Sunday, June 10, 2012 3:41 PM Local Time
Matt Marafioti has been the most active player since we merged to one table, both verbally and with his card play. We saw him raise to 75,000 in the hijack seat before folding to a Phil Ivey three-bet where Marafioti showed . Then Ali Eslami limped, Marafioti made an isolation raise, Eslami folded and Marafioti showed once more. Next Marafioti opened under the gun to 75,000, everyone folded and he showed .
| Matt Marafioti | 360,000 | -5,000  |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 3:15 PM Local Time
Andy Frankenberger raised to 50,000 from the hijack seat, and Ali Eslami defended his big blind to see a heads-up flop.
It came , and Eslami checked to the raiser. When Frankenberger bet 61,000, Eslami check-raised nearly all in. He slid out 194,000, leaving just his last yellow T1,000 chip capping his cards. Frankenberger announced the call, and the hands were held face-down until the next card.
It was the , and Frankenberger used an overkill pot-sized bet to get Eslami's last chip into the middle.
"I have a good hand now," Eslami announced. He was still behind with , but he was nearly even money against Frankenberger's . The PokerNews Odds Calculator tells us he had a 45.45% chance of making a winner on the last card.
Sure enough, the river brought the and the straight for Eslami, and he's found his double. Just like that.
| Ali Eslami | 502,000 | 184,000  |
| Andy Frankenberger | 445,000 | -261,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 3:02 PM Local Time
The final ten players have racked up and relocated to the main featured table. The mothership. We need to lose one more to set the official final table, then the players will duke it out for the bracelet under the bright lights.
Here's how the last redraw of this event looks:
| Seat | Player |
|---|
| 1 | Ali Eslami |
| 2 | Ryan Julius |
| 3 | Matt Marafioti |
| 4 | Phil Ivey |
| 5 | Manuel Bevand |
| 6 | Hoyt Corkins |
| 7 | Andy Frankenberger |
| 8 | Alex Venovski |
| 9 | Daniel Weinman |
| 10 | Shaun Deeb |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 3:02 PM Local Time
Despite being in the top few spots since the beginning of this tournament, Steve Landfish, will not be experiencing another World Series of Poker (WSOP) final table.
Shaun Deeb raised to 48,000 in first position and Steve Landfish moved all-in for around 180,000 and Deeb called.
"At least I have two live cards," said Landfish.
The flop of gave Landfish the lead. The turn of made it even more likely that Landfish would find successive double ups. Then the river turned the showdown on it's head.
"I knew it was coming," said Landfish.
With that elimination we have a our preliminary final table of 10 and will be moving to the main stage in the Amazon room so there will be a short delay in coverage.
| Shaun Deeb | 938,000 | 128,000 |
| Steve Landfish | 0 | -180,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:54 PM Local Time
Shaun Deeb made a standard raise from the cutoff and Steve Landfish moved all-in blind from the small blind.
Landfish had lost complete control at this point in the hand. The dealer laid on the flop and Landfish started to remonstrate that he can't win anything despite hitting top pair. The turn and river maintain the Landfish lead and he doubled up.
| Shaun Deeb | 810,000 | 140,000 |
| Steve Landfish | 180,000 | 90,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:51 PM Local Time
Andy Frankenberger has just crippled Steve Landfish in the following hand.
Frankenberger raised to 51,000 in first position and Steve Landfish called in the big blind. The explosive flop was and Landfish check-raised to 219,000 after Frankenberger had bet 35,000. The check-raise covered Frankenberger and after a short dwell time he made the call. Frankenberger turned over and Landfish turned over . The turn and river maintained Frankenberger's lead and he is now a serious threat with 11 players remaining. Meanwhile, Landfish has steam coming out of each ear!
| Andy Frankenberger | 706,000 | 358,000 |
| Steve Landfish | 90,000 | -390,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:41 PM Local Time
Matt Marafioti had been on a good little rush this level, but his profits were just erased by Ali Eslami.
Eslami opened to 48,000 as the short stack, and Marafioti three-bet to 110,000 from the small blind. Eslami just saw Marafioti three-bet with aces one hand prior, and he knew there was strength in the three-bet again.
"I'm ahead of you, but you probably should just get it in. You're committed," Marafioti instructed.
"You're probably right," Eslami said as he stacked together the last 99,000 he had behind.
"Don't do it!" Marafioti changed his tune. "You're behind."
"I know, but I have to try and suck out." With that, Eslami moved all in, and he tabled . Marafioti was ahead, but he was flipping with .
