James "jcamby33" Campbell's winning hand at the PokerStars Sunday Million
PokerStars Sunday Million
It was a strong weekend all around for online poker, and PokerStars was no different. The
PokerStars Sunday Million had 7,109 entrants and a prize pool of $1,421,800, which is back up to what the tournament would normally have expected before the pullout of the payment processors in January. The first-place finisher would earn more than $200,000 if no deal was struck.
Prominent Internet poker pros Danny "cpfactor" Smith and James "jcamby33" Campbell were well on their way to snagging that top prize when they both made the final table of the event. Not only that, they were both within the top three stacks. Cpfactor was in first with $12.5 million and jcamby33 was in third with $10.87 million. Just between them sat ValuePlay in second, with $10.93 million.
CalBandGreat was the short-stacked player at the table and he was also the first player eliminated just under 20 minutes into the final table action. CalBandGreat open-pushed all in from the small blind for $2.8 million (when the big blind was $300,000) and cpfactor called and showed A
10
. Cpfactor found that he was dominating CalBandGreat's 10
2
as the board ran out 6
6
3
J
10
. Cpfactor's ace kicker played and CalBandGreat was out of the tournament in ninth place ($8,389).
Htd112 was the next to go when he pushed all in preflop from under the gun and was called by cjwill33. Cjwill33 turned over pocket nines and was in excellent shape against htd112's pocket fours. The board ran out K
Q
8
3
Q
, pairing but otherwise missing both players, and htd112 was eliminated in eighth place, earning $12,796.
SurreyStud took a huge chunk out of ValuePlay in a hand in which SurreyStud raised to $1.6 million preflop from late position and ValuePlay pushed all in over the top from the small blind for $9.1 million. SurreyStud eventually called all in for a little less and showed A-Q. He found that ValuePlay was apparently making a play for the pot when he showed J-10. SurreyStud's hand held up without help from the board and ValuePlay was severely crippled.
Soon thereafter, left with $483,000, ValuePlay just called the $400,000 big blind preflop. SurreyStud called in the small blind and jcamby33 checked his option in the big blind. All three players checked it down until the board read 8
5
2
2
A
, at which point both SurreyStud and jcamby33 checked. ValuePlay pushed in his remaining $43,000, prompting SurreyStud to call and jcamby33 to fold. SurreyStud showed Q
7
for queen high and ValuePlay showed 10
6
for just 10 high and was eliminated from the tournament in seventh place ($22,038).
In the next elimination hand, cjwill33 pushed all in from the button for $4.3 million and chick x called in the big blind (which was now at $500,000). Cjwill33 flipped up Q
10
and was in a race against chick x's pocket sevens. The flop was bad news for cjwill33 when it came 6
5
4
to keep chick x in the lead and also give him (her?) a straight flush draw with his 7
. Chick x completed his flush on the turn when it brought the 9
, and cjwill33 was
drawing dead. Cjwill33 made $31,280 for his sixth-place finish.
By the time the next elimination hand occurred, chick x had a rather significant chip lead with $41.7 million versus jcamby33 in second with just $11.2 million. Jcamby33 narrowed that gap a bit when he raised to $9 million preflop in the small blind, enough to put jonnybsting, the big blind, all in. Jonnybsting called all in for his last $5.8 million and showed pocket kings and had a good lead against jcamby33's Q
10
. The flop came J
J
6
, not much help for jcamby33. The turn was the 10
, giving him a glimmer of hope with any 10 (a queen would give him two pair, but jonnybsting already had a better two pair). The miracle river came when it brought the 10
, giving jcamby33 a full house to take down the pot and send jonnybsting to the rail in fifth place ($42,654).
Ten minutes later, SurreyStud ($8.9 million) raised to $3.2 million preflop, with the big blind now at $800,000. Cpfactor reraised enough to put SurreyStud all in and SurreyStud called and showed Q
8
. Cpfactor revealed that he was in the lead with pocket kings, in a hand that was fairly similar to the previous elimination hand. Unfortunately for SurreyStud, however, he didn't have the same kind of luck jcamby33 had. The board ran out A
10
2
7
8
, improving him to just a pair of eights, not enough to stay alive. SurreyStud left the table $56,872 richer for his fourth-place finish.
Play was now three-handed, and chick x still had the chip lead with $34.1 million. Cpfactor was in second place with $21.1 million and jcamby33 had a third-place-worthy stack of $15.8 million. In just over 10 minutes, jcamby33 had won pot after pot to almost double his stack and take over the chip lead at the expense of both players. Cpfactor was down to $12.5 million.
