Event #58: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em MAIN EVENT - World Championship

The Amazon Room is quiet once more, only broken by the constant hum of the janitor's vacuum cleaner and the distant clanking of chips as they are taken out by the dealers and floor staff to the cage. It's certainly been another stellar day here at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, and naturally, it means that it's that time of the night where the PokerNews Live Reporting Team wrap things up.

For the 1,864 players that took to the felt here in either the Amazon or Pavilion Rooms today, they can consider themselves part of poker history. For the very first time, ESPN beamed the major action live to poker fans all over the world. It only seems fitting that the "big dance" become a "big show" – and what a star-studded spectacular it was, full of color, drama and the occasional bit of slapstick.

2011 World Series of Poker Event #35 champion Jason Mercier was amongst the first wave to hit the rail, with Dan Shak, Matt Matros and Greg Mueller also taking their leave within the first level of play. Due to the ESPN production schedule, play was quickly back underway after a break and the intensity certainly didn't let up. In fact, Anton Ionel turned that dial up to 11 when he flopped a set of kings against an opponent's aces to move up to almost 600,000 in chips – and that wasn't even the dinner break yet!

However, two WSOP Main Event champions were lost during that second stanza – Tom McEvoy and Joe Cada -- but the shocking pink hair of Guillaume Darcourt didn't go unnoticed, and neither did his stack, as he took the chip lead into the break with over 880,000 in chips.

21-year-old Max Heinzelmann then stole the show (and Shaun Deeb's chips) in one of the first hands after the break inside The Mothership, but then Daryl Jace took down an even bigger pot to move up to almost one million before dinner. Darcourt, Chris Bonita and Patrick Poirier weren't far behind, but Seinfeld's Jason Alexander, Mike Caro and Noah Boeken were nowhere to be found at the dinner break.

2007 WSOP Europe Main Event champion Annette Obrestad was then ousted early in the post-dinner session, as was 1996 WSOP Main Event champion Huck Seed. Peter Jetten also began to chip up, but Poirier was the first past that coveted one-million chip mark.

The final two hours of play marked the resurgence of German pro Sebastian Ruthenberg, but it also marked the end of Billy Kopp, Ryan D'Angelo, Patrik Antonius and renowned poker tournament director Matt Savage. However, Daniel Retallick came out hard in one of the final hands of the night to bag up 850,000 after a massive double-up.

As it stands though, our chip leader is indeed Patrick Poirier with 1,328,000 in chips. He's not the only one in the millionaire's club – Daryl Jace is also up there with 1,282,500. Chris Kwon (944,500), David Barter (917,000), Scott Smith (896,500), Sebastian Ruthenberg (889,000), Christopher Bonita (859,000) and Aleksandr Mozhnyakov (813,000) will also be the ones to watch tomorrow. It should be noted that at the same time last year, James Carroll was the only one to take more than 800,000 in chips into Day 4.

Other notable players to have survived the day include Guillaume Darcourt (681,500), Peter Jetten (657,000), Bryan Devonshire (596,500), Ben Tollerene (595,500), Amanda Musumeci (528,500), JP Kelly (492,000) and Kevin Saul (392,500). Joseph Cheong, the sole 2010 November Niner in the field, will also be returning tomorrow with 410,500 in chips.

As for Phil Hellmuth? It was certainly a day he rather wouldn't have had to begin with, but he's ridden that rollercoaster through to bag up 77,000. All the world will be watching when he returns tomorrow – and perhaps, by the power of Greyskull, score that elusive 12th WSOP bracelet on the grandest stage of all.

All we can say is that there's no way to script a saga like this, so you're just going to have to lock your browsers back onto PokerNews tomorrow from 12 PM PST (GMT -7) as we bring you up-to-the-minute coverage of all the big names, big hands and big stories from the 2011 WSOP Main Event.

That's all we have time for – until then, good night, drive safe and may the flop be with you!

Action folded to the player in the hijack seat. He raised to 8,000 with a little less than 150,000 behind. The player on the button, flat-called with approximately 68,000 behind. Then play folded to Ronnie Bardah in the big blind. Bardah, who finished 24th in this event last year for over $317,000, paused to think and then reraised to 27,000. The hijack seat folded, but then the button went into the tank.

The button broke down his stack to count it out, having just under 68,000 left. He then stacked up in one tower and slid them into the middle, announcing, "I'm all in."

"Call!" snapped off Bardah.

Bardah tabled the    and had his opponent's    crushed. The board ran out clean for Bardah with the       falling and he won the pot.

