. In his latest encounter, we caught the action with a board of K 5 10 2 6 and about 53,000 in the pot. Bojan Gledovic bets 40,000 and Ivey goes into the tank. He does not look happy. Ivey stares at Gledovic and eventually Gledovic puts his heads in his hands and looks down. After a good few minutes Ivey makes the call but mucks his hands when Gledovic flips over pocket sixes for a set. Ivey now has 210,000 in chips just before the end of the level.

Tough Time for Tilly

Jennifer Tilly’s stack is another that is dwindling. Tilly bets 4,500 from the hijack and Darren Woods (one of the current chip leaders) raises it to 12,000 from the button. Tilly puts another 20,000 out making it 24,500 and Woods tanks for a few minutes. He then puts out a 100,000 stack of reds while declaring, “All in.” Tilly thinks for a bit and then mucks. Woods is now on over 380,000.

It hasn’t helped Tilly that Viktor Blom is now sitting on her left. Many have been at the mercy of Blom throughout the day on the upper level of the Casino at The Empire, and now he is taking on the downstairs area. With 25,000 in the pot and the board showing A 5 2 3 Tilly bets 11,000 and Blom makes it 36,500. Tilly folds and sits back in her chair. Blom drags in the chips to his ever-growing stack.

J.C. Busted by Golser’s Quads

Markus Golser bet 3,600 preflop on the button and J.c. Tran made the call on the small blind. The flop rolled out 10 9 4 and Tran checked. Golser bet 5,000 and Tran raised to 15,000. Golser moved all in and Tran made the all-in call. Their cards:

Tran: Q J
Golser: 9 9

Turn and River: brick and 9

Golser scored quads on the river and Tran was sent home before the final break of the night began.

Daniel Negreanu Takes a Hit but Still Kicking

Daniel Negreanu raised to 4,600 preflop and Remy Biechel made the call. The flop fell J 10 3 and Negreanu bet 4,500. Biechel made the call and the river fell 9. Both players checked and Negreanu flipped over J 10. Biechel revealed pocket threes for a set and he took down the pot to grow his stack to 100,000. Negreanu fell slightly to 115,000, but the player with the best performance record in the history of this event is still doing fine as he plays deep into the WSOP Europe field once again.

Player Tags: J.C. Tran,   Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman,   Phil Ivey,   Jennifer Tilly,   Ludovic Lacay,   Viktor Blom

Level 8 Update: Phil Ivey Near the Top

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 153 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 190,000
2 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
3 Nicolas Levi — 183,000
4 John Dolan — 175,000
5 Darren Woods — 161,000
6 James Keys — 160,000
7 Phil Ivey — 160,000
8 McLean Karr — 160,000
9 Hoyt Corkins — 150,000
10 Steven van Zadelhoff — 146,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 95,000

Average Chip Count: 67,843

Notable Eliminations:

Ben Roberts
Sam Trickett
Erik Seidel
Sam Stein
Jason Mercier
Faraz Jaka
Isabelle Mercier
Kevin MacPhee
Alexander Kravchenko

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman on the Comeback Trail

On a board that read Q 7 4 3 Barry Shulman moved all in for 54,300 under the gun and Ludovic Lacay went into the tank on the big blind. Lacay considered the call with a nice pot already sitting on the table but he mucked his cards and Shulman collected the chips.

A few hands later Shulman bet 5,000 from the small blind into a 6,500 pot with a J 10 5 3. The cutoff made the call and the river fell J. Both players checked and Shulman flipped over K J. His opponent mucked and Shulman grew his stack to 95,000 after the hand.

Phil Ivey Rising

Phil Ivey bet 3,600 on a 10 9 8 flop and Simon Haggins made the call. The 2 fell on the turn and Ivey bet 11,000. Haggins made the call again and the river fell 3. Ivey bet 30,000 and Haggins mucked Q Q face up on the table. Ivey added the chips to his stack and he now holds 160,000 as one of the chip leaders.

Greenstein Triples Up

Dan Shak raises to 2,100 from under the gun + 1 position and Canadian Yann Dion next to him makes it 5,900. Barry Greenstein bets 31,000 and Shak moves all in. Dion who covers both players calls and the cards are flipped over:

Shak: A A
Dion: K K
Greenstein: A Q

The board comes out 9 6 5 8 4 giving Greenstein a flush and tripling him up to 95,000. Shak now has 80,000, while Dion’s stack has been decimated. He now has just 38,000 in chips remaining.

Faraz Jaka all but Eliminated

Bryn Kenney raised to 2,000 under the gun and Faraz Jaka, Markus Golser and J.C. Tran made the call. John Eames raised to 30,000 from the small blind Kenney mucked. Jaka went into the tank and after a few moments he moved all in. Golser and Tran mucked and Eames made the all-in call. Their cards:

Jaka: 9 9
Eames: A K

Board: A 3 2 10 4

Eames doubled up and Jaka was left with just 3,800, which he soon shipped into the middle and lost to bust out of the tournament.

Left in the Deck

CardPlayer TV — Intro to Day 2

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Barry Shulman,   Ludovic Lacay

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 3 Update: Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 150-300

Players Remaining: 189 out of 210 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Andrew Pantling — 85,000
2. Markus Golser — 82,000
3. Antonio Esfandiari — 66,000
4. Brian Powell — 60,000
5. Nikolay Evdakov — 59,000
6. Eli Elezra — 58,000
7. Jim Collopy — 55,000
8. Steve Brecher — 54,000
9. Carlos Mortensen — 53,000
10. JP Kelly — 53,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 50,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count: 33,333

Notable Eliminations:

Richard Ashby
Dan Heimiller
Frank Kassela
Robert Mizrachi
Vanessa Rousso

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Barry Shulman doubled up during the third level of the day when he flopped a set of sixes on an 8-7-6 flop. An opponent tried to make a move against Shulman with nothing in the hole but blanks and Shulman snapped him off. Shulman doubled up to 50,000 after the hand, which sets him up for a nice run through the rest of day 1B.

Dan Heimiller Eliminated

Dan Heimiller limped from the small blind and Dan Shak raised to 1,100 from the big blind. Heimiller made the call and the flop ran out 4-3-2 with two spades. Hemiller bet 1,200 and Shak raised to 3,500.

Heimiller made the call and the turn brought another 4. Heimiller checked, Shak bet 6,000, and Heimiller called. The river brought a 10 and Heimiller checked again. Shak bet enough to put Heimiller all in and he made the call for his final 12,000.

Shak flipped over pocket tens and Heimiller was knocked out of tournament.

