It's official! The 2008 WSOP main event final table is set! The final 9 will return on November 9 to play for the massive first-place prize of $9,119,338 and the right to be called World Champion.

Returning for the final table are:
Dennis Phillips
Ivan Demidov
Scott Montgomery
Darus Suharto
Ylon Schwartz
Peter Eastgate
Craig Marquis
David "Chino" Rheem
Kelly Kim

Big Hands:

Hamrick Bubbles Final Table, Out In 10th Place ($591,869)

Dean Hamrick moved his final 3,420,000 all in preflop and when action folded to Craig Marquis, he moved all in as well, having Hamrick covered. Everyone else folded and they showed their cards. Hamrick held AJ but was up against Marquis's ladies - QQ. The board was dealt slowly and the crowd was on their feet reacting to each card - K10310K and Hamrick was eliminated one spot shy of the final table.

Demidov Gets Good Value From Flopped Set

Ivan Demidov called Craig Marquis's raise of 700,000 preflop and the two were heads up when the flop of 1073 fell. Both players checked and the 5 came on the turn. Marquis again checked and Demidov fired 1 million into the pot. Marquis made the call and the river brought the Q. Marquis checked again and Demidov fired 2 million this time. Marquis quickly called and Dremidov showed 1010 for a slowplayed set. Marquis showed A-Q for a pair of queens on the river and Demidov took a pot containing 8 million in chips.

Blinds/Antes: 120,000-240,000 with a 30,000 ante

Players Left: 10 of 6,844

Chip Leaders:

Dennis Phillips: 20,800,000
Ivan Demidov: 20,680,000
Scott Montgomery: 19,640,000
Darus Suharto: 17,160,000
Ylon Schwartz: 16,880,000
Peter Eastgate: 13,660,000
Craig Marquis: 11,000,000
David Rheem: 8,780,000
Dean Hamrick: 6,320,000
Kelly Kim: 3,940,000

Big Hands:

Craig Marquis Hangs Around Thanks to Running Hearts

Peter Eastgate raised before the flop to 750,000. The action was then on Dean Hamrick, who popped it to 2.1 million. Action folded to Craig Marquis and he moved all in after many moments of thinking. Eastgate threw his hand in the muck but Hamrick made a quick call. The hands were turned over.

Marquis: AQ
Hamrick: QQ
Board: J7345

The flop gave Marquis some added hope as two hearts showed up. The turn added more hope as another heart fell on the turn. The river brought one more heart and Marquis cracked Hamrick's ladies to build his stack up to 12 million. Hamrick was down to about 6 million.

Respect

Kelly Kim moved was under the gun and moved all in for about 3 million in chips. He had not played a hand since the field shrank to 10 players. Apparently, everyone at the table noticed this as well as everyone threw their hands away. Kim took the blinds and antes, but he was not done as he moved all in again preflop a few hands later. No one called again and Kim increased his stack to about 4.5 million.

Rheem Wins Battle of the Blinds

Action folded around to Darus Suharto in the small blind. He completed the bet and David Rheem checked his option from the big blind. The players saw a flop of A38 and Suharto checked. Rheem fired 240,000 and Suharto mucked his hand, allowing Rheem to rake in the pot. His stack was around 8 million.

Note: Players are now on a 20 minute break

Blinds/Antes: 100,000-200,000 with a 30,000 ante

Players Left: 10 of 6,844

Chip Leaders:

Ivan Demdidov: 21,000,000
Scott Montgomery: 20,900,000
Dennis Phillips: 19,600,000
Ylon Schwartz: 16,500,000
Darus Suharto: 16,040,000
Dean Hamrick: 12,420,000
Peter Eastgate: 11,480,000
David Rheem: 10,100,000
Craig Marquis: 6,200,000
Kelly Kim: 4,180,000

Big Hands:

Schwartz Picks Up Rockets On First Hand Back...

