| Jul 07, '09 |
2009 40th Annual World Series of Poker |
$10,000 World Series of Poker Main Event |
2 |
+ |
Level 8 Hour 2 Update: Brad Garrett Eliminated
Jul 07, '09
Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante
Players Remaining: 740 out of 1476
Chip Counts:
1. Samer Rahman – 322,000
2. Greg Mueller – 250,000
3. Andy Black – 182,000
4. Mike Sexton – 170,000
5. Chris Ferguson – 155,000
6. Tom Schneider – 141,000
7. Juha Helppi – 140,000
8. Jani Sointula – 135,000
9. Vitaly Lunkin – 132,000
10. Greg Raymer – 118,000
CardPlayer Chip Counts:
Ciaran O’Leary – 31,400
Average Chip Count Day 2A: 80,635
Notable Eliminations:
Jeff Williams
Brad Garrett
Big Hands:

Carlos Mortensen Out Kicked
Carlos Mortensen limped in from the cutoff and the button folded. The small blind called and the big blind checked. Three players saw a flop of A 6 3 and both blinds checked to Mortensen. The former main event event champion bet 1,500 and the small blind called with 4-5 for an open ended straight draw. The big blind called with the A 9 and Mortensen was trailing with the A 77 . The 3 hit the turn and both blinds checked once again. Mortensen quickly fired out a bet of 2,500 which was again quickly called by both blinds. The 3 fell on the river and Mortensen once again found action checked to him. He threw out a small bet of 3,500 which prompted the small blind to much his missed draw and the big blind called quickly. Mortensen found out the bad news after he exposed his A-7. Mortensen is down to 33,000.
Joe Awada Doubles Up Opponent
Joe Awada raised to 1,500 under the gun and action folded around to the small blind who went into the tank. With only 1,500 left in his stack, the small blind had just enough to make Awada’s call. He eventually called all in and tabled the J 9 while Awada exposed the A 7 . The board ran out K 6 4 9 K and Awada’s opponent won with a pair of nines. Awada is down to 34,000.

Erik Seidel Doubles Up
Erik Seidel bet 8,000 after a flop of J 8 2 and was called by an opponent. The Q hit the turn and Seidel moved all in. His opponent quickly called and tabled the K Q for top pair and flush draw. Seidel was ahead with his A A but needed to dodge many cards in order to double up. The 10 on the river was good news for Seidel as he doubled to 56,000.
Jim Bechtel Wins Another
Jim Bechtel checked on a board of 5 3 2 to his opponent on the button. The button threw out a bet of 7,000 and Bechtel called. The 3 hit the turn and the action went check-check. The K fell on the river and Bechtel checked for a third time. The button bet 10,000 and Bechtel thought about it briefly before making the call with the J J , with no club. His opponent tabled the A Q and was no good as Bechtel picked off his bluff. Bechtel is now at 95,000.

Brad Garrett Eliminated
On a board of Q 4 3 A 9 the cutoff bet 20,200 and Brad Garrett went into the tank in middle position. He went back and forth on his decision for a few minutes while a wall of people surrounded the table to watch his antics. He eventually made the all-in call and flipped over Q J . His opponent turned up Q 9 amnd Garrett was eliminated from the tournament.
Left in the Deck
Before he was eliminated from the tournament Brad Garrett was making quite an impression during the evening’s play. The ESPN cameras were eating it up, and Garrett was able to produce a consistent line of chuckles from the players who were along for the ride with him at his table, including former world champion Berry Johnston. At one point, Garrett exclaimed, “Change the rhythm, everybody stand,” and his table played a hand standing up just to mix things up. His table is much quieter now and the ESPN cameras are no longer around after his absence.
Player Tags: Erik Seidel, Carlos Mortensen, Joe Awada, Brad Garrett, Jim Bechtel
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| Jul 05, '08 |
2008 39th Annual World Series of Poker |
Event 54 - World Championship No-Limit Hold'em |
3 |
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$10,000 Main Event - Day 1C - Level 5, Hour 2
Jul 05, '08
Blinds/Antes: 200/400/50
Day 1C Players Remaining: 1,071 of 1,928
Chip Leaders:
Henning Granstad - 228,000
Arnaud Mattern - 167,000
Howard Berchowitz - 161,000
David Baker - 159,000
Joe Marcal - 143,000
Russell Rosenblum - 141,000
Mike Souza - 136,000
Serj Markarian - 132,000
David Singer - 129,000
Andrew Tisler - 119,000
Notable Eliminations: David Plastik, Andre Akkari, Phil Collins, T.J. Cloutier, Marcel Luske, Sabyl Landrum.