David Steicke Takes a Hit

Brian Powell raised to 800 from the cutoff and David Steicke reraised to 2,000 from the button. Both players checked through a J 9 9 10 board before Steicke bet 3,600 on the turn and Powell made the call.

The 9 fell on the river and both players checked. Powell flipped over J 7 for a full house and Steicke mucked. Powell grew his stack to 60,000 after the hand while Steicke fell back to where he started with 30,000.

Lacay Takes a Hit

Ludovic Lacay bets 800 from the hijack and the cut-off raises it to a little more than 2,000. Lacay calls and the chips are quickly pulled into the pot. The flop falls A Q 10 and Lacay bets 3,150. The cut-off calls and the turn is the 9. Lacay bets 6,600 and the cut-off goes into the tank. He counts out 6,600 and puts it to one side. He then counts the rest of his chips and takes the 6,600 up in his hand. Suddenly he moves all in and Lacay looks bewildered. He gestures as if to say, “What the ??!!”

After a minute of thought he calls, flipping over Q Q. His opponent shows A A for the better set, and then an unnecessary K is dealt on the river, giving him a straight. Lacay has 26,000 and his opponent exhales deeply while counting out his 64,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Daniel Shak,   Ludovic Lacay,   David Steicke,   Dan Heimiller

Level 1 Update: Early Movers and Shakers

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 50-100

Players Remaining: 200 out of 200 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. David Benyamine — 65,000
2. Andrew Pantling — 55,000
3. Carlos Mortensen — 44,000
4. Ludovic Lacay — 42,000
5. Eli Elezra — 41,000
6. John Dolan — 35,000
7. Tom Dwan — 30,000
8. Phil Ivey — 30,000
9. Daniel Negreanu — 30,000
10. Phil Laak – 30,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 34,000

Average Chip Count:

30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Saar Wilf

Big Hands:

Defending Champ Chops It Up

Defending champion Barry Shulman found himself all in in the first level against Andy Frankenberger. However, fortunately both players were left relatively unscathed. With blinds at 50-100, the player in mid-position raised to 300. Frankenberger called, as did Shulman from the small blind. The big blind also came along for the ride and the flop came down 10-10-4.

Shulman checked, the big blind bet 450, and the original bettor folded. Frankenberger made the call and then Shulman raised it up to 2,000. The two players called and the turn was a 7. Shulman bet 10,000 and the big blind folded. Frankenberger called and the river was a 4. Shulman then shoved all in and saw a call from Frankenberger. The river card meant the two would see a chopped pot as Shulman held A-10 and Frankenberger held Q-10.

A lucky escape for Frankenberger as both players’ stacks hover around the 35,000 mark.

Early Skirmish

An unusually large pot transpired during the opening minute of play when Eli Elezra bet 1,000 on a 9 6 2 flop. Juha Helppi made the call under the gun and Robert Cooper raised to 3,000.

The turn fell A and all three players checked. The 4 was brought down the pipe by the river and Elezra bet 7,000. Helppi made the call and Cooper mucked K K face up on the table. Helppi flipped over the A but Elezra countered with A 6 and he won the pot to take an early lead with 41,000.

David Benyamine Eliminates Saar Wilf

After minimal action to open the pot, a 10-8-6 flop sat on the table with two hearts when David Benyamine bet and Saar Wilf made the call. The turn brought a 4 and Benyamine bet again. This time Wilf raised and Benyamine reraised all in.

Wilf made the call for his tournament life and flipped over pocket tens for the set. Benyamine revealed 7-5 for a straight and he won the hand, grew his stack to 65,000, and eliminated Wilf.

Carlos Mortensen on the Rise

Carlos Mortensen bet 10,000 into a pot of equal size with a board of A 10 5 8 A sitting on the table. Elijah Berg went into the tank and eventually made the call. Berg when Mortensen revealed A 10 to win the pot and grow his stack to 45,000.

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,   Carlos Mortensen,   Eli Elezra,   Barry Shulman,   Andy Frankenberger

Day 1A Begins at 7 a.m. EST

Sep 23, '10

The World Series of Poker Europe £10,000 no-limit hold’em championship event kicks off Thursday at the Casino at the Empire in London.

Day 1A begins at noon BST (4 a.m. PDT) and day 1B will begin at the same time on Friday. The 6-day event will conclude on Sept. 28.

Players will begin with 30,000 in tournament chips, and blinds start off at 50-100. Each level will last 90 minutes, with a 20-minute break after each. A 90-minute dinner break will take place after 4 levels of play each day.

Last year’s main event featured 334 players and was won by Card Player publisher Barry Shulman after a grueling heads-up war with Daniel Negreanu. Shulman took home WSOP gold and the £801,603 (US $1,321,534) first-place prize.

Previous WSOP Europe main event winners include Annette Obrestad in 2007 and John Juanda in 2008.

Here’s a look at the 2010 WSOPE championship structure

Thursday, Sept. 23: Day 1A (Play 6 levels)
Friday, Sept. 24: Day 1B (Play 6 levels)
Saturday, Sept. 25: Day 2 (Play 6 levels)
Sunday, Sept. 26: Day 3 (Play down to 27 players)
Monday, Sept. 27: Day 4 (Play down to final table)
Tuesday, Sept. 28: Final Table

Card Player will feature full live coverage from the championship event, including live updates, chip counts, photos, and videos from CardPlayer TV.

Player Tags: Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman

Level 11 Update: New Champion for 2010

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 800-1,600 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 82 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Viktor Blom — 430,000
2. Darren Woods — 310,000
3. Thomas Bichon — 290,000
4. Nick Schulman — 279,000
5. Dan Shak — 275,000
6. Phil Ivey — 270,000
7. Barny Boatman — 255,000
8. Andrew Pantling — 240,000
9. Bojan Gledovic — 226,000
10. Daniel Steinberg — 200,000

Average Chip Count: 126,585

Notable Eliminations:

Barry Shulman
Ludovic Lacay
Allen Cunningham
Antonio Esfandiari
McLean Karr

Big Hands:

Defending Champion Out

There will be a brand new champion this year as the last remaining WSOPE main event winner Barry Shulman has hit the rail. Card Player’s publisher and current 2009 WSOPE main event champion’s stack had taken a bit of a beating after Ludovic Lacay doubled up through him despite Shulman holding top pair and a flush draw on the flop when all the chips went in. Lacay had an inside straight draw and although Shulman made trips on the turn, Lacay made his straight on the river.

Shulman had less than 25,000 when he moved all in with A 5 running into Guy Gorelik’s 8 8. The board came K 7 3 2 K and the eights were enough to take it.

