Daniel Steinberg Poker Tournament Updates

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. They will return at 8.45 p.m. local time.

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Viktor Blom — 450,000
2 Darren Woods — 310,000
3 Phil Ivey — 296,000
4 Thomas Bichon — 290,000
5 Dan Shak — 285,000
6 Barny Boatman — 255,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 240,000
8 Rob Akery — 225,000
9 Bojan Gledovic — 220,000
10 Nick Schulman — 218,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

Magnus Persson raised preflop UTG+1 and Viktor Blom reraised preflop. Persson made the call and the two saw a flop of 9 6 5. Both players checked and then the 2 fell on the turn. Persson checked, Blom bet 13,500, and Persson made the call. The river fell 5 and Persson checked again. Blom bet 49,000 and Persson made the call. Blom flipped over AA and Persson mucked. Blom held 480,000 after the hand as he continues to increase his chip lead. He ended the level with 450,000 in chips.

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

Nicolas Levi raised to 3,000 UTG +1 and Nick Schulman made the call from late position. Ivey made the call from the big blind as well. The flop fell A 4 3 and Ivey and Levi check. Schulman bet 6,500. Ivey mucked and Levi called. The 8 fell on the turn and Levi checked. Schulman bet 15,000. Levi called. The river fell 2. Levi checked and Schulman bet 25,000. Levi called and mucked when Schulman flipped over 4 4. Levi held 100,000 after the hand. During happier times at the start of the day he was one of the chip leaders. Schulman rose above 200,000 after the hand.

Shak and Awe

On a flop of J 9 5, Antonio Esfandiari had led out, only to be raised to 18,000 by Dan Shak. Esfandiari went into the tank, only to eventually announce all-in for around 140,000 in total. Shak called without hesitation, and the players revealed their hands.

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

With a dominant flush draw, gut shot straight draw, and the currently good king-high, Esfandiari was a strong favorite with all but a few thousand of his chips in the middle.

The turn came the 2, leaving Shak drawing only to the remaining non-diamond threes and sixes.

The 3 did roll off on the river, and Esfandiari exploded out of his seat in shocked disgust. As the dealer laboriously counted out the stacks, Esfandiari politely said “Nice hand.” Shak apologized about the bad beat, but unsurprisingly this did little to salve Esfandiari’s wounds.

Shak’s stack grew to around 280,000 after the hand.

Show The Bluff

Phil Laak bets 3,000 from mid-position and Andy Frankenberger calls from the cut-off. Dan Fleyshman calls also, from the big blind. The flop is dealt A J 2 and it is checked around. The turn comes the 7. Fleyshman checks, Laak bets 5,000, Frankenberger calls, and Fleyshman folds. The river is the Q, Laak bets 11,000 and Frankenberger thinks for some time. He then raises it to 26,000, putting the decision back to Laak. Laak goes into the tank – he has about 58,000 behind his original bet. Eventually Laak passes and instantly starts trying to get Frankenberger to show his cards, “Show the bluff and make me crazy. I’ll pay you, just say the number!” He takes out some sterling notes and places them on the table. “I’ll give you £40 to show me the bluff,” he says smiling. Frankenberger stays quiet as the others debate what he had. He now has 147,000 in chips.

Up and Down Day for Lacay

Coming in late into the action, Ludovic Lacay has moved all in for 22,000 on a J 8 4 5 8 board with about 15,000 already in the middle. The decision is on Daniel Steinberg and he takes his time. He finally calls and mucks when he sees Lacay’s A A for the nut flush. Steinberg has 120,000 remaining while Lacay reaches the 74,000 mark. He soon loses a good few chips however when he calls Eugene Katchalov’s all in with pocket nines. Katchalov has A Q and the board falls Q 5 8 8 J. “It’s been like this all day!” says Lacay.

Present for Praz

Allen Cunningham bets 3,500 from UTG and Roland de Wolfe calls from the small blind. Praz Bansi calls from the big blind and the flop comes 9 6 5. De Wolfe and Bansi check and Cunningham bets 6,000. De Wolfe folds but Bansi pops it to 14,800. “What do you have behind?” asks Cunningham. It’s about 33,000. After a few minutes Cunningham passes and Bansi mucks. The British pro is nearing the 60,000 mark just before dinner time.

