Thursday, September 27, 2012 5:00 PM Local Time
After three days of exciting poker action, Giovanni Rosadoni has emerged victorious over the 141-player field to take home his first-ever World Series of Poker gold bracelet and €107,614 in prize money.
Yesterday, the 20 first-round winners returned to play with the plan to play down to a winner. All of those players were in the money and included such big names as Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Matt Stout, Faraz Jaka and Mohsin Charania. Unfortunately for those five players, and a few others, they couldn't make the final table.
When the field was cut down to 10, it was time for everyone to redraw to the official final table. First eliminated was Valentin Messina, and he was followed out the door by John Duthie. Trond Aanensen, Roman Romanovskyi, Paul Guichard and Adrien Allain fell in eighth, seventh, sixth and fifth place, respectively, before leaving the final four players.
Among the final group were two WSOP bracelet winners, Oleksii Kovalchuk and John Monnette, another big name in Dan O'Brien and the unknown amateur Rosadoni.
Kovalchuk was first to fall in fourth place for €35,560 after his lost to O'Brien's . Then, Monnette went out in third place, also at the hands of O'Brien. His couldn't out-race the for O'Brien. That left O'Brien and Rosadoni heads up, and, when the match began, O'Brien had the lead with 776,000 in chips to Rosadoni's 501,000.
After approximately two hours of heads-up play, the two were forced to halt the match for the night as the casino was closing at 5:00 AM. When it ended, Rosadoni was in front with 787,000 to O'Brien's 490,000.
At 3:00 PM today, the two returned to continue the duel and to find a winner. Rosadoni seemed to pick up right where he left off. He got O'Brien down low, but then a comeback was in order. After a couple double ups, O'Brien snatched the lead back and put his foot on the gas. He ground Rosadoni down low once again, but could never finish.
Rosadoni stayed tough, though, and then found a big double with pocket kings when they held against O'Brien's . From there, it was all Rosadoni as he closed the door more and more with every hand.
On the final hand, O'Brien was all in preflop with the . Rosadoni seemed to always have it and did again this time with the . Despite flopping a pair of jacks and turning a flush draw, O'Brien was eliminated as the board ran out . He earned €66,503.
Prior to this run, Rosadoni's largest and only score on record was for €9,000. He has topped that by a lot more after winning this event for €107,614.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Giovanni Rosadoni | €107,614 |
| 2 | Dan O'Brien | €66,503 |
| 3 | John Monnette | €48,177 |
| 4 | Oleksii Kovalchuk | €35,560 |
| 5 | Adrien Allain | €26,724 |
| 6 | Paul Guichard | €20,434 |
| 7 | Roman Romanovskyi | €15,890 |
| 8 | Trond Aanensen | €12,564 |
| 9 | John Duthie | €10,095 |
| 10 | Valentin Messina | €8,239 |
Although this event has come to a conclusion, the PokerNews WSOP Europe coverage isn't over. It's currently Day 2 of Event #5: €10,450 Mixed Max - No-Limit Hold'em and Day 1 of Event #6: €1,650 Six-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha, so be sure to head over there to see what's going on.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:37 PM Local Time
After getting knocked down to around 300,000 after losing with to Giovanni Rosadoni's on a board of , Dan O'Brien moved all in for 322,000 on the button with the . Rosadoni woke up to the in the big blind and made the quick call to put O'Brien at risk.
First, the flop came down and O'Brien added a pair of jacks. Still, he was behind the pocket queens that Rosadoni held and needed more help.
The turn gave him a bit of hope when the peeled off. O'brien held the larger diamond of the two holdings and could hit a king, a jack or a diamond on the river to double up.
The dealer dealt the river card and the hit the felt. It was black and it was far too small to help O'Brien in anyway. He stood from his chair to shake the hand of Rosadoni before heading out the door. For his finish, O'Brien earned €66,503.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:22 PM Local Time
Giovanni Rosadoni raised on the button to 60,000 to start off this hand. Dan O'Brien called from the big blind, and the flop came down paired with the . After O'Brien checked, Rosadoni fired 40,000 and won the pot.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:15 PM Local Time
From the button, Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 48,000. Dan O'Brien moved all in from the big blind, and Rosadoni quickly called with the . O'Brien held the .
On the , O'Brien picked up a flush draw. He could also still hit an ace or running cards for a straight.
The turn was the , leaving Rosadoni needing to dodge just an ace or a spade on the river.
The river completed the board with the to give Rosadoni the double and put him in a slight lead over O'Brien, although the two are virtually even.
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 654,000 | 334,000  |
| Dan O'Brien | 623,000 | -334,000  |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:12 PM Local Time
From the button, Giovanni Rosadoni called. Dan O'Brien checked his option, and the flop came down . O'brien checked, Rosadoni fired 35,000, and O'Brien folded.
On the next hand, O'Brien called on the button, and Rosadoni checked. The flop came down with Rosadoni passing the action to O'Brien. O'Brien fired 24,000, but Rosadoni check-raised to 50,000. O'Brien folded, and Rosadoni won the pot.
| Dan O'Brien | 957,000 | -121,000 |
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 320,000 | 121,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:04 PM Local Time
The two players saw the flop with Dan O'Brien on the button. Giovanni Rosadoni checked, then called the bet of 24,000 from O'Brien.