Craig Marquis raised to 525,000 from late position and the action got to Ylon Schwartz on the button. He reraised to 1.6 million and the blinds folded. Action was back on Marquis, who made it 4.5 million to go. Schwartz immediately moved all in and Marquis went into the tank. He shook his head in disgust as he decided to fold his hand. Schwartz tabled AA and raked in a very big pot.

... Then Keeps Picking On Marquis

Craig Marquis raised preflop to 525,000 and Schwartz was next to act. He popped it to 1.1 million and Marquis made the call. The flop came J83 and Marquis checked. Schwartz moved all in and Marquis mucked his hand. Schwartz was at 17 million in chips while Marquis was down to about 6.5 million.

Phillips and Eastgate in a Dance

Peter Eastgate raised to 575,000 and Dennis Phillips made the call. The flop came Q4J and both players decided to check. The turn was the 3 and again both players checked. The river brought some action as the 7 hit the felt, inducing an 800,000 bet by Phillips. Eastgate made the call and Phillips showed 107 for a pair on the river. But Eastgate showed KJ for a better pair on the flop and he took down the pot.

Rheem Flops a Set But Gets No Action

David "Chino" Rheem opened for a raise to 600,000 from middle position. Action folded around to Dennis Phillips in the small blind who made the call. The big blind mucked and the flop came down AA8. Phillips checked and Rheem fired 750,000 into the pot. Phillips mucked and the crowd burst into cheers as Rheem took the pot. He then tabled AK to show that he indeed had a set.

Note: Play had paused after the elimination of Joe Bishop to allow for a redraw for the final table of 10 players. We are one elimination away from the television final table that will take place in November.

Blinds/Antes: 100,000-200,000 with a 30,000 ante

Players Left: 10 of 6,844

Chip Leaders:

Dennis Phillips: 21,500,000
Scott Montgomery: 20,635,000
Ivan Demidov: 18,700,000
Darus Suharto: 16, 425,000
Dean Hamrick: 12,460,000
Craig Marquis: 12,000,000
Ylon Schwartz: 10,500,000
Peter Eastgate: 10,440,000
David 'Chino' Rheem: 10,100,000
Kelly Kim: 4,430,000

Average Stack: 13,688,000

Eliminations:

11th: Joe Bishop: $591,869

Big Hands:

Set No Good, Rheem Takes a Hit

Action folded around to Ivan Demdidov in the cutoff. He raised it up to 650,000 and action folded to David "Chino" Rheem in the small blind. He repopped to 2 million total and Demdidov went into the tank. When he came out of the tank, he announced he was all in for almost 8 million. Rheem took some time of his own to think about what to do before making the call. He turned over 1010. He was in good shape against Demdidov's 99. The crowd went nuts as the hands were set up for the cameras. The flop then came 1086, giving Rheem top set but also giving Demdidov a variety of outs. The turn brought the 4 and Demdidov spiked a flush. Rheem needed to pair the board to win the hand, but the 5 sealed the deal for Demdidov, who moved up to about 18 million. Rheem dropped down to 8 million.

Darus Suharto Doubles Through Joe Bishop

Bishop raised to 700,000 from the button and Darus Suharto repopped from the big blind. He made it 2 million to go and Bishop made the call. The flop came Q65 and Suharto led out with 2.5 million. Bishop came over the top, moving all in for almost 10 million. Suharto made the call and turned over KK for an over pair. Bishop showed top pair on the board with AQ. The turn was the 6 and the river was the 2 and Suharto doubled up.

Bishop Doubles Another

Bishop raised to 600,000 from the cutoff and action was next on Kelly Kim in the small blind. He moved all in for about 2 million and Bishop called, showing 87. Kim was in great shape as he showed 88. The board ran out A101072 and Kim doubled up and Bishop was down to 2.4 million.

Bishop Trampled By the Wheel on the River, Busts in 11th Place

The fall of Joe Bishop would be complete a few hands later. He moved all in from under the gun and action folded around to David Rheem. He made the call and showed 22. Bishop turned over A3 and was racing against ducks. He flew ahead on the flop as it dropped A53. Bishop had two pair and Rheem needed another duck or a four to bust Bishop. The turn was a blank as the Q hit the felt. But the river brought chaos as the miracle 4 showed up, knocking Bishop out of the main event and sending Rheem's supporters into a frenzy.

