Friday, July 10, 2015 1:03 AM Local Time
David Jackson - The Best of Day 2C
That’s it, no more separation of players in the WSOP Main Event. Today, Day 2c is the last time this year’s tournament will be split into different flights. Tomorrow is Day 3 and all remaining players will fill the Rio convention center knowing that the 2015 World Champion is (if it’s not them) amongst them.
A massive 2,765 survived Day 1C and after another five levels had passed, 1,770 (approx) survived Day 2C, led by David Jackson who bagged up 408,800 chips heading to Day 3. He leads the following top five from today:
David Jackson - 408,800
Zach Jiganti - 401,900
Shawn Van Alsdale - 388,000
Louis Salter - 344,400
Hugo Perez - 343,300
All these players sit behind the big four from yesterday's play though: Amar Anand (603,500), Calvin Lee (500,700), Luther Tran (479,700) and Charles Chattha (423,300).
Notables to keep an eye on tomorrow include: former World Champions Scotty Nguyen (181,200), Joe Hachem (148,500), Phil Hellmuth (88,800), Ryan Reiss (291,700), and Jim Bechtel (140,000); Daniel Negreanu (123,600), Daniel Alaei (199,800) JC Tran (113,700), Max Steinberg (232,700), Matt Glantz (306,00) and Adrian Mateos (pictured below).
If you ask a lot of people connected to poker to describe Mateos in one word, the most common answer you’ll hear will be “Wizard.” That’s because the Spaniard, who’s only been 21 for a little over a week, had already won (and holds) two of Poker’s majors: World Series of Poker Europe and the European Tour Grand Final. If he goes on to win this year, he’ll also eclipse Joe Cada as the youngest ever World Champion. Mateos told WSOP.com (via helpful Spanish media colleagues) that he started the day on 88,625 and got all the way up to the dizzy heights of 330,000 – largely thanks to winning two big pots with pocket aces- but fell back to finish on 285,000. He lost a 70k flip in the last level when his ace-king failed to hit versus an opponent holding pocket jacks.
With such a large portion of the field busting today, a lot of big-name players’ series ended for another year. So many eyes were on Phil Ivey today. The living legend has played so few events this year that his fans (media included) hadn’t had their Ivey-fix. Unfortunately for him (and them) his day came to and end early on when he ran pocket nines into an opponent’s kings.
Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier looked to be in fine form today. In one remarkable pot he open folded a set of kings to Kevin O'Donnell. Do you think he was right? O'Donnell, for obvious reasons, wouldn't say if it was a good fold at the time but he told WSOP.com much later, "Wasn't a good fold, it was a GREAT fold. I didn't think there was any way he would fold with the pot size..." Unfortunately for ElkY, his ride came to an end in the next level.
He joins a long list of notables who will have to pause bracelet-hunting until Berlin this fall. They include Ronnie Bardah, who failed to cash for a record sixth straight year; former World Champions Jamie Gold, Huck Seed, Peter Eastgate and Robert Varkonyi; WSOP.com commentator David Tuchman, and 2015 WSOP POY contender Anthony Zinno.
Anyway, the focus for the last few days of this fabulous poker of summer is on who’s still here, and who will go on to be your 2015 November Nine. The remaining 1,800 or so players will return for Day 3 at noon on Friday, and it’s a big day. The bubble will burst sometime during the third or fourth level of play tomorrow, when a thousand players remain. They all will be guaranteed $15,000 and will be able to play pressure free for a period. Then the payouts will increase and that pressure will ramp up again!
Join the WSOP.com live update team back here then for what promises to be a day to remember for many, and a day to forget for quite a few too.
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:55 AM Local Time
The flop is . Shawn Nguyen bets 8,000 from the big blind and Yordan Mitrentsov calls from the cutoff.
The turn is the . Nguyen bets 21,500. Mitrentsov tanks. Eventually, the dealer calls the floor, who calls the clock. Mitrentsov calls.
The river is the . Nguyen bets 36,500 and Mitrentsov calls. Nguyen turns over . Mitrentsov mucks his cards.
Shawn Nguyen - 287,600
Yordan Mitrentsov - 291,000
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:35 AM Local Time
A player raises from under the gun to 2,800 and Andjelko Andrejevic
calls. The action folds to the player on the button, who three bets to
10,000. It folds back to Andrejevic and he goes into the tank, counting
down his stack as he considers. After twenty seconds, he announces
he's all in for over 40,000. His opponent snap calls.
Andrejevic -
Opponent -
The board runs out clean for the kings, , and Andrejevic doubles up.
Andjelko Andrejevic - 94,200
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:32 AM Local Time
Following an opening raise from Court Harrington in middle position to 2,700, four players call, including Zach Jiganti, on the button.
