Day one of the $1,000 no-limit hold'em rebuy event has come to a close. Only 110 of the original 1,048 entrants remain, and the money is just over a table's worth of eliminations away.
Up and Down For Batista
The last hour of play saw a couple notable swings. Chad Batista bet $20,000 after a flop of J 8 5. An opponent called all-in and showed 9 9. Batista revealed the J 10 for the lead. He picked up two pair with the 10 on the turn, but it also gave his opponent an open ended straight draw. The 5 improved neither player and Batista sent his opponent to the rail. He took a hit shortly after that hand when he called the all-in of Ylon Schwartz with A Q. He was in a race against Schwartz's 8 8 and failed to improve with the board coming J 6 5 4 10.
Stong Bet, Strong Call
With a board of 9 8 7 2 10 a player bet out $11,000 and got a call. He turned over pocket fives, and amazingly the caller also turned over fives.
As day two action gets underway tomorrow make sure to check in for hourly updates and Pro Blogs here at Cardplayer.com.
Of the 1,048 people that began today, only 126 remain. Payouts begin at 99th place, so the money is on the horizon but probably will not bust until tomorrow.
"Everybody Gives You Chips"
After a flop of 9 4 3 a player quickly went all-in, and J.C. Tran called with similar speed, revealing A 9. His opponent sheepishly tabled the K J for complete air. The turn and river brought the 3 and the Q and Tran raked in the pot. Another player at the table joked with Tran, saying, "See J.C., everybody just gives you chips."
Chop It Up
Daniel Alaei limped into the pot from late position, only to face an all-in raise to $10,300 from the small blind. After a moments thought he called with A 8 and his opponent laughed as she revealed A 8. The board bricked off and they split the pot.
Eliminations
Joe Sebok and Mike Matusow were eliminated this past level.
With play ends at 2 a.m., make sure to check back for the final post here at Cardplayer.com.
Notable Chip Counts
E-Dog Makes The Big Lay Down
The action is fast and furious now that the tournament is winding down. At one table we saw the A-A vs K-K showdown two hands in a row. In the second hand Eric Lindgren made a big lay down when he let J-J go pre flop. I guess he is still on his game even after enduring his long day out on the golf course due to a very sizable prop bet that he took part in against Phil Ivey.
Kenna James Says "It's Remarkable" At Kenna's table there was a flurry of action right after the break and on five consecutive hands there was a player all-in with a showdown. Kenna leaned back and remarked "It is pretty remarkable that there is a player all-in every hand, and I have to just sit back and watch all the action".
Prize Money The payouts have been announced for this tournament and first place will earn over $725,000 and the coveted gold bracelet.
Notable Chip Counts
Players have made their way back from the dinner the break and play is underway. There are 260 players remaining in the tournament and action is starting to heat up.
Chop It Up
Phil Hellmuth is up to his usual antics and his table doesn't seem to mind to bad. On the first hand back from dinner Phil made a raise to $1,800 from late position and was called by a player in the big blind. The flop came down K 2 8 and Phil bet out for $2,500. His opponent called and they went to the turn which came the 8. Both players checked and we went to the river which was another 8. Phil's opponent bet out for $7,500 and Phil quickly made the call. Phil flipped up K Q and his opponent showed K 7 for the same full house. Phil was visibly frustrated at his opponent hitting running cards for a chop. He said "nice hand" but quickly added "things are great when they have to hit runner-runner on me just to chop".
Nap Time After the previous hand Phil decided that it was time for him to catch some shut eye. He layed his head down on the table railing while listening to his ipod. The player to his right was even kind enough to throw in his antes so that he could get an extra 30 seconds of rest each hand. The players at his table became curious as to what Phil was listening to, so they got a peek at his ipod to reveal Duran Duran on the screen. Everyone had a little chuckle and play continued.
Binger Joins The Fun After the elimination of a short stack at Hellmuth's table, Michael Binger sat down to Phil's right with about $15,000. On
Binger's first hand at the table Phil Helmuth limped and Michael did the same, the small blind completed and the big blind checked. The four players saw a flop of 2 3 4 and the small blind immediately moved in for $11,200. The big blind folded and Phil mucked bringing the action back around to Binger. Binger took some time before making the call for most of his chips and showed 8 8. The small blind showed A 7 for a very big draw. The turn came a 9 and the river was a 4 giving the pot to Binger who now holds around $30,000.
Check the Pro Blogs section for more coverage, tracking your favorite pro's trials and tribulations through this event.
Because the players took a longer break then planned at the end of the rebuy period, they have decided to go on dinner break at the end of level 6, and they will return for level 7 at 9pm.
Daniel Negreanu was eliminated in the last level. He had the majority of his chips committed on an 8-7-5 board with pocket nines. His opponent sheepishly turned over K-4. However the 6 fell on the turn completing his gutshot. The river couldn't help Negreanu. He was eliminated a few hands later.
