The World Series of Poker may have kicked off in Las Vegas, but online poker players were still showing up in full force for the major Sunday online tournaments last night. Even the prominent Internet pros, many of whom are in Vegas for the Series, opted to log some online poker time rather than wait in the long lines at the Rio.
PokerStars Sunday Million
The PokerStars Sunday Million tournament had 7,060 entrants last night, a very good showing indeed amid the WSOP frenzy. The entrants generated a prize pool of $1,412,000, which offered a first-place prize of almost $200,000.
PokerStars personality Lee Jones was on hand as the final table began. PLAYAMAN came to the final table as the chip leader with $14.9 million in chips. Pokerjoel1 was close behind in second place with $13.8 million and Bonuskort was in third place with almost $12 million. Varuni was the short-stacked player at the table with just $823,000 in chips when the big blind was at $400,000.
Varuni managed to avoid being the first player eliminated, and actually had almost tripled up in the seven minutes before the first elimination hand. Bootlegbobby open-pushed all in from the cutoff seat for $2.2 million (with the big blind now at $500,000) and Sangreal76 called all in from the big blind for his last $1.7 million. Bootlegbobby turned over A
4
and was in decent shape versus Sangreal76's Q 2
. The board ran out 7h 5h 4d Ad 9d, giving bootlegbobby an unnecessary two pair to eliminate Sangreal76 in ninth place ($8,331).
Xpugn0 was the next player to be eliminated when he called all in for $2 million versus a preflop raise from Bonuskort. Bonuskort showed A J and was dominated by Xpugn0's A
K. Xpugn0 was a 67 percent favorite to win the hand. The flop came Q 7 4, no help to either player. The turn brought the K, furthering Xpugn0's lead and leaving Bonuskort needing a 10 to complete a straight to win the hand. Lo and behold, the river was the 10 and Bonuskort made a Broadway straight to bust Xpugn0 in eighth place. Xpugn0 earned $12,708 for his finish.
The remaining seven players all agreed to pause the tournament to discuss a chop. Bootlegbobby told the other players that, in order to discuss a deal, "we all have to … sit out." Lee Jones, the poker room manager on duty at the time, jumped in to say, "You don't have to sit out. We have, like, magic buttons and stuff." The discussions were short-lived, as PLAYAMAN, the chip leader at the time, wanted $150,000 – $30,000 more than a by-the-chips chop guaranteed him. Play continued.
Bootlegbobby became the short stack and decided to push all in from under the gun preflop for his last $1.6 million (when the big blind was at $800,000). PLAYAMAN called on the button and mrp123 called in the big blind. The flop came 10 8c 3 and mrp123 checked. PLAYAMAN bet $1.6 million and mrp123 folded, leaving just PLAYAMAN and the all-in bootlegbobby. PLAYAMAN turned over A 8 for a pair of eights and bootlegbobby turned over the lead with pocket queens. The turn was the 9 and the river the A, which gave PLAYAMAN two pair to take the lead in the hand and eliminate bootlegbobby in seventh place ($21,886).
Nickym998, who had been milking a shortstack for some time, went down to the felt in the very next hand when he pushed all in for $4.1 million preflop. Bonuskort called in the big blind and showed A J and was in great shape versus nickym998's K J. The board bricked out and Bonuskort sent nickym998 to the rail with just ace high. Nickym998 made $31,064 for sixth place.
The remaining five players paused the tournament to again try and reach an amicable deal. PLAYAMAN was again insistent on guaranteeing himself $150,000 as the chip leader, even though this was now $40,000 more than a by-the-chips chop would give him. The other players finally talked PLAYAMAN down to $115,525. The other guaranteed paydays were: Bonuskort, $100,824; pokerjoel1, $83,416; mrp123, $80,604; varuni, $58,416. Per the PokerStars rules, $30,000 remained on the line for the eventual winner.
The very first hand dealt after the deal was made claimed yet another victim. Varuni raised to $2 million preflop, with the big blind at $1 million, leaving himself with $3.5 million behind. Mrp123 called in the big blind and the flop came Q Q 6. Mrp123 pushed all in and varuni called all in and showed A 8 for ace high. Mrp123 turned over 8 6 for a pair of sixes and the lead. The turn and river were blanks, the 2 and the 4, and varuni was out in fifth place.