In cpfactor's last hand, jcamby33 raised to $2.4 million preflop from the small blind and cpfactor pushed all in over the top for $12.5 million. Jcamby33 called and showed K
Q
and was slightly behind against cpfactor's A
6
(cpfactor was a
57 percent favorite). The flop came J
6
4
, further improving cpfactor and keeping him in the lead. The turn, however, brought the K
to give jcamby33 top pair to take over the lead in the hand. The river was a blank, the 5
, and jcamby33 scooped up the pot to put fellow pro cpfactor out in third place ($71,090).
Jcamby33 now had $43.4 million in chips versus chick x with $27.7 million. Jcamby33 took another $4 million off chick x's stack in the very first hand of heads-up, just before the two decided to pause the tournament to discuss a chop. The two players opted for a slightly modified by-the-chips chop with jcamby33 getting an extra $3,000 to put his guaranteed total winnings at $150,000. Chick x was ensured a $121,422 payday and there was still $30,000 on the line for the eventual winner of the tournament, per the PokerStars chopping rules.
The final hand was played just five minutes after the deal was struck. Jcamby33 raised to $3 million preflop, with the big blind now at $1 million, and chick x reraised all in for $15.8 million. Jcamby33 called and showed pocket kings and was well ahead of chick x's Q
J
. The board ran out 7
5
4
A
9
, improving neither player, and chick x was eliminated in second place. Jcamby33 pocketed the extra $30,000 to bring his total winnings to an even $180,000 for his win in the event.
The final results were:
*1) James "jcamby33" Campbell - $180,000
*2) chick x - $121,421.60
3) Danny "cpfactor" Smith - $71,090
4) SurreyStud - $56,872
5) johnnybsting - $42,654
6) cjwill33 - $31,279.60
7) ValuePlay - $22,037.90
8) htd112 - $12,796.20
9) CalBandGreat - $8,388.62
* Payout reflects a slightly modified two-way by-the-chips chop with $30,000 remaining for the eventual winner, per the PokerStars chopping rules.
Full Tilt $750,000 Guarantee
Like the other tournaments this weekend, the
Full Tilt monthly $750,000-guaranteed tournament had good attendance. The $500 buy-in tournament had 1,647 entrants to generate a prize pool of $823,500 and offer a first-place prize of more than $152,000.
Also like many of the other tournaments this weekend, the final table had some very noteworthy Internet pros, including Matt "mattg1983" Graham, who came to the table as the chip leader with $1.3 million, and Shawn "phat_cat1" Luman, who initially sat in fifth place with $955,000. As that relatively small difference between first and fifth place suggests, it was a tight race for the chip lead and no one person was secure.
The stacks were so close that the first elimination of the table didn't occur until 30 minutes into the final table action. The action didn't get much faster after that, either. After almost an hour of play, seven players still remained. It was at that point that phat_cat1 dropped out of the running.
Players may not have been dropping out very quickly, but the blinds never stop increasing, and phat_cat1 had just $706,000 when the big blind was at $50,000. He decided to push all in preflop after two players had limped. Frymealiver reraised all in for just a bit more in the big blind and folded the rest of the players. Frymealiver showed pocket aces and was a huge favorite over phat_cat1's K-J. The flop was a little bit of help for phat_cat1 when it came Q-J-4, giving him a pair. The turn was a 9, even more help for phat_cat1, who now had a gutshot-straight draw, as well. The river, however, was a 2 and phat_cat1 was out of the tournament in seventh place ($19,764).
Phat_cat1's elimination got the ball rolling, and players started being eliminated at a more regular pace thereafter. When it got down to three-way play, DuckU was the chip leader with $3.5 million in chips, followed by mattg1983 in second with $2.5 million and Frymealiver in third place with $2.3 million. True to his place, Frymealiver was the next player eliminated.
DuckU raised to $240,000 preflop, with the big blind at $80,000, and Frymealiver reraised to $590,000. DuckU pushed all in over the top and Frymealiver called all in and showed A
5
. DuckU held a good lead with pocket jacks as the board ran out Q
9
5
2
6
. Frymealiver had just a pair of fives, not enough to survive, and he was eliminated in third place, earning $61,763.
