Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:53 PM Local Time
Rudolph Doubles Through Romero
James Romero raised from under the gun and was called by Christian Rudolph in the big blind.
The flop came , Rudolph checked, Romero bet 575,000 and Rudolph called.
The turn was the , Rudolph shoved for 2,650,000 and Romero snap-called.
James Romero:
Christian Rudolph:
Romero was ahead with two pair but the river completed the board with the to give Rudolph the straight to double up.
James Romero | 9,075,000 | -2,625,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 8,250,000 | 3,750,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:46 PM Local Time
Nitsche Jams Up His Stack
After scooping a post on the flop, Dominik Nitsche remained aggressive and raised it up to 650,000 on the outer table. He was called two ways, by Manig Loeser on the button and Matthias Eibinger in the big blind. The trio checked through the flop and Eibinger took the betting lead on the turn, making it 1,800,000 to go.
Nitsche called after some consideration and that forced out Loeser. On the river, Eibinger slowed down and checked. Nitsche moved all in and a snap-fold of Eibinger followed.
The very next hand, Timothy Adams raised to 650,000 on the button and Benjamin Pollak in the big blind called.
"I am your man," the Frenchman grinned. The flop brought and Pollak checked, Adams bet 1,000,000 and that shut down all further action.
Timothy Adams | 21,000,000 | 1,500,000 |
Dominik Nitsche | 13,800,000 | 2,550,000 |
Manig Loeser | 13,300,000 | -1,000,000 |
Matthias Eibinger | 12,700,000 | -2,600,000 |
Benjamin Pollak | 5,600,000 | -550,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:42 PM Local Time
Loeser and Yu Battle in the Blinds
The action folded around to Winfred Yu in the small blind who made it 900,000 to go. Manig Loeser defended from the big blind and the flop came . Yu continued for 800,000 and Loeser stuck around to see the on the turn.
Yu opted to check this time and Loeser slid in a bet of 2,000,000. Yu still called and the completed the board. One more check from Yu led to Loeser putting together a bet of 4,800,000. Yu went into the tank for a couple of minutes before finally letting go of his hand.
Manig Loeser | 14,300,000 | 3,050,000 |
Winfred Yu | 8,400,000 | -3,700,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:41 PM Local Time
Romero Doubles Through Kempe
Rainer Kempe raised to 625,000 from under the gun with , James Romero found on the button and decided to three-bet to 1,500,000. Action folded back to Kempe who called.
The flop came for Kempe to flop two pair but he was still behind against Romero who had the higher two pair. Kempe checked and Romero continued with a bet of 925,000. Kempe decided to shove with the bigger stack and Romero called for the 3,975,000 he had behind.
The cards went on their backs, the turn was the which didn't change the situation and the on the river didn't either and Romero doubled up.
James Romero | 11,700,000 | 6,855,000 |
Rainer Kempe | 5,375,000 | -7,770,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:32 PM Local Time
Pollak Doubles Through Eibinger
The action folded to Matthias Eibinger who raised to 600,000 on the button. Benjamin Pollak shoved all in for 2,925,000 in the small blind and Eibinger asked for a count before making the call.
Benjamin Pollak:
Matthias Eibinger:
The flop of was of no help to Eibinger who would need a miracle to win the pot. The on the turn provided a small sweat but the on the river secured the double up for Pollak.
Matthias Eibinger | 15,300,000 | 0 |
Benjamin Pollak | 6,150,000 | 0 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:24 PM Local Time
Asaf Berman Eliminated in 14th Place (€49,951)
Over on the outer table, Asaf Berman pushed all in from late position for around 3.6 million and Timothy Adams on the button asked for a rough count, then opted to call.
"Now I have a sweat," Benjamin Pollak with even fewer chips in the big blind said and peeked at his cards. He mucked the face up and the following showdown took place.
Asaf Berman:
Timothy Adams:
"Now I have a really good feeling about this," Berman said in table chat. He picked up a gutshot on the flop, but the turn and the river were both blanks to send the businessman from Switzerland to the rail in 14th place for €49,951.