Lacay was soon crippled by Daniel Steinberg, and left shortly after at the hands of Guy Gorelik.

Ivey Bleeding Chips

Phil Ivey has had a bit of a rough level. In his latest encounter, we caught the action with a board of K 5 10 2 6 and about 53,000 in the pot. Bojan Gledovic bets 40,000 and Ivey goes into the tank. He does not look happy. Ivey stares at Gledovic and eventually Gledovic puts his heads in his hands and looks down. After a good few minutes Ivey makes the call but mucks his hands when Gledovic flips over pocket sixes for a set. Ivey now has 210,000 in chips just before the end of the level.

Tough Time for Tilly

Jennifer Tilly’s stack is another that is dwindling. Tilly bets 4,500 from the hijack and Darren Woods (one of the current chip leaders) raises it to 12,000 from the button. Tilly puts another 20,000 out making it 24,500 and Woods tanks for a few minutes. He then puts out a 100,000 stack of reds while declaring, “All in.” Tilly thinks for a bit and then mucks. Woods is now on over 380,000.

It hasn’t helped Tilly that Viktor Blom is now sitting on her left. Many have been at the mercy of Blom throughout the day on the upper level of the Casino at The Empire, and now he is taking on the downstairs area. With 25,000 in the pot and the board showing A 5 2 3 Tilly bets 11,000 and Blom makes it 36,500. Tilly folds and sits back in her chair. Blom drags in the chips to his ever-growing stack.

J.C. Busted by Golser’s Quads

Markus Golser bet 3,600 preflop on the button and J.c. Tran made the call on the small blind. The flop rolled out 10 9 4 and Tran checked. Golser bet 5,000 and Tran raised to 15,000. Golser moved all in and Tran made the all-in call. Their cards:

Tran: Q J
Golser: 9 9

Turn and River: brick and 9

Golser scored quads on the river and Tran was sent home before the final break of the night began.

Daniel Negreanu Takes a Hit but Still Kicking

Daniel Negreanu raised to 4,600 preflop and Remy Biechel made the call. The flop fell J 10 3 and Negreanu bet 4,500. Biechel made the call and the river fell 9. Both players checked and Negreanu flipped over J 10. Biechel revealed pocket threes for a set and he took down the pot to grow his stack to 100,000. Negreanu fell slightly to 115,000, but the player with the best performance record in the history of this event is still doing fine as he plays deep into the WSOP Europe field once again.

Player Tags: J.C. Tran,   Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman,   Phil Ivey,   Jennifer Tilly,   Ludovic Lacay,   Viktor Blom

Level 8 Update: Phil Ivey Near the Top

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 153 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 190,000
2 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
3 Nicolas Levi — 183,000
4 John Dolan — 175,000
5 Darren Woods — 161,000
6 James Keys — 160,000
7 Phil Ivey — 160,000
8 McLean Karr — 160,000
9 Hoyt Corkins — 150,000
10 Steven van Zadelhoff — 146,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 95,000

Average Chip Count: 67,843

Notable Eliminations:

Ben Roberts
Sam Trickett
Erik Seidel
Sam Stein
Jason Mercier
Faraz Jaka
Isabelle Mercier
Kevin MacPhee
Alexander Kravchenko

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman on the Comeback Trail

On a board that read Q 7 4 3 Barry Shulman moved all in for 54,300 under the gun and Ludovic Lacay went into the tank on the big blind. Lacay considered the call with a nice pot already sitting on the table but he mucked his cards and Shulman collected the chips.

A few hands later Shulman bet 5,000 from the small blind into a 6,500 pot with a J 10 5 3. The cutoff made the call and the river fell J. Both players checked and Shulman flipped over K J. His opponent mucked and Shulman grew his stack to 95,000 after the hand.

Phil Ivey Rising

Phil Ivey bet 3,600 on a 10 9 8 flop and Simon Haggins made the call. The 2 fell on the turn and Ivey bet 11,000. Haggins made the call again and the river fell 3. Ivey bet 30,000 and Haggins mucked Q Q face up on the table. Ivey added the chips to his stack and he now holds 160,000 as one of the chip leaders.

Greenstein Triples Up

Dan Shak raises to 2,100 from under the gun + 1 position and Canadian Yann Dion next to him makes it 5,900. Barry Greenstein bets 31,000 and Shak moves all in. Dion who covers both players calls and the cards are flipped over:

Shak: A A
Dion: K K
Greenstein: A Q

The board comes out 9 6 5 8 4 giving Greenstein a flush and tripling him up to 95,000. Shak now has 80,000, while Dion’s stack has been decimated. He now has just 38,000 in chips remaining.

Faraz Jaka all but Eliminated

Bryn Kenney raised to 2,000 under the gun and Faraz Jaka, Markus Golser and J.C. Tran made the call. John Eames raised to 30,000 from the small blind Kenney mucked. Jaka went into the tank and after a few moments he moved all in. Golser and Tran mucked and Eames made the all-in call. Their cards:

Jaka: 9 9
Eames: A K

Board: A 3 2 10 4

Eames doubled up and Jaka was left with just 3,800, which he soon shipped into the middle and lost to bust out of the tournament.

Left in the Deck

CardPlayer TV — Intro to Day 2

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Barry Shulman,   Ludovic Lacay

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 3 Update: Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 150-300

Players Remaining: 189 out of 210 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. Andrew Pantling — 85,000
2. Markus Golser — 82,000
3. Antonio Esfandiari — 66,000
4. Brian Powell — 60,000
5. Nikolay Evdakov — 59,000
6. Eli Elezra — 58,000
7. Jim Collopy — 55,000
8. Steve Brecher — 54,000
9. Carlos Mortensen — 53,000
10. JP Kelly — 53,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 50,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman — 25,000

Average Chip Count: 33,333

Notable Eliminations:

Richard Ashby
Dan Heimiller
Frank Kassela
Robert Mizrachi
Vanessa Rousso

Big Hands:

Barry Shulman Doubles Up

Barry Shulman doubled up during the third level of the day when he flopped a set of sixes on an 8-7-6 flop. An opponent tried to make a move against Shulman with nothing in the hole but blanks and Shulman snapped him off. Shulman doubled up to 50,000 after the hand, which sets him up for a nice run through the rest of day 1B.

Dan Heimiller Eliminated

Dan Heimiller limped from the small blind and Dan Shak raised to 1,100 from the big blind. Heimiller made the call and the flop ran out 4-3-2 with two spades. Hemiller bet 1,200 and Shak raised to 3,500.