The board came , and Eslami has found his double. It puts him back over 300,000, knocking Marafioti back to 365,000 in the process.
| Matt Marafioti | 365,000 | 30,000 |
| Ali Eslami | 318,000 | 133,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:36 PM Local Time
Phil Ivey raised to 48,000 in the cutoff and Matt Marafioti three-bet to 150,000 on the button. The action folded back around to Ivey who went into the tank for the longest dwell we have seen today. Marafioti started talking to Ivey and told him that at least they were going to flip. Then he promised to show Ivey his hand and after he folded he was true to his word showing the .
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:33 PM Local Time
Our chip leader Manuel Bevand raised to 48,000 and Andy Frankenberger bet 'pot' from the big blind. The pair decided to play for stacks and Frankenberger was in a great position.
The flop was and Frankenberger rose from his seat and turned away from the table. The turn card didn't change much, but the certainly did. The noise from the rail prompting Frankenberger to turn around and when he saw his set he was jubilant.
"Come on! Come on!" Shouted a fired up Frankenberger.
So far that is the most intense emotion we have seen from anyone in the closing stages of this tournament. It seems Frankenberger wants his second bracelet in a bad way.
| Manuel Bevand | 1,100,000 | -240,000 |
| Andy Frankenberger | 348,000 | 148,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 2:06 PM Local Time
Here are the chip counts as we head to our first twenty-minute break of the day.
| Manuel Bevand | 1,340,000 | 0 |
| Shaun Deeb | 670,000 | 50,000 |
| Steve Landfish | 480,000 | 38,000 |
| Phil Ivey | 475,000 | 145,000 |
| Alexander Venovski | 465,000 | -5,000 |
| Daniel Weinman | 450,000 | 70,000 |
| Ryan Julius | 440,000 | -100,000 |
| Hoyt Corkins | 360,000 | 152,000 |
| Matt Marafioti | 335,000 | 60,000 |
| Andy Frankenberger | 200,000 | -30,000 |
| Ali Eslami | 185,000 | -217,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:56 PM Local Time
Manuel Bevand raised to 40,000 in the cutoff, Antonio Esfandiari three-bet to 102,000 from the big blind and Bevand folded.
Then Bevand tried again, this time from the hijack, and Esfandiari once again raised the stakes by making it 102,000 from the small blind. This time Bevand moved all-in and Esfandiari called.
A quick glance at the PokerNews odds calculator shows the pre flop odds.
| Bevand | 47.18% |
| Esfandiari | 52.16% |
The flop was and Esfandiari's pose still looked confident. The turn card was the and any jack would now fill up a straight for Bevand. Then the river delivered a punch right to the heart of the former WSOP bracelet winner .
"Dammit," said Esfandiari before composing himself to shake everyone's hand.
It's a shame to see The Magician leave because he would have been a great spectacle at the final table.
| Manuel Bevand | 1,340,000 | 360,000 |
| Antonio Esfandiari | 0 | -245,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:52 PM Local Time
Alex Venovski has been trying desperately to win a pot for a couple orbits now. In the last hand, he opened to 40,000 in early position, and Matt Marafioti reraised to 120,000 from the big blind. Venovski wasted no time reraising all in for about 340,000.
Marafioti did waste a lot of time in the tank. He is a serial tanker, though, so it came as no surprise. Five or six agonizing minutes later, his cards hit the muck.
| Alexander Venovski | 470,000 | 130,000 |
| Matt Marafioti | 275,000 | -50,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:48 PM Local Time
Phil Ivey has been short-stacked for a while now, but he's out to change that.
A few hands ago, Ivey found his double. The pot began with him opening from the cutoff. Alex Venovski reraised from the big blind, and the last of Ivey's 126,000 went into the middle. He was working with and drawing live against Venovski's . A king on the flop saved Ivey's tournament life, and the doubled him back to 262,000.
Ivey made a raise-and-take one hand later, then played a three-bet pot from his big blind in the same orbit. Venovski had opened to 40,000, but Ivey was having none of it. His reraise to 100,000 took down the pot without incident.
Don't look now, but Mr. Ivey is approaching the chip average once again. He's got 330,000 chips now.
| Alexander Venovski | 340,000 | -240,000 |
| Phil Ivey | 330,000 | 160,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:44 PM Local Time
Two-time bracelet winner Hoyt Corkins has just put it all on the line with the lowest pair in the deck. Steve Landfish was the unlucky loser and moved down to 442,000 chips as a consequence. All of the money went into the mixer pre flop.