Timothy Adams | 19,500,000 | 3,100,000 |
Benjamin Pollak | 2,825,000 | -555,000 |
Asaf Berman | 0 | -4,070,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:09 PM Local Time
Addamo Makes Rudolph Fold
Christian Rudolph raised to 480,000 from mid-position with and was called by Michael Addamo in the cutoff with . Rainer Kempe defended his big blind with .
The flop came , Kempe checked, Rudolph bet 630,000 and Addamo called while Kempe folded.
The turn was the keeping Rudolph ahead with the pair of kings but Addamo picked up the straight draw. Rudolph checked and Addamo now took over the initiative by leading out for 900,000. Rudolph considered his options before opting to fold in the end.
Michael Addamo | 10,355,000 | 1,830,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 4,500,000 | -1,110,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:08 PM Local Time
Yu Takes From Adams
Over on the outer table, Winfred Yu on the button and Timothy Adams in the big blind saw a flop of and Adams check-called a bet of 475,000. The on the turn went check, check, and Adams bet the river for 1,600,000. Yu gave it some thought and tossed in the chips after one minute of consideration.
Adams revealed the for a pair of fives and Yu had that beat with foir sixes and fours.
Timothy Adams | 16,400,000 | -920,000 |
Winfred Yu | 12,100,000 | 2,170,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 10:02 PM Local Time
Joni Jouhkimainen Eliminated in 15th Place (€43,223)
Mikita Badziakouski raised to 500000 from the early position and was called by Joni Jouhkimainen in the big blind.
The flop came for Jouhkimainen to pick up the flush draw and Badziakouski was sitting on an open-ended straight draw. Jouhkimainen checked, Badziakouski continued with a bet of 450,000. Jouhkimainen checked his cards again, tanked for over a minute and then decided to shove. Badziakouski asked the dealer for a count and the dealer confirmed Jouhkimainen had shoved for 4,260,000 in total and Badziakouski called.
Joni Jouhkimainen:
Mikita Badziakouski:
The turn was the which didn't change the situation and kept Jouhkimainen ahead but the on the river meant the end of Jouhkimainen's tournament as he was sent to the rail in 15th place.
Rainer Kempe | 13,145,000 | -120,000 |
Mikita Badziakouski | 12,340,000 | 6,170,000 |
Michael Addamo | 8,525,000 | -120,000 |
Jean-Noel Thorel | 7,715,000 | 940,000 |
Vladimir Troyanovskiy | 6,550,000 | -550,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 5,610,000 | 0 |
James Romero | 4,845,000 | 0 |
Joni Jouhkimainen | 0 | -5,000,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:57 PM Local Time
Yu Gets a Fold from Pollak
Benjamin Pollak raised to 525,000 in the cutoff and Winfred Yu defended from the big blind. The flop came and Yu checked to Pollak who continued for 350,000. Yu check-raised to 900,000 and Pollak called.
The turn brought the and both players checked to the on the river. Yu slid in a bet of 1,200,000 and Pollak went into the tank for over two minutes.
"Did you hit a straight again?" Pollak asked. Yu sat silently and waited for Pollak to make a decision.
Eventually, Pollak slid his cards to the muck and Yu collected the pot.
Winfred Yu | 9,930,000 | 1,685,000 |
Benjamin Pollak | 3,380,000 | -1,545,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:54 PM Local Time
Rudolph Working on the Comeback
Christian Rudolph raised to 360,000 from the button with and Michael Addamo defended his big blind holding .
The flop came for Addamo to pick up an open-ended straight draw. Addamo checked, Rudolph continued with a bet of 390,000 which Addamo called.
The was dealt on the turn for Rudolph to now have a flush draw and still be ahead with the higher hole cards. Addamo checked once more, Rudolph fired another bet over the line, now for 900,000, Addamo stared at the board, looked at his cards again, and then decided to let them go.
