Steve 'Snooze Button' Sung

Thirty-eight players took their seats at the beginning of day three at the World Poker Tour Spanish Championship. The problem with this being that 39 players still remained and the vacant chair belonged to none other than the chip leader, Steve Sung. Sung eventually made his way onto the tournament floor at the Casino Barcelona, he strolled in about 40 minutes after play began and said 'I thought we were at the Castle already,' as a sheepish grin spread across his face. Eric Hershler, the 2006 WPT Los Angeles Poker Classic champion was the first to make his exit on day three quite early, and he was followed to the rail a short time later by Ted Lawson. Lawson was eliminated by the quad tens of Erik Seidel. The money was reached just before one and a half levels of play concluded, but 28 players still remained after the first break, and hand-for-hand play pushed forward. It then took another half hour after the break to lose the money bubble boy. Andrey Zaichenko was the unlucky soul. He was tag teamed by Barny Boatman (who doubled up through Zaichenko) and Gus Hansen (who busted him) on consecutive hands.

Now that everyone was 10,050 euros richer business continued as usual after the bubble. On the way to the dinner break the following players were lost:

27: Richard Da Silva
26: Guillame De La Gorce
25: Lino Cunha
24: Paul Babise
23: Henrik Gwinner
22: Mark Telscher
21: Barney Boatman
20: Kees Alblas

The Gus Hansen Show

It was during this time that Gus Hansen emerged as the big dog in the tournament. He started his climb to the top with an incredible call. On a board of 9547 Raul Mestre bet 30,000 into a 45,000 pot from the button and Gus Hansen took a few minutes to make the call. The river was the 9 and Hansen checked. Mestre announced all in and had Hansen's remaining 114,800 covered. Hansen began to play back the hand, talking himself and the table through the details. "It doesn't make any sense. They always have it, but it just doesn't make sense. I never call in this spot. I just never do it. This would be a sick way to bust, so sick. I think I'll have to kill myself if I don't call here," said Hansen. Hansen was clearly agonizing over the decision, but he couldn’t release his read on Mestre. After a few minutes, Hansen cleared the tension by asking how much money he would make if he folded and moved up one spot. Barny Boatman, who was seated to his right, commented that if Hansen kept on talking, he'd move up three spots. After a few more minutes, Gus called. Mestre gave him a stunned look, asking if he really called. Hansen said yes and Mestre immediately mucked his hand. Hansen showed A7 and wins the massive pot, putting him at 353,000. Mestre was knocked down to 100,000. A few hands later Mestre busted out of the tournament in 19th place. Action was down to two tables of 18 players and that’s where it stayed for quite some time. Hansen continued to climb the leader board and doubled up yet again in another monster pot. Hansen raised to 16,500 and Pascal Perrault reraised to 56,500. Hansen made the call and the flop comes J107. Hansen checked to Perrault, who moved all in for about 300,000. Hansen instantly called all in for his last 280,000, showing J10. Perrault looked devastated as he flipped over pocket aces. The turn and river hit the board 5K and Hansen took the chip lead with 710,000.

With Hansen now firmly in control of the leader board, two familiar faces hit the rail next:

18: Melissa Hayden
17: Steve 'MrSmokey1' Billirakis

The flood gates opened at this point and five players hit the rail in the course one half hour:

16: Mikhail Makarov
15: Pascal Perrault
14: Pasi Heinanen
13: Robin Larsson
12: Guerfi Mesbah

The ebb and flow of the tournament merged back into the slow lane for a while, and then a Great Dane got up to his old tricks: Hansen opened a pot for 26,000 and Juha Helppi called from the big blind. The flop came K73, Hansen bet 26,000, and Helppi raised to 60,000. Hansen reraised to 226,000, which was enough to put Helppi all in, and Helppi called with KJ for a pair of kings. Hansen showed pocket aces for the lead and the last two cards came QA. Hansen rivered a set of aces to win the pot and he increased his chip lead to about 962,000. Helppi was eliminated in 11th place, earning 20,150 euros (approx. $28,577). Action was now down to two five-handed tables and everyone in the room hung on each action to see who would make the final table.

Seidel’s Wild Ride

When the hammer fell the crowd swarmed to table 16. But, they were a little too quick on the trigger because Christer Johansson hit a three-outer with all his chips at risk against Erik Seidel. Johansson spiked a 10 on the board to rescue his dominated A-10 against the A-K of Seidel. The hand crippled Seidel down to 38,000 and the writing was on the wall, the final table was coming very soon to a casino near you. The details of the final hand were a little different than everyone expected though:

Hansen opened the action for 28,000 from middle position and Jean-Baptist Tomi raised to 95,000 in the small blind. Seidel called all in from the big blind and Johansson moved all in over the top of Tomi. Hansen folded and action was back over to Tomi, who made the all-in call. With both his opponents covered, Johansson flipped over AK. Tomi showed down AJ and Seidel flipped up 32. The board rolled out 85492 and Tomi was eliminated on the hand in 10th place (20,150 euros), while Seidel triples up with a pair of twos.
Here is how things looked when the final nine players took their seats:

