Dinner Break
Jul 15, '07
Watkinson Wins Race To Overtake Chip Lead
Lee Watkinson was all-in with A
K
against Steve Garfinkle's 9
9
and after a flop of 8
8
7
things were not looking good. The J
on the turn improved neither player, and Watkinson was down to six theoretical outs for his tournament life. (In actuality, Hevad Khan later told Watkinson that he folded an ace.) Fortunately for Watkinson the K
fell on the river, giving him the pot or roughly $14,000,000 and the chip lead. Watkinson seemed ready to play huge stack poker, for he raised the next two pots preflop.
A Hand So Good It Knocked Yang Out of His Chair
Jon Kalmar raised to $600,000 and when action got around to Jerry Yang he quickly stood up from his chair and announced a raise. As he stood he got tangled in the chair, however, and knocked it backwards off of the small stage that the table was situated atop. Without even announcing how much of a raise he was making Yang had convinced Kalmar, who quickly folded.
The Prince Doubles His Stack
Scotty Nguyen called a $300,000 raise from Philip Hilm and together they saw a flop of 10
5
5
. Nguyen checked and Hilm bet $400,000. Nguyen called and the 9
fell on the turn. Nguyen quickly checked and Hilm announced that he was all-in. Nguyen was covered and thought for just a moment before calling. Hilm revealed K
Q
for over cards and an inside straight draw, but when Nguyen revealed his 9
9
for nines full the hand was as good as over. The J
on the river made Hilm's straight, but Nguyen's boat took down the pot and doubled him up to approximately $5,000,000. The crowd cheered and clapped, with one fan even quoting Nguyen's famous line that won him his last bracelet, "You call it's all over, baby." Nguyen smiled big as he scooped the pot.
First Elimination of the Final Two Tables
John Armbrust raised to $700,000 from the big blind. Lee Childs had limped from the button, but now reraised to $1,700,000. Armbrust quickly went all-in for approximately $5,000,000. Childs seemed unsure about what to do, and took several minutes before he eventually decided to call with the A
Q
. Armbrust revealed his dominant A
K
and the two went to the flop with Armbrust's tournament life on the line. The flop was a nightmare for Armbrust, bringing the J
7
2
. The pause before the turn must have been agonizing for Armbrust, but not nearly as painful as when the 10
hit the turn. With that he was drawing dead. Armbrust took 18th place and $381,302.
Dinner Break
The remaining 17 players are all on dinner break until 9 p.m. Make sure to check back for more updates when they retuun here at
Cardplayer.com.
Player Tags: Scotty Nguyen, Jon Kalmar, Jerry Yang, Hevad Khan
Jon Kalmar Eliminated 5th ($1,255,069)
Jul 17, '07
Jon Kalmar Eliminated in 5th place ($1,255,069)
Raymond Rahme, who qualified online at
www.pokerstars.com raises to $2,500,000 and Jon Kalmar moves all in for $10,490,000 more. Rahme thinks briefly as his green clad spectators stand, ready to burst at any second. Rahme makes the call and shows down J
J
, and Kalmar tables A
K
. Both camps explode in support of their respective players, with calls for an ace or king tangling with yells for a third jack. Kalmar stands, wiping his hands on his black shirt, emblazoned with a picture of
Family Guy character Stewie Griffin dressed as the lead character from
Clockwork Orange. The flop comes 10
9
6
, and Rahme maintains the lead. Kalmer gets no help when the 3
comes on the turn and he is down to the last card. The river is the 3
and Kalmer is eliminated in fifth place. Rahme's supporters burst out in song, and the 62-year-old busts out a little dance to celebrate. He now has $29,890,000 in chips.
Player Tags: Jon Kalmar, Raymond Rahme
Hour Three
Jul 17, '07
Emergency Brakes
After a crazy second hour of action, the first break had a calming effect on the field. Another pacing effect was the monolithic stack of Jerry Yang, which had his opponent’s picking and choosing their spots carefully.
Jon Kalmar Takes Down $4 Million Pot
Jon Kalmar raises to $1,000,000 and is called by Jerry Yang from the big blind. The board comes Q
10
3
10
5
and it is checked down to the river. Yang fires out a $1,500,000 bet and is called by Kalmar. Yang tries to muck his hand, but is forced to turn it over. He shows down nine high, and Kalmar takes it down with ace high.
The Champ Stops By
Phil Hellmuth stopped by to get some mandatory camera time. He wished the players luck, and came on-stage to check out the newly introduced $250,000 chips. He took some flak from Haved Khan, who said he couldn't spell Poker. Khan then said he couldn't either.
Leader Board
Seat No. 1: Raymond Rahme - $15,725,000
Seat No. 2: Alex Kravchenko - $2,820,000
Seat No. 3: Jerry Yang - $59,780,000
Seat No. 4: Tuan Lam - $20,525,000
Seat No. 5: Jon Kalmer - $18,690,000
Seat No. 6: Hevad “Rain” Khan - $9,945,000
Robert Williamson III Sighting
In a continuing trend of superstar poker players dropping by, Robert Williamson appeared and was introduced to the crowd. He received the usual showering of applause.
Alex Kravchenko Doubles Up
Alex Kravchenko moves all in from under the gun, and Hevad Khan moves all in over the top from the small blind. Kravchenko tables K
J
and is flipping against Khan's 3
3
. The board comes Q
J
9
A
4
, Kravchenko spikes a jack and doubles up to $5,860,000. Khan is knocked down to $6,715,000.
Player Tags: Alexander Kravchenko, Jon Kalmar, Jerry Yang, Hevad Khan
Roy Winston just eliminated Jon Kalmar after turning a straight against Kalmar's nut flush draw. The flush failed to hit the river, and Winston chipped up to 170,000 in chips. 
Jon Kalmar moves all in for 200,000 on the button and Michael Gracz makes the call in the big blind. 
Jonathan Kalmar is all in from the button with K