On the flop, the big blind checks and Harrington checks as well. A middle position player bets 3,200 and after one fold, Jiganti raises to 9,100. The big blind quickly gets out of the way, but Harrington moves all in for 57,400. The original raiser folds and it's back to Jiganti who asks for a count. Jiganti takes his time, but eventually flicks in an orange chip for the call.
Jiganti holds for a pair of fives and is looking for help against Harrington's . The turn is a blank, as is the river.
Despite losing the hand, Jiganti is still one of the largest stacks in the field with 393,500.
Court Harrington - 119,500
Zach Jiganti - 393,500
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:24 AM Local Time
There is a raise from the cutoff to 2,500 preflop and Ray Romano, on the button, commits his remaining 2,100. The small blind folds and Shaun Suller is in the big blind and reraises to 7,500. The original raiser calls and the three see come out on the flop.
Suller bets 10,000 and the cutoff calls. The players see the on the turn. Suller checks and the cutoff bets 15,000. Suller calls and the comes on the river. Suller bets 20,000 and his opponent calls.
Suller shows and his opponent shows while Romano shows and Suller takes down the entire pot.
Shaun Suller - 150,000
Ray Romano - Eliminated
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:20 AM Local Time
The flop is and the turn is . Action checks around to Tommy Hang, who goes all in with 20,800 from middle position. His opponent, who's under the gun, says, "It's a tough one!" He tanks before saying, "Alright!"
Hang turns over , giving him a set of eights. His opponent tables . Hang takes the pot.
Tommy Hang - 65,100
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:05 AM Local Time
The action folds to Antonio Esfandiari in late position and he raises to 2,600. It folds to Danny Johnson in the big blind and he calls. "You looking for something [on the flop], kid?" Esfandiari asks. "Something," Johnson replies.
The flop comes . Esfandiari continues for 5,200. Johnson calls. The turn is the . Johnson checks and Esfandiari checks behind. The river is . Johnson considers his options for a moment and then bets 11,500. Esfandiari checks his hole cards and then goes into the tank. He emerges twenty seconds later with a call.
"Jacks full," Johnson says, and turns over .
Danny Johnson - 114,300
Antonio Esfandiari - 188,800
Before we can walk away, Esfandiari says, "Make sure you note that Danny Johnson is cool as sh*t."
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:03 AM Local Time
With approximately 15,000 in the pot and a flop of , Matt Guan bets 6,000 after his opponent checks to him. His opponent calls and the two see a turn of . Both players check.
On the river, Guan's opponent leads out for 15,700 and Guan tanks for several minutes, often with a pained look on his face, before ultimately deciding to call.
His opponent tables for king-high that missed a ton of draws. Guan and his take the pot down with a pair of sevens.
Matt Guan - 320,000
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:01 AM Local Time
There's about 30,000 in the pot with the board showing , and Ray Romano is heads up. His opponent bets 25,000 on the river, and Romano sinks deep into the tank. The cameras and spectators gather around, leaning across the rail as Romano talks through his decision. After several minutes, the clock is called, and the floorman arrives to supervise the proceedings. Romano only has 27,200 chips left in his stack, so an incorrect call would cost him almost everything.
"Ten... nine...," the floorman begins counting down the last ten seconds. He gets all the way down to, "Two... one...," and Romano announces a call at the very last moment.
The opponent shows for the Broadway straight, and Romano can't beat it. He flashes his as he pays off the debt, and he's extremely short-stacked with less than an hour left in Day 2.
Ray Romano - 2,200
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:00 AM Local Time
Facing a raise to 2,400, Hugo Perez three-bets the small blind to 6,700 and his opponent calls.
The flop falls and Perez checks to his opponent, who bets out 8,800.
Perez calls, and then both players check down the and on the turn and river, respectively.
Perez tables his and his opponent mucks.
Hugo Perez - 338,000
Friday, July 10, 2015 12:00 AM Local Time
A player in middle position opens with a raise to 2,700. Ryan Olisar calls from the button and the big blind comes along as well. The trio takes a flop of and all three players check. The drops down on fourth street and the big blind checks once more. The original raiser fires out a bet of 4,500 prompting folds from Olisar and the player in the big blind. With this hit, Olisar is down to about 253,000.
Ryan Olisar - 253,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:58 PM Local Time
The completed board reads and there is approximately 20,000 already in the middle. Victor Ramdin is heads up with an opponent and his opponent bets 12,000.
Ramdin thinks for a moment before calling. Ramdin's opponent tables for a full house of tens full of queens. Ramdin mucks and his opponent takes down the pot.