Michael Addamo | 8,645,000 | -1,590,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 5,610,000 | 1,310,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:45 PM Local Time
Rudolph Doubles Up Through Troyanovskiy
Vladimir Troyanovskiy shoved in the small blind to put Christian Rudolph in the big blind at risk and Rudolph called.
Christian Rudolph:
Vladimir Troyanovskiy:
The flop came give them both a straight draw and Troyanovskiy a pair too.
The turn was the to give Rudolph the straight indeed but Troyanovskiy picked up two pair. Rudolph just needed to avoid another king or jack to get eliminated but the river was the for Rudolph to double up.
Vladimir Troyanovskiy | 7,100,000 | -2,970,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 4,300,000 | 2,050,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:35 PM Local Time
Redraw of the Last Two Tables
Seat | Feature Table | Chip Count | Big Blinds | Outer Table | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
1 | Rainer Kempe | 13,265,000 | 21 | Empty | - | - |
2 | Mikita Badziakouski | 6,170,000 | 55 | Benjamin Pollak | 4,925,000 | 21 |
3 | Vladimir Troyanovskiy | 10,070,000 | 26 | Dominik Nitsche | 11,250,000 | 47 |
4 | Christian Rudolph | 2,250,000 | 42 | Asaf Berman | 4,070,000 | 17 |
5 | James Romero | 4,845,000 | 9 | Winfred Yu | 8,245,000 | 34 |
6 | Michael Addamo | 10,235,000 | 20 | Manig Loeser | 11,250,000 | 47 |
7 | Jean-Noel Thorel | 6,775,000 | 43 | Timothy Adams | 17,320,000 | 72 |
8 | Joni Jouhkimainen | 5,000,000 | 28 | Matthias Eibinger | 18,000,000 | 75 |
Matthias Eibinger | 18,000,000 | 3,315,000 |
Timothy Adams | 17,320,000 | -480,000 |
Rainer Kempe | 13,265,000 | 0 |
Dominik Nitsche | 11,250,000 | -2,460,000 |
Manig Loeser | 11,250,000 | -1,750,000 |
Michael Addamo | 10,235,000 | 1,335,000 |
Vladimir Troyanovskiy | 10,070,000 | -830,000 |
Winfred Yu | 8,245,000 | -1,405,000 |
Jean-Noel Thorel | 6,775,000 | 25,000 |
Mikita Badziakouski | 6,170,000 | -680,000 |
Joni Jouhkimainen | 5,000,000 | 1,990,000 |
Benjamin Pollak | 4,925,000 | 2,095,000 |
James Romero | 4,845,000 | -1,240,000 |
Asaf Berman | 4,070,000 | 65,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 2,250,000 | -445,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:30 PM Local Time
Martin Kabrhel Eliminated in 16th place (€43,223)
Martin Kabrhel was eliminated in 16th place in the last hand before the redraw. In a battle of the blinds, Kabrhel pushed for around 2 million with and was called by Joni Jouhkimainen in the big blind with . The superior hand preflop held up and Kabrhel was eliminated in 16th place.
Joni Jouhkimainen | 5,000,000 | 1,990,000 |
Martin Kabrhel | 0 | -1,055,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:23 PM Local Time
Pavel Binar Eliminated in 17th Place (€38,365)
Winfred Yu limped in on the button and Jean-Noel Thorel shipped all in for 3,150,000 in the small blind. Pavel Binar quickly called off his stack of 3,145,000 in the big blind and Yu stepped aside.
Jean-Noel Thorel:
Pavel Binar:
The flop came giving Binar a set of jacks and Thorel an open-ended straight draw. The turn was the and Thorel improved to a straight right away. The on the river did not pair the board and Binar was eliminated in 17th place.
Jean-Noel Thorel | 6,750,000 | 2,850,000 |
Pavel Binar | 0 | -2,500,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 9:18 PM Local Time
Sylvain Loosli Eliminated in 18th Place (€38,365)
Sylvain Loosli shoved from under the gun for 710,000 and Michael Addamo three-bet to 1,180,000 from the button. The blinds quickly folded.
Sylvain Loosli:
Michael Addamo:
The flop came for Addamo to stay ahead with the pocket pair of sevens.