Board:
A set on the flop good enough for Corkins to deliver the suckout. He is now up to 208,000 chips.
| Steve Landfish | 442,000 | -218,000 |
| Hoyt Corkins | 208,000 | -2,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:40 PM Local Time
Jeff Tims becomes the last player to take home $28,334 after being eliminated by the cheeky, chirpy Ali Eslami.
It was Alexander Venovski who started the ball rolling when he raised to 40,000 from the hijack. Eslami raised 'pot' from the button, Tims moved all-in for 154,000 in the small blind, Venovski folded and Eslami called.
Venovski told the table that he folded ace-queen, so less outs for Tims.
Board:
"Hey, Ali how is it going?" Came a shout from the rail.
"Not bad. Just doubled up. Got tens against ace-king, flopped a set…" said Eslami.
"Anything else?" Shouted Deeb from the other table.
Eslami is doing very well as he moves up to 402,000 and Tims is out.
| Ali Eslami | 402,000 | 222,000 |
| Jeff Tims | 0 | -200,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:35 PM Local Time
Phil Ivey is down to 170,000 in part to these two losses.
He raised to 40,000 on the button and Daniel Weinman called in the big blind. The flop was and Weinman took 40,000 off Ivey when he check-raised to 120,000 and the great man folded.
Then a few hands later Ivey opened up to 40,000 in first position and Matt Marafioti three-bet to a smidgen over 100,000. Ivey folded and Marafioti showed .
"Look at Phil," said Eslami, "he must be thinking how do these people get these hands so late in the tournament? He {Marafioti} has at least queens or aces once per orbit."
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:30 PM Local Time
Ali Eslami raised to 40,000 from the button, and Jeff Tims three-bet to 140,000 next door in the small blind. The two men had a quick conversation about their chip stacks to figure out who was shortest. As it turned out, Tims' 164,000 was the slightly covering stack. That didn't stop Eslami from shoving all in, and Tims made the call for nearly his full stack, too.
"I got a pair," Tims announced.
"Then it's a flip," Eslami answered.
Showdown
Eslami:
Tims:
Tims' pair held a big lead after the flop, and the turn made him the straight to the six. Eslami was drawing dead to a chop and one card from the exit.
The river dropped the , though, and that puts the same straight on board. Tims was none too pleased at the way that coin flip ended, and he'll have to settle for his money back plus half the big blind.
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:25 PM Local Time
| Manuel Bevand | 980,000 | 0 |
| Steve Landfish | 660,000 | -27,000 |
| Shaun Deeb | 620,000 | 90,000 |
| Alexander Venovski | 580,000 | -40,000 |
| Ryan Julius | 540,000 | 37,000 |
| Daniel Weinman | 380,000 | 30,000 |
| Matt Marafioti | 325,000 | 20,000 |
| Antonio Esfandiari | 245,000 | -58,000 |
| Andy Frankenberger | 230,000 | -50,000 |
| Hoyt Corkins | 210,000 | 0 |
| Jeff Tims | 200,000 | 120,000 |
| Ali Eslami | 180,000 | 45,000 |
| Phil Ivey | 170,000 | -118,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:24 PM Local Time
On a flop, Hoyt Corkins checked, and Manuel Bevand bet 55,000. Corkins check-raised to 130,000, and Bevand tank-shoved over the top.
That put Corkins to the test as he only had 210,000 chips left in front of him. After what must have been four or five minutes, he uncapped his cards and slipped them back into the muck.
| Manuel Bevand | 980,000 | 205,000 |
| Hoyt Corkins | 210,000 | -206,000 |
Sunday, June 10, 2012 1:19 PM Local Time
Alexander Venovski raised to 40,000 in first position, Daniel Weinman three-bet to 150,000 one seat to his left and it was sufficient enough to win the pot.
Ali Eslami moved all-in for 66,000 in first position and everybody folded.
Venovski raised to 50,000 on the button and Eslami moved all-in from the big blind. Venovski made the call and we had a showdown with Eslami at risk of elimination.
Board:
Eslami ~ 194,000
Venovski ~ 620,000
Antonio Esfandiari raised to 35,000 in the cutoff and Ryan Julius three-bet to 72,000 on the button. Esfandiari didn't know what to do next so he asked Julius. Julius remained tight lipped so Esfandiari folded.
Eslami raised to 50,000 in early position, Matt Marafioto raised 'pot' from the small blind and Eslami folded. Marafioti showed
| Alexander Venovski | 620,000 | 70,000 |
| Matt Marafioti | 305,000 | 45,000 |
| Ali Eslami | 135,000 | -93,000 |