Thursday, July 20, 2017 2:15 PM Local Time
Seat 6: Damian Salas
Chip Count: 22,175,000
Age: 42
Hometown: Chascomus, Argentina
Seat: 6
Making the World Series of Poker Main Event final table requires patience, work, and adjustment. Damian Salas found some success in the early days, but then bounced back from some adversity in later days to keep alive. His perseverance has paid off and he is sixth in chips with the final table on the horizon.
"The truth is, I'm feeling many emotions," Salas said after bagging his chips. "It was seven days of a poker marathon with a lot of adrenaline, a lot of ups and downs. Day 2 went well, Day 3 also was pretty good. Day 4 I felt like I was still doing well. Day 5, there were difficult hands that honestly kind of set me back a little and I had to change up my strategy. Day 6 and 7 were back and forth, I was adjusting and readjusting constantly."
Salas is pleased with how he played, but still has his eyes on the bracelet and recognizes the Main Event's historical significance on the winner's life.
"The truth is I play to win, and that's what I am going to keep doing," he said. "This whole time, the last few days, I've been calm. I never let myself think too far ahead – to think about getting to the final table. I never let myself look at how much money there was. The objective was always to concentrate on every hand and each situation and play my best poker with a sense of calmness. And today, well, I got emotional. Because it is just now hitting me how big this is."
A regular on the South and Latin American poker scene, Salas same into the Main Event with $919,000 in live tournament winnings and a combined $4 million when taking into account online results. He has considerable experience online and definitely brought some of that skill to the WSOP.
The former attorney has 13 WSOP cashes for $177,983 with a fifth place finish in 2016 in Event #50: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout for $64,129. He also cashed in the 2016 Main Event, finishing 418th for $25,230. Now with his Main Event final table appearance, Salas will have a chance at his first bracelet on poker's biggest stage.
Salas began accumulating a big stack early and led all players after four days of play. Beyond his WSOP cashes, his best finish came in 2013 in the $5,000 No Limit Hold'em High Roller on the Latin American Poker Tour-Uruguay Grand Final for $107,800. He has several other smaller wins and nice finishes as well.
Many of his poker friends here supporting him as he plays the biggest tournament of his life. His wife Sylvana was also in Vegas with him for five or six days, but had to return to Argentina to care for their three children. He dedicates his final table to: his father; his three siblings, who he says are always sending him incredible energy; his mom; to his poker friends; and to the poker community of Argentina, who have supported his efforts.
Along with family and friends, Salas especially thanks his yoga instructor Daniel Espina, who he said has helped him find himself as a person and helped maintain calm, balance, and maintain focus at the tables.
"Words can't express what he has taught me," he said.
When not playing poker, Sales likes to hang out with friends and family. He has three children: Santiago, 10; Sol, 9; and Francisco, 6. Thursday will be a little extra special as the the final table gets underway, and little Francisco celebrates his seventh birthday. He also enjoys playing table tennis and fishing. On Thursday, Salas hopes to reel in the title and take home the bracelet.
"We have been playing 11, 12 hours a day and resting maybe five hours," he said. "There wasn't even time to think about exactly what we were playing. I simply had my energy, and I put that into each hand, into each moment – the present – without going nuts thinking about what could be. And I think that worked for me. And now, well I mean all this has happened, the lights, everything. I am in the final of the World Series, and I am so incredibly happy with my process, with everything these past seven days have been."
HOW HE GOT HERE
| Day | End-of-Day Chip Count | Rank |
|---|
| 1 | 71,300 | 2036/5,519 |
| 2 | 301,000 | 176/2,572 |
| 3 | 1,028,000 | 31/1,084 |
| 4 | 4,678,000 | 1/297 |
| 5 | 8,400,000 | 5/85 |
| 6 | 7,800,000 | 21/27 |
| 7 | 22,175,000 | 6/9 |
KEY HAND
Salas was very quiet on Day 7, but he picked up a nice pot with a rare showdown that helped preserve his rank in the chip counts late in the day. Under the gun, Salas put in a raise to 900,000 and action folded around to Benjamin Pollak, who called from the big blind. The flop brought the .
Pollak checked and Salas checked behind. The turn brought the and Pollak checked to his opponent again. Salas bet 750,000 and Pollak called.
The river brought the and Pollak fired a hefty bet of 1,150,000. Sales made the call with for a full house and raked a nice pot. Pollak held on the losing end.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
One of the slower and more deliberate players to act at the table on Day 7, Salas brings a solid game with some unconventional plays ot the final table. With a quiet and observant demeanor, even late in the tournament he was known to simply limp on the button and small blinds.
While he may fly under the radar a bit at the table, don't confuse that with passivity. He can shifts gears and certainly go on offense. His style may confuse opponents and he'll be a tough player to figure out. With a ton of experience at the tables, Salas will try to work through this final table.
