Binger Eliminated, Paul Evans Chipleader
Jun 03, '07
Level 18 began with 32 players, none over the $600,000 chip mark. Both those numbers became quickly irrelevant , as one player took a clear chip lead and the field fell to just 27. Paul Evans from Mt. Shasta, California currently holds the chip lead at $900,000 and one his early victims was pro Michael Binger. Binger took two beats in three hands that sent him to the rail.
The first beat came when Binger got all in preflop with A
A
against an opponent holding Q
Q
for a pot worth $230,000. The first four cards came J
5
10
9
, and Binger's opponent turned an open ended straight draw. The river was the K
, giving the queens a straight and the pot. Although Binger was injured he was not out and still held $130,000 in chips. Two hands later Pual Evans raised to $40,000 from middle position and Binger pushed all in for his last $118,000. Evans made the call with K
J
, and Binger tabled A
8
. The board came J
5
3
6
9
, Evans spiked a pair of jacks and took down the pot. Binger was sent to the rail with a $20,052 cash.
Shortly after Binger's elimination the field was down to 27 and the tables were redrawn. Paul Evans drew a seat next to Dapo Fadeyi from Denver, Colorado and they soon tangled in the biggest pot of the tournament. Evans raised to $40,000 from middle position and Fadeyi made the call. The flop came K
9
7
, Evans bet $40,000 and Fadeyi called. The turn was the 10
, Evans bet $100,000 and Fadeyi moved all in for $199,000 more. Evans tanked for less then a minute then said, "I have pot odds." He made the call with A
Q
and Fadeyi tabled 9
9
. The river was the 8
, giving Evans the nut flush and sending a devastated Fadeyi home. That put Evans around $900,000, far ahead of the rest of the field.
Alex Jacob is still in but is down to $375,000 chips.
Player Tags: Paul Evans, Michael Binger, Alex Jacob, Dapo Fadeyi
Ciaran O'Leary Wins Event #3 ($727,150)
Jun 04, '07
The players returned to the final table after a fifteen minute pause in the action and took their seats. Here are the chip counts when they started their face-off:
Paul Evans: $1,487,000
Ciaran O’Leary: $7,500,000
Ciaran O’Leary Wins Event #3 ($727,150)
On the second hand of their heads-up match Paul Evans limped and O’Leary checked his option. The flop was dealt K62 and O’Leary checked. Evans bet $500,000 and O’Leary moved all in for what seemed like the millionth time of the day. Evans quickly called and flipped over 63. O’Leary turned over K10 and his cheering section mobilized their vocal chords in approval. The turn and river cards were dealt K9 and O’Leary won the second bracelet of the 2007 WSOP. He took home the gold bracelet in the first $1,500 no-limit hold’em event and the $727,012 first-place prize. He walked off the stage and celebrated with his well-wishers, who had been a constant presence since O’Leary made his first all-in push of the day on hand 19. Evans finished in second place and he will take home $450,150 in prize money.
Player Tags: Paul Evans
Hour Four Log
Jun 04, '07
One Hand, One Down
Craig Crivello Eliminated in 5th Place ($128,907)
Periods of rest continued stir up the hornet’s nest at this final table, and Craig Crivello moved all in on the first hand after the break. Ciaran O’Leary made the call and Crivello flipped over A7. O’Leary then turned over A8, which enticed a collection of chants from his cheering section. The yells of “Yeah, baby” and “Monster call” mixed together, and in some strange way achieved a harmony. The board was dealt Q862K and Crivello was eliminated in fifth place. He will take home a consolation prize of $128,907.
Jeff Yoak Eliminated in 4th Place ($184,152)
Things seemed almost to quiet when the 51st hand was dealt. There had not been an all in push during the last five hands, and that was saying something for this final table. That was until Jeff Yoak opened the pot by moving all in from the small blind. O’Leary, who had picked up the nickname “Big C” from the tournament director, made the call after he had limped on the button. Yoak turned over KQ and “Big C” showed A6. The board was dealt A944 and Yoak got up from the table since he was drawing dead. The inconclusive river card was the 9. Yoak and O’Leary clasped hands in a show of respect and Yoak received $184,152 for his fourth place finish.
The tournament director then announced the chip counts for the final trio of players:
Alex Jacob: $2,600,000
Paul Evans: $2,625,000
Ciaran “Big C” O’Leary: $3,700,000
The Patented Push of “Big C”
Jacob bet $300,000 from the button and Evans raised to $1 million from the small blind. “Big C” then reraised all in. He may have to patent this move after the tournament. Jacob abandoned ship and the action sat squarely on the shoulders of Evans. The ESPN camera buggies surrounded the man, and the house lights were brought up around the final table. Under no pressure at all, Evans went into the tank for a while. O’Leary paced back and forth across the stage area. Evan folded and O’Leary stacked up the more than $1.5 million pot. He now held a large chip lead over his two competitors.
Alex Jacob Eliminated in 3rd Place ($282,367)
On the next hand O’Leary limped and Jacob checked his option. O’Leary checked in the dark and the flop was dealt A42. Jacob bet $150,000 and “Big C” raised to $600,000. The K was dealt on the turn and O’Leary went to his favorite move, the all-in push. Jacob went into the tank, while O’Leary once again paced the stage. This time he made ample use of every square inch available. He ended up over by the media table at one point. Jacob finally made the call and O’Leary flipped over pocket sevens. Jacob looked livid when he turned over 94. Jacob’s visual anger increased as the 6 was peeled off the deck on the river. O’Leary, who had gone into hiding during this process, appeared stage right. He walked over to congratulate Jacob on his third place finish. Jacob will take home $282,367 in prize money.