PLAYAMAN stack took a huge hit when he flopped top pair with tens holding Q-10 and got all in versus pokerjoel1's A-10. He managed to double up once, but the blinds were such that his stack was still relatively short. He eventually open-pushed all in for $9.4 million and pokerjoel1 reraised all in over the top, folding the other players. Pokerjoel1 held pocket nines and had a good lead versus PLAYAMAN's A 2. The board ran out 4 4 2 7 J, giving both players two pair, but pokerjoel1's nines up were enough to take out PLAYAMAN in fourth place. Mrp123 commented that he would like to "dropkick that guy" upon PLAYAMAN's elimination. Mrp123 obviously harbored some bad feelings for PLAYAMAN, most likely because of his stubbornness during dealmaking.
Play was now threehanded and pokerjoel1 held the chip lead with $27.6 million versus mrp123 in second with $23.8 million and Bonuskort in third with $19.2 million. Bonuskort lasted seven more minutes before he got all in preflop. Mrp123 raised to $3 million preflop and Bonuskort called in the small blind. Pokerjoel1 reraised to $11 million from the big blind, prompting mrp123 to fold. Bonuskort reraised all in for $19.5 million and pokerjoel1 called and showed A J. Pokerjoel1 was well behind Bonuskort's pocket aces. The board ran out 10 7 3 9 8 and pokerjoel1 completed an unlikely jack-high straight on the river to send Bonuskort packing in third place.
It was how heads up and pokerjoel1 had a good lead with $52.1 million compared to mrp123's $18.5 million. The final hand was just one minute and five hands later. Pokerjoel1 raised to $3 million preflop and mrp123 pushed all in for $18.4 million. Pokerjoel1 called and showed A 8 and was dominated by mrp123's A J. The flop came Q 10 9, giving both players straight draws and giving pokerjoel1 a flush draw, but leaving mrp123 in the lead. The turn was the 3, completing a flush for pokerjoel1 and leaving mrp123 drawing dead. Mrp123 finished in second place while pokerjoel1 took down the final pot to earn the extra $30,000 and put his total winnings at $113,416.
The final results were:
*1) pokerjoel1 – $113,416
*2) mrp123 – $80,604
*3) Bonuskort – $100,824
*4) PLAYAMAN – $115,525
*5) varuni – $58,416
6) nickym998 – $31,064
7) bootlegbobby – $21,886
8) Xpugn0 – $12,708
9) Sangreal76 – $8,330.80
* Payout reflects a slightly modified five-way by-the-chips chop with $30,000 remaining for the eventual winner, per the PokerStars chopping rules.
Full Tilt $400,000 Guarantee
The Full Tilt $400,000-guaranteed tournament drew a healthy crowd, as well. The tournament lured 2,719 entrants to build a total prize pool of $543,800, meaning the first-place finisher stood to earn almost $100,000.
CMcAboy was on the top of the pile as the final nine players gathered at the final table. CMcAboy had $2.4 million in chips, a decent lead versus Jdruck1's second-place-worthy stack of $1.53 million and svenneskumpa's $1.48 million in third place. Jdruck1 hit a slippery patch and lost some ground. He was eventually became the short stack and was eliminated when his A-7 suited ran into pocket tens and failed to improve. He finished in fifth place ($23,927).
Svenneskumpa had a rather large chip lead with three players remaining. He had $4.7 million compared to CMcAboy's $2.4 million in second place. WiShIwUzThErE was the short stack with $1.1 million when the big blind was at $100,000. He pushed all in preflop less than two minutes later and was called by CMcAboy, who showed K Q. WiShIwUzThErE held the 7 5 and was behind. The board paired but otherwise improved neither player, and WiShIwUzThErE was out in third place ($39,697).