At the unofficial final table, Salas sported the Argentinian flag as a cape and hopes to bring a poker world championship to his beloved home country.
Profile by Sean Chaffin.
| Damian Salas | 22,175,000 | 0  |
Thursday, July 20, 2017 2:10 PM Local Time
Seat 7: Ben Lamb
Chip Count: 18,050,000
Hometown: Tulsa, Oklahoma (now Las Vegas)
Twitter: @BenbaLamb
Age: 32
Seat: 7
With a wedding on the way in September, it could be a great couple of months for Ben Lamb. A World Series of Poker final table and possibly a championship, followed by some nuptials in Las Vegas – a bracelet could be perfectly timed. While the nuptials approach, he's focused on poker at the moment with his second Main Event final table on Thursday.
"It hasn't really settled in yet," he said after bagging his chips. "You play a 7,000-player field and final table it, obviously the odds are staggering. I don't care if you're 10 times better than the second best player, the odds are staggering to get to the final table once let alone twice in six years."
With two deep cashes in the Main Event, Lamb is awestruck at his success and at being in similar spot again.
"This is the best video game in the world," he said. "I'm having a blast. As soon as all the poker's done for the day I'm all smiles for two hours until I finally go to sleep. Then I wake up and I'm serious again."
While Lamb is accustomed to playing for big money, the Main Event stage is different – the attention, the history, and the gigantic payday involved. And while he may enter the final table ninth in chips, Lamb plans on working to remedy that although he wishes there was just a bit more time before the final table, but approaches the next two days with some humor.
"I'm playing for $8 million," he says. "I do play for big cash, but this is something different. This is just a lot bigger. It's really going to mean a lot. I'm really going to try study and focus, and really try to win this thing.
"I wish there a three-day break because I want to sleep for two days, but I also want to drink all night. So that kind of screws me a bit. So I think I'm going to drink all night and sleep a day and a half – good plan."
For Lamb, cashing and running deep in the Main Event is not new. The 2011 Player of the Year is on his fourth cash in the event and hoping this one is the one that brings the bracelet. In 2007, he finished 156th in a field of 6,358 for $58,570. In 2009, he did even better – 14th for $633,022. The pinnacle came in 2011, third for $4,021,138. Now he's looking for a second shot at the bracelet..
While he now lives in Las Vegas and plays professionally, Lamb grew up playing in the thriving Oklahoma poker scene. A native of Tulsa, the 32-year-old attended Jenks High School and says academics always came easy and didn't have to study until college.
A billiards player and golfer in high school, Chris Moneymaker's 2003 rags-to-riches WSOP win helped spark his interest in the game, and he and his friends in high school joined in on the action. During his one semester at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, Lamb's winnings continued to grow and he soon ditched his school books for the poker felt.
"I was making decent money while in college and decided to take a year off and give myself a shot at poker," he says. "I've never looked back."
In Oklahoma, Lamb was a regular at the the River Spirit and Hard Rock Casino poker rooms sharpening his skills. Lamb now lives on a golf course in Vegas and hits the links quite a bit when not at the poker table. He enjoys traveling as well and hanging out with friends. His usual cash games are at the Aria and also hits a few places in Los Angeles.
Lamb is not the first poker shark from Tulsa. Bobby Baldwin became Main Event champion in 1978 and won four WSOP bracelets before becoming a successful casino industry executive. Lamb is hoping he can join this exclusive club of Tulsa champions.
HOW HE GOT HERE
| Day | End-of-Day Chip Count | Rank |
|---|
| 1 | 77,200 | 1781/5,519 |
| 2 | 327,800 | 123/2,572 |
| 3 | 1,016,000 | 32/1,084 |
| 4 | 2,746,000 | 14/297 |
| 5 | 4,725,000 | 51/85 |
| 6 | 22,540,000 | 5/27 |
| 7 | 18,050,000 | 9/9 |
KEY HAND
Ever the gamer, Lamb was the model of consistency over the last two days to the final table. His play is marked by gradually climbing up the leaderboards, controlling pots, and taking the lead in the action. Lamb avoided major confrontations, but came through with a couple of eliminations on Day 7.
Lamb regularly put in a pre-flop raise, followed through on the flop and beyond if necessary, and brought home the pot. Singling out one big hand for Lamb is not easy. But that's part of what makes him so good.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
An aggressive player who likes to mix it up, Lamb plays a lot of pots and is not afraid to make some plays with raises. Opponents find it difficult to determine the strength of his hands, and he is skilled at putting maximum pressure on opponents. He can also have a steely demeanor, not afraid to stare down other players at the table. Opponents' weaknesses or hesitancy can be sensed, and Lamb will look to exploit those shortcomings.
