Steven Begleiter Eliminated from the WSOP in Sixth Place

One more card to sweat. One more bullet to dodge.

Steven Begleiter was on the cusp of scoring a major double-up to become a serious threat to win the World Series of Poker if his queens could hold over Darvin Moon’s A-Q.

But this hand resembled many others in this main event. When Moon has needed a card, he has gotten it. An ace came on the river, and Begleiter — who had seized the chip lead earlier in the day — was eliminated in sixth place.

“I’m a little numb, obviously. But … what else can I do? I got my money in good, and I was one card away from being right back in the thick of it,” said Begleiter, who provided one of the more interesting storylines of this November Nine with his unique Bear-Stearns background. “It just wasn’t meant to be. But that’s the game. Plenty of guys get rivered. In a way, going out like that is actually easier than making a horrendous play.”

Begleiter, a self-described amateur at poker, went to great lengths to improve his game over the four-month delay. He sought help from two-time WPT champion Jonathan Little and last year’s fourth-place finisher in the main event, Ylon Schwartz, and credits them with his development as a poker player.

“I’m not really going to have a lot of regrets,” said Begleiter. “I’m a wealthy man, I’ve got a great family, and I had a great experience here.”

While “Begs,” as he is affectionately called by his peers, said he would try to keep a smile on his face, a reporter asked in a post-elimination interview if he was going to hit the bars after he escaped from the Rio.

“I’m going to go somewhere and cry a little bit, [and then] go drink for a long time,” Begleiter responded. But then he seemed to think better of it, saying in a strained voice, “I really just want to see my kids.”

Begleiter will be awarded $1.59 million for his sixth-place finish.

Watch Begleiter on Card Player TV minutes after his elimination:

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