Phillips Wins 3 Million Preflop

Dean Hamrick raised to 550,000 preflop and Ylon Schwartz reraised to 2.2 million. Sitting behind Schwartz, chipleader Dennis Phillips asked for Schwartz's chip count and crossed his arms to think. He announced a reraise and popped it to 6 million straight. Hamrick mucked immediatley and Schwartz only took a few seconds to do the same, giving Phillips an additional 3 million for his already large chip stack without even seeing a flop.

Montgomery Crushes Chip Leader

Dennis Phillips raised to 500,000 and Scott Montgomery reraised to 2.2 million. Phillips made the call and the flop brought J106. Phillips checked, Montgomery bet 1.5 million and Phillips called. The turn was interesting, bringing the K. Phillips checked again and Montgomery bet 2 million. Phillips called and the river brought the 9. Phillips checked for the final time and Montgomery shoved out 4 million. Phillips took time to seriously consider his decision. He eventually called and Montgomery showed A10 for the ace-high flush. Phillips mucked and lost a huge pot that had more than 15 million in it. With the pot Montgomery pased 20 million.

Blinds/Antes: 100,000-200,000 with a 30,000 ante

Players Left: 11 of 6,844

Chip Leaders:

Dennis Phillips: 23,800,000
Ylon Schwartz: 16,900,000
Peter Eastgate: 13,960,000
David Rheem: 13,800,000
Dean Hamrick: 13,490,000
Scott Montgomery: 13,400,000
Joe Bishop: 12,000,000
Craig Marquis: 11,800,000
Ivan Demidov: 9,800,000
Darus Suharto: 8,700,000

Average Stack:

Big Hands:

Phillips Starts To Pull Away

Dennis Phillips has raised a number of hands to take down pots uncontested.
But in one hand Phillips bet 800,000 on a flop of 1075 and Scott Montgomery re-raised to 2 million. Phillips took a moment then made the call. Phillips then announced he was checking in the dark and the A peeled off on the turn. Montgomery checked the ace as well, and when the 3 hit on the river Phillips bet out 1.3 million. Montgomery quickly folded and Phillips tok another sizeable pot without showdown, increasing his chip stack to 28,000,000.

A Big Chop For The Chip Leader

In a limped 3-way pot involving Dennis Phillips, Scott Montgomery and Dean Hamrick, Montgomery checked a flop of 1022 and Hamrick fired out 425,000. Phillips reraised to 1.2 million, Montgomery got out of the way and action was back on Hamrick. He three-bet it to 2.65 million and Phillips just called. On the 9 turn Hamrick fired out 3 million more and Phillips took his time. He eventually elected to call and the 3 came on the river. Both players checked and showed down. Hamrick showed 104 for two pair, but Phillips showed 108 for the same two pair. The nine played and both players could breathe a sigh of relief as they chopped a big pot.

Chino XL

David "Chino" Rheem was the short stack at one point in Day 7. But he has made moves and shot to the top three of the leaderboard.

Darus Suharto raised to 600,000 preflop from the hijack and Rheem made the call from the small blind. The flop came out 972 and both players checked. The turn then brought the 6 and Rheem unloaded a blast of 800,000 into the pot. Suharto mucked and Rheem took the pot, much to the delight of his supporters surrounding the table.

A few hands later, action folded around to Craig Marquis in the small blind. He raised to 625,000 and action was on Rheem. He instantly announced "all in" and Marquis went into the tank as Rheem's supporters cheered the bet. Marquis wondered what on earth Rheem could have to make such an overbet with the pot at just around 1 million. Rheem bet over 10 million with his action. Marquis mucked and Rheem raked in the pot. He was at 14 million in chips.

Players are now on a 20 minute break. Play will resume around 10:50 p.m.