The turn and river were then checked by both players. Rosadoni showed the for king high, and it was good.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:02 PM Local Time
On the first hand back from the break, Dan O'Brien called on the button, and Giovanni Rosadoni checked his option.
The flop came down , and Rosadoni fired 45,000. O'Brien called.
The turn was the , and both players checked to see the land on the river. Rosadoni checked, and O'Brien fired 90,000. Immediately, Rosadoni check-raised to 200,000. O'Brien thought it over, then called.
Rosadoni showed the for a pair of kings, and O'Brien showed the for a pair of aces. O'Brien's hand was best, and he scooped the pot.
Rosadoni dropped to under 200,000 in chips.
| Dan O'Brien | 1,078,000 | 273,000 |
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 199,000 | -273,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:53 PM Local Time
Level: 12
Blinds: 12000/24000
Ante: 4000
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:37 PM Local Time
The players are on their first break of the day and will return in 20 minutes.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:37 PM Local Time
Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 40,000 on the button, and Dan O'Brien made the call from the big blind. On the flop, both players checked to see the land on the turn. O'Brien fired 75,000, and Rosadoni folded.
| Dan O'Brien | 805,000 | 185,000 |
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 472,000 | -185,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:31 PM Local Time
Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 46,000 from the button, and Dan O'Brien made the call from the big blind to see the flop roll out. Both players checked.
The turn was the , and both players checked again. The river completed the board with the . Both checked.
Rosadoni showed the , but that was no good against O'Brien's for a Broadway straight, and O'Brien won the pot.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:19 PM Local Time
On the button, Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 60,000. Dan O'Brien moved all in, and Rosadoni folded. When he folded, Rosadoni showed the .
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:18 PM Local Time
After Dan O'Brien limped on the button, Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 40,000. O'Brien called, and the flop came down . Rosadoni fired 25,000, and O'Brien made the call.
The turn paired the board with the . Rosadoni checked, and O'Brien reached for chips. He fired 43,000, and Rosadoni folded, showing the .
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 657,000 | -87,000 |
| Dan O'Brien | 620,000 | 87,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:12 PM Local Time
Dan O'Brien called from the button, and Giovanni Rosadoni checked in the big blind. The flop was , and Rosadoni fired 21,000. O'Brien made the call.
After the landed on the turn, both players checked. The then added a fourth diamond to the board on the river. Rosadoni checked his cards, then checked. O'Brien checked behind.
Rosadoni rolled over the for a pair of eights and O'Brien mucked.
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 744,000 | 137,000 |
| Dan O'Brien | 533,000 | -137,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 3:02 PM Local Time
From the button, Giovanni Rosadoni called. Dan O'Brien checked his option from the big blind, and the dealer ran out the connected flop. O'Brien checked, Rosadoni bet 20,000, and O'Brien folded.
On the next hand, it was O'Brien's turn to limp the button, and Rosadoni checked his option in the big blind. The flop of was checked by both players to see the land on the turn. After Rosadoni checked, O'Brien's bet of 26,000 won him the pot.
Thursday, September 27, 2012 2:46 PM Local Time
From the button, Dan O'Brien limped in. Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 60,000 from the big blind, then O'Brien moved all in for 332,000. Rosadoni called. Once again, Rosadoni held the dominated hand with the to O'Brien's .
The flop kept O'Brien in front as the dealer ran out the . O'Brien doubled and now has a slight lead in the match.
| Dan O'Brien | 670,000 | 320,000 |
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 607,000 | -320,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 2:42 PM Local Time
From the button, Dan O'Brien called. Giovanni Rosadoni checked his option, and the flop rolled out . After Rosadoni checked, O'Brien bet 35,000 to win the pot. When Rosadoni folded, he showed the .
Thursday, September 27, 2012 2:36 PM Local Time
Level: 11
Blinds: 10000/20000
Ante: 3000
Thursday, September 27, 2012 2:36 PM Local Time
After Giovanni Rosadoni raised to 45,000 on the button, Dan O'Brien reraised all in from the big blind for 173,000. Rosadoni called with the , but O'Brien's was the dominating hand.
The flop, turn and river ran out to give O'Brien the double up.
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 927,000 | -157,000 |
| Dan O'Brien | 350,000 | 157,000 |
Thursday, September 27, 2012 2:34 PM Local Time
After Giovanni Rosadoni called from the button, Dan O'Brien checked in the big blind to see the flop come down . O'Brien bet 21,000, and Rosadoni called.
The turn was the to pair the board, and O'Brien checked. Rosadoni fired 35,000, and O'Brien called.
The river completed the board with the , and O'Brien checked with 193,000 in chips. Rosadoni moved in, and O'Brien tank-folded.
| Giovanni Rosadoni | 1,084,000 | 87,000 |
| Dan O'Brien | 193,000 | -87,000 |