Ammon Filippi had a little fun when he moved all in with his short stack. Filippi moved in on a flop of A J 2, and his opponent called after some deliberation. Filippi showed 5 3 and his opponent flipped A 4. Filippi playfully pulled the four of hearts over to the community cards as if it were the turn card. The 6 was the actual turn card with the 4 on the river. Filippi doubled up with his flush.
Mark Seif climbed among the chip leaders after he picked off a large bluff by Joe Hachem. Seif raised from the small blind and Hachem called. The flop was the 10 3 2, Seif checked, Hachem bet $3,100, and Seif called. The turn was the 4, and both players checked. The river was the 8, Seif checked again, Hachem bet $6,500, Seif called, Hachem rapped the table and Seif showed J 10.
On the last hand before the break, Jean Gaspard doubled through Jamie Gold in an interesting hand. Gaspard bet out on a 10 8 4 flop, and Gold called. Gaspard moved the rest of his chips in after Gold's call before the river was dealt, daring him to call blind. Gold called immediately when the A hit on the turn. Gold showed the A 4, and Gaspard showed the 8 4. Gaspard exploded when then 8 peeled off on the river, and he doubled up.
Jeff Lisandro was involved in a disruptive disagreement with a player at his table over a $100 chip allegedly missing from a pot Lisandro won. Lisandro demanded a re-count of the sizable stack he’d raked while the player demanded they go to camera and requested someone go to the gift shop and pick him up some lube. ‘I’m the one who is getting dicked here,’ he complained. ‘If I’m gonna get fu*ked in the ass next time I want it to be a bit easier.’
The table was besieged by onlookers from other tables and Mike Matusow got involved from several tables over. ‘I told you already, I don’t trust you sir,’ he shouted, pointing at Lisandro who grinned and walked over to recount the tale to Matusow.
Ultimately the aggrieved player, who had been virtually felted, threw a $100 chip into the pot and sat back in his seat, still grumbling.
Jamie Gold padded his stack after laying a bad beat on John Murphy. Four players saw a 9 7 5 flop after an early position raise to $1,000. Murphy bet $3,000 and only Gold called. Murphy got his last $13,000 in after the 2 on the turn and Gold called. Murphy held 10 10, and Gold trailed with A 9. The river was the cruel 9, that snatched the pot from Murphy and sent him packing. Gold is now the tournament leader with over $80,000.
Earlier in the level, David Williams managed a double knockout with the worst of it. The player in Seat 1 raised under the gun to $2,200, the player on the button pushed all in with Q Q, and Williams pushed all in over the top to isolate with A K; however Seat 1 called with K K. Williams simply rubbed his hands together saying, "I like this, Ace me dealer" Williams had to wait until the river but the board ran out 8 8 2 5 A, and Williams eliminated both players.
Tony Cousineanu and Steve "MrSmokey1" Billirakis have managed to double up their short stacks in the last level. Billirakis pushed his last $7,900 in with A J and was called by K Q. The flop was lights out for Billirakis as it came 6 5 2. The turn and river were the Q and the J, and Billirakis doubled. Cousineanu pushed his last $3,000 in the pot with K Q and was called by Bill Chen with J J. Cousineau took the lead with the Q Q 2 flop, the turn and river bricked out and Cousineau doubled up.
Andrew Black, Anna Wroblewski, and David "Devilfish" Ulliott have all been eliminated in the last hour
The official numbers for this event will be announced shortly
The trend in the last hour has been for most of our chip leaders to keep their opponent's in the game. Possibly the players who employed such aggressive tactics to acquire these large stacks haven't yet changed gears, and their short-stacked opponent's are reaping the benefits. Barry Greenstein paid off a short stack who moved all in on the river only to find he had turned a full house after flopping a set of Jacks. Jamie Gold bet $3,000 into Matt Lefkowitz on the turn in one hand, committing himself to calling Lefkowitz's subsequent all in push drawing dead with middle pair to Lefkowitz's top two pair.
In a similar situation Chris Ferguson moved all in for $2,325 more, after his opponent bet $700 into a board of A J 9 4. His opponent called with J 10 only to find Ferguson had out flopped him with J 9. Ferguson doubled up when the 6 fell on the river.
Isabelle Mercier, Raymond Davis. and Nam Le have all been eliminated in the last level while Jordan Morgan, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold have climbed among our chip leaders.
Some Europeans building chips include Barny Boatman on $19,700, Thomas Wahlroos on $24,800, Willie Tann on $19,400, Chris Bjorin on $15,500 and Vicky Coren on $10,600.
Daniel Negreanu and Phil Hellmuth are both seated at Table 170, in what can only be described as a floor supervisor's nightmare. Table 170 is situated in the area that is normally reserved for cash games, and in fact there is a live cash game being spread at the very next table over. Therefore it is very hard to keep the random spectators out of this part of the tournament area. One frazzled floor supervisor, looked ready to tear her hair out as a line of fans had queued up to get Negreanu's autograph. Negreanu and Hellmuth both snuck into the Amazon Room with surprisingly little fanfare, and they both have modest chip stacks at the moment, but look for that to change in the coming rounds.