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

Guy Gorelik bets 3,000 from late position and Roland de Wolfe calls from the hijack. Martin Davis makes it 9,500 and Gorelik steps aside. Players begin to make their way out for the dinner break as de Wolfe and David go head to head. De Wolfe asks Davis, “A-K?” “Yep, I have,” answers Davis, and then sadds, “Maybe.” De Wolfe calls and the flop is dealt K Q 6. Davis bets 9,000 and smiles. De Wolfe sighs and debates whether he wants to come back after dinner with 10 big blinds. “I know I’m behind,” he says. As the room eventually clears, de Wolfe moves all in for 17,300. Davis calls and shows A K. De Wolfe reveals Q J. The turn is the A and the river is the 10 giving de Wolfe a straight. He smiles mischievously as Davis simply says, “Shit!”

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

The last two levels of the tournament have truly created a new hierarchy within the chip counts. Viktor Blom, the alleged “Isildur1” has been crushing it today and he now holds more than 400,000 to lead the way. We have two players at the 300,000 level and they are Phil Ivey and Darren Woods. The 200,000 club can count Barny Boatman, Nick Schulman, Thomas Bichon and Andre Pantling among its members.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Laak,   Dan Shak,   Eugene Katchalov,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nick Schulman,   Martin Davis,   Nicolas Levi,   Praz Bansi,   Ludovic Lacay,   Andy Frankenberger,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 17 Update: Day 3 Ends -- 22 Return Tomorrow

Sep 26, '10

NOTE: Play has ended for the night and the final 22 will return tomorrow at noon local time to play down to the final table of nine players. Stay tuned for a recap of the day’s events, and check back tomorrow for more live coverage of the 2010 WSOP Europe main event.

Blinds: 3,000-6,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 22 of 346

Official Chip Counts:

Ronald Lee	947,000
David Peters	829,000
Andrew Pantling	821,000
Daniel Steinberg	768,000
Viktor Blom	705,000
Phil Ivey	657,000
Hoyt Corkins	566,000
Nicolas Levi	515,000
Bojan Gledovic	500,000
Arnaud Mattern	468,000
James Bord	445,000
Clint Coffee	438,000
Fabrizio Baldassari	382,000
Barny Boatman	379,000
Jean Paul Seatelli	356,000
Dan Fleyshman	336,000
Thomas Bichon	308,000
Anthony Newman	280,000
Brian Powell	264,000
Jani Sointula	181,000
Greg Mueller	151,000
Roland de Wolfe	113,000

Average Chip Count: 471,818

Notable Cashes:

23	Barry Greenstein	26,400
24	Yevgeniy Timoshenko	26,400
25	Hoi Cheung	26,400
26	Alex Keating	26,400
27	John Eames	26,400
28	Michael Benvenuti	21,106

Big Hands:

Michael Benvenuti Eliminated in 28th Place (₤21,106)

Just back from dinner break and Michael Benvenuti moves all in with two black sevens. Daniel Steinberg makes the call with A Q and the flop comes down 10 7 2. Benevenuti hits his set but is in danger of Steinberg hitting his flush on fourth and fifth street. The K turn doesn’t change anything but the 4 floats in on the river and puts Benvenuti on the other side of the rail. With his elimination there is a redraw for this year’s final three tables.

Blom Takes Chunk Out of Greenstein

Coming in late into the action, there was a healthy pot on the line, and it was between Barry Greenstein and Viktor Blom. A board of 7 4 3 10 was showing and Greenstein had checked and was patiently waiting for Blom to make his move. Blom then slid out a couple stacks of chips, totaling just under 70,000 and it didn’t take long for Greenstein to announce he was all in. Blom’s tournament life was on the line as Greenstein had him covered, but after he had put his roughly 190,000 in chips in the middle, he looked a little more relieved to see Greenstein had pocket fives. Blom flipped over pocket aces which stayed ahead on the 7 river. Greenstein’s stack took quite a blow, pushing him down to 162,000. Blom now has more than 555,000 in chips.

Alex Keating Eliminated in 26th Place (£26,400)

It was pocket eights that stopped Alex Keating’s run in the main event. All in preflop his 7 6 could not better the pocket pair when the board ran out.