Heimiller made the call and the turn brought another 4. Heimiller checked, Shak bet 6,000, and Heimiller called. The river brought a 10 and Heimiller checked again. Shak bet enough to put Heimiller all in and he made the call for his final 12,000.

Shak flipped over pocket tens and Heimiller was knocked out of tournament.

David Steicke Takes a Hit

Brian Powell raised to 800 from the cutoff and David Steicke reraised to 2,000 from the button. Both players checked through a J 9 9 10 board before Steicke bet 3,600 on the turn and Powell made the call.

The 9 fell on the river and both players checked. Powell flipped over J 7 for a full house and Steicke mucked. Powell grew his stack to 60,000 after the hand while Steicke fell back to where he started with 30,000.

Lacay Takes a Hit

Ludovic Lacay bets 800 from the hijack and the cut-off raises it to a little more than 2,000. Lacay calls and the chips are quickly pulled into the pot. The flop falls A Q 10 and Lacay bets 3,150. The cut-off calls and the turn is the 9. Lacay bets 6,600 and the cut-off goes into the tank. He counts out 6,600 and puts it to one side. He then counts the rest of his chips and takes the 6,600 up in his hand. Suddenly he moves all in and Lacay looks bewildered. He gestures as if to say, “What the ??!!”

After a minute of thought he calls, flipping over Q Q. His opponent shows A A for the better set, and then an unnecessary K is dealt on the river, giving him a straight. Lacay has 26,000 and his opponent exhales deeply while counting out his 64,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Daniel Shak,   Ludovic Lacay,   David Steicke,   Dan Heimiller

Level 1 Update: Early Movers and Shakers

Sep 24, '10

Blinds: 50-100

Players Remaining: 200 out of 200 (unofficial)

Chip Counts:

1. David Benyamine — 65,000
2. Andrew Pantling — 55,000
3. Carlos Mortensen — 44,000
4. Ludovic Lacay — 42,000
5. Eli Elezra — 41,000
6. John Dolan — 35,000
7. Tom Dwan — 30,000
8. Phil Ivey — 30,000
9. Daniel Negreanu — 30,000
10. Phil Laak – 30,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 34,000

Average Chip Count:

30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Saar Wilf

Big Hands:

Defending Champ Chops It Up

Defending champion Barry Shulman found himself all in in the first level against Andy Frankenberger. However, fortunately both players were left relatively unscathed. With blinds at 50-100, the player in mid-position raised to 300. Frankenberger called, as did Shulman from the small blind. The big blind also came along for the ride and the flop came down 10-10-4.

Shulman checked, the big blind bet 450, and the original bettor folded. Frankenberger made the call and then Shulman raised it up to 2,000. The two players called and the turn was a 7. Shulman bet 10,000 and the big blind folded. Frankenberger called and the river was a 4. Shulman then shoved all in and saw a call from Frankenberger. The river card meant the two would see a chopped pot as Shulman held A-10 and Frankenberger held Q-10.

A lucky escape for Frankenberger as both players’ stacks hover around the 35,000 mark.

Early Skirmish

An unusually large pot transpired during the opening minute of play when Eli Elezra bet 1,000 on a 9 6 2 flop. Juha Helppi made the call under the gun and Robert Cooper raised to 3,000.

The turn fell A and all three players checked. The 4 was brought down the pipe by the river and Elezra bet 7,000. Helppi made the call and Cooper mucked K K face up on the table. Helppi flipped over the A but Elezra countered with A 6 and he won the pot to take an early lead with 41,000.

David Benyamine Eliminates Saar Wilf

After minimal action to open the pot, a 10-8-6 flop sat on the table with two hearts when David Benyamine bet and Saar Wilf made the call. The turn brought a 4 and Benyamine bet again. This time Wilf raised and Benyamine reraised all in.

Wilf made the call for his tournament life and flipped over pocket tens for the set. Benyamine revealed 7-5 for a straight and he won the hand, grew his stack to 65,000, and eliminated Wilf.

Carlos Mortensen on the Rise

Carlos Mortensen bet 10,000 into a pot of equal size with a board of A 10 5 8 A sitting on the table. Elijah Berg went into the tank and eventually made the call. Berg when Mortensen revealed A 10 to win the pot and grow his stack to 45,000.

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,   Carlos Mortensen,   Eli Elezra,   Barry Shulman,   Andy Frankenberger

Day 1A Begins at 7 a.m. EST

Sep 23, '10

The World Series of Poker Europe £10,000 no-limit hold’em championship event kicks off Thursday at the Casino at the Empire in London.

Day 1A begins at noon BST (4 a.m. PDT) and day 1B will begin at the same time on Friday. The 6-day event will conclude on Sept. 28.

Players will begin with 30,000 in tournament chips, and blinds start off at 50-100. Each level will last 90 minutes, with a 20-minute break after each. A 90-minute dinner break will take place after 4 levels of play each day.

Last year’s main event featured 334 players and was won by Card Player publisher Barry Shulman after a grueling heads-up war with Daniel Negreanu. Shulman took home WSOP gold and the £801,603 (US $1,321,534) first-place prize.

Previous WSOP Europe main event winners include Annette Obrestad in 2007 and John Juanda in 2008.

Here’s a look at the 2010 WSOPE championship structure

Thursday, Sept. 23: Day 1A (Play 6 levels)
Friday, Sept. 24: Day 1B (Play 6 levels)
Saturday, Sept. 25: Day 2 (Play 6 levels)
Sunday, Sept. 26: Day 3 (Play down to 27 players)
Monday, Sept. 27: Day 4 (Play down to final table)
Tuesday, Sept. 28: Final Table

Card Player will feature full live coverage from the championship event, including live updates, chip counts, photos, and videos from CardPlayer TV.

Player Tags: Daniel Negreanu,   Barry Shulman

Level 14, Hour One: Cantu And Antonius Chipping Up

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 400 ante

Players Remaining: 1,035 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 212,144

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 101,500
Jon Freidberg — 80,000
Shannon Shorr — 391,000
Tony Dunst — 323,500
Matt Matros — 312,400
Josh Brikis — 541,000
Andrew Brokos — 360,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. James Carroll – 787,500
2. Imari Love – 750,000
3. Johnny Lodden – 750,000
4. Gerasimos Deres – 733,700
5. Filippo Candio – 727,300
6. Max Casal – 704,000
7. Arie Kliper – 666,200
8. Johnny Chan – 636,000
9. Alexander Kostritsyn – 625,000
10. Rafal Michalowski – 620,000

Notable Eliminations:

Barry Shulman
Blair Rodman

Big Hands:

Cantu Takes In The Lights Of Broadway

Brandon Cantu raised preflop and the button was the only caller. Both players then saw a flop of KQ10.