Mike Matusow was frighteningly quiet at the beginning of the level, but successive double ups turned all that around. Matusow moved all in for his last $9,900 on a A 9 6 flop, and wasn't too happy to get a call. However he was delighted to find he was way in front with A K against A J. The turn and the river were the 6 and the 5, and Matusow doubled up. Matusow soon busted another player with a similar sized stack, prompting him to proudly announce to Hellmuth and Negreanu that he was over $50,000 in chips.
Michael Binger is currently pulling double duty. Binger is still alive in the final 45 of the Pot-Limit Omaha, and is currently dividing time between his two seats. Binger has over $10,000 in this event so he has time to coast.
Scott Fischman was the beneficiary to his opponent's mistake. Fischman raised his opponent's bet on the turn an additional $8,000 with the board reading K J 9 3. After stewing for almost 5 minutes the clock was finally called, and he immediately moved all in and flipped over his K-J before Fischman could act. Fischman took a few minutes before folding.
Chad "lilholdem" Batista, and Justin "zeejustin" Bonomo are a the top of the leaderboard with Matusow, while Phil Gordon was coolered by Daniel Alaei, and busted early in the level.
London EPT winner Vicky Coren has been getting busy at her table and has grown her chip stack to $13,100.
Mike Matusow clearly enjoys rebuy events. Joe Hachem arrived about five minutes into the second level. He stopped by Matusow's table before he sat down and simply asked, "How many?" Mike gleefully replied, "None yet, but you know Barny Boatman plays really bad" Matusow then recounted how he had moved all in dark a few times with surprisingly good results. Matusow has been very boisterous early on today, much to the delight of his many adoring fans.
Sorel Mizzi's meteoric rise to the chip lead was halted in the last level as he met some resistance from his table. Tablemate Jeff Lisandro has accumulated a comparable chip stack, and Mizzi's opponents are getting very creative to push him off hands. After the player to his right pushes all in following a flurry of preflop action, Mizzi begrudgingly folds the same 5-4 that brought him that initial large pot. The two players who are all in flip over Q-J and 2-2. The board ends up reading K 5 4 5 6, and Mizzi can only grin as his 5-4 would have paid big dividends again, if he had only called.
Erick Lindgren has been very active at his table building a nice chip stack early on. After a player sat down next to him, Lindgren greeting him by asking, "Are you a gambler sir?" Getting the affirmative reply Lindgren then gave him a piece of advice saying, "The only way to get chips at this table is to buy them."
As the tighter players have decided not to buy in more times, tables are breaking liberally. Two tables of note are already stacked with big names. One table includes Antonio Esfandiari, Phil Gordon, Daniel Alaei and Sherkhan Farnood. The other features "Captain" Tom Franklin, Chad Brown, Michael Mizrachi, and Berry Johnston.
There are also plenty of Europeans scattered thoughout the field including Andy Black, John Gale, Eoghan O'Dea, Davood Merhmand, Surindar Sunar, Pascal Perrault, Thomas Wahlroos, Juha Helppi, Paul Daly, Barny Boatman, Dave 'Devilfish' Ulliott, Chris Bjorin, Jeff Lisandro, Andreas Hoivold, John Shipley and Vicky Coren.
The official numbers are still a long way off, as the many rebuys are now being tabulated. The players will be on a 15 minute break
With everything that is going on and how much money is at stake, the question on everyone's mind is "Where is Daniel Negreanu?" Negreanu, famous for his loose play and disregard for money in re-buy events, has yet to be spotted in the Amazon room today. Lee Watkinson inquired into Negreanu's whereabouts and when no one had confirmed his arrival, he looked at the two empty seats at his table and said, "Well, there's still hope."
Amidst the flurry of re-buys and all ins, there is a surprising amount of "seat open" calls being yelled on the floor. A large number of players are seemingly taking their chances with $1,000 and hoping to get lucky without having to rebuy. After one player busted out and declined a re-buy, another player at his table asked him "what? No re-buy? Get outta here then, wrong tourney buddy."
Sorel Mizzi has emerged as the potential early chip leader in today's event and now has $17,000 in chips as a result of some unorthodox play. Mizzi was pushing all in blind in the first level and finally got lucky on only his second re-buy. Mizzi and the player in seat four at his table were all in blind and there were three other callers. Their hands were as follows:
Seat 2: Q Q
Seat 3: A 10
Seat 4: 5 3
Mizzi : 5 4
Seat 6: K Q
The flop came A 7 5 and Mizzi asked the dealer for a re-buy. The 9 came on the turn and the 4 came on the river to give Mizzi two pair. Mizzi raked in his chips and reluctantly said, "I don't want all these chips. "There's a new chip leader folks, but don't worry, I'll still gamble."
Tony G came into the tournament area a little late today and pushed all in right as he sat down. Bill Gazes called with J 9 and Tony G had pocket fours. The board bricked out, A 8 7 5 3, and Tony G instantly doubled up. "This means I can't re-buy right?" Tony asked the dealer jokingly.
8
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. Batista revealed the J