Seat 1 - Vladimir Poleschchuk - 96,000
Seat 2 - Christer Johansson - 870,000
Seat 3 - Erik Seidel - 117,000
Seat 4 - Steve Sung - 400,000
Seat 5 - Gus Hansen - 722,000
Seat 6 - Ludovic Lacay - 416,000
Seat 7 - Steve Van Zadelhoff - 299,000
Seat 8 - Markus Lehmann - 278,000
Seat 9 - Nick Panopoulos - 199,000

Not surprising in the least, Hansen was active in the early going at the final table, but it wasn’t until hand 15 that things really heated up at the final table. Sung raised from middle position to 32,000, Hansen called from late position, and Nick Panopoulos called from the big blind. The flop came 1075, Panopoulos bet 50,000, Sung folded, and Hansen moved all in. Panopoulos called all in with J10 for a pair of tens. But Hansen showed Q10 for a pair of tens with a higher kicker. The turn and river brought 102. Hansen won the pot with trip tens, queen kicker, and Panopoulos was eliminated in ninth place, earning 33,500 euros (approx. $47,510).
Three hands later Hansen limped from early position for 12,000, Vladimir Poleschchuk limped from the button, and Johansson completed from the small blind. Seidel then moved all in from the big blind for 115,000, Hansen made the call, and everyone else mucked. Seidel showed down A4 and Hansen turned up 109. The board hit the table Q9499 and Hansen won the pot with quad nines. Seidel was eliminated in eighth place, earning 50,300 euros (approx. $71,335). Hansen was now close to becoming the first million dollar man of the tournament and seven players remained. One last player had to hit the rail before things ended for the night.

Steve vs. Steve

On the final hand of the night Steve Van Zadelhoff had the button and Steve Sung limped from early position for 12,000. Van Zadelhoff raised from the button to 44,000 and Sung called. The flop came J92, Sung checked, and Van Zadelhoff bet 60,000. Sung moved all in and Van Zadelhoff immediately called with pocket queens. But Sung showed down pocket aces for a higher pair. Nam Le, Kirk Morrison, and JC Alvarado, who had been sweating Sung throughout the day rushed to the rail and murmured scattered chants of "Castle!" before the final cards fell. The turn and river came 94 and Sung won the pot with aces up. Van Zadelhoff was eliminated in seventh place, earning 67,100 euros (approx. $95,161).

Tomorrow will be an off day while the players, media, and WPT crew travel to Castle Peralada, which is near the border of Spain and France. This will be the stylish setting of the final table, which will begin at 4 p.m. CET on Tuesday.

Seat 1 - Vladimir Poleschchuk - 176,000
Seat 2 - Christer Johansson - 855,000
Seat 3 - Steve Sung - 670,000
Seat 4 - Gus Hansen - 962,000
Seat 5 - Ludovic Lacay - 400,000
Seat 6 - Markus Lehmann - 329,000

And here is the prize pool they'll be playing for:

1st - 554,980 euros (approx. $787,073)
2nd - 295,200 euros (approx. $418,653)
3rd - 151,000 euros (approx. $214,148)
4th - 117,400 euros (approx. $166,497)
5th - 100,600 euros (approx. $142,671)
6th - 83,900 euros (approx. $118,987)

Tune into CardPlayer.com and WorldPokerTour.com on Tuesday to catch all the final table action.

Here are the official seating positions and chip counts for Tuesday's WPT Final Table, which is scheduled to start at 1600 / 4:00 pm Central European Time (10:00 am Eastern, 7:00 am Pacific). Monday will be an off day, as the players and WPT crew journey north to Peralada, where the final table will be held in an actual castle.

Seat 1 - Vladimir Poleschchuk - 176,000
Seat 2 - Christer Johansson - 855,000
Seat 3 - Steve Sung - 670,000
Seat 4 - Gus Hansen - 962,000
Seat 5 - Ludovic Lacay - 400,000
Seat 6 - Markus Lehmann - 329,000

And here is the prizepool they'll be playing for:

1st - 554,980 euros (approx. $787,073)
2nd - 295,200 euros (approx. $418,653)
3rd - 151,000 euros (approx. $214,148)
4th - 117,400 euros (approx. $166,497)
5th - 100,600 euros (approx. $142,671)
6th - 83,900 euros (approx. $118,987)

Stay tuned for a Day 3 recap, which will be posted soon. In-depth player biographies for the final tablists will be posted on Monday.

