The 2011 World Series of Poker almost saw Phil Hellmuth win his 12th gold bracelet and first non-hold’em gold once again last night, but in the wee hours of the morning his run came up just short. Eric Rodawig won Event No. 33 ($10,000 seven-card stud eight-or-better) to claim his first gold bracelet and $442,183. Hellmuth took home $273,233 in prize money prize money and 850 Card Player Player of the Year points to bring his total for the year to 1,500. This puts him in 63rd place overall when combined with his other second-place finish at the 2011 WSOP in the $10,000 deuce-to-seven lowball championship.
Rodawig is a 26-year-old banker. He is originally from South Dakota. Rodawig graduated from Georgetown University. He now lives with his wife in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC. Rodawig is also a pro/instructor at the poker training website Cardrunners. He topped one of the toughest final tables of the summer, also outlasting Ali Eslami (Eighth place) Joe Tehan (Seventh place), David Benyamine (Fifth place), Ted Forrest (Fourth place), and John Racener (Third place).
Here is a look at the elimination hands as featured on CardPlayer.com’s live updates:
Ali Eslami Eliminated in 8th Place ($51,750)
Ali Eslami came to the final table as the short stack and was eliminated shortly after in 8th place. Eslami completed with the 8
, Ted Forrest raised the 4
and Eslami called all in on third street.
Eslami: 9
4
4 A 7 3 7
Forrest: A 4 4 A 8 2 3
Both players had a pair of fours on third street. Forrest made aces up on fourth street and Eslami came up short on the river with sevens-up. Ted Forrest raked the pot and Ali Eslami was the first to go in 8th place ($51,750).
Joe Tehan Eliminated in 7th Place ($62,710)
Joe Tehan was all in on seventh street against Eric Rodawig in his final hand of the evening.
Rodawig: 9 8 A 7
Tehan: 4 8 4 Q
Tehan turned over aces for two pair (aces and fours) but Rodawig showed J 10 for a straight. Joe Tehan was eliminated in 7th place ($62,710).
Mikhail Savinov Eliminated in 6th Place ($77,222)
David Benyamine brought in the 3, Mikhail Savinov completed the bet with the 6 and Benyamine called.
Savinov: 7 7 6 4 3 6 10
Benyamine: A Q 3 A 9 5 Q
Benyamine was ahead on fifth street with a pair of aces when the money went in. Savinov double-paired sixes to take the lead on sixth street but Benyamine rivered a better two pair and Mikhail Savinov was eliminated in 6th place ($77,222).
David Benyamine Eliminated in 5th Place ($96,836)
Ted Forrest brought it it with the 4, David Benyamine called with the 10, Hellmuth completed the bet, Forrest folded and Benyamine called the raise.
Benyamine: 10 6 J K
Hellmuth: A 9 K 7
Benyamine was all in on seventh street and Hellmuth turned over A 8 8 for two pair (aces and eights). Benyamine threw his hand away and Phil Hellmuth raked the pot. David Benyamine was eliminated in 5th place ($96,836).
Ted Forrest Eliminated in 4th Place ($123,904)
Phil Hellmuth brought in the 3, Ted Forrest called with the 6, John Racener completed the bet with the 7 and both players called.
Forrest: 8 4 6 3 Q 7 10
Hellmuth: 8 4 3 K J K Q
Racener: A 4 7 Q 2 K 5
Forrest was all in on sixth street and both Hellmuth and Racener checked the river. Hellmuth won the high half with a pair of kings while Racener took the low half. Ted Forrest bricked and was eliminated in 4th place ($123,904).
John Racener Eliminated in 3rd Place ($171,122)
Eric Rodawig had previously scooped a big pot off John Racener with a flush and an 8 – 6 low. This hand left Racener crippled and with less than one big bet left. In his final hand of the night, John Racener was all in on third street and both Phil Hellmuth and Eric Rodawig checked the side pot to the river. Hellmuth bet on seventh street and Rodawig folded.
Hellmuth: A 2 2 8 Q Q 5
Racener: 10 3 2 6 7 7 K
Hellmuth made two pair ( queens and twos) and Racener was unable to catch up. He was eliminated in 3rd place ($171,122).
Phil Hellmuth Eliminated in 2nd Place ($272,233)
Although it was Phil Hellmuth that eliminated John Racener in 3rd place, it was Eric Rodawig that crippled him the hand before and took most of the chips into heads-up play. Hellmuth started the final match at almost a 3:1 deficit with just 1.3 million to Rodawig’s 3.7 million, and just a few hands into the match and Rodawig was able to quickly extend his lead to more than 7:1.
Hellmuth fought back and began to chip up a bit before scoring a double up and putting himself right back in the running with 1.3 million to 3.7 million again. Hellmuth then lost a huge pot to Eric Rodawig’s trip threes and found himself down to just 300,000.
He quickly doubled up with a scoop after making a pair of aces and an eight-low and then doubled again with queens-up to crack Rodawig’s aces. Hellmuth’s luck would soon run out and on the final hand of the night, Hellmuth three-bet all in for 280,000 on third street and Eric Rodawig called.
Rodawig: A 8 3 2 2 3 K
Hellmuth: J 10 9 5 4 7 J
Rodawig made two pair on sixth street and Hellmuth missed on the the river. Phil Hellmuth was eliminated in 2nd place ($272,233) while Eric Rodawig joins John Juanda as the second person this summer to deny Phil Hellmuth what would have been his record-breaking 12th WSOP gold bracelet. In addition, Eric Rodawig wins the gold bracelet in Event #33 and the $442,183 grand prize.
Copyright © 2001-2024
CardPlayer.com. All rights reserved.