After leaving college, Lamb also worked as a dealer for six months. Like many former dealer, Lamb says he gained some unique insight into the game. Dealing helped teach him more about the game including how certain types of player bet, successful hand strategies, reading players, bet sizing, and more. These years playing and dealing in Oklahoma would help shape him into a phenomenal player.
"Ben Lamb has had an impressive World Series," 14-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth noted about him on ESPN during the 2011 WSOP. "He's a super-talented player."
Profile by Sean Chaffin.
| Ben Lamb | 18,050,000 | 0 |
Thursday, July 20, 2017 2:07 PM Local Time
Seat 8: Bryan Piccioli
Chip Count: 33,800,000
Hometown: Allegany, N.Y. (now San Diego, California)
Twitter: @theczar19
Age: 28
Seat: 8
The road to the World Series of Poker Main Event final table is paved with plenty of skill but also some good fortune. Late in Day 7 and down to the final 10 players, Michael Ruane moved all in for 17,300,000 chips from middle position. Bryan Piccioli looked down at and had a major decision to make. With not quite as any chips as Ruane, his tournament life and a chance at the final table was on the line. He tanked on the button for a couple of minutes before making the call.
Ruane, who is a friend of Piccioli's, tabled . Piccioli was precariously ahead, but had some cards to dodge. The flop came . The turn brought the and the river the . Piccioli doubled to about 34,000,000 and Ruane was crushed – soon to be eliminated in 10th place. The results of the hand brought out plenty of emotion, and was a massive moment on the final table bubble.
"I didn't want to be there in that spot against one of my good friends, but as Daryll Fish said after the hand when I came over, 'the game is the game,'" Piccioli said after the day's action. "That's just the perfect description. You don't get here to not play the game."
A former student at the University of Buffalo, Piccioli left school to pursue a career on the poker felt. He has more than $1.9 million in live tournament winnings along with more than $6 million online, and has several five- and six-figure scores. Piccioli's bracelet came in the 2013 WSOP Asia-Pacific $1,100 No-Limit Hold'em Accumulator, where he took home $221,419. He added another nice win in 2015 at the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic $5,200 No Limit Hold'em event for $166,047.
Last year, he notched a big third-place finish in the $7,500 WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star Championship at Bay 101 for $493,350. At the WSOP, Piccioli has $566,713 in earnings, but that is about to balloon upward. With a two-day break before the final table begins on Thursday, Piccioli is excited about the chance to catch up on some sleep and eat a few nice meals.
"I'm very excited about the two days," he said. "I haven't really had a full meal or slept more than three or four hours in close to a week. I'm ready to just get a good night's sleep, eat some food for the next couple days, and then hopefully win the poker tournament that I'm playing right now. That's the plan."
This is the third consecutive year Piccioli has cashed in the Main Event, finishing 84th in 2016 and 958th in 2015. On reaching the final table he notes: "I'm still here. I'm still alive. That's all you can really ask for."
HOW HE GOT HERE
| Day | End-of-Day Chip Count | Rank |
|---|
| 1 | 145,100 | 233/5,519 |
| 2 | 173,600 | 752/2,572 |
| 3 | 286,000 | 477/1,084 |
| 4 | 1,994,000 | 47/297 |
| 5 | 5,400,000 | 25/85 |
| 6 | 14,500,000 | 10/27 |
| 7 | 33,800,000 | 4/9 |
KEY HAND
On Day 7 with blinds at 300,000/600,000, a massive hand developed with only 11 players remaining that kept Piccioli alive in the tournament. With action folded around to him, he picked up on the small blind and moved all-in for his last 8,650,000. From the big blind, Antoine Saout had considerably more chips and made the call with .
"I had been grinding a short stack for a long time," he said. "I had two eights, which looked like aces to me at the time. So there was only one move; I moved in. I don't want to say I was hoping for a call, but I knew that I was near the top of my range at that point. I need chips now before later. So as soon as he shrugged and called, I almost knew that I was ahead. He doesn't shrug and call with a pair bigger than eights.
"I was like, 'alright, let's dodge three outs.' And then the flop comes and I was thinking, 'alright, well, that's it. That's the end. Eleventh place for $675,000.' So I'm just sitting there waiting for the next couple cards to peel off."
The turn brought the which helped neither player. Piccioli was dead to only one of the two remaining eights in the deck. The river? The dealer turned the and Piccioli hit the two-outer for his full house. He jumped up in celebration as the rail erupted and he went over to celebrate. The famine-to-feast moment gave him a double-up and propelled him on to the final table.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Piccioli fits the mold of the online pro who plays optimally in every situation during a tournament, whether chip leader or short stacked. He was patient in the later stages of this tournament, picking his spots well and chipping up when the proper time presents itself. Expect much of the same when play resumes on Thursday.
Piccioli has been on the big stage before, winning a bracelet in Australia and playing under the bright lights of the World Poker Tour. The pressure won't phase him, which gives him an edge over several of the 'July 9' seated beside him.
