Event #68: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em MAIN EVENT - World Championship

Luther Tran and Michael Shanahan have been dominating this table all day. The last level brought Matt Shafman to the table with over 200,000 in chips when he sat down. Shafman is now sitting with just over 500,000 and becomes the third player at the table to hit half a million in chips.

Tran, Shanahan, and Shafman are all sitting to the right of the dealer, causing a serious table tilt. This is countered by the addition of David Sands to the dealer's left. He is a poker power house with 187 career cashes, 29 titles, 25 WSOP cashes, 2 final tables, and over $7 million in career earnings.

This lineup has the makings of a fantastic table, but it is still early on and there is a lot of poker to be played in the next few days. If past experience tells us anything, it is that absolutely anything can happen at the WSOP.

Justin Schwartz opens for 5,100 and Andy Spears defends his big blind. The flop comes     and Spears checks to Schwartz, who bets 3,100. Spears calls and they both check the   turn.

Spears bets 21,500 on the river and Schwartz throws his arms up in exasperation. "Why did you put a bluff-catch card out?" Schwartz whines to the dealer.

Schwartz folds after another minute and shows   . Spears turns over the   and takes the pot.

Andy Spears - 245,000
Justin Schwartz - 474,000

Andrey Zaichenko found himself with only 14,000 left and proceeded to move all in four times in one orbit. On the fourth occasion, he was called by Rafael Wimmer in the small blind and the pair tabled their cards.

Zaichenko -   
Wimmer -   

The board ran out       to send the pot in Wimmer's direction and eliminate Zaichenko less than 200 places from the money.

Andrey Zaichenko - Eliminated

With close to 12,000 in the pot and the board reading     a player in middle position bets 5,500 and Tom Dobrilovic, who is on the button with just over 110,000, calls to see the turn.

The   falls and the out of position player bets for a second time, throwing out 14,000. Dobrilovic calls again to see the river. 

The   pairs and completes the board and the out of position player, who has just under 300,000 in front of him, slows down, checking to Dobrilovic. The shorter stack quickly checks again and sees his opponent table   . 

Dobrilovic tables    and his opponent cringes when he sees his hand, saying something about forcing a fold if he had bet the river. 

Dobrilovic says he wouldn't have folded and his opponent quickly says, "Yeah, right." 

Whether he would have or wouldn't have doesn't matter but what does is that Dobrilovic seemed to know exactly where he was in the hand on every street. 

Tom Dobrilovic - 135,000

On a flop of    , John Racener checks from the big blind and the player in middle postition bets 5,300. Racener check-raises to 14,200 and middle position calls.

The turn is the   and Racener bets 18,000. His opponent calls and the river is the  . Racener bets 7,500 and his opponent calls. Racener tables   , giving him a full house and his opponent mucks his hand.

John Racener - 274,000

Following an opening raise from middle position to 5,500, Daniel Negreanu calls, as does the hijack. On the button, Hien Nguyen reraises to 15,500. The original raiser folds, but Negreanu calls and so does the hijack.

Negreanu and the hijack both check the     flop. Nguyen bets 22,000 and it doesn't take long for Negreanu to throw in a raise to 50,000. The hijack quickly folds, and as the ESPN cameras begin to flock to the table, Nguyen calls.

The   falls on the turn and Negreanu bets 50,000, which sends Nguyen deep into the tank. Nguyen takes about two minutes as a crowd begins to grow around the table.

"You hit the six again," Nguyen says before he folds.

Nguyen asks for Negreanu to show a six, but Negreanu responds, "No, I've got a better one. I've got nothing." Negreanu does flash the   before he rakes in the pot, leading some players at the table to believe he held pocket fours.

Daniel Negreanu - 249,800
Hien Nguyen - 156,000

"Winning!" was how Matthias De Meulder described his recent period of play.

He told the WSOP.com that a player six-bet jammed into his pocket kings with ace-queen. The Belgian called and the board ran      .

Matthias De Meulder - 370,000

Bryan Devonshire (pictured left) was recently eliminated from the Main Event by Kyle Cartwright (pictured right).

According to Cartwright, he raised from under the gun to 5,000. Bryan Devonshire went all in for approximately 41,000 and Cartwright called.

Cartwright:   
Devonshire:   

The board ran out in Cartwright's favor and Devonshire is eliminated.

Kyle Cartwright - 380,000
Bryan Devonshire - Eliminated

Action folds around to David Paredes in the cutoff who raises to 5,100. The button folds, as well as the small blind, and Brian Malik calls out of the big blind.

The two see a flop of     when Malik checks to Paredes. Paredes bets 5,000 and Malik calls. The turn brings the   and again Malik checks. Paredes slows down when he checks behind and both watch as the   falls on the river.

Malik now leads out for 7,000 and Paredes double checks his cards before he calls. Malik mucks his hand and Paredes tables    to take down the pot.

David Paredes - 180,500

Garry Gates, a well-respected person in the industry, had a bad first couple of levels and came back from the last break with 12 big blinds. This level has been a lot better for him, as he told the WSOP.com team.

He moved all in from the cutoff with queen-jack off on the first hand back from break and Sean Winter raised from the next seat to isolate. Winter had ace-king but Gates hit a queen on the turn. After that, Gates said he went on to win four more pots and is feeling a lot more positive about his prospects.

Gary Gates - 92,000.