Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:56 PM Local Time
John Smith raises to 165,000 from the button and Alex Luneau calls from the big blind.
The flop is and Luneau checks to Smith who bets 205,000. Luneau calls.
The turn is the , Luneau checks, Smith bets 350,000, and Luneau calls.
The river is the and both players check.
Smith shows for jacks and fives, but Luneau tables for jacks and fives with a nine kicker to win the pot.
Alex Luneau - 4,700,000
John Smith - 1,700,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:43 PM Local Time
Level: | 5 | | Blinds: | 40,000/80,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:42 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau opens the button to 125,000, and John Smith (pictured) defends his big blind.
The flop is , and Smith leads out for 250,000. Luneau takes another look at his hole cards, then calls. The turn is the , and Smith bets 325,000. Luneau runs through the same ritual, hunching over to check his cards, then calling. The river is the , and Smith bets 400,000, leaving less than a million behind. Once more, Luneau reminds himself what he's holding. This time, Smith also takes another peek at his own cards.
Luneau considers for a couple minutes, then folds, and Smith wins the pot.
John Smith - 2,350,000
Alex Luneau - 4,050,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:36 PM Local Time
John Smith raises to 180,000 from the button and Alex Luneau calls from the big blind.
The flop is and Luneau checks to Smith, who continues for 200,000. Luneau calls.
The turn is the and Luneau checks. Smith bets 225,000 and Luneau calls.
The river is the and both players check.
Smith tables for a pair of deuces, but Luneau turns up for a pair of sevens to win the pot.
Alex Luneau - 4,820,000
John Smith - 1,580,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:31 PM Local Time
Level: | 5 | | Blinds: | 30,000/60,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:17 PM Local Time
John Smith (pictured) opens the button to 90,000, and Alex Luneau defends his big blind.
The flop is . Luneau checks, Smith bets 125,000, and Luneau calls. Both players check through the turn. The river is the , and Smith shifts noticeably in his chair as the ace hits the board. Luneau leads out with a bet of 110,000, and Smith raises to 325,000. Typically a very methodical player, Luneau breaks form for a brief moment, instantly grabbing chips and calling the remainder.
Smith shows for no pair, and Luneau tables to win the pot with a pair of aces.
Alex Luneau - 3,995,000
John Smith - 2,405,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:10 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau raises to 100,000 from the button and John Smith calls from the big blind.
They check to the turn of a board, where Smith bets 150,000. Luneau calls.
The river is the and both players check.
Smith tables for a pair of kings, Luneau mucks, and Smith wins the pot.
John Smith - 2,910,000
Alex Luneau - 3,490,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:06 PM Local Time
Level: | 4 | | Blinds: | 20,000/40,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 1:05 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau opens the button to 70,000, and John Smith defends his big blind.
The flop is . Smith checks, Luneau bets 50,000, and Smith check-raises to 175,000. Luneau calls. The turn is the , and Smith bets 225,000. Luneau gives his hole cards a second look, then slides them into the muck to let Smith take the pot.
John Smith - 2,710,000
Alex Luneau - 3,690,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:57 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau raises to 70,000 from the button and John Smith calls from the big blind.
The flop is and Smith checks to Luneau, who continues for 50,000. Smith calls.
The turn is the and Smith checks. Luneau bets 160,000 and Smith calls.
The river is the , Smith checks, Luneau bets 200,000, and Smith calls.
Luneau tables for a flush, Smith mucks, and Luneau retakes the lead.
Alec Luneau - 3,950,000
John Smith - 2,450,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:49 PM Local Time
Level: | 3 | | Blinds: | 15,000/30,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:49 PM Local Time
Alan Percal - advances to final
Alan Percal opens the button to 65,000, and Olivier Busquet three-bets to 170,000 from the big blind. Percal four-bets to 410,000, and Busquet calls.
The flop is . Both players check, and the turn brings the . Busquet leads for 325,000, and Percal calls. The river is the . Busquet moves all in for 1,320,000, just less than the size of the pot. Percal takes his time once again, leaning back in his chair and drawing a pensive sip from his water bottle. Two or three minutes later, he calls to put Busquet at risk.