CMcAboy's stack was now $3.1 million, but still in second versus svenneskumpa's $5 million. CMcAboy then won a huge hand to turn the tables. CMcAboy raised to $390,000 preflop, with the big blind at $120,000, and svenneskumpa called. The flop came K 9 7 and svenneskumpa checked. CMcAboy bet $360,000 and svenneskumpa check-raised to $2 million. CMcAboy pushed all in the rest of the way for $2.1 million and svenneskumpa called and showed J 10 for a double-gutshot-straight draw and CMcAboy revealed 10 7 for just bottom pair, but enough for the lead. The turn was the 7, furthering CMcAboy's lead, and the river was the K, giving him a full house to win the pot and double up to almost $5 million.
The final hand was just one minute later. CMcAboy limped preflop from the small blind and svenneskumpa bet $425,000. CMcAboy called and the flop came J 9 8. Svenneskumpa bet $750,000, leaving himself with $1.2 million, and CMcAboy reraised all in. Svenneskumpa called and showed A 6 for a flush draw and CMcAboy turned over J 7 for top pair and a gutshot-straight draw. The turn and river were blanks, the 2 and the 4, and CMcAboy scooped in the pot to eliminate svenneskumpa in second place ($60,906). CMcAboy earned $99,515 for his comeback win in the tournament.
The final results were:
1) CMcAboy – $99,515.30
2) svenneskumpa – $60,905.60
3) WiShIwUzThErE – $39,697.40
4) MountainJay – $31,540.40
5) Jdruck1 – $23,927.20
6) PuffMcDuff – $17,238.46
7) cheesemonster – $12,724.92
8) Kissy Fish – $10,005.92
9) UgottaBkiddin – $7,613.20
UltimateBet $200,000 Guarantee
The UltimateBet $200,000-guaranteed tournament had a decent turnout this weekend with 934 entrants. The site had to come out of pocket for $13,200 to match the posted guarantee, but the attendance was still an improvement over last weekend's 867 entrants.
Internet poker star Jared "TheWacoKidd" Hamby (who is now a force to be reckoned with in the brick-and-mortar arena, as well) made the final table of the tournament, initially sitting with a sixth-place-worthy stack of $185,000. Kasedowgy – who had taken down this even before, on Jan 14, 2007 – was also at the table. He was in prime position to repeat his win when he came to the final table as the chip leader with $633,000. Mirage666 was his next closest competitor with $354,000.
It took 37 hands before the first elimination, and by that time kasedowgy's stack had been halved and he sat in fourth place. He was down to just $121,000 four hands later and was sent to the rail when he pushed all in with A-10 and went up against strway2raisn's dominating A-K. The flop brought three eights, giving kasedowgy ample chance to split the pot, but the turn and river were blanks and he was sent home in an unexpectedly early ninth place ($3,400).
TheWacoKidd had been hanging on, but eventually followed right behind kasedowgy. Ultimatejakz raised to $42,000 preflop, with the big blind at $16,000, and TheWacoKidd pushed all in for $139,000. Ostrichman reraised all in himself for $202,000 and panamatony also reraised all in for $399,000. Ultimatejakz folded, understandably, and it was a three-way all-in situation. TheWacoKidd held A K, panamatony revealed pocket kings, and ostrichman turned over pocket jacks. Panamatony had a 52 percent chance to win preflop, followed by TheWacoKidd with a 29 percent chance and ostrichman with an 18 percent chance (check out the Card Player Poker Odds Calculator by clicking here). The flop came J 7 2 and ostrichman pulled into a dominating lead with a set of jacks. The turn and river were the 6 and the 3 and TheWacoKidd was eliminated in eighth place, for $4,500.
Ostrichman pulled into the chip lead with the hand, and he proceeded to steamroll the table on his way to heads up with mirage666. Ostrichman had a 88 percent of the chips in play when the heads-up match began, with more than $2 million versus mirage666's $291,000. Mirage666 slowly made up that difference by winning some key all-in hands and then using his momentum to chip away at ostrichman.
Mirage666 eventually pulled into a very slight chip lead and ostrichman asked whether he wanted to evenly chop the remaining prize pool (UltimateBet does not support dealmaking and players do so at their own risk. Dealmaking can still be done on the honor system, in the hopes that the ultimate winner of the tournament will transfer the appropriate sum to his opponent's account). After a prolonged discussion, in which phone numbers were exchanged in the chat box (which is ill-advised at any final table, let alone such a high-profile one), the two agreed to a straight chop.