There was a break in the action after this elimination to reconfigure the final table for the heads-up match between O’Leary and Evan.
Player Tags: Paul Evans, Jeffrey Yoak, Craig Crivello, Alex Jacob
Hour Three Log
Jun 04, '07
Double Time
Paul Evan moved all in early after the hour began and Ciaran O’Leary made the call. Evan turned over QJ and O’Leary showed pocket kings. The board was dealt 85258 and O’Leary doubled up. This will become a trend for O’Leary. Two hands later Alex Jacob raised all in preflop after Jeff Yoak had limped from the small blind. Yoak called the all-in bet and flipped over AJ. Jacob turned over K10 and the board was dealt Q6592. Yoak doubled on the hand to over twice his $675,000 all-in bet. This would become a trend for Jacob as well.
The two aforementioned trends would converge in a perfect storm on the next hand. O’Leary bet $230,000 and Jacob raised all in. O’Leary called and Jacob flipped over pocket nines. The O’Leary section of the crowd broke into cheers when he turned over pocket queens. The board was dealt 107236 and a new chip leader was crowned. After these numerous double ups occurred, the tournament director announced the chip counts:
Seat one: Craig Crivello - $1,400,000
Seat two: Jeff Yoak - $1,500,000
Seat three: Alex Jacob - $2,300,000
Seat four: Andreas Krause - $515,000
Seat five: Paul Evan - $480,000
Seat six: Ciaran O’Leary - $2,500,000
The theme of doubling up refused to die off and Andreas Krause got a free roll when he moved all in with A-J against the A-J of Craig Crivello. Paul Evan then pushed all in for $365,000 and O’Leary made the call. O’Leary flipped over two red sixes and Evan showed A10. The board was dealt AK277 and Evan doubled up. This brought O’Leary’s stack down to just about even with Jacob for the chip lead.
A few hands later Crivello opened the pot for $250,000 and Evan reraised all in for $580,000. Crivello called and flipped over A10. Evan showed AJ and the board was dealt 3328A. Both players make aces up, but Evan doubled up on the strength of his jack kicker. Another hand, another double up, and it looks like this final table might be undecided by the time the main event starts in a few weeks. Six times, players have had their tournament life at risk during the hour, and all six times they have survived.
Double Up for Krause...Not so Much
Krause Eliminated in 6th Place ($94,122)
On the next hand, things took a turn. Krause pushed all in for $415,000 and Evan made the call. Evan turned over A9 and Krause reluctantly turned over K10. The board was dealt A658K and Krause was eliminated in sixth place. He will take home $94,122 for his efforts. After the exit of Krause, the players went on a fifteen minute break.
Player Tags: Paul Evans, Jeffrey Yoak, Craig Crivello, Alex Jacob, Andreas Krause
Hour Two Log
Jun 04, '07
The Aggressive, the Comatose, and the Young Chip Leader
During the early stages of hour two the most intriguing thing to transpire was a call to action by a player who had spent the first hour of play as a folding machine. Ciaran O’Leary made his first action at the final table when he moved all in and received no callers on hand 19. One player who remained a little more active was Craig Crivello, he picked up a lot of blinds and antes with preflop raises. Crivello butted heads with Alex Jacob early in the level. Jacob moved all in over the top of a $200,000 raise from Crivello and he folded after thinking for a moment.
$800,000 is a lot of Money and Break Time
Andreas Krause made some noise when he bet $300,000 and Jeff Yoak called him down. The flop was dealt 753 and Yoak moved all in with $800,000 already sitting in the middle of the table. Krause thought for a moment, but then mucked his hand. One hand after this big showdown the players were allotted a fifteen minute break.
To the Patient go the Spoils
After the break the blinds were kicked up to $40,000-$80,000 with a $10,000 ante. The players sauntered in and took their seats. Last to show was Jacob, who still held the chip lead. On the first hand after the break Paul Evans opened the pot for $275,000 and Ciaran O’Leary called. This put his tournament life at risk with pocket nines. Unfortunately, Evan held two cowboys in the hole and O’Leary half-heartedly tried to proposition the dealer. The board was dealt A859 and O’Leary jumped off the stage in celebration. He did his best impression of the Rock and Hulk Hogan simultaneously, in a pose that brought over-the-top images of professional wrestling to mind. His cheering section ate it up and they rose to their feet to join him. The river card was the 4 and the patience of O’Leary was rewarded. The set must have wakened a sleeping giant because O’Leary pushed again on the next hand. Jacob folded and O’Leary increased his chip stack to $740,000.
Cirvello Doubles Up
After the O’Leary show ended Craig Crivello moved all in and Yoak moved all in over the top of him. Crivello flipped over K9 and Yoak showed AQ. The board was dealt K8576 and gave Crivello a nine-high straight to double up.
The tournament director then announced the chip counts of the final six players:
Alex Jacob: $4,100,000
Craig Crivello: $1,300,000
Paul Evans: $1,200,000
Ciaran O’Leary: $800,000
Andreas Krause: $750,000
Jeff Yoaks: $700,000
Player Tags: Paul Evans, Jeffrey Yoak, Craig Crivello, Alex Jacob, Andreas Krause