Blinds/Antes: 80,000 / 160,000 / 20,000

Players Remaining: 11 of 6,844

Average Stack: 12,443,636

Chip Counts:
Dennis Phillips: 24,000,000
Ylon Schwartz: 14,600,000
David Rheem: 13,800,000
Peter Eastgate: 13,700,000
Scott Montgomery: 13,700,000
Dean Hamrick: 13,490,000
Joe Bishop: 12,000,000
Craig Marquis: 11,800,000
Ivan Demidov: 9,800,000
Darus Suharto: 8,700,000
Kelly Kim: 7,200,000

Recent Eliminations:
12th Place - Chris Klodnicki ($591,869)
13th Place - Nicholas Sliwinski ($463,202)

Big Hands and Storylines:

Phillips Ready To Gamble, Takes Chip Lead

Dennis Phillips bet 1.3 million on a flop of 842. Peter Eastgate thought it over and made the call. When the 10 fell on the river, Phillips moved his remaining 12 million all in. With such a huge pot on the long, Eastgate went into the tank for several minutes. He finally laid his hand down after Phillips had to call a clock on him, and Phillips added to his stack and approached 19 million after the hand, taking the chip lead.

Nicholas Sliwinski Runs Into Flopped Flush, Out in 13th Place ($463,202)

Dennis Phillips put in a raise to 460,000 preflop and Nicholas Sliwinski called out of the big blind. On a flop of 973, Sliwinski fired 500,000 and Phillips called. Sliwinski fired 1.2 million when the 6 fell on the turn and Phillips tanked for a bit before calling. The 9 fell on the river and Sliwinski shoved all in, prompting Phillips to make a quick call and show KQ for the flopped flush. Sliwinski showed 65 for two pair and was eliminated in 13th place. Phillips' stack grew to around 14 million after the hand.

No Royal Flush For Klodnicki, Gone in 12th Place ($591,869)

Scott Montgomery raised to 600,000 and Chris Klodnicki made the call from the big blind. On a flop of AQQ, Klodnicki checked and Montgomery fired out a bet of a cool million. Klodnicki check-raised all in and Montgomery quickly called. Montgomery had QJ for trip queens, but Klodnicki held J10 for a royal flush draw. Any diamond would put Klodnicki ahead, but the J fell on the turn, leaving him dead to the K for a royal flush. The 4 fell on the river and Klodnicki was knocked out in 12th place.

Hamrick Makes Top Pair, Takes Pot From Phillips

Both Dean Hamrick and Dennis Phillips checked a flop of 552. When the Q turn dropped, Hamrick checked to Phillips who bet 900,000. Hamrick thought briefly then made the call. Both players checked the 2 river and Hamrick showed KQ. Phillips mucked his hand and Hamrick took a small pot.

 

Blinds/Antes: 80,000 / 160,000 / 20,000

Players Remaining: 13 of 6,844

Average Stack: 10,000,000

Chip Counts:

Recent Eliminations:
Gert Andersen Eliminated in 14th place ($463,201)

Big Hands and Storylines:

Gert Andersen Eliminated in 14th place ($463,201)

On the third hand after the dinner break on the featured table, Ylon Schwartz open raised for a total of 500,000.  The action folded to Gert Andersen in the small blind, who reraised all in for his remaining 3,810,000 in chips.  Schwartz quickly called and turned over AK, a strong favorite over Andersen’s AJ.  The tension was high as the flop came Q102, giving Andersen a gut-shot straight draw but removing the remaining jacks from his list of outs.  The turn fell 8, improving Andersen’s straight draw and giving him four additional outs.  The 5 on the river was a miss, and Andersen exited the tournament area in 14th place to collect his $463,201 in prize money.  Schwartz improved his chip stack to over 17 million, putting him in second place on the leader board.

Tough Rail!

The remaining two tables have attracted quite a crowd of spectators, including many notable poker pros who have showed up to sweat the action.  The current list of railbirds at the secondary featured table includes Andy Bloch, Michael Mizrachi, Mel Judah, J.C. Tran, and Marcel Luske.