Both players checked and the turn was the 4 and Cantu led for 11,500. His opponent made the call and they saw the 10 land on the river.

Cantu fired 30,700 and his opponent eventually made the call. Cantu then turned over AJ for a flopped Broadway-straight. His opponent mucked and Cantu took the pot. He was at 350,000.

The Harder They Fall

Filippo Candido raised to 6,200 from under the gun and Sam Farha made the call. The action folded around to Christian Harder in the big blind and he shoved for about 90,000.

Candido made the call and Farha got out of the way as Harder turned over AK, dominating Candido’s AQ.

The board ran out J73JK and Harder doubled up to 190,000.

Shorr Drops One

In a battle of the blinds, Shannon Shorr raised to 6,600 from the small blind. The big blind then repopped to 16,000 and Shorr made the call.

Both players saw the flop come down 942 and they both checked. The turn was the 6 and Shorr led out with 13,100. The big blind called and the river was the 5.

Both players checked and Shorr tabled A6. It was no good as the big blind tabled pocket queens to take down the pot. Shorr was down to 415,000.

Kassela Chips Up

Picking up the action after the flop came down 10107, Frank Kassela bet 7,500 and the button made the call. The turn was the 4 and Kassela checked.

The button bet 10,000 and Kassela called. The river was the Q and both players checked. Kassela then tabled 74 for tens and sevens and he took down the pot. He was at 270,000.

Antonius At A Quarter Mil

Patrik Antonius moved all in from the small blind and the big blind decided to put himself at risk by making the call.

Antonius: A8
Big Blind: A2

Antonius was dominating and the flop came down A96, giving Antonius a stranglehold on the hand. The turn was the 3, a blank. The river was the 8, giving Antonius an unnecessary two pair and he scored the knockout. He was at 250,000.

Rolf Slotboom Takes Big Hit

There was a flurry of raises preflop which ended up with Rolf Slotboom calling the all-in bet of his opponent for 67,000.

Slotboom showed QQ and was way behind his opponent’s KK.

“There are lots of queens in that deck,” pleaded Slotboom as the dealer dealt out the A36 fop. “Queen, Queen, Queen, save the best for last,” Slotboom continued.

The turn was the 9 and the river was the A and Slotboom dropped to just 54,000.

Shulman Eliminated

Barry Shulman committed the last of his chips on a flop of Q68 and found some bad news.

Shulman showed A6 and was trailing his opponent’s KQ. Shulman would need to hit his five-outer to keep his main event hopes alive, but the 4 on the turn and the 5 on the river sent Shulman home just shy of the money.

Matt Matros Takes One

We got to the table as the flop was being dealt and there was already well over 100,000 in the middle.

The flop came out AJ4 and a player in the blinds checked over to Matt Matros who bet out 55,000. That sent the player in the blinds deep into the tank before finally folding.

Matros took the pot and cracked the 300,000 mark as his stack grew to 325,000.

Full House For Bellande

The board read 10936 when Jean-Robert Bellande and Andrew Brown got all of the money in the middle.

Bellande was way ahead of Brown when he showed the 33 for a flopped set of threes and Brown was left with just unimproved KK. The river was the 9, which filled up Bellande and he doubled up to 255,000 in chips and Brown fell to 360,000.

Kostritsyn Wins a Big Pot

The player in the hijack seat checked over to Alexander Kostritsyn on the button with the flop reading Q910.

Kostritsyn bet 15,000, the hijack seat raised to 31,400 and Kostritsyn made the call. The turn was the 9 and the hijack bet out 44,700, which was called by Kostritsyn.

The river was the J and both players checked. Kostritsyn showed QJ and his opponent showed a complete bluff when he tabled the 7-6.

Nguyen Scores a Double Up

It was a battle of the blinds when the player in the small blind raised and Scotty Nguyen put in a three-bet from the big blind. Nguyen had put in nearly all of his chips and apparently, the small blind thought all of them were in as he made the call and tabled A-J.

“I’m not all-in, baby,” said Scotty as the dealer put out a flop of 2-2-4. They got the rest of his chips in the middle and Nguyen showed pocket queens. The queen on the turn assured Nguyen’s double up and he is up to 140,000.

Player Tags: Frank Kassela,   Barry Shulman,   Jean-Robert Bellande,   Patrik Antonius,   Shannon Shorr,   Brandon Cantu,   Rolf Slotboom,   Christian Harder

Level 13 Hour Two Update: Boatman Ousted, Greenstein Doubles

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 1,200-2,400 with a 300 ante

Players Remaining: 1,125 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 195,173

Card Player Chip Counts

Barry Shulman — 170,000
Adam Schoenfeld — 80,000
Jon Freidberg — 106,000
Shannon Shorr — 431,500
Tony Dunst — 400,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. James Carroll – 803,000
2. Imari Love – 741,100
3. Gerasimos Deres – 733,700
4. Filippo Candio – 727,300
5. Max Casal – 687,200
6. Arie Kilper – 666,200
7. Andrew Brown – 657,700
8. Johnny Lodden – 656,400
9. Johnny Chan – 636,000
10. Josh Brikis – 616,900

Notable Eliminations:

Barny Boatman
Matt Savage
Kathy Liebert

Big Hands:

Barny Boatman’s Day 4 Cut Short

On one of the first hands of the day, Barny Boatman moved all in for 54,800 after the flop had come down 842. One player called and then Chad Wutke reshoved for 120,000 more to isolate Boatman.

It worked as the other player mucked and Wutke tabled 99 for an overpair. Boatman tabled 65 for an inside straight draw.

The turn and river each added a queen to the board, bricking out for Boatman and he was eliminated early on.

Shorr-line Drive

Picking up the action after the board had run out 33243 a player was all in for 30,000.

Shannon Shorr was putting him at risk with pocket jacks and they held up against the ace-king of the all in player.

Shorr scored the knockout and he was at 431,500.

Duke Slips

Picking up the action after the flop came down QQ9, the cutoff fired 7,400 and Annie Duke made the call from the button.

The turn was the K and both players checked. The river was 8 and the action was checked to Duke. She bet 11,000 and the cutoff made the call.

Duke mucked as her opponent showed AK for two pair. She was down to about 140,000.

Schoenberg Folds to Aggression

The player under-the-gun raised to 7,500 and the player in the cutoff made the call. Erica Schoenberg was in the small blind and decided to make it an additional 16,000.