Profile by Sean Chaffin.
| Bryan Piccioli | 33,800,000 | 0 |
Thursday, July 20, 2017 1:59 PM Local Time
Seat 9: Dan Ott
Chip Count: 26,475,000
Hometown: Altoona, Pennsylvania
Age: 26
Seat: 9
Dan Ott is pretty new to live tournament play. In fact, this is his first summer at World Series of Poker, and this is his first Main Event. "Go big or go home" comes to mind.
"This is one of the first tournaments I've played and cashed in. This is a huge opportunity for me," he told PokerNews. "I've been playing online, studying a little bit, trying to get better. I was able to take a shot out here, and it's obviously going really well."
He did rack up two cashes this summer in Event #47: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MONSTER STACK and Event #10: $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold'em for a total of $3,656. These cashes were good enough to get a WSOP.com and Hendon Mob profile created which is the first step to becoming a known player.
Like many of the younger players, Ott got hooked when Chris Moneymaker took to the airwaves in 2013 and changed poker forever. But most players don't make their tournament debut in the Main Event after some small preliminary cashes.
"I started watching and playing with my friends. And then I started playing online and just kept studying the game. I heard these were some good tournaments and I finally had some money to buy in. I decided to take my shot at this, and the rest is history."
When asked about his Main Event journey to the final table, Ott recognized the fact that a lot of things were going his way.
"All my bluffs have been getting through. All of my hands have been getting value. I've been able to win some pots with favorable boards textures to either run some bluffs or get full value. I've been winning some all ins. And winning the all ins is what has helped the most. Kings versus Ace-King. I held with that. Top pair versus a flush draw and that held. People have been making some aggressive plays against me, like ace-high shoving into my set. So, yeah, it's been going my way."
It's hard to imagine the enormity of the making the most exclusive final table in poker. And for someone relatively new to the poker scene, it had to be unimaginable. With two days off and millions on the line, the question of the day for all of the players is how they are going to use the time between now and their big moment in the spotlight.
"I'm going to sleep for sure. I'm gonna eat some food. Probably hang out with all my friends and family. Maybe party. We'll see. Definitely going to watch PokerGo and see what people are doing. It'll give me more than I know right now. Just try to prep like that."
HOW HE GOT HERE
| Day | End-of-Day Chip Count | Rank |
|---|
| 1 | 160,900 | 148/5,519 |
| 2 | 244,000 | 349/2,572 |
| 3 | DNR | DNR/1,084 |
| 4 | 2,196,000 | 35/297 |
| 5 | 8,320,000 | 6/85 |
| 6 | 7,815,000 | 20/27 |
| 7 | 26,475,000 | 5/9 |
KEY HAND
In one of the most talked about hands of the tournament, Ott doubled through Scott Blumstein to put a virtual lock on his seat at the final table. Here's how it played out according to the PokerNews Live Reporting team:
Dan Ott raised to 1,100,000 from middle position and Scott Blumstein made a three-bet to 3,400,000 from the small blind. The action was back on Ott and he four-bet to 8,100,000. Blumstein moved all-in, having Ott covered, and Ott quickly made the call for his remaining 22,300,000. The cards were tabled and Ott was in a dominating position.
Ott:
Blumstein:
The flop came and Ott took a stranglehold on the hand. The turn was the and Blumstein was drawing dead to the river. Ott got a massive double up to take the chip lead on the table, while Blumstein took a hit and sits at just over 16,000,000.
Blumstein managed to recover and build a huge stack by the end of the day, while Ott coasted his way to a seat at the most prestigious table in poker.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
There's a chance the pressure of the lights may affect Ott the deeper he gets. Making the Main Event final table with years of playing in the spotlight is still a bit nerve-wracking, but tuning out the lights, the cameras, and the rails can be a challenge when you are exposed to it the first time.
"Some moments I'm really comfortable, and other moments it just hits me, and I panic. There have definitely been some anxious moments. I'm just trying to take deep breaths and not be as anxious. Overall, though, I think I've remained pretty calm."
Another thing that may affect his play is the fact that his run here as already exceeded his expectations. And if he's not focused on the win, he may be susceptible to mistakes if he feels he's free-rolling.
"I'm trying not to think of the millions of dollars at the top. I'm just trying to stay focused on where I am now and playing as best as I can."
He seems to be aware of some of the pitfalls. But being aware and avoiding them are two different things. As long as he stays true to his plan, he can go far.
"I'm going to try to keep playing my game. I will be aggressive in the spots I should be aggressive in, and if I lose, I'm going to try not to be so worried about it. I'm going to do my best to brush it off. That's my plan. I'm just going to play the best I can and go from there."
Profile by Kim Yuhl.
| Dan Ott | 26,475,000 | 0 |