Big Hands and Storylines:
Sklansky Clings to Life
It’s been a slow day for David Sklansky, and it hasn’t picked up any steam in the final level. He has been hovering around the 10,000 chip count for the past few hours, and couldn’t do anything with his blinds in a recent rotation. As big blind, he saw a player in middle position raise to 1050. Sklansky, already in for 400, made the call. After the flop came J 8 7 , he folded to a bet of 1,550. He then limped for another 400 the next hand as small blind, but dodged out of the way when the flop came 5 3 2 . As it turned out, a player pushed all-in with the Q 9 , was called by a set of fives, then the board ran out J A for the running flush. Sklansky then folded his button and now sits at 9,500.
Binger and Singer in a Zinger of a Humdinger
In the blue section of the Amazon Room, one table became particularly stacked when Card Player P.O.Y. contender Michael Binger joined 2008 World Series of Poker bracelet winner David Singer’s table. The media hovered close by to capture any and all action between the two notable players. In one hand, Binger raised to a total of 1,100 from under the gun, and Singer called as the player next to act. All other players folded, and the flop came down 8 6 5 . Binger continued his aggression by firing a bet of 1,800 into the pot, causing Singer to release his hand. Singer remained one of the tournament’s largest stacks with over 100,000 in chips, while Binger hovered around 35,000 throughout most of the level.
Jacob turns trips and collects more chips
With the board A Q J J , Alex Jacob bet 2,100 and was called immediately by his opponent. The river was the 7 and Jacob bet 4,600. This time his opponent took a moment to think it over. but he made the call in the end, and Jacob flipped over J 10 to take the pot. After the hand Jacob has roughly 20,000 chips.
Awada dodges disaster
With the board 8 7 2 , Joe Awada raised his opponent's bet of 2,000 to 5,000. His opponent reraised all in, and Awada was clearly frustrated with his situation. He folded J 8 and after initially hesitating his opponent flipped over 8 8 . But he can't feel too good about his fold; Awada has just 12,000 chips and is at risk of elimination any time he plays a hand.
When You're Hot . . .
A player in late position raised to 1200 and Brad Booth, on the button, made the call, as did the big blind. The flop came Q J 9 , and after the first two players checked Booth fired out 3500. The big blind called and the original raiser folded. The 3 fell on the turn, and the big blind checked. Booth, perhaps sensing a trap, checked behind. The river was the 10 , creating a four-card straight on board. The big blind checked and Booth bet 5000. The big blind, obviously frustrated by the river, called and flipped over J J for a set. That was suddenly in second place however, as Booth held 8 7 for the bottom end straight.
Player Tags: David Singer, David Sklansky, Joe Awada, Brad Booth, Michael Binger, Alex Jacob
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| Jun 30, '08 |
2008 39th Annual World Series of Poker |
Event 52 - No-Limit Hold'em |
1 |
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$1,500 No Limit Hold'em - Laak Taking Some Hits
Jun 30, '08
Blinds/Antes: 100-200
Players Left: 2,180 of 2,700
Chip Leaders:
Bryan Devonshire: 15,000
Phil Laak: 14,000
Grant Levy: 12,800
Erica Schoenberg: 12,000
Allen Le: 12,000
Tom Schneider: 11,500
Morgan Machina: 11,000
Chris Ferguson: 9,400
Benjamin Fineman: 7,900
Average Stack: 3,707
Big Hands:
Little K.O.'s Big Slick
Jonathan Little got an opponent all in and showed 8 8 and was up against A K . The flop came J 2 8 to give Little trips. The turn came with the A and the river was the K , giving his opponent top two pair. It was not enough to overcome Little's set, however, and Little was up to 6,000.
Laak Getting Bombed On
Phil Laak was close to 20,000 in chips when the players returned from break. Since then, he has doubled up two people and has seen his stack cut in half.