The under-the-gun player called and the cutoff tanked for two minutes before making the fold. The flop came 963 and Schoenberg led out for 26,500.

After just a few seconds, her opponent made it 65,500, which essentially put Schoenberg to a decision for her stack. Schoenberg took a few minutes before letting her hand go and she dropped to 70,000 in chips.

Greenstein Doubles

Barry Greenstein got all-in preflop and was a huge favorite for his tournament life.

Greenstein showed QQ and his opponent showed 99. The flop was huge for Greenstein as it came K8Q and Greenstein had his opponent drawing to runners.

The turn was the 9, which gave his opponent a lesser set, and one out going to the river. The river was the 4 and Greenstein doubled up to 158,000.

South’s Stack Moves South

Cole South raised to 5,500 and called a three-bet to 17,500 from the player on the button.

The flop came Q62 and both players checked. The turn was the 8 and South checked and called a bet of 25,000 from his opponent. The river was the J and both players checked again.

South showed pocket nines, but his opponent got there on the river when he showed the J9. South now has 457,000 in chips.

Cunningham Gets Rockets to Double

Allen Cunningham scored a double up when he got all-in preflop with AA and his opponent held AK.

The board ran out 103585 and Cunningham doubled up to 175,000.

Savage Eliminated

Vitaly Lunkin raised to 6,000 under-the-gun and Matt Savage moved all-in for his last 35,000. It folded to David Frazee on the button who moved all-in over the top and had Lunkin covered.

Lunkin went deep into the tank for quite a while. Eventually, after double checking his cards, he tossed his hand into the muck. Frazee and Savage went to showdown and Savage didn’t like what he saw.

Savage had AQ and was up against Frazee’s KK. The board came out 29562 and Savage was eliminated.

Shulman Drops A Big One

Picking up the action on the turn, the board read J839 and the player in seat 3 fired 36,000 into a pot holding over 70,000.

Barry Shulman threw in the call and the river was the Q. Seat 3 fired another bet, this one about 56,000. Shulman made the call as the ESPN cameras looked on.

Seat 3 tabled JJ for top set on the flop and Shulman simply mucked. He was down to 170,000 after the hand.

Tran Takes One Down

After the board ran out A9786, Theo Tran fired 25,500 into a pot holding about 70,000.

His opponent in seat 1 thought it over but then threw his hand in the muck, surrendering the pot to Tran.

Tran added to his stack with the win and he was at 195,000.

Player Tags: Annie Duke,   Barry Greenstein,   Allen Cunningham,   Barry Shulman,   Barny Boatman,   Shannon Shorr,   Theo Tran,   Erica Schoenberg,   Cole South

Level Five, Hour One: Shulman Climbing The Chip Counts

Jul 05, '10

Blinds: 200-400 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 819 of 1,125

Average Chip Count: 41,200

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Dwyen Ringbauer – 186,500
2. Michael Mizrachi – 127,000
3. Austin McCormick – 120,000
4. Kristoffer Thorsson – 118,000
5. Giuliano Cipolla – 117,000
6. Corwin Cole – 107,000
7. Ognjen Sekularac – 98,000
8. Tyler Smith – 95,000
9. Chris Moneymaker – 93,000
10. Barry Shulman – 86,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman – 86,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman – 27,500
Adam Schoenfeld – 25,200
Lee Watkinson – 28,000
Shannon Shorr – 35,200
Mark Gregorich – 40,250
Diego Cordovez -7,000
Justin Marchand – 33,000

Players Twitter Accounts:

Barry Shulman
Erik Seidel
Maria Ho
Chris Moorman
Mike Caro
Jamie Rosen

Notable Eliminations:

Shawn Marion
Beth Shak

Big Hands:

Shulman Hits His Ace

Barry Shulman raised to 1,200 and was called by a player behind him and a player in the blinds.

The flop came 36J and the player in the blinds checked and called a bet of3,000 from Shulman.

The turn was the A and the same player check-called 7,000. The river was the A and both players checked. Shulman showed A9 and the player in the blind showed pocket tens.

Shulman boosted his stack to 90,000 with the pot.

Hennigan Drops One

The player on the button raised to 925. John Hennigan called from the small blind and the two saw a flop of AK2. Hennigan checked and called a bet of 1,300 and the 9 came on the turn.

Hennigan checked again and this time folded when his opponent bet 2,150. Hennigan dropped to 65,000 in chips with the loss.

Allemann’s Third Bullet Works

Anton Allemann raised to 800 from middle position. The big blind made the call and checked. dark.

The flop was J75 and Allemann bet 1,500 and was called by the player in the big blind. The turn was the 3 and the big blind checked again. Allemann bet again, this time 3,500 and was called.

The river was the 7h and the big blind checked fro a third time. Allemann bet 15,000 and the big blind finally let his hand go.

Mueller Mucks to Fours

Greg Mueller called an early position raise to 1,125 from the cutoff.

The button called as well and the flop came Q52. The first player checked, Mueller bet 1,100, the button called, and the original raiser mucked.

The turn was the 10 and Mueller bet 3,500 and was called.

The river was the 2 and both players checked. Mueller mucked his hand when the button tabled 44. Mueller dropped to 11,500.

McGowan Cracks a Set

We caught up with the action on a flop of K610 and Kevin McGowan called the all-in shove from his opponent.

McGowan showed J10 and his opponent tabled 66, good for a set.

“Wow! I have no outs,” said McGowan. That is, until the dealer turned over the A on the turn, giving McGowan a straight draw. The bad beat was completed on the river when the Q fell, giving McGowan the nut straight.

Shawn Marion Can’t Hold On

On a flop of AQ7, Shawn Marion bet out 2,000 and was check-raised to 7,000 by the player in the small blind.

After a little questioning by Marion, he made the call and the two saw the 5 land on the turn. The small blind moved all-in and Marion called off his last 7,800.

Marion showed AK, giving him top pair with top kicker, but his opponent showed pocket sevens, giving him a set.

The river was a meaningless 10 and the Dallas Mavericks star was eliminated at the end of day 1.

