Wednesday, July 2, 2014 8:11 PM Local Time
Cards Are in the Air
Play has resumed as Jared Jaffee (4,353,000) faces off against Mike Watson (2,298,000) for the $1,500 Mixed-Max No-Limit Hold'em title — and the first 2014 WSOP bracelet win for either pro.
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 7:07 PM Local Time
Play Resumes at 8 p.m.
Jared Jaffee and Mike Watson will return at 8 p.m. to battle for the bracelet! The blinds will revert back to 12,000/24,000 with a 4,000 ante.
| Player | Chips |
| Jared Jaffee | 4,353,000 |
| Mike Watson | 2,298,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:55 PM Local Time
Mark Herm Eliminated in 3rd Place ($126,882)
Mark Herm was on the ropes after losing a few big pots in short order, and he open-shoved for his last 400,000 holding the button.
Mike Watson called with and found himself in great shape against Herm's , but the latter was drawing to two live cards.
The flop came to gift Herm a gutshot straight draw to the nine. But the turn ( ) and river ( ) missed his hand entirely. Herm pocketed $126,882 for his efforts, while Watson secured his seat in the final heads-up match against Jared Jaffee.
The two will square off with a bracelet on the line at 8 p.m. local time, so check back then to find out who takes down their first taste of 2014 WSOP gold and glory.
| Mike Watson | 2,298,000 | 482,000  |
| Mark Herm | 0 | -482,000  |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:54 PM Local Time
Watson Doubles Through Herm Again
Mike Watson min-raised to 80,000 on the button, Mark Herm three-bet shoved for 903,000 effective from the big blind and Watson called all in.
Watson:
Herm:
The board ran out , no help to Herm, giving Watson nearly a 4:1 chip lead.
| Mike Watson | 1,816,000 | 908,000 |
| Mark Herm | 482,000 | -908,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:51 PM Local Time
One Chop and One Watson Double
Mark Herm shoved on the button and Mike Watson called all in for about 480,000 in the big blind.
Herm:
Watson:
The board ran out , giving both players aces and tens with a jack-kicker to chop the pot.
Shortly thereafter, Herm shoved on the button and Watson called all in for 449,000 with , racing against Herm's .
The flop fell , giving Herm an open-ended straight draw. The turn was no help, nor was the river giving Watson the double up.
| Mark Herm | 1,390,000 | -360,000 |
| Mike Watson | 908,000 | 360,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:45 PM Local Time
Herm Leaning on Watson
Mark Herm has chopped one of Mike Watson's legs out from under him, and now he is leaning on his man, hoping to make him fall.
On one hand Watson raised before the flop and Herm popped it up to 150,000. Watson flatted and the flop came , with Herm quickly leading out for 150,000. Watson relented and the pot was pushed to Herm.
A few hands passed with Herm open shoving to claim the blinds and antes, before Watson tried limping into the pot. Herm obliged by checking his option, and the flop rolled out . Herm then check-called a 40,000 wager, and both players tapped the table on the turn. When the completed the board on the river Herm led out for 55,000, and once more Watson's hand was slid toward the dealer in defeat.
| Mark Herm | 1,750,000 | 372,000 |
| Mike Watson | 548,000 | -372,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:30 PM Local Time
Herm Back in the Lead
Mike Watson raised to 60,000 on the button, Mark Herm three-bet to 150,000 in the big blind and Watson called to see a flop. Herm continued for 135,000 and Watson folded.
The following hand, Herm opened to 65,000 on the button and Watson called, landing a flop. Watson check-called 65,000 to see the turn, which both checked. The river completed the board and both checked again.
Watson tabled , but it was second best to Herm's .
| Mark Herm | 1,378,000 | 280,000 |
| Mike Watson | 920,000 | -280,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 6:21 PM Local Time
Watson Pushes Herm Off On River
Mark Herm opened to 65,000 and Mike Watson flatted to see the flop.
Watson tapped the table and then called a 60,000 bet by Herm, with the turn card coming . Both players checked on fourth street and the river produced the .
Watson led out for 150,000 on the river and after a brief tank Herm surrendered the pot.
| Mike Watson | 1,200,000 | -134,000 |
| Mark Herm | 1,098,000 | 134,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:48 PM Local Time
Break
Mike Watson and Mark Herm are on a 20-minute break.
| Mike Watson | 1,334,000 | -119,000 |
| Mark Herm | 964,000 | 119,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:44 PM Local Time
Watson Retakes the Lead
Mike Watson raised to 50,000 on the button and Mark Herm called from the big blind to see a flop.
Herm checked, Watson bet 50,000, Herm check-raised to 119,000 and Watson called. The turn followed and Herm bet 205,000. Watson called, the river completed the board and Herm checked after about 90 seconds. Watson took some time as well before he bet 250,000, sending Herm into the tank for about two minutes before he called.
Watson tabled for trip sevens, Herm mucked and Watson collected the pot.
| Mike Watson | 1,453,000 | 393,000 |
| Mark Herm | 845,000 | -378,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:34 PM Local Time
Watson and Herm Tangling
The first few hands between Mike Watson and Mark Herm have seen each player draw blood.
First, the two played a limped pot and saw the flop come , with Watson check-calling a 24,000 bet to see the fall on the turn. Watson then check-called a bet of 42,000 and both tapped the table on the river. Watson rolled over for the second nut flush draw and a rivered pair, but Watson had him pipped with the for the nut flush draw and a better pair.
Watson rebounded by four-betting to 275,000 on the next hand of note, coming over the top of Herm's 125,000 three-bet to force a fold.
Soon afterward, Watson struck again with a three-bet to 135,000 after Herm raised his button to 50,000. Once again, the pressure play worked to perfection.
