The heat is on today at the WSOP as three events move towards the finishing line. The $1,500 pot-limit hold’em and $5,000 mixed hold’em events are down to the final nine, and the $1,500 no-limit hold’em has just finished its heads-up battle.
Englishman James Akenhead reserved his seat at the final table of the $1,500 no limit hold’em event when he eliminated
Chris Ferguson. Ferguson moved all in pre-flop for 815,000 and Akenhead made the call. The two players exposed their hole cards: Ferguson showing K
10 and Akenhead A
10
. With the board showing AQ845 , Ferguson was eliminated in third place. He kept things interesting until the end of his run, and took home $388,287 for his 27th WSOP final-table appearance.
The final two James Akenhead and Grant Hinkle then went on to battle it out for top prize. Grant Hinkle raised to 350,000 preflop and James Akenhead reraised to 1.2 million. Hinkle then reraised all-in and Akenhead quickly made the all-in call. They both flipped up their cards, Hinkle revealing 104 and Akenhead with A
K. Amazingly, the board came 1044105. Hinkle flopped a full house on the flop only to improve to quad tens on the turn. The hand was more than enough to win Hinkle his first gold bracelet and the top prize of $831,279, sending the Englishman Akenhead to the rail in second place with $520,219.
Although there is no longer a European presence at the $1,500 pot limit hold’em event, there has been a lot of overseas action at the $5,000 mixed hold’em event. After losing a massive pot to Isaac Haxton in the limit round, Patrik Antonius was left with slightly more than 14,000 in chips. Within the next orbit he raised from the cut-off and Jordan Smith in the small blind reraised enough to put Antonius all in. When both players flipped over their cards, Antonius had QJ and Smith was ahead with A6. The board brought no help for Antonius, and he was eliminated.
After struggling for several hands to improve his chip stack, Phil Laak was ultimately eliminated by Pat Pezzin. Pezzin raised preflop in the no-limit round, and Laak came over the top with an all-in for his entire stack. Pezzin asked for a count, but quickly called and turned over the AK. Laak was a slight favourite with TT, but the K on the flop sent Laak to the rail. Both Laak and Antonius are currenty 2 for 2 in cashes at this year’s World Series of Poker, including both making the final table of event 1 earlier in the week.
Andy Bloch’s tournament life came to an end at levels 31 and 32. From the small blind, he forced himself to commit the remainder of his chips to a raise from Roland de Wolfe without looking at his cards. David Olson called the raise from the big blind, and then called the remainder of his stack on a flop of A86. Olson 
turned over KQ and de Wolfe tabled A2. After finally looking at his hand, Bloch realised he was in second place with the 98. The Q on the turn and 4 on the river improved neither Bloch nor Olson, and both were eliminated.
De Wolfe is on middle ground with 335,000 chips going into the final table of the event.
The first Omaha event of the summer kicked off with omaha high-low split 8 or better. The event has drawn a considerably larger field than last year with 818 entrants, which is an increase of more than 120 players. Alex Kravchenko emerged on the WSOP radar when he battled through 690 entrants to claim his bracelet and the $228,446 grand prize at this event last year.
Dutch Noah Boeken made some head-way by scooping a pot early on. The player in seat 7 limped into the pot from early position and the player in seat 9 raised to 100 from middle position. Noah Boeken called the raise from the big blind and so did seat 7. The flop comes Q98, and seat 7 bet 50. Seat 9 folded while Boeken made the call. The turn brought the Q and seat 7 bet 100. Boeken called. The river was the 7 and both players checked. Boeken turned over 65 / 53 to reveal a flush. Seat 7 mucked and Boeken took down the pot.
Things were not going so good for fellow country-man Marcel Luske as he was eliminated at level 3 of the event.
Tomorrow will see the final tables of the $5,000 mixed hold’em and $1,500 pot limit hold’em events. The omaha high-low event will further unfold and play will begin in the $2,000 no limit hold’em and the $10,000 World Championship Mixed Events.
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