"You win," Busquet says again. He turns over for a pair of eights. Percal waits to see it, then shows to win the pot with a pair of queens. Busquet is eliminated, while Percal has reserved his seat for this afternoon's final.
The two men shake hands, and Busquet offers a complimentary, "Nice call," before heading to the cashier to collect his payout.
Olivier Busquet - eliminated
Alan Percal - 6,400,000
Olivier Busquet - Eliminated in semifinals ($123,929)
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:39 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau raises to 50,000 from the button and John Smith defends his big blind.
The flop is and Smith leads out for 60,000. Luneau calls.
The turn is the and Smith bets 85,000. Luneau calls.
The river is the and Smith bets 225,000. Luneau folds and Smith wins the pot, one of many smaller ones that Smith has won in the past 10 minutes or so to take the chip lead from Luneau.
John Smith - 3,390,000
Alex Luneau - 3,010,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:32 PM Local Time
Level: | 2 | | Blinds: | 12,000/24,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:32 PM Local Time
Olivier Busquet opens the button to 60,000, and Alan Percal defends his big blind.
The flop is . Percal checks, Busquet bets 75,000, and Percal calls. The turn is the , and Percal leads out for 125,000. Busquet raises to 450,000, and Percal calls. The river is the . Percal checks, and Busquet bets 675,000. The bet puts Percal into the tank for a short while. He stares across the table for a bit, then cuts out the calling chips and places them on top of his stack. After another minute of staring, he grabs those chips and plunks them into the pot.
"You win," Busquet says, showing .
Percal tables , winning the pot with two pair and opening up a significant lead in the match.
Alan Percal - 4,580,000
Olivier Busquet - 1,820,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:16 PM Local Time
Alex Luneau opens the button to 40,000, and John Smith (pictured) defends his big blind.
The flop is . Smith checks, Luneau bets 60,000, and Smith calls. Both players check through the turn. The river is the , and Smith leads out for 125,000. Luneau considers for more than a minute before releasing his cards into the muck.
John Smith - 2,800,000
Alex Luneau - 3,600,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:11 PM Local Time
John Smith raises from the button to 40,000, Alex Luneau three-bets to 120,000 from the big blind, and Smith calls.
The flop is and Luneau bets 80,000. Smith calls.
The turn is the and Luneau bets 300,000. Smith calls.
The river is the and Luneau takes about 30 seconds before he bets 650,000. Smith folds and Luneau wins the pot.
Alex Luneau - 3,700,000
John Smith - 2,700,000
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:06 PM Local Time
The four finalists have taken their seats on the main stage, and the semifinal matches are under way.
Thursday, June 9, 2016 12:02 PM Local Time
Level: | 1 | | Blinds: | 10,000/20,000 | |
Thursday, June 9, 2016 8:13 AM Local Time
Welcome to Day 3 of coverage of Event #9: $10,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em Championship. After six rounds of matches, only four players remain from the starting field of 153 entrants. What's on the line? A coveted World Series of Poker gold bracelet. Each player is guaranteed $123,929 as of now, but alongside the bracelet is a first-place prize of $335,553.
These four individuals beat stiff competition to reach the semifinals. Here is a look at their respective roads to get here:
Round |
Alex Luneau |
John Smith |
Olivier Busquet |
Alan Percal |
256 |
bye |
bye |
bye |
bye |
128 |
Kevin Rabichow |
Lorenz Buehler |
Darren Elias |
Brian Rast |
64 |
David Farber |
Michael Kane |
Ivan Luca |
Jeff Gross |
32 |
Bobby Oboodi |
Igor Yaroshevskyy |
Chance Kornuth |
Alan Wehbi |
16 |
Adrian Mateos |
Antonio Esfandiari |
Jared Jaffee |
K. Ramazanov |
Quarters |
Matthew Diehl |
Nick Yunis |
Orlando Romero |
Benjamin Geisman |
The semifinals will get underway at noon, with the championship match to follow at either 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. Be sure to follow the live updates as the quest to crown the latest WSOP champion concludes.