Finally, Herm evened things up when the two saw a flop of and Watson fired out for a 100,000 wager. Herm flatted and the turn fell , prompting both players to check. The river card was the to pair the board, and Watson tapped the table once more to prompt a big bet of 310,000 by Herm. Watson couldn't stand the heat and soon his hand hit the muck, sending a sizable pot across the table to Herm.
| Mark Herm | 1,223,000 | 220,000 |
| Mike Watson | 1,060,000 | -220,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:30 PM Local Time
Win Your Way to the WSOP Main Event in the 25 Seat Scramble!
The $10,000 World Series of Poker Main Event is only a few days away, but there's still plenty of time to win a seat to the grandest tournament of the year. On July 5, WSOP.com in Nevada is guaranteeing 25 seats to the Main Event in the 25 Seat Scramble, a $215 satellite that begins at 5 p.m. PST.
If $215 is out of your budget, satellites to the are running for as little as $1.10. There are also $27.50 super satellites guaranteeing 10 entries each into the 25 Seat Scramble running at the following times:
- Tuesday, July 1 – 7:30 p.m.
- Thursday, July 3 – 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, July 5 – 2 p.m.
Anyone can play, and anyone can win. Register now and take your shot at poker immortality!
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:19 PM Local Time
Joseph Alban Eliminated in 4th Place ($126,882); Jaffee Advances to the Championship Match
On the first hand of the heads-up match between Jared Jaffee and Joseph Alban, Jaffee folded his button. On the second hand, Alban shoved for about 300,000 and Jaffee called.
Alban:
Jaffee:
The flop fell , keeping Jaffee ahead. The turn, however, gave Alban flush and straight outs in addition to a queen, but the river was no help, ending his tournament in fourth place.
Jaffee, meanwhile, will hold the chip lead in the the championship match against either Mike Watson or Mark Herm.
| Jared Jaffee | 4,353,000 | 283,000 |
| Joseph Alban | 0 | 0 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:10 PM Local Time
Final Four Matches
With only four competitors remaining in the field, this Mixed-Max event has moved to heads-up matches to decide who will square off in the finals. The seeding for the final four was determined by chip counts, so take a look at the matchups and counts below:
| Seed | Player | Chips |
|---|
| 1 | Jared Jaffee | 4,070,000 |
| 4 | Joseph Alban | 283,000 |
| Seed | Player | Chips |
|---|
| 3 | Mark Herm | 1,003,000 |
| 2 | Mike Watson | 1,295,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:06 PM Local Time
Xiao Peng Eliminated in 5th Place ($53,614)
Mark Herm opened to 52,000 from the cutoff and watched as a short-stacked Xiao Peng three-bet-jammed for 117,000 more.
After asking for a count and assessing the size of his own stack, which appeared to contain 700,000 or so. Herm called to put Peng at risk.
Herm:
Peng:
Herm held the slight lead with his king-high hand, while Peng was drawing live and looking for help. The drama ended in a flash when the flop fell to give Herm a flush, leaving Peng drawing all but dead. The turn ( ) and river ( ) meant nothing, and with that the final four players were reseated for their heads-up matches.
| Mark Herm | 1,003,000 | 98,000 |
| Xiao Peng | 0 | -260,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 5:01 PM Local Time
Flush for Jaffee
Jared Jaffee raised to 52,000 in first position and Mike Watson defended his big blind.
The flop came down and Watson checked to Jaffee who continued for 66,000. Watson called, the hit the turn and Watson check-called 153,000 from Jaffee to see the river. Watson checked and Jaffee fired 314,000. After a few moments, Watson called.
Jaffee tabled for a flush, Watson mucked and Jaffee collected the pot.
| Jared Jaffee | 4,060,000 | 760,000 |
| Mike Watson | 1,325,000 | -475,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 4:48 PM Local Time
Chip Counts
| Jared Jaffee | 3,300,000 | 110,000 |
| Mike Watson | 1,800,000 | 130,000 |
| Mark Herm | 905,000 | -85,000 |
| Joseph Alban | 330,000 | -170,000 |
| Xiao Peng | 260,000 | -20,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 4:47 PM Local Time
Peng's Pushes Get Through
Xiao Peng is currently riding a short-stack with nearly 10 big blinds, and during the last two orbits she open-shoved from the button.
Both attempts were successful and Peng collected pots chock-full of blinds and antes without a contest.
| Xiao Peng | 280,000 | -30,000 |
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 4:32 PM Local Time
PokerNews Podcast Episode #232: One Drop Reaction feat. David Williams
David Williams joins the PokerNews Podcast before the start of Day 3 of Event #59 to discuss Daniel Colman winning the BIG ONE for ONE DROP, his disregard for the media, and more. Jason, Donnie, and Rich continue the discussion in the second half of the show, and also talk about the "dispute" that lead to the Macau-based players skipping the $1 million tournament.
You can subscribe to the entire iBus Media Network on iTunes here, or you can access the RSS feed here. The PokerNews family of podcasts is now available on Stitcher.
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 4:31 PM Local Time
Watson on the Rise
Mark Herm raised from the small blind and Mike Watson called from the big blind.
The flop came down and Herm continued for 53,000. Watson called to see the turn where Herm bet 90,000. Watson called after a few moments and the river completed the board. Herm tanked for a bit then bet 103,000 and was quickly called by Watson. Herm tabled for a flush, but was bested by Watson's for a better flush.
A few hands later with the board reading , Xiao Peng check-called 175,000 from Watson. The river completed the board and Peng check-called 350,000. Watson tabled for trip kings, besting Peng's holding to win the pot.
| Mike Watson | 1,670,000 | 960,000 |
| Mark Herm | 990,000 | -130,000 |
| Xiao Peng | 310,000 | -770,000 |