Hour One log
Jun 05, '07
Setting The Pace
The events that trasnpire during the first 10 hands of a final table will often dictate the pace and style of play. If the first ten hands at this table are any indication, this could be a long one. On the fourth hand of the day Eric Lynch moved all in for $91,000 and Tom Savitsky made the call. Lynch turned over pocket sevens and Savitsky showed Q
3
. The board was dealt 1093
Q3 and Lynch quickly doubled up. A few hands later it was Savitsky who moved all in and William “Bill” Hall made the call. Savitsky flipped over Big Slick and Hall showed Q7. The board was dealt 6
435J and Savitsky doubled his stack thanks to the strength of his ace.
The Price of Admission
The next collection of hands went by with little fanfare and little action, which set the stage for a real chess match at the final table. Players kept trying to build pots up with raises, but flops were far and few between during this stretch. Any pot-limit game is predicated on the ability of players to build up a pot through constant and measured aggression. It’s not like a no-limit game where you can just push all-in at any moment. One pot had been raised and reraised pre-flop until the cost of $140,000 was placed on the price of admission to the flop by Lynch. No one was willing to pay up for the tickets though.
Marco Traniello Eliminated in 9th Place ($14,925)
Marco Traniello raised $50,000 from the cutoff and Gavin Smith reraised $108,000 more from the big blind. Traniello then moved all in for $111,000 on top of Gavin’s raise. Gavin got up from the table and shaked his head. He then made the call and turned over pocket jacks, Traniello showed AK and the board was dealt Q8297. Gavin increased his chip lead and Traniello was eliminated in ninth place on the hand. He took home $14,925 in prize money.
The tournament director then announced the remaining chip counts for the table:
Seat One - Eric Lynch: $240,000
Seat Two - Bill Hill: $380,000
Seat Three - Tom Savitsky: $400,000
Seat Four - Mike Spegal: $230,000
Seat Five - Bruce Vanhorn: $290,000
Seat Six - Jon Friedberg: $120,000
Seat Seven - Jeff Langdon: $360,000
Seat Eight - Gavin Smith: $680,000
Savitsky Doubles Again
On the first hand after Traniello busted Savitsky moved all in for $140,000 and Bruce Vanhorn made the call. Vanhorn flipped over pocket eights and Savitsky showed Q10. The board was dealt Ah56 before the 10 was dealt on the river to save Savitsky from elimination.
Player Tags: Gavin Smith, Marco Traniello, William Hill, Eric Lynch, Tom Savitsky
Day Two Over
Jun 04, '07
The remaining 12 players returned from their dinner break at approximately 9 p.m. refreshed and ready to play some cards. Gavin Smith wasted no time in re-establishing himself as the most vocal player at his table, much to the delight of the crowd gathered on the rail. At one point Smith accused the fans directly behind of rooting for and aiding his opponents across the table. Down the rail, Jennifer Harman has rejoined the crowd to cheer for her husband Marco Traniello.
Play condensed down to one table following the elimination of Nick Binger in 11th place. Binger bet out and Billy Hill raised putting Binger all in. Binger made the call and showed A
Q
. Hill turned over A
A
and the board came K
10
3
6
9
. Binger's elimination trimmed the field down to ten players and one table.
Gavin Smith didn't quiet down at all when the five players from the other table joined his. Bruce Van Horn, seated in the five seat, quickly became the object of Smith's affection. Smith ordered a beer for Van Horn's son Archie who was on the rail and said, "Any friend of Bruce Van Horn is a friend of mine. I assume you are friends with your own kid, right?" Smith folded his next hand and then said, "While we're at it, let's get drinks for everyone at the table. Drinks are on me!"
Once Smith made sure that everyone's drink order had been placed he got down to business. Smith made a pot size bet of $33,000 before the flop and Billy Hill re-bet the pot. Smith responded by pushing all in and Hill hesitated before making the call. Smith showed J
J
and Hill had 8
8
. The board came K
Q
4
K
10
and Smith doubled up to $395,000. A few hands later, Smith continued to roll and was responsible for eliminating John McCarthy in 10th place and ended play for day two. Smith bet out $33,000 and McCarthy raised all in for $42,000 in the one seat. Billy Hill made the call, as did Smith. The flop came 9
8
5
and Smith bet out $60,000. Hill folded and the players turned over their cards. Smith had J
9
and McCarthy had A
Q
. The turn was the 2
and the river was the 3
. As Smith collected his chips McCarthy stood up and said, "It was a pleasure giving my chips to you. I'll be back in two weeks!"
Gavin Smith will be the chip leader at tomorrow's final table with over $480,000. Returning tomorrow in order of chip counts are: Gavin Smith, William Hill, Bruce Van Horn, Jeff Langdon, Marco Traniello, Mike Spiegel, Jon Friedberg, Tom Savitsky and Eric Lynch. The final table will begin at 2 p.m. and
CardPlayer.com will be there for all the action.
Player Tags: Bruce Van Horn, Gavin Smith, Marco Traniello, Jon Friedberg, William Hill, Jeff Langdon, Eric Lynch, Nick Binger, Mike Spegal, Tom Savitsky