Player Tags: Greg Mueller,   Barry Shulman,   John Hennigan,   Anton Allemann

Level 14, Hour One: Cantu And Antonius Chipping Up

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 400 ante

Players Remaining: 1,035 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 212,144

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 101,500
Jon Freidberg — 80,000
Shannon Shorr — 391,000
Tony Dunst — 323,500
Matt Matros — 312,400
Josh Brikis — 541,000
Andrew Brokos — 360,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. James Carroll – 787,500
2. Imari Love – 750,000
3. Johnny Lodden – 750,000
4. Gerasimos Deres – 733,700
5. Filippo Candio – 727,300
6. Max Casal – 704,000
7. Arie Kliper – 666,200
8. Johnny Chan – 636,000
9. Alexander Kostritsyn – 625,000
10. Rafal Michalowski – 620,000

Notable Eliminations:

Barry Shulman
Blair Rodman

Big Hands:

Cantu Takes In The Lights Of Broadway

Brandon Cantu raised preflop and the button was the only caller. Both players then saw a flop of KQ10.

Both players checked and the turn was the 4 and Cantu led for 11,500. His opponent made the call and they saw the 10 land on the river.

Cantu fired 30,700 and his opponent eventually made the call. Cantu then turned over AJ for a flopped Broadway-straight. His opponent mucked and Cantu took the pot. He was at 350,000.

The Harder They Fall

Filippo Candido raised to 6,200 from under the gun and Sam Farha made the call. The action folded around to Christian Harder in the big blind and he shoved for about 90,000.

Candido made the call and Farha got out of the way as Harder turned over AK, dominating Candido’s AQ.

The board ran out J73JK and Harder doubled up to 190,000.

Shorr Drops One

In a battle of the blinds, Shannon Shorr raised to 6,600 from the small blind. The big blind then repopped to 16,000 and Shorr made the call.

Both players saw the flop come down 942 and they both checked. The turn was the 6 and Shorr led out with 13,100. The big blind called and the river was the 5.

Both players checked and Shorr tabled A6. It was no good as the big blind tabled pocket queens to take down the pot. Shorr was down to 415,000.

Kassela Chips Up

Picking up the action after the flop came down 10107, Frank Kassela bet 7,500 and the button made the call. The turn was the 4 and Kassela checked.

The button bet 10,000 and Kassela called. The river was the Q and both players checked. Kassela then tabled 74 for tens and sevens and he took down the pot. He was at 270,000.

Antonius At A Quarter Mil

Patrik Antonius moved all in from the small blind and the big blind decided to put himself at risk by making the call.

Antonius: A8
Big Blind: A2

Antonius was dominating and the flop came down A96, giving Antonius a stranglehold on the hand. The turn was the 3, a blank. The river was the 8, giving Antonius an unnecessary two pair and he scored the knockout. He was at 250,000.

Rolf Slotboom Takes Big Hit

There was a flurry of raises preflop which ended up with Rolf Slotboom calling the all-in bet of his opponent for 67,000.

Slotboom showed QQ and was way behind his opponent’s KK.

“There are lots of queens in that deck,” pleaded Slotboom as the dealer dealt out the A36 fop. “Queen, Queen, Queen, save the best for last,” Slotboom continued.

The turn was the 9 and the river was the A and Slotboom dropped to just 54,000.

Shulman Eliminated

Barry Shulman committed the last of his chips on a flop of Q68 and found some bad news.

Shulman showed A6 and was trailing his opponent’s KQ. Shulman would need to hit his five-outer to keep his main event hopes alive, but the 4 on the turn and the 5 on the river sent Shulman home just shy of the money.

Matt Matros Takes One

We got to the table as the flop was being dealt and there was already well over 100,000 in the middle.

The flop came out AJ4 and a player in the blinds checked over to Matt Matros who bet out 55,000. That sent the player in the blinds deep into the tank before finally folding.

Matros took the pot and cracked the 300,000 mark as his stack grew to 325,000.

Full House For Bellande

The board read 10936 when Jean-Robert Bellande and Andrew Brown got all of the money in the middle.

Bellande was way ahead of Brown when he showed the 33 for a flopped set of threes and Brown was left with just unimproved KK. The river was the 9, which filled up Bellande and he doubled up to 255,000 in chips and Brown fell to 360,000.

Kostritsyn Wins a Big Pot

The player in the hijack seat checked over to Alexander Kostritsyn on the button with the flop reading Q910.

Kostritsyn bet 15,000, the hijack seat raised to 31,400 and Kostritsyn made the call. The turn was the 9 and the hijack bet out 44,700, which was called by Kostritsyn.

The river was the J and both players checked. Kostritsyn showed QJ and his opponent showed a complete bluff when he tabled the 7-6.

Nguyen Scores a Double Up

It was a battle of the blinds when the player in the small blind raised and Scotty Nguyen put in a three-bet from the big blind. Nguyen had put in nearly all of his chips and apparently, the small blind thought all of them were in as he made the call and tabled A-J.

“I’m not all-in, baby,” said Scotty as the dealer put out a flop of 2-2-4. They got the rest of his chips in the middle and Nguyen showed pocket queens. The queen on the turn assured Nguyen’s double up and he is up to 140,000.

Player Tags: Frank Kassela,   Barry Shulman,   Jean-Robert Bellande,   Patrik Antonius,   Shannon Shorr,   Brandon Cantu,   Rolf Slotboom,   Christian Harder

Level 13 Hour Two Update: Boatman Ousted, Greenstein Doubles

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 1,200-2,400 with a 300 ante

Players Remaining: 1,125 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 195,173

Card Player Chip Counts

Barry Shulman — 170,000
Adam Schoenfeld — 80,000
Jon Freidberg — 106,000
Shannon Shorr — 431,500
Tony Dunst — 400,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. James Carroll – 803,000
2. Imari Love – 741,100
3. Gerasimos Deres – 733,700
4. Filippo Candio – 727,300
5. Max Casal – 687,200
6. Arie Kilper – 666,200
7. Andrew Brown – 657,700
8. Johnny Lodden – 656,400
9. Johnny Chan – 636,000
10. Josh Brikis – 616,900

Notable Eliminations:

Barny Boatman
Matt Savage
Kathy Liebert

Big Hands:

Barny Boatman’s Day 4 Cut Short

On one of the first hands of the day, Barny Boatman moved all in for 54,800 after the flop had come down 842. One player called and then Chad Wutke reshoved for 120,000 more to isolate Boatman.

It worked as the other player mucked and Wutke tabled 99 for an overpair. Boatman tabled 65 for an inside straight draw.

The turn and river each added a queen to the board, bricking out for Boatman and he was eliminated early on.

Shorr-line Drive

Picking up the action after the board had run out 33243 a player was all in for 30,000.

Shannon Shorr was putting him at risk with pocket jacks and they held up against the ace-king of the all in player.

Shorr scored the knockout and he was at 431,500.

Duke Slips

Picking up the action after the flop came down QQ9, the cutoff fired 7,400 and Annie Duke made the call from the button.