It was now heads up, and DuckU had $5.9 million versus mattg1983's $2.3 million. Heads-up play lasted 15 minutes before the first big hand. Mattg1983 raised to $270,000 preflop, with the big blind now at $100,000, and DuckU pushed all in, with his stack now approaching $6 million. Mattg1983 called and showed K
10
and wasn't in horrible shape against DuckU's A
8
. The flop came A
J
10
, pairing both players, but keeping DuckU in the lead. The turn was the K
, spiking a second pair for mattg1983 for him to take the lead. The river was a blank and mattg1983 raked in the pot to take over the chip lead with $4.5 million. DuckU wasn't too far behind with $4 million.
In fact, DuckU managed to retake his lead before the final hand. DuckU raised to $320,000 preflop and mattg1983 called. The flop came Q
9
6
and mattg1983 checked. DuckU bet $350,000 and mattg1983 check-raised to $800,000. DuckU pushed all in over the top and mattg1983 called and showed Q
7
for top pair. DuckU revealed K
Q
for top pair with a better kicker, and was leading. The turn was the 9
and the river the 6
and DuckU's king kicker was good enough to rake in the pot and eliminate mattg1983 in second place ($93,879). DuckU earned $152,348 for his victory in the tournament.
The final results were:
1) DuckU - $152,347.50
2) Matt "mattg1983" Graham - $93,879
3) Frymealiver - $61,762.50
4) Jubbley - $49,410
5) knivar3n - $37,881
6) RANGER_173D - $27,175.50
7) Shawn "phat_cat1" Luman - $19,764
8) Maximoss - $15,399.45
9) Mizrachi - $11,858.40
UltimateBet $200,000 Guarantee
Attendance at the
UltimateBet $200,000-guaranteed tournament was the highest it's been in quite some time last night. The tournament lured 973 entrants and was just 27 buy-ins shy of meeting its guarantee on entries alone, thus requiring a $5,400 overlay. That's a relatively small amount considering the tournament required an overlay of $38,400 just last weekend.
The final table featured two notable Internet pros: Garrett "GfcukinBecks" Beckman, who sat at the table in sixth place with $187,000 in chips, and Devin "TranquilChaos" Porter, in fifth place with $189,000. Lamp3122 came into the table with a massive chip lead with $821,000, followed relatively distantly by moneydraws in second with $284,000.
TranquilChaos actually became the final table's first victim 13 hands in when he pushed all in preflop with pocket nines and ran into the pocket queens of kinglouie. The board paired, but otherwise improved neither player, and TranquilChaos was out in 10th place ($2,000).
Moneydraws eventually finished in fifth place ($10,500) when his A-9 failed to improve against lamp3122's pocket eights. Seven minutes later, kinglouie hit the rail as well when he committed his stack all in preflop with A-Q and found that he was in bad shape against GfcukinBecks' pocket kings. GfcukinBecks managed to snag a set before sending kinglouie off in fourth place, with $13,100.
No one player was at much of a disadvantage as three-way play began. Lamp3122 was the chip leader with $908,000, GfcukinBecks was in second place with $817,000, and Fajzher was bringing up the rear with a respectable stack of $709,000. The three players swapped chips liberally over the course of more than 20 minutes before the first elimination.
By that time, GfcukinBecks had pulled into the chip lead with more than $1 million, lamp3122 was a little down at $883,000, and Fajzher had been pushed further back in third place with $519,000. Lamp3122 raised to $70,000 preflop on the button, with the big blind at $30,000, and Fajzher called from the big blind. The flop came A
A
Q
and both players checked. The turn was the 5
and Fajzher led out with a min-bet of $30,000. Lamp3122 called and the river brought the 9
. Fajzher again showed aggression by betting $150,000, but this time lamp3122 showed aggression himself by raising all in over the top for $780,000 total. Fajzher called and showed A
2
for a slowplayed trip aces. He had slowplayed himself to death, apparently, as lamp3122 revealed K
Q
in the hole, for the nut flush. Fajzher left the table in third place with $18,000.
Lamp3122 pulled into the lead with the hand, and now sat with $1.4 million as heads-up play began. GfcukinBecks was still sitting with $1 million. The winner of the tournament would be determined in just over five minutes of play.
GfcukinBecks raised to $130,000 preflop (with the big blind now at $40,000) and lamp3122 pushed all in over the top, having GfcukinBecks covered by just $145,000. GfcukinBecks called and showed pocket jacks and was in a classic coin-flip situation against lamp3122's A
K
. The board ran out 10
5
3
8
6
, completely missing both players, and GfcukinBecks raked in the biggest pot of the tournament to severely cripple lamp3122.