Dave "Devil Fish" Ulliott was the first to double throught the "Unabomber." On a board that read K 5 5 Q -X, Ulliott showed Q Q for a boat full of ladies. Ulliott improved his stack to 8,000 and Laak was not done doubling up his opponents.
Later in the hour, the player in seat 10 moved all in for 2,400 from the small blind, trying to steal Laak's big blind. Laak would have none of it, however, as he quickly called and turned over A 8 . His opponent was caught with his pants down as he showed J 2 . The flop was harmless as it came 10 8 6 . The Q gave Laak's opponent a gutshot straight draw on the turn. But it was the J on the river that did Laak in and lost another portion of his stack. Laak was around 9,000 after running through that gauntlet.
Jesus Doubles Up... Twice!
Chris Ferguson was moved to a table featuring Young Phan and Joe Awada. Almost immediately after getting there, the man known as "Jesus" went to work.
Ferguson was all in against a player in seat 7. Ferguson showed down Q Q while his opponent showed 9 8 . The board ran out Q J 3 4 5 and Ferguson doubled to around 6,000. "I just wanted to get busted by somebody good," the player in seat 7 said. Unfortunately, he did not get the luxury as he had Ferguson covered by a couple hundred. The player would get eliminated a couple of hands later, though no one knows by who.
As for "Jesus," he was not done. Joe Awada limped in from the cutoff and action folded to Ferguson in the small blind. He made it 900 to go and Awada made the call. The flop came K Q J . Awada raised Ferguson's initial bet of 1,000 to 2,500 total. Ferguson moved all in and Awada made the call, tabling 9 8 for a monster of a drawing hand. Ferguson showed A K for top pair and top kicker, but also took away Awada's straight draw as a 10 would have given "Jesus" a bigger straight. But he still needed to dodge diamonds to stay alive. The turn was the 3 and the river was the 6 and Ferguson was over 10,000 with the double up.
Player Tags: David Ulliott, Chris Ferguson, Phil Laak, Joe Awada, Jonathan Little, European Report
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| Jun 28, '08 |
2008 39th Annual World Series of Poker |
Event 49 - No-Limit Hold'em |
1 |
+ |
Event 49 - $1500 NLHE - Level 7
Jun 28, '08
Blinds: 300-600
Ante: 75
Players Remaining: 440
Average Stack: 18,532
Eliminations: J.J. Liu, Noah Boeken
Notable Hands:
Viva Vivek
The player in seat 4 raised to 2000 and Vivek Rajkumar reraised for an additional 3,500. Seat 4 made the call, and then shoved on the flop, which came 10 10 7 . Rajkumar instantly announced his call, and showed J J . His opponent held only A 4 , and needed help badly to stay alive. The turn and river came 9 6 , seat 4 was eliminated, and Rajkumar added a few more towers of chips to his stack.
Mueller Mauls Another
From early position, one player shoved all in for 3,375. Greg Mueller, sitting behind an imposing wall of chips, mulled things over for a moment before nonchalantly tossing in the call. There were no more takers on the action, and the two players flipped over their cards. Mueller was behind, but live, showing K Q against his opponent's A J . Things steadily improved for Mueller, who got no help on the flop of 6 5 2 , picked up outs for a flush on the turn, 8 , and nailed his overcard on the river, the Q . The player left the table, the last of their chips absorbed by the steadily expanding spread of Mueller's stack.
Awada Makes A Mistake
On the river, with a board reading 5 5 2 A 6 , Joe Awada check-called his opponent's bet of 4,000. His opponent showed A Q , and Awada unhappily tossed his cards into the muck.
Player Tags: Greg Mueller, Joe Awada, Vivek Rajkumar
$1,500 No-Limit Hold'em - Level Five Recap
Jun 28, '08
Blinds/Antes: 100-200-25
Players Remaining: 840 of 2,718
Average Chip Stack: 9,160
Hands and Storylines:
Awada doubles up through Liu
With the board J-J-3-8-9 and roughly 8,000 chips already in the pot, Joe Awada moved all in for 6,525. J.J. Liu thought for a few minutes. She separated the chips from her stack and counted out how many chips she would have remaining if she lost multiple times. Finally, she made the call and Joe Awada flipped over J-9 for a full house. After the hand Awada has 21,000 chips, while Liu was down to 12,000 chips.