Victor Ramdin - 144,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:56 PM Local Time
Lev Milman's Main Event just got way better. He is three-handed with the board showing . There is a 17,000 bet out. Milman puts the rest of his chips in. The other player gets out of the way and it's heads up after a call from the initial bettor. His opponent shows for a flush draw. Milman turns over for top pair and a gutshot. The board finishes with the . Milman takes it down and doubles up.
In the next hand, it is Milman and another player heads up after Milman raises preflop from early position and the big blind calls. The flop comes . The big blind raises it up to 4,500. Milman makes it 15,600. His opponent fires back with 34,500. Milman calls.
The turn brings . The big blind bets 25,000. Milman calls. Fifth street brings the . Milman's opponent sets 35,000 in the middle. Milman tanks, then calls. His opponent smiles and shakes his head. He hesitates before flipping his cards over, and shows . Milman turns over for a flopped set. The big blind gets up and walks around, clearly bothered by the hand.
In just two hands, Milman has gone from short-stacked to over 200,000.
Lev Milman - 216,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:56 PM Local Time
Action is checked over to Antonio Esfandiari on the turn of a board reading . There is close to 30,000 in the middle and Esfandiari bets 10,300. His opponent in the big blind calls and they go to the river which is the .
The player in the big blind tosses his hand half way towards the dealer and Esfandiari motions to throw his away too without releasing his cards. Esfandiari says his opponent is allowed to muck and the dealer clarifies that a hand must be shown to win the pot. The player in the big blind retrieves his cards and shows his just in case. Esfandiari shows the winner .
Antonio Esfandiari - 220,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:55 PM Local Time
According to Craig Varnell, he just lost a hand with pocket kings. He opened the pot, the button three-bet, Varnell four-bet, the button shipped, and Varnell called.
Craig Varnell:
Button:
The board ran out to double his opponent.
Craig Varnell - 310,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:54 PM Local Time
A player in middle position raises to 2,500. Two seats to his left, Ming Zheng reraises to 8,100. His opponent goes all in and Zheng goes all in with 34,000 to call.
Zheng tables and his opponent turns over .
The board comes .
Zheng takes the pot with two pair.
Ming Zheng - 68,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:50 PM Local Time
From middle position, Jay Ballen raises to 2,700. The cutoff calls, as does Jared Bleznick in the big blind.
On the flop, Bleznick checks and Ballen moves all in for 16,300. The cutoff quickly calls and Bleznick folds. Ballen has flopped two pair with , but the cutoff has the straight to the ace with .
The turn is no help to Ballen, but the on the river gives him a full house and the double up.
Meanwhile, Bleznick and Gabriel Andrade are continuing their friendly banter that started earlier today. While Andrade is trying his best to convince Bleznick to start taking shots of tequila, Bleznick has declined.
Jay Ballen - 42,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:50 PM Local Time
A player raises in middle position and Andre Akkari calls from the hijack. Joe Hachem three bets to 8,500 on the button. The original raiser four bets all in for 37,900. Akkari folds and Hachem calls.
Hachem turns over and his opponent holds . The board runs out low, , and the king kicker plays. Hachem collects a good-sized pot and send a player to the rail.
Joe Hachem - 125,000
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:43 PM Local Time
Ever since Phil Hellmuth won his first bracelet, he has had a love affair with pocket nines, and in this hand, they're good for another 22,000 added to his stack.
A middle position player raises to 2,400 and Jennifer Shahade three-bets from the cutoff to 5,800. It folds to Hellmuth in the big blind and he calls. The original raiser calls and we see a flop of . Hellmuth leads on the flop for 9,000. The original raiser calls and Shahade folds.
The turn is the . Hellmuth checks and his opponent checks behind. The river is the . Hellmuth check. His opponent tanks for a few seconds and then bets 11,000. After confirming the amount of the bet, Hellmuth calls and his opponent mucks. Hellmuth turns over and drags the nice-sized pot.
Phil Hellmuth - 93,400
Thursday, July 9, 2015 11:41 PM Local Time
A player in the cutoff is all-in, Manh Nguyen calls, Jamie Gold shoves all-in in the big blind, and Nguyen calls Gold's all-in.
Cutoff:
Manh Nguyen:
Jamie Gold:
After the flop falls Gold says, "Well, I guess I am going home."
The turn and river eliminate both Gold and the player in the cutoff.
While Gold gathers his belongings, the other player eliminated in the hand with him starts freestyle rapping to Gold while the ESPN cameras are rolling. He starts to draw a crowd and, after two minutes, he finishes his rap and both players head to the rail, while Nguyen rakes in his newly acquired chips.
Manh Nguyen - 98,000
Jamie Gold - Eliminated
Cutoff - Eliminated