Lamp3122's chips were, understandably, all in the middle preflop in the very next hand. GfcukinBecks called and showed Q
7
and was in the lead against lamp3122's suited "Good Buddy" (10
4
). The flop furthered GfcukinBecks' lead when it came A
K
7
to give him a pair of sevens. The turn and river were blanks, the 5
and J
, respectively, and GfcukinBecks raked in the last pot of the tournament. Lamp3122 earned $26,500 for his runner-up finish while GfcukinBecks got a $45,000 payday for first place.
The final results were:
1) Garrett "Gfcukinbecks" Beckman - $45,000
2) lamp3122 - $26,500
3) Fajzher - $18,000
4) kinglouie - $13,100
5) moneydraws - $10,500
6) dallasjoe - $8,500
7) The Big Don - $6,500
8) kdogpenny1 - $4,500
9) zymurgist17 - $3,400
10) Devin "TranquilChaos" Porter - $2,000
Bodog $100,000 Guarantee
Bodog appears to be out of whatever funk it was in.
It's been 56 days since the
Bodog $100,000-guaranteed tournament has had 900 or more entrants, and during that period, the tournament saw fields in the mid- to low-700s three times. Last night's event broke that streak when 927 players bought in to create an entrant-generated prize pool of $92,700, and thus leaving Bodog to come out of pocket for a smallish $7,300 overlay.
Akw84 held a decent chip lead as the final table began, with over $550,000. Billystar and rvrmonkey were in second and third place, respectively, both having stacks in the mid-$300,000s. Within 10 minutes, three players had been eliminated and rvrmonkey had taken over the chip lead with $564,000.
Akw84 made an early exit from the table in sixth place ($4,400) when he quickly pushed all in on a board showing J
8
3
5
and Veteran In Love called, after some thought. Akw84 had been making a move with 9
5
for just a pair of fives and Veteran In Love showed Q
J
for top pair and took down the pot after the river bricked out. Veteran In Love turned into a steamroller after the hand, and he was soon the first player to break into a seven-digit stack.
Shortly thereafter, billystar dropped out of the running in fifth place ($5,400) when his K-J ran into the A-Q of Veteran In Love preflop. After a series of losing hands, frankc ended up mucking his final hand when one of his two opponents, Vatche, showed two pair. He collected $6,500 for fourth place.
It was now down to just three players: Veteran In Love ($1.1 million), rvrmonkey ($660,000), and Vatche ($579,000). About 20 minutes into three-way play, rvrmonkey pushed all in preflop from the small blind for $493,000 (with the big blind at $40,000). Veteran In Love called and showed pocket tens, and was in good shape against rvrmonkey's A
5
. The board completely missed rvrmonkey and Veteran In Love spiked an unneeded set on the river to eliminate rvrmonkey in third place ($9,000).
With a total of $2.3 million in chips in play, it was unlikely that both players would have seven-figure stacks at the same time very often. Despite how unlikely it was, the nearly 15-minute heads-up match was very close, and both players managed to hold on to stacks of more than $1 million at the same time for a good portion of the match. Vatche had a slim lead going into the biggest hand of heads-up play.
Veteran In Love raised to $120,000 preflop, with the big blind at $60,000, and Vatche quickly called to see a flop of J
10
8
. Vatche checked and Veteran In Love bet $130,000. Vatche check-raised all in for $1.1 million and Veteran In Love called instantly and showed 10
8
for two pair. Vatche revealed J
2
for top pair and was behind. The turn and river were blanks and Veteran In Love took down the pot to cripple Vatche and leave him with just $103,000.
Vatche pushed all in in the very next hand and Veteran In Love called and showed 10
5
. He was actually ahead as Vatche turned over 9
2
. The flop came J
10
3
, and Veteran In Love furthered his lead with a pair of tens. Vatche's tournament life was all over when the turn brought another 10, and he headed off in second place with $14,000. Veteran In Love pocketed $25,000 for his first-place finish.
The final results were:
1) Veteran In Love - $25,000
2) Vatche - $14,000
3) rvrmonkey - $9,000
4) frankc - $6,500
5) billystar - $5,400
6) akw84 - $4,400
7) FoodSaver - $3,400
8) Gee Que - $2,400
9) icunrazawlmydoe - $1,550
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