Ostrichman retook the lead before the final hand. Ostrichman ($1.8 million) called the $50,000 big blind preflop and mirage666 ($571,000) checked his option. The flop came J 10 6 and mirage666 bet $110,000. Ostrichman called and the turn was the 2. Mirage666 now bet $330,000, leaving himself with just $81,200 behind, and ostrichman again called. The river was the 3 and mirage666 finally pushed all in. Ostrichman called and showed J 8 for a flush. Mirage666 showed 6 3 for just two pair and was eliminated in second place (which officially awarded him $26,500). Ostrichman officially made $45,000 for winning the tournament, unless he makes good on the deal, in which case both players earned $35,750.
The final results were:
1) ostrichman – $45,000
2) mirage666 – $26,500
3) strway2raisn – $18,000
4) Foil_Shizzle – $13,100
5) ultimatejakz – $10,500
6) panamatony – $8,500
7) ungarprodg – $6,500
8) TheWacoKidd – $4,500
9) kasedowgy – $3,400
10) slow_rollin78 – $2,000
Bodog $100,000 Guarantee
Bodog's $100,000-guaranteed tournament was a bit back in form last night when 882 entrants bought in to the tournament. While still not ideal (the tournament required an $11,800 overlay), this was the largest attendance the tournament has had since mid-April.
BenNao held the chip lead for the first full hand of the final table. He had $422,000 compared to ImTheJackal's $353,000 in second place. Daka77, however, doubled up within the first four minutes of play to vault himself into second place in chips. Daka77 briefly pulled into first place before BenNao retook the lead through by eliminating three players (two of whom were the victims of BenNao's pocket aces in two separate hands just over a minute apart).
BenNao had $1.4 million in chips when threehanded play began, almost 64 percent of the chips in play, which put him well in first place. ImTheJackal was his next closest opponent with $467,000 and Daka77 was in third place with $335,000.
BenNao took out the next player, as well, for his fourth elimination in a row. ImTheJackal ($575,000) raised to $90,000 preflop in the small blind, with the big blind at $30,000, and BenNao reraised all in over the top for $1.2 million. ImTheJackal called and showed A J and was in big trouble against BenNao's A K. The board ran out 8 6 4 6 3, pairing but otherwise missing both players, and BenNao took down the pot by virtue of his king kicker. ImTheJackal left the table in third place, earning $9,000.
BenNao now had a commanding $1.8 million versus Daka77's $368,000. BenNao was using his stack aggressively by putting all of his chips in preflop quite often, forcing Daka77 to fold. Daka77 finally called one of BenNao's preflop all ins and showed A-3 and was dominating BenNao's Q-3. The board bricked out and Daka77 doubled up to $705,000, making him about a 2-1 underdog in chips. Daka77 then took over the chip lead just a few minutes later when his A-K cracked BenNao's pocket queens after a preflop all in. Daka77 had $1.4 million compared to BenNao's $824,000 after the hand.
BenNao never managed to regain the chip lead again before the final hand. Daka77 ($1.3 million) raised to $100,000 preflop, with the big blind at $40,000, and BenNao ($863,000) called in the big blind. The flop came J 9 5 and BenNao checked. Daka77 bet $125,000 and BenNao check-raised to $350,000. Daka77 thought for a while before pushing all in over the top. BenNao quickly called all in and showed 10 8 for an open-end straight draw. Daka77 held K J for top pair and the lead. The turn was the 8, pairing BenNao's 8, but the river was a blank, the 6, and BenNao was out in second place ($14,000). Daka77 took home $25,000 for his first-place finish in the tournament.
The final results were:
1) Daka77 – $25,000
2) BenNao – $14,000
3) ImTheJackal – $9,000
4) amak316 – $6,500
5) wmmcl – $5,400
6) MUlax15 – $4,400
7) CALLitALLday – $3,400
8) fabcorleone – $2,400
9) BabyBlueBoy – $1,550
Card Player is working with several sites that continue to serve U.S. players to provide deposit bonuses to our readers. Click on the following names to receive bonuses: UltimateBet, Bodog, Absolute, and Full Tilt Poker.