Boeken doubles with flush
When Noah Boeken reraised all in and was called, he was understandably worried. But then he saw that his K 10 was in a race against pocket nines, and though he didn't take the lead on the flop, he was optimistic when the flop came A Q 3 . He then took the pot when the 6 came on the turn and doubled up to 9,000 chips, just less than the average.
Rajkumar chips up
Vivek Rajkumar raised to 800 from late position and was called by the big blind. After the flop came K-J-10, Rajkumar bet 1,200 after his opponent checked. He took down the pot with the bet and was up to 14,000 chips after the hand. Earlier in the level he was given a warning when a player was upset he pulled his cards up and allowed others to see them when a player moved all in and another player had yet to act. On that hand Rajkumar folded queens and a player with pocket jacks doubled up through A-K on an A-J-x flop.
Player Tags: Joe Awada, Noah Boeken, Joanne Liu, Vivek Rajkumar
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| Jul 06, '07 |
2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker |
Event 55 - World Championship No-Limit Hold'em |
1 |
+ |
End of Day 1A
Jul 06, '07
Joe Awada Eliminated
On a flop of A  8  7  , Joe Awada pushed all in and got called by seat 8. Awada showed 9  9  , but was in trouble against A  K  . The turn was the 5  , giving Awada straight and flush outs, but the river was the 10  and he angrily slammed the table with his water bottle as he was eliminated. More angry with himself than his opponent, Awada then graciously said goodbye to the table before exiting.
Tobey Maguire Survives
With $4,000 in the pot and a flop of A  7  6  . The cutoff bet out $3,000 and Maguire took a second before reraising all in for an additional $5,200. It appears as though Maguire caught his opponent bluffing because the cutoff folded instantly, giving Maguire some more breathing room.
Zeidman Coolered
After seeing a cheap flop from the big blind, PokerStars qualifier Cory Zeidman bet $1,000 with a K  6  4  7  board and his opponent raised to $3,000. Zeidman called and the 9  on the river Zeidman checked and his opponent bet $3,000. Zeidman called and his opponent revealed the 6  6  for a set of sixes and Zeidman flipped up his K  6  for a big-blind special two pair on the flop.
Ly Doubles
Minh Ly got in a raising war with Dane Lomas with a board of Q  9  2  6  , eventually getting it all-in. Ly held the A  Q  for top pair and the nut flush draw, but Lomas held the 10  6  for a made flush. The river brought the 8  and Ly doubled up with the rivered nuts.
Black Busts
Andrew Black raised to $4,200 from the button and his opponent called from the cutoff. The flop brought the J  10  6  and both players checked. The 8  fell on the turn and the player in the cutoff checked. Black bet $8,000 and his opponent called. The 3  fell on the river and once again the player in the cutoff checked. Black bet $15,000 and his opponent quickly called with 7  7  . Black mucked his hand, clearly frustrated. A few hands later he moved in on a flop of 4-3-3 holding 5-4, only to run into the A-A of an opponent. After the turn and river bricked off Black was sent to the rail.
Player Tags: Minh Ly, Cory Zeidman, Joe Awada, Tobey Maguire, Andy Black
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| Jun 08, '07 |
2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker |
Event 12 - No-Limit Hold'em 6-Handed |
2 |
+ |
Players Staying Aggressive
Jun 08, '07
It only took two minutes to get down to the final 10 tables and only 15 minutes to get to the final 9. On those 9 tables is two particularly stacked ones.
Table 78 is lined with pros, including Eric "Sheets" Haber, Matt "SamENole" Smith, Matt Brady and Fred Goldberg. Table 76 isn't far behind with Rep Porter, Joe Awada, Carl Olson and Matt "Choppy" Kay.
There is a crowd of about 40 people lining the rail near J. C. Tran's table. Although many are looking over to see Erik Seidel and "Miami" John Cernuto at there respective tables as well.
During the level, Carl Olson was able to double through Rep Porter. Porter called Olson's all in showing A  8  , but was dominated by Olson's A  K  . The board came K  7  6  10  3  , and Olson narrowly avoided chopping the pot to double up to around $53,000.
We are also down to our last remaining female participant, Annette Nichols, who is sitting with $95,000.
Player Tags: Erik Seidel, Joe Awada, Carl Olson, Matt Brady, Annette Nichols
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