Wednesday, May 30, 2018 7:20 PM Local Time
Hallaert Knocks Out Boeree
On an board and a pot of over 40,000, Liv Boeree had 20,000 in front of her and Kenny Hallaert had moved all in. It was around 60,000 more for Boeree to call, which she did after about two minutes.
Liv Boeree:
Kenny Hallaert:
As soon as Hallaert tabled the nuts, Boeree rapped the table in defeat, unable to escape the elimination. The meaningless rolled off on the river and the Brit said her goodbyes.
| Kenny Hallaert | 305,000 | 85,000  |
| Liv Boeree | 0 | -80,000  |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 7:11 PM Local Time
Power of Positivity Boosts Farrell's Stack
"Do you consider yourself a pessimist?" Phil Hellmuth asked tablemate Erik Seidel.
"Probably, yeah," said Seidel after some thought. "I read your book; didn't help."
"What, 'Positivity'?" asked Hellmuth and Seidel nodded.
Meanwhile, Thai Ha opened to 6,000 and Niall Farrell three-bet to 18,500. With the action back on Ha he four-bet all in for 98,100. Farrell snap-called.
Thai Ha:
Niall Farrell:
"Positivity," said Farrell, "Let's go!"
The flop wasn't a good one for Farrell coming and giving Ha the lead. However, Farrell picked up a flush draw. The turn was the but the river meant that Farrell sent Ha to the rail, picking up a $3,000 bounty in the process.
| Niall Farrell | 220,000 | -8,000 |
| Thai Ha | 0 | -70,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 7:01 PM Local Time
Holz Eliminated by Obst
Fedor Holz got his last two and a half big blinds in with off-suit, and by the time the dust settled he had run into the of James Obst on a board and Holz was eliminated.
Obst moves back over starting stack as the level draws to a close.
| James Obst | 55,000 | 16,000 |
| Fedor Holz | 0 | -37,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:59 PM Local Time
Hallaert Picks Off Sanchez for a Bounty
Diego Sanchez moved all in for 14,800 and big stack Kenny Hallaert was in the big blind weighing up his options before calling.
Diego Sanchez:
Kenny Hallaert:
The 2016 November Niner was obviously motivated by the bounty and as the board ran out Hallaert's two pair was good enough to send Sanchez to the rail.
Meanwhile, Rainer Kempe and Dietrich Fast were also eliminated.
| Kenny Hallaert | 220,000 | 18,000 |
| Rainer Kempe | 0 | 0 |
| Diego Sanchez | 0 | 0 |
| Dietrich Fast | 0 | 0 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:57 PM Local Time
Counts
| Albert Daher | 250,000 | 90,000 |
| Chris Klodnicki | 95,000 | 45,000 |
| Erik Seidel | 85,000 | 28,000 |
| Sergi Reixach | 0 | -60,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:56 PM Local Time
Farrell Drags A Sizable One
Niall Farrell raised to 4,500 from early position, Ha three-bet to 15,500 from middle position, another player on the button four-bet shoved 66,300, Farrell came over the top for 80,200 and Ha called it off.
Button:
Niall Farrell:
Thai Ha:
The dealer fanned out a board, keeping Farrell's kings best to hand the Scotsman the sizable pot.
| Niall Farrell | 228,000 | 0 |
| Thai Ha | 70,000 | 70,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:50 PM Local Time
Boeree Loses and then Triples Up
Liv Boeree had called the all-in of her opponent who was at risk for 33,100.
Opponent:
Liv Boeree:
The board ran out to give her opponent trip aces for the double-up.
The hand right after Boeree had raised to 5,000 from mid-position and was called by Kenny Hallaert in the hijack. The player that had just doubled up now shoved again for about 67,000 from the button. Boeree called for the 25,900 she had in total. Hallaert called having them both covered.
Liv Boeree:
Button:
Kenny Hallaert:
The board ran out - both Boeree and Hallaert hit a set on the flop and the turn and river didn't change anything so Boeree tripled up and Hallaert took the rest of the button's stack and the bounty.
| Kenny Hallaert | 202,000 | 163,000 |
| Liv Boeree | 80,000 | -8,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:45 PM Local Time
Comeback For Sanchez
Diego Sanchez was all-in for his 100 ante and the two players on his right had limped in. Dietrich Fast and Liv Boeree also limped in. Kenny Hallaert raised and everyone but Fast called. "Good luck!" Fast said to Sanchez. They all checked through the board. Hallaert showed which beat the , , and of the rest for the side pot but he couldn't beat Sanchez' so Sanchez won all the antes.