The turn was the for Loosli to keep looking for the ace to double up but the on the river wasn't that as Loosli was eliminated in 18th place.
Sylvain Loosli | 0 | -710,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 8:47 PM Local Time
Setting Out Objectives and Dreaming Dreams with Romain Lewis
Romain Lewis recorded a total of four top-three finishes in WSOP events in Las Vegas and Rozvadov, and was challenging for Player of the Year for a short while before a certain Shaun Deeb took the race by the scruff of its neck.
But with a WSOP that included three of his first four six-figure scores in the space of two months, does Lewis himself consider his 2018 WSOP a breakout one?
"I think that during every period or year of your life when you play professionally, there are different breakout moments and successes. It's just when you get to the higher buy-in end they become more relevant. Breakouts happen at lower buy-ins or stakes, and they were as important as the recent successes at higher buy-ins."
2018 was Lewis' second trip to the World Series of Poker, after amassing just under $40k in cash in 2017.
"I wasn't too happy or sad about my first one," said Lewis. "It went average. I'd heard all the stories of people coming back broke; bad stories about spending a lot of money and dealing with playing for thirty days straight."
"It was important in my first year to really go to what is essentially the World Cup of poker and be there ready from the first day to the last with one goal in mind - to perform well. That's what I did and I'm pretty happy about it."
This year, along with his fellow Winamax Team Pros, Lewis prepared accordingly; setting out objectives and aiming to be in the best possible conditions to do well. And it instantly paid off.
In his first WSOP tournament of the year he finished second in Event #13: $1,500 No Limit Hold'em for $194,837, almost quintupling his cashes from the previous year. Lewis said it certainly took the pressure off.
"It just meant that even if I busted 50-60k in tournaments, it would have been a really positive summer. When I set out my objectives for the summer, it was hard to imagine actually making two final tables like I wrote down. It's not that I didn't think I was able to go deep in the tournament, but it's very dependent on a lot of circumstances.
"Also I knew that for subsequent tournaments after a big win it's not easy to be as focused as I was before or be in the same mindset, so the objective from that moment on was to take every tournament that was coming up as seriously; even more seriously than the first one."
Lewis said that despite the early win that he says meant no more pressure of 'having a good Vegas,' he played every tournament that he set out to play.
"As the Series was going, I was really positive about what was going on, who I was with and the whole rhythm and routine. Even when I busted the Main Event, I didn't regret my little high variance play; I was ok with myself and just raring to go for the tournaments afterwards.
"Switching to Pot-Limit Omaha was like a breath of fresh air after a month of No-Limit Hold'em. I finished 23rd and suddenly was like 'Wait, hey. PLO is fun! Maybe I can play the $3,000 6-Max PLO?' That was probably the only tournament I wasn't set out to play at the start of the summer."
Following his cash in the first event of the summer, Lewis followed up that result with another second-place finish in Event #69: $3,000 Pot Limit Omaha 6-Max for $293,553.
"I remember coming second in the $3k PLO and checking out the points I would get if I won the $10k 6-Max. I said to my friend "All I need to do is win the $10k 6-Max and I have a great shot at winning POY."
Lewis said that between the two events he had five hours of sleep, but that didn't stop him adding another six-figure result finishing third in Event #74: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em 6-Max for an additional $325,842.
"I finished 15th in the $10k 6-Max last year, and I can remember exactly how I was feeling; my emotions at the time and my level of stress at different moments in the tournament. The progression from last year to this year was insane. I was really calm right up until the end. Everything that happened before that tournament helped, but I understood what it takes to get in the correct mindset.
"That was one thing I was really happy with over the summer, running deep over a lot of different buy-ins levels. That was something I had trouble with before. I didn't play any tournaments higher than $10,000 buy-in. I think that $25,000+, especially at the WSOP are that next level and that's not for me right now; I don't want to rush things."
With a few different results - perhaps a first bracelet - Lewis could be staring at a tasty Player of the Year battle between him and Shaun Deeb. He admits that there is a huge difference in points between a runner-up finish and a bracelet, so does he feel like he missed out on any larger prize?