Bardah had bluffed off some chips prior to this hand to lose about 80,000 of his stack, but this pot put him right back at about the 300,000 mark as the night closes out.

Ronnie Bardah

296,000

-7,000

We joined the action on the turn as the dealer dropped the fourth card onto the         board. The gentleman in the one seat checked, and Ruben Visser bet 20,400 into a pot of just less than 30,000. His opponent then check-raised all in for 128,400 total, and Visser sunk in his chair. He asked for the count, but he made the call before learning the total.

Showdown
Mr. Opponent:    
Visser: ... ... ...

On seeing his opponent's flush, Visser just went ahead and mucked, and the dealer completed the board with the  . A frustrated Visser has been forced to pay off a big double up, cutting his stack nearly in half as the Dutchman falls to about 215,000 on one of the final hands of the night.

It was a few minutes ago now, but we're just catching up to the elimination of a familiar face around these parts. Matt Savage was down to just 17,500 when he shoved his chips in with    . His ace ran right into the bigger     of an opponent, and the       board is the last one Savage will see at this 2011 Main Event.

One of the tournament directors came over to Garry Gates and told him to pick a card. Gates drew one of the cards and it was a four, which means the players will be playing four more hands today before coloring up, bagging and tagging.

Jay Carter raised to 7,000 from middle position. The player in the hijack seat called and then Joe Tehan reraised from the small blind to 15,100. Jean-Robert Bellande called from the big blind, Carter called and then the hijack seat called.

The four players took the     flop and Tehan checked. Bellande bet 33,000 and Carter called. The hijack seat raised all in for approximately 300,000 and Tehan folded. Bellande folded and then Carter called all in for 137,800. Carter held the    and the hijack seat the   . It was open-ended straight draw versus bottom set.

The turn was the   and the river the  . When the river hit and landed Carter's straight, he yelled, "Big Shirley never loses!"

Carter is up to around 500,000 now.

Max Heinzelmann opened the action by raising to 6,500 preflop and he received one call from Daniel Negreanu in the big blind. The flop came down     and Negreanu checked. Heinzelmann pushed out a continuation bet of 7,600 and Negreanu made the call.

Fourth street brought the   and Negreanu checked once more. Heinzelmann counted out a bet of 14,500 and tossed it into the middle. Negreanu called and the river came  . Negreanu checked for a third time and Heinzelmann put one more bet into the pot, this time making the magic number 33,700.

Negreanu leaned back in his chair and the contemplation began. After what looked like talking through several scenarios to himself, Negreanu pushed out a call and tabled   . Heinzelmann mucked his hand and Negreanu was able to drag in a fair sized pot.

Daniel Negreanu

215,400

65,800

Naturally, as soon as we walk away from vulturing his table, Patrik Antonius finds the hand to go with. We didn't see what it was, but we did see him walking out the door with that freshly eliminated look on his face.

Antonius' day, and his Main Event, are done.

Shannon Shorr opened for 7,000 in the cutoff and Brian Park called from the button. The blinds released and the flop came      . Shorr check-called 10,000 and the turn came  . Both players checked and the river came  . Shorr bet out 12,000 and Park folded.

Shorr is at 320,000 and Park is sitting on 775,000.

-	775,000	-105,000
-	320,000	-105,000

We just decided to camp out near Patrik Antonius' table for an orbit, beginning with the great bald-headed wonder in the big blind.

Chips to start orbit: 47,400

• Hand #1 - Antonius was in the big blind. The player in Seat 8 opened to 6,500, and Antonius folded.
• Hand #2 - Antonius was in the small blind. From the cutoff seat, the player in Seat 2 raised to 11,500, and Antonius folded.
• Hand #3 - Antonius was on the button. Steve Brecher raised to 7,500 from the hijack, and Antonius folded.
• Hand #4 - Antonius was in the cutoff. The table folded around to him, and he folded. While the table was folding around, a media group set up a camera tableside and shot some b-roll of Antonius.
• Hand #5 - Antonius was in the hijack. Steve Brecher raised to 7,500 from middle position, and Antonius folded.
• Hand #6 - Antonius was in middle position. He was already quite prepared to fold with the first three players still left to act in front of him. Antonius lifted his cards off the table and held them in his hands, and he almost beat the man to his right into the muck, folding immediately when the action finally passed to him. He leaned back in his chair and stretched his neck a little.
• Hand #7 - Antonius was in early position. He folded.
• Hand #8 - Antonius was in early position. He folded.
• Hand #9 - Antonius was under the gun. He folded.

Chips to end orbit: 39,300

It's not really all that thrilling a game when you have 13bb.