The blinds are still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

Hand #31 - Steve Van Zadelhoff has the button in seat 7, Sung limps from early position for 12,000, Van Zadelhoff raises from the button to 44,000, and Sung calls. The flop comes J92, Sung checks, Van Zadelhoff bets 60,000, Sung moves all in, and Van Zadelhoff immediately calls with QQ. But Sung shows AA for a higher pair. Van Zadelhoff needs a queen or a runner-runner straight to stay alive.

The turn card pairs the board with the 9, the river card is the 4, and Steve Sung wins the pot with two pair, aces and nines.

Steve Van Zadelhoff is eliminated in seventh place, earning 67,100 euros (approx. $95,161).

The remaining six players will verify their chip counts before bagging and tagging their chips, and we will have official chip counts soon.

The blinds are still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

Hand #27 - Christer Johansson has the button in seat 2, Lacay raises under the gun to 36,000, and Hansen calls from the big blind. The flop comes A74, Hansen checks, Lacay bets 46,000, Hansen raises to 146,000, and Lacay folds. Gus Hansen takes the pot.

Hand #28 - Steve Sung has the button in seat 4, Hansen raises from the small blind to 36,000, and Lacay calls from the big blind. The flop comes 862, Hansen checks, Lacay bets 55,000, and Hansen folds. Ludovic Lacay takes the pot.

Hand #29 - Gus Hansen has the button in seat 5, and everyone folds to Van Zadelhoff, giving him a walk in the big blind.

Hand #30 - Ludovic Lacay has the button in seat 6, Poleschchuk moves all in under the gun for 159,000, winning the blinds and antes.

There is a big hand developing in Hand #31 between Steven Van Zadelhoff and Steve Sung. Stay tuned for more details.

The blinds are still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

Hand #23 - Ludovic Lacay has the button in seat 6, Hansen raises from the cutoff to 24,000, and Lehmann calls from the big blind. The flop comes J87, Lehmann checks, Hansen bets 24,000, Lehmann moves all in, and Hansen folds. Markus Lehmann takes the pot.

Hand #24 - Steve Van Zadelhoff has the button in seat 7, Lacay limps from the cutoff for 12,000, Van Zadelhoff calls from the button, Lehmann completes from the small blind, and Poleschchuk checks his option. The flop comes J109, and all four players check. The turn card is the K, and they check again. The river card is the 8, it's checked to Lacay who bets 30,000, and everyone folds. Ludovic Lacay takes the pot.

Hand #25 - Markus Lehmann has the button in seat 8, Sung limps under the gun for 12,000, Hansen limps from middle position, Lehmann raises from the button to 45,000, Sung calls, and Hansen calls. The flop comes 1094, it's checked to Lehmann who moves all in for about 180,000. The other two players fold, and Markus Lehmann takes the pot.

Hand #26 - Vladimir Poleschchuk has the button in seat 1, and he moves all in for about 150,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Here are the approximate chip counts for the final eight players, with the blinds still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

Seat 1 - Vladimir Poleschchuk - 150,000
Seat 2 - Christer Johansson - 840,000
Seat 4 - Steve Sung - 385,000
Seat 5 - Gus Hansen - 970,000
Seat 6 - Ludovic Lacay - 415,000
Seat 7 - Steve Van Zadelhoff - 405,000
Seat 8 - Markus Lehmann - 190,000

The blinds are still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

After Seidel's elimination, Gus Hansen says he is going to start playing "lockdown poker" and playing tight. We'll see if he keeps his word.

Hand #19 - Christer Johansson has the button in seat 2, and there is no small blind this hand. Everyone folds to Steve Sung, giving him a walk in the big blind.

Hand #20 - There is a dead button in seat 3, Lacay raises under the gun to 34,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #21 - Steve Sung has the button in seat 4, he raises to 32,000, Hansen reraises from the small blind to 105,000, and Sung folds. Gus Hansen takes the pot.

Hand #22 - Gus Hansen has the button in seat 5, Johansson raises from middle position to 40,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #18 - Vladimir Poleschchuk has the button in seat 1, Hansen limps from early position for 12,000, Poleschchuk limps from the button, Johansson completes from the small blind, Seidel moves all in from the big blind for 115,000, Hansen calls, and the others fold.

Seidel shows A4, and Hansen shows 109. Seidel needs his hand to hold up to stay alive.

The board comes Q9499, and Hansen wins the pot with quad nines.

Erik Seidel is eliminated in eighth place, earning 50,300 euros (approx. $71,335). The next player eliminated will receive 67,100 euros (approx. $95,161) for seventh place.

Play will continue tonight until one more player is eliminated.

The blinds are still at 6,000-12,000, with a 1,000 ante.

Hand #16 - Markus Lehmann has the button in seat 8, and there is no small blind this hand. Hansen raises from middle position to 32,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #17 - There is a dead button in seat 9, Hansen raises from middle position to 42,000, winning the blinds and antes.

There is a big hand brewing in Hand #18 between Gus Hansen and Erik Seidel. Stay tuned for details.