The hand right after, Sanchez shoved all in for 700, Fast (hijack) raised to 3,000 and Boeree (cutoff) called. Hallaert (small blind) tanked and then three-bet to 20,000. Fast folded quickly but Boeree called. The flop came , Hallaert bet 11,000 and Boeree called. They both checked through the on the turn to the , Hallaert bet 27,000 and Boeree folded. Hallaert showed for the bluff but Boeree didn't really respond. Sanchez had for his second all-in win in a row.
Then the hand right after that, the player in the under-the-gun position limped in, Sanchez shoved again, this time for 5,100. Hallaert called from the button and the player in the small blind called. They all checked through the on the flop to the on the turn. The small blind and the under-the-gun player checked, Hallaert bet 2,000 and both the small blind and the under-the-gun player called. The river completed the board with the , the small blind counted his stack and then decided to bet 15,000. Both the under-the-gun player and Hallaert folded. The player in the small blind tabled for the bluff and Sanchez showed for his third win in a row.
| Diego Sanchez | 23,600 | 23,600 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:36 PM Local Time
Updated Counts
| Manig Loeser | 195,000 | 80,000 |
| Thomas Muehloecker | 120,000 | 65,000 |
| Jonathan Duhamel | 110,000 | 10,000 |
| Darren Elias | 60,000 | -2,000 |
| Adrian Mateos | 57,000 | 35,000 |
| Alex Papazian | 55,000 | 10,000 |
| Ari Engel | 34,000 | -33,000 |
| Paul Volpe | 32,000 | -18,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:35 PM Local Time
Chidwick Bluffs it Off
With the board completed, Stephen Chidwick was facing a bet of 13,000 from his opponent. Chidwick moved all in for 68,800 and his opponent, who had Chidwick just barely covered, went deep in the tank.
After nearly three minutes, he emerged from the tank and slid in a call.
Stephen Chidwick:
Opponent:
Chidwick had turned his pair of nines into a bluff, but couldn't shake an ace and headed for the rail.
| Stephen Chidwick | 0 | -63,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:28 PM Local Time
Nguyen Eliminated by Kenney
Qui Nguyen raised to 3,000 and Bryn Kenney three-bet to 9,300. Nguyen called and the flop came . Both players checked and the turn was the . Nguyen bet 15,500 and Kenney moved all in, with his opponent calling all in for his last 47,000.
Bryn Kenney:
Qui Nguyen:
Nguyen had flopped top pair, but the river gave Kenney a set and sent the 2016 Main Event champion to the rail.
| Bryn Kenney | 235,000 | 60,000 |
| Qui Nguyen | 0 | -32,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:25 PM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Albert Daher | 160,000 | 64,000 |
| Bryce Yockey | 83,000 | 33,000 |
| Aditya Agarwal | 48,000 | |
| Talal Shakerchi | 41,000 | -29,000 |
| Jason Somerville | 0 | -35,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:17 PM Local Time
McKeehen and Kenney Among the Chip Leaders
A player opened to 2,500 and Joe McKeehen defended his big blind. The flop came and both players checked. McKeehen check-called a bet of 3,000 on the turn and the river was the . McKeehen bet 7,500 and his opponent called.
McKeehen showed for a straight and took down the pot. He then won another chunky pot to move to a stack of over 100,000.
Meanwhile, Bryn Kenney has also been making moves, winning a pot with against both and to move up the chip counts.
| Bryn Kenney | 175,000 | 125,000 |
| Joe McKeehen | 125,000 | 55,000 |
| Steffen Sontheimer | 120,000 | 30,000 |
| Manig Loeser | 115,000 | 53,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 6:10 PM Local Time
Three-Way All-In, Weissman Collects a Bounty
The player in early position shoved all in for 7,700 and was called by Pavel Plesuv (mid-position), John Racener (late position), and the player in the hijack. Joey Weissman (button) contemplated for a bit and then also shoved for 31,600 in total. Cate Hall and Ryan Riess quickly folded their blinds. Plesuv also shoved with the bigger stack. Racener looked at his stack but then folded. The hijack also got out of their way.