The turn was the K and both players checked. The river was 8 and the action was checked to Duke. She bet 11,000 and the cutoff made the call.

Duke mucked as her opponent showed AK for two pair. She was down to about 140,000.

Schoenberg Folds to Aggression

The player under-the-gun raised to 7,500 and the player in the cutoff made the call. Erica Schoenberg was in the small blind and decided to make it an additional 16,000.

The under-the-gun player called and the cutoff tanked for two minutes before making the fold. The flop came 963 and Schoenberg led out for 26,500.

After just a few seconds, her opponent made it 65,500, which essentially put Schoenberg to a decision for her stack. Schoenberg took a few minutes before letting her hand go and she dropped to 70,000 in chips.

Greenstein Doubles

Barry Greenstein got all-in preflop and was a huge favorite for his tournament life.

Greenstein showed QQ and his opponent showed 99. The flop was huge for Greenstein as it came K8Q and Greenstein had his opponent drawing to runners.

The turn was the 9, which gave his opponent a lesser set, and one out going to the river. The river was the 4 and Greenstein doubled up to 158,000.

South’s Stack Moves South

Cole South raised to 5,500 and called a three-bet to 17,500 from the player on the button.

The flop came Q62 and both players checked. The turn was the 8 and South checked and called a bet of 25,000 from his opponent. The river was the J and both players checked again.

South showed pocket nines, but his opponent got there on the river when he showed the J9. South now has 457,000 in chips.

Cunningham Gets Rockets to Double

Allen Cunningham scored a double up when he got all-in preflop with AA and his opponent held AK.

The board ran out 103585 and Cunningham doubled up to 175,000.

Savage Eliminated

Vitaly Lunkin raised to 6,000 under-the-gun and Matt Savage moved all-in for his last 35,000. It folded to David Frazee on the button who moved all-in over the top and had Lunkin covered.

Lunkin went deep into the tank for quite a while. Eventually, after double checking his cards, he tossed his hand into the muck. Frazee and Savage went to showdown and Savage didn’t like what he saw.

Savage had AQ and was up against Frazee’s KK. The board came out 29562 and Savage was eliminated.

Shulman Drops A Big One

Picking up the action on the turn, the board read J839 and the player in seat 3 fired 36,000 into a pot holding over 70,000.

Barry Shulman threw in the call and the river was the Q. Seat 3 fired another bet, this one about 56,000. Shulman made the call as the ESPN cameras looked on.

Seat 3 tabled JJ for top set on the flop and Shulman simply mucked. He was down to 170,000 after the hand.

Tran Takes One Down

After the board ran out A9786, Theo Tran fired 25,500 into a pot holding about 70,000.

His opponent in seat 1 thought it over but then threw his hand in the muck, surrendering the pot to Tran.

Tran added to his stack with the win and he was at 195,000.

Player Tags: Annie Duke,   Barry Greenstein,   Allen Cunningham,   Barry Shulman,   Barny Boatman,   Shannon Shorr,   Theo Tran,   Erica Schoenberg,   Cole South

Level Five, Hour One: Shulman Climbing The Chip Counts

Jul 05, '10

Blinds: 200-400 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 819 of 1,125

Average Chip Count: 41,200

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Dwyen Ringbauer – 186,500
2. Michael Mizrachi – 127,000
3. Austin McCormick – 120,000
4. Kristoffer Thorsson – 118,000
5. Giuliano Cipolla – 117,000
6. Corwin Cole – 107,000
7. Ognjen Sekularac – 98,000
8. Tyler Smith – 95,000
9. Chris Moneymaker – 93,000
10. Barry Shulman – 86,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman – 86,000
Allyn Jaffrey Shulman – 27,500
Adam Schoenfeld – 25,200
Lee Watkinson – 28,000
Shannon Shorr – 35,200
Mark Gregorich – 40,250
Diego Cordovez -7,000
Justin Marchand – 33,000

Players Twitter Accounts:

Barry Shulman
Erik Seidel
Maria Ho
Chris Moorman
Mike Caro
Jamie Rosen

Notable Eliminations:

Shawn Marion
Beth Shak

Big Hands:

Shulman Hits His Ace

Barry Shulman raised to 1,200 and was called by a player behind him and a player in the blinds.

The flop came 36J and the player in the blinds checked and called a bet of3,000 from Shulman.

The turn was the A and the same player check-called 7,000. The river was the A and both players checked. Shulman showed A9 and the player in the blind showed pocket tens.

Shulman boosted his stack to 90,000 with the pot.

Hennigan Drops One

The player on the button raised to 925. John Hennigan called from the small blind and the two saw a flop of AK2. Hennigan checked and called a bet of 1,300 and the 9 came on the turn.

Hennigan checked again and this time folded when his opponent bet 2,150. Hennigan dropped to 65,000 in chips with the loss.

Allemann’s Third Bullet Works

Anton Allemann raised to 800 from middle position. The big blind made the call and checked. dark.

The flop was J75 and Allemann bet 1,500 and was called by the player in the big blind. The turn was the 3 and the big blind checked again. Allemann bet again, this time 3,500 and was called.

The river was the 7h and the big blind checked fro a third time. Allemann bet 15,000 and the big blind finally let his hand go.

Mueller Mucks to Fours

Greg Mueller called an early position raise to 1,125 from the cutoff.

The button called as well and the flop came Q52. The first player checked, Mueller bet 1,100, the button called, and the original raiser mucked.

The turn was the 10 and Mueller bet 3,500 and was called.

The river was the 2 and both players checked. Mueller mucked his hand when the button tabled 44. Mueller dropped to 11,500.

McGowan Cracks a Set

We caught up with the action on a flop of K610 and Kevin McGowan called the all-in shove from his opponent.

McGowan showed J10 and his opponent tabled 66, good for a set.

“Wow! I have no outs,” said McGowan. That is, until the dealer turned over the A on the turn, giving McGowan a straight draw. The bad beat was completed on the river when the Q fell, giving McGowan the nut straight.

Shawn Marion Can’t Hold On

On a flop of AQ7, Shawn Marion bet out 2,000 and was check-raised to 7,000 by the player in the small blind.

After a little questioning by Marion, he made the call and the two saw the 5 land on the turn. The small blind moved all-in and Marion called off his last 7,800.

Marion showed AK, giving him top pair with top kicker, but his opponent showed pocket sevens, giving him a set.

The river was a meaningless 10 and the Dallas Mavericks star was eliminated at the end of day 1.

Player Tags: Greg Mueller,   Barry Shulman,   John Hennigan,   Anton Allemann