"I've seen pictures and video of the World Series since I was 14 or 15 years old, and it's not something I pictured, having my face up there. But it was something that I kept open and followed all summer.
"The three left in the $10k 6-Max were me, Paul Volpe and Shaun Deeb who were already high up in the whole thing, so I mean there was a chance of it happening if I had won it and Deeb came third."
But there was still a chance with more POY points on offer at the World Series of Poker Europe at King's Casino, Rozvadov.
"I came to Rozvadov and said to myself 'Alright, Deeb is here but I'm absolutely allowed to win one of these first tournaments' and if I win one, then all I need to do is win another and then finish top three in the main! There was still a distant possibility and it was fun to give it a shot.
And just like in Vegas, Lewis came roaring out of the gate finishing third in Event #3: €550 Pot Limit Omaha 8-Max for €59,625.
"If I won that first tournament then I could have put the pressure on [Deeb]. There was one funny moment at that final table when I was coming back to my room, and he asked me where I finished in the PLO.
"I said third and he looked at me and said 'Good.' That could have been a fun one!"
With it still being so young in his poker career, Lewis says that he's happy to have the year he's had after so few years of playing and that his objectives for subsequent years are "way easy to set" because of what's happened this year.
"I mean it was only my second year in Vegas; what if I won a bracelet and maybe became POY? Things would have been different and maybe less motivated going forward. My goals would be harder to get tougher next year. I tend to spend less energy thinking on what could have been, and more on resetting my objectives and trying to be satisfied with what's going on.
"Poker is a game of being frustrated all the time, and if I can't be happy with top 10 in the POY standings, then I'll never be happy!"
But having been so close - four times now - how does Lewis balance the setting of objectives with the dream to one day obtain a WSOP gold bracelet?
"If I can put myself these situations where I'm going to be in the best condition possible to run deep during the WSOP, then it's impossible for me to think that there will not be other opportunities. I think it's hard to dream of a bracelet when it's been so close three or four times. It's not like the dream was there and I missed out on it. I've aready been in top three situations, and I'm already so grateful for that.
"The dream I had four or five years ago is definitely here right now. It's just about resetting those dreams. The thing is, when you become more professional as a poker player, those dreams become more like objectives. Because your objective is to fulfill those dreams."
Thursday, October 25, 2018 8:31 PM Local Time
Dinner Break
The 18 remaining players have been sent for a 45-minute dinner break, when they return, they will play Level 21 which features a small blind of 120,000, big blind of 240,000 and big blind ante of 240,000.
Thursday, October 25, 2018 8:29 PM Local Time
Feature Table Chip Counts
Chip counts before the break:
Matthias Eibinger | 14,685,000 | 1,795,000 |
Dominik Nitsche | 13,710,000 | -650,000 |
Rainer Kempe | 13,265,000 | -1,395,000 |
Michael Addamo | 8,900,000 | 750,000 |
Christian Rudolph | 2,695,000 | -1,230,000 |
Sylvain Loosli | 710,000 | -1,000,000 |
Thursday, October 25, 2018 8:27 PM Local Time
Set Over Set Vaults Troyanovskiy Ahead
Martin Kabrhel limped in from the cutoff and Vladimir Troyanovskiy called from the small blind. Mikita Badziakouski checked the big blind and the flop came . Troyanovskiy checked, Badziakouski bet 325,000, and Kabrhel just called. Troyanovskiy raised to 1,435,000 and Badziakouski instantly folded. Kabrhel called and the landed on the turn.
Troyanovskiy moved all in for 3,300,000 and Kabrhel instantly stuck in a chip to look up his opponent. Troyanovskiy tabled for a set of fives while Kabrhel showed for a set of deuces. The river was the and Troyanovskiy scored a double up through Kabrhel.
Vladimir Troyanovskiy | 10,900,000 | 4,000,000 |
Martin Kabrhel | 1,055,000 | -5,145,000 |