Early Position:
Joey Weissman:
Pavel Plesuv:
The board ran out - Weissmann won it all including the $3,000 bounty of the other player.
| Joey Weissman | 97,600 | 54,600 |
| John Racener | 51,000 | 4,000 |
| Pavel Plesuv | 50,000 | |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 5:58 PM Local Time
Back-to-Back Bounties for Bertani
Over at table 479, Rafael Bertani found himself in a massive back-to-back rush that left him over 200k in chips and two bounties richer. In the first hand, the board was and WSOP bracelet winner Mel Weiner was already all in and at risk.
Holding , Samuel Higgs tried to get Bertani out on the river with a big bet, but Bertani was having none of it and called with . Weiner mucked and Bertani collected his first $3,000 bounty.
In the next hand, Bertani raised to 2,000, Higgs called, another WSOP bracelet winner in Anthony Marquez three-bet to 8,500 in the small blind, Brian Yoon shoved 11,800 in the big blind, Bertani five-bet to 30,000, Higgs folded, Marquez six-bet shoved 50,200 and Bertani called to put both players at risk.
Brian Yoon:
Anthony Marquez:
Rafael Bertani:
The board ran out , giving Yoon the winner with the nut flush. The four spades on the board improved Bertani's pocket nines to a flush as well, giving him the side pot and leaving Marquez behind empty-handed.
| Rafael Bertani | 225,000 | 100,000 |
| Brian Yoon | 36,000 | 22,000 |
| Mel Weiner | 0 | 0 |
| Anthony Marquez | 0 | -58,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 5:54 PM Local Time
Cantu Quadruples Up
Stefan Schillhabel raised to 2,500 from early position and got one caller. Eric Blair then three-bet to 11,000 and Brandon Cantu moved all in for 4,700 from the big blind. Schillhabel and the other player both called.
"I'm rooting for you," said Mike Leah to Cantu.
The flop came . It checked to Blair who bet 18,000, and both the other players folded.
"Great flop for me," said Cantu, showing . He was up against the of Blair. The turn was the and the river completed Cantu's straight and he quadrupled up, much to the dismay of Blair.
| Eric Blair | 50,000 | 50,000 |
| Brandon Cantu | 20,000 | 20,000 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 5:44 PM Local Time
Updated Counts
| Roland Israelashvili | 90,000 | 40,000 |
| Steffen Sontheimer | 90,000 | 90,000 |
| Niall Farrell | 82,000 | 35,000 |
| Qui Nguyen | 32,000 | -40,000 |
| Dominik Nitsche | 30,000 | 0 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 5:40 PM Local Time
Zolotow Falls to Heath
On an flop, Steve Zolotow was all in for 7,700 and both Ben Heath and Michael O'Grady committed chips to put the two-time bracelet winner at risk.
The turn brought the and O'Grady check-folded to a 13,000 bet from Heath.
Steve Zolotow:
Ben Heath:
Heath was in prime shape to knock Zolotow out and did so as the rolled off on the river.
| Ben Heath | 87,000 | 6,000 |
| Michael O'Grady | 70,000 | |
| Steve Zolotow | 0 | 0 |
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 5:38 PM Local Time
Shakerchi With the Double Knockout
With Andreas Eiler all-in preflop for less than 1,000, three other players were still in the hand. Talal Shakerchi was one of them, and he along with another player checked the flop to the button who bet 15,000. Shakerchi called and the third player moved all in for 25,000. The button folded and Shakerchi called.
All hands were turned over.
Andreas Eiler:
Talal Shakerchi:
Player 3:
Shakerchi had flopped the nut flush, and both his opponents were drawing dead. The turn and river were dealt, and it was unclear whether Shakerchi had his opponent covered. In the end, it was discovered that Shakerchi covered him by just 200 chips, meaning he scooped his bounty along with Eiler's.
| Talal Shakerchi | 70,000 | 20,000 |
| Andreas Eiler | 0 | -1,000 |