Chino Rheem Takes One Away from Darus Suharto

On a flop of AJ4, Chino Rheem checked to Darus Suharto.  After some deliberation, Suharto counted out a bet of 475,000 and pushed it towards the middle.  Rheem check-raised an additional 600,000, prompting Suharto to go into the tank.  Suharto eventually made the call and the 8 fell on the turn.  Rheem led out with a bet of 1,500,000, to which Suharto folded his hand.  Rheem dragged the pot and stacked his chips, which now total over 11 million.

Kelly Kim Loses One to Joe Bishop

Kelly Kim open raised to 500,000 from his position under the gun, and the action folded to Joe Bishop in the big blind.  After taking some time to fiddle with his chips, Bishop sloppily tossed out what appeared to be an arbitrary amount of chips.  The dealer counted it down to discover that it was a reraise of an additional 1,060,000.  Kim contemplated for a few moments before mucking his hand.  As he took the pot, Bishop flashed the A to his tablemates.

Players are on a 90-minute break. Play will resume at 8:25 p.m.

Blinds/Antes: 60,000-120,000-15,000

Players Remaining: 14 out of 6,844

Average Chip Stack: 9.78 million

Chip Counts:

Peter Eastgate - 18,600,000
Darus Suharto - 14,800,000
Scott Montgomery - 12,450,000
Joe Bishop - 11,800,000
David Rheem - 11,200,000
Ylon Schwartz - 10,500,000
Dean Hamrick - 10,190,000
Dennis Phillips - 10,180,000
Craig Marquis - 9,600,000
Kelly Kim - 6,800,000
Chris Klodnicki - 6,700,000
Nicholas Sliwinski - 5,900,000
Ivan Demidov - 5,400,000
Gert Andersen - 3,400,000

Eliminations:

15th place - Owen Crowe - $463,202
16th place - Tony Scherer - $334,535

Big Hands and Storylines:

Rheem Staves off Elimination

Joe Bishop raised to 450,000 under the gun and play was folded around to Chino Rheem in the big blind who made the call. After a flop of 852, Rheem checked, and Bishop bet 800,000. Rheem then made his move, announcing all-in for 4.4 million. Bishop agonized. The two had been in a previous battle when Bishop turned quad sixes against his rival. Bishop finally announced call, and Rheem shook his head. “You have sixes again?” Sure enough, Bishop held 66 for second pair. Rheem had made his push with just two overcards, the K9. The turn brought the 3 and Rheem was down to his final card. But the miracle K on the river kept him alive and moved him into the middle of the pack of the chip count. Bishop fell back to about 11 million.

Rheem had raked in a couple of smaller pots previously to build his shortstack. The first was after he raised to 325 preflop and was called by Kelly Kim. The flop came 1083, and Rheem bet 450,000. Kim again called. Both checked when the 5 made it a four-flush board, then the 9 hit the river. Rheem checked and Kelly bet 550,000. Rheem angrily threw in his chips to call, worried that his Q6 had been run over by the fourth diamond on the turn. But Kim mucked his hand.

A few hands later, Rheem called a raised to 325 from Craig Marquis, and Kim in the small blind also called. The flop came K73, Kim and Marquis checked, and Rheem bet 325,000. Kim called and after the 8 was turned, both players checked. The 7 on the river brought two more checks, and Rheem won the pot with K10.

Bishop gets aggressive

Just before dinner break, Joe Bishop made an interestingly large raise preflop to 670,000. He was called by Chris Klodnicki to his left and the two players saw a 553. Bishop bet 1.2 million, and then Klodnicki raised to 2.4 million. Bishop, who likes to talk at the table, did not like the min-raise and called it an "insult." He paced around the table and then finally decided to move all in. After a minute Klodnicki folded and Bishop turned over pocket nines. Bishop was up to 15 million after the hand, while Klodnicki was down to about four million.

