Jorryt van Hoof was just eliminated from the 2014 Main Event. He finished in 3rd place, earning $3,807,753.
Van Hoof entered the final table with the chip lead. He dominated the first day of play during this year's gathering of the November Nine. Monday belonged to the Dutchman from Eindhoven. While other players -- notably Felix Stephensen and William Tonking -- briefly took over the chip lead at various times, Van Hoof always found his way back to the top. He continually built and rebuilt his stack, and was the only player yesterday to reach over 100,000,000 in chips. Even though he dropped down a bit from that high point by day's end, he still returned on Tuesday with a comfortable chip lead at over 89 million.
However, as great as Monday was for the online poker instructor, businessman, and pot-limit Omaha specialist, today was equally as difficult. Van Hoof failed to gain any momentum, nor win any hand of consequence during his relatively short three-hour stay during the finale. He called an all-in bet from Felix Stephensen early on with the second-best hand, which seemed to set the tone for his day. After that crucial hand, his chips slowly disappeared, most of them going over to Martin Jacobson, the tough Swede who now holds the chip lead. Fittingly, it was Jacobson who dealt the final blow, as his beat Van Hoof's .
"I didn't feel as comfortable out there playing tonight as I was yesterday," Van Hoof said in a post-tournament interview. "I moved to the five seat and the light was bothering me. It seemed brighter there. I had more trouble seeing and focusing."
The shift to Tuesday night brought about a common fashion accessory, as Van Hoof wore sunglasses. On day one, he was smiling and beaming, flashing a wide smile that made him enjoyable to watch. Once the shades went on, Van Hoof seemed to hide away, unable to connect to their the game or find his comfort zone.
"That's the last time I do that," Van Hoof joked when asked why he changed into the sunglasses.
Van Hoof's finish marks the second consecutive year that a Dutch player has made the November Nine. Van Hoof follows in the footsteps of his countryman Michiel Brummelhuis, who was at the 2013 final table. He finished in seventh place. Hence, Van Hoof stands as the highest finisher ever from Holland in the WSOP Main Event.
"In the end, I finished third in the WSOP Main Event," Van Hoof said. "So, I can't complain."
Here are the final table results so far:
1st - - $10,000,0002nd - - $5,147,9113rd - Jorryt Van Hoof - $3,807,7534th - William Tonking - $2,849,7635th - Billy Pappaconstantinou - $2,143,7946th - Andoni Larrabe - $1,622,4717th - Dan Sindelar - $1,236,0848th - Bruno Politano - $947,1729th - Mark Newhouse - $730,72