As the Crowe Flies - Owen Crowe Eliminated in 15th Place ($463,202)

Ivan Demidov opened for 330,000 from under the gun. He was called by both Chino Rheem and Joe Bishop before Owen Crowe moved all in for 1.84 million. Only Demidov made the call. Crowe was all in for his tournament life holding 99 against Ivan Demidov's AQ. The flop was a suspenseful one, running out JJ10 to give Demidov a gutshot to go with his overcards. It was the overcards that made his hand when the Q fell on the turn. Crowe was unable to find an 8 or a king to improve on the river, which was the 2. Crowe went home in 15th place, earning $463,202 for his efforts. Demidov raked in the pot, moving up to 5,400,000.

Blinds/Antes: 60,000-120,000-15,000

Players Remaining: 15 out of 6,844

Average Chip Stack: 9.13 million

Chip Counts:
Peter Eastgate - 18,300,000
Joe Bishop - 17,100,000
Craig Marquis - 14,850,000
Darus Suharto - 13,800,000
Dennis Phillips - 13,775,000
Ylon Schwartz - 10,650,000
Scott Montgomery - 10,220,000
Dean Hamrick - 8,800,000
Kelly Kim - 7,340,000
Chris Klodnicki - 6,300,000
Ivan Demidov - 5,600,000
Gert Andersen - 4,040,000
Nicholas Sliwinski - 3,950,000
David Rheem - 3,800,000
Owen Crowe - 3,300,000
 

Eliminations:

16th place - Anthony Scherer - $334,535
17th place - Tiffany Michelle - $334,535

Big Hands and Storylines:

David 'Chino' Rheem doubles up to three million

Rheem raised to 325,000 from the cutoff and Chris Klodnicki reraised to 750,000 from the small blind. Owen Crowe then took a minute to think in the big blind, prompting Rheem to ask, "How big of a hand do you have?" But he then folded and it was Rheem's turn to act. He quickly stood up and said, "I don't know what I'm supposed to do here." But he then moved all in for just 350,000 more and Klodnicki called.

Rheem: A-Q
Klodnicki: 6-6

Board: Q-8-4-2-5

Rheem doubled to over three million, and while that's still one-third of the average stack, it's still 25 big blinds.

Tiffany Michelle Eliminated in 17th Place ($334,535)

Dennis Phillips raised to 500,000 from under the gun, and was called by both Peter Eastgate and Tiffany Michelle, who sat in the big blind. Michelle checked the flop, which came A109. Phillips continued firing, throwing in a bet of 1 million. Eastgate made the call, and Michelle moved all in for 3.8 million. The bet was enough to push out Phillips, but not Eastgate, who called instantly and showed AA. Michelle was in trouble holding only AJ, looking for a runner runner miracle in the last two cards. But the turn brought the 5 and left Michelle drawing dead to the river, which brought the 6. Michelle bowed out in 17th place, giving her one of the deepest Main Event finishes by a female player. Although she outlasted a larger field, she will sit behind Barbara Enright's 5th place finish in 1995, Annie Duke's 10th place finish in 2000, and Tiffany Williamson's 15th place finish in 2005.

Peter Eastgate has been involved in 5 of the last 6 hands, always opening for a preflop raise between 300,000 and 350,000. However, he has not been seeing many flops, either taking down the blinds and antes or folding to re-shoves.

One exception was the following hand: Eastgate opened with a raise to 350,000, and Scott Montgomery reraised to 900,000. Eastgate made the call, check-calling Montgomery's bet of 1.4 million on the flop of Q92. Both players checked the turn, the 10, and the river, the 10, and Eastgate's JJ was good enough to drag in another multimillion pot.

Anthony Scherer Eliminated in 16th Place ($334,535)

Another exception was when he eliminated Tony Scherer. Tony Scherer open raised all in for 1.545 million. He was called by Peter Eastgate, who held the lead with KhKc. Scherer trailed with the A8, and was looking for aces and black cards going to the flop, which came 992c\. It was announced that Scherer was dead to an ace or running clubs, although a railbird added that Scherer could also win the hand with running nines. None of these things came on the turn, however, which brought instead the 5, leaving Scherer with only three outs. The river brought the 5 and the end of Scherer's tournament run in 16th place. Eastgate overtook Joe Bishop's chip lead, moving up to 18,300,000.