Yevgeniy Timoshenko Eliminated in 24th Place (£26,400)

David Peters bet 14,000 from mid-late position and Yevgeniy Timoshenko shoved his 137,000 stack in from the button. It was folded back to Peters who called and showed pocket kings. A shocked Timoshenko flipped over K 10 and although a 10 dropped on the flop, the turn and river could not muster anything to improve his hand and Peters is now the new owner of his stack. He moves to over 730,000 after this hand.

Barry Greenstein Eliminated in 23rd Place (£26,400)

Daniel Steinberg raised to 15,000 under the gun and Barry Greenstein reraised to 45,000. Steinberg went into the tank and eventually reraised enough chips to put Greenstein all in. Greenstein made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Greenstein: A A
Steinberg: 101 10

Board: 10 4 3 7 3

Steinberg made a full house and he won the hand to eliminate Greenstein in 23rd place (£26,400).

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Alex Keating,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 21 Update: One More Elimination Before the Day Ends

Sep 27, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break and they will return at 9:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 8,000-16,000 with a 2,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Ronald Lee — 1,864,000
2. Dan Fleyshman — 1,667,000
3. James Bord — 1,540,000
4. Roland de Wolfe — 1,138,000
5. Daniel Steinberg – 1,092,000
6. Fabrizio Baldassari — 1,076,000
7. Nicolas Levi — 693,000
8. David Peters — 596,000
9. Brian Powell — 440,000
10. Marc Inizan — 274,000

Average Chip Count: 1,038,000

Notable Cashes:

12	Arnaud Mattern	£54,114
11	Andrew Pantling	£54,114

Big Hands:

Arnaud Mattern Eliminated in 12th Place (£54,114)

Arnaud Mattern moved all in under the gun for 124,000 and Brian Powell reraised all in over the top of him to isolate. The gambit worked and the two players flipped over their cards:

Mattern: K 10
Powell: K J

Board: 8 7 5 5 4

Powell grew his stack to 375,000 and Mattern was eliminated in 12th place (£54,114).

Andrew Pantling Eliminated in 11th Place (£54,114)

Nicolas Levi raised to 39,000 and Andrew Pantling reraised to 103,000. Daniel Steinberg reraised all in from the small blind and Levi mucked. Pantling made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Pantling: Q Q
Steinberg: 6 6

Board: K 8 6 K 7

Pantling was eliminated in 11th place and the took home £54,114 in prize money. Steinberg held over 1 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Brian Powell,   Arnaud Mattern,   Andrew Pantling,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 26 Update -- Steinberg, Levi, and de Wolfe Out

Sep 28, '10

NOTE: The players are now on dinner break and they will return at 9:40 p.m. local time (1:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 6,830,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,480,000
3: James Bord – 1,120,000

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

6	Daniel Steinberg	£156,530
5	Nicolas Levi	£208,119
4	Roland de Wolfe	£278,945

Big Hands:

Daniel Steinberg Eliminated in Sixth Place (£156,530)

Ronald Lee raised to 110,000 and Daniel Steinberg reraised to 285,000 total from the big blind. Chip leader Lee then moved all in and Steinberg went into the tank. He had about 900,000 behind and after contemplating his decision intensely, he decided to call. The two revealed their cards:

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

Pocket fours were enough to scoop the whole lot and Steinberg hit the rail £156,530 richer.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in Fifth Place (£208,119)

Nicolas Levi bet 135,000 from the cut-off and Lee raised enough from the big blind to put the Frenchman all in. Just moments before this hand Levi had made the all-in move but this time he was calling all in. After some thought, Levi called and showed 9 9. Lee flipped over K Q.

The board ran out 8 5 4 K 10 and with that Lee had destroyed another finalist.

Roland de Wolfe Eliminated in Fourth Place (£278,945)

Roland De Wolfe moved all in from the small blind with his short stack and Fabrizio Baldassari called.

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

The board went in Baldasarri’s favour: A 8 3 2 9 and the popular Brit hits the rail just before the dinner break.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante.

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,136,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,277,000
3: Nicolas Levi – 1,560,000
4: Roland de Wolfe – 1,130,000
5: James Bord – 962,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 961,000
7: Dan Fleyshman – 400,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

Ronald Lee has been putting the pressure on in the last level. In one explosive hand, Lee raised from UTG and Nicolas Levi moved all in for 399,000 on top. It was folded back to Lee who thought for a moment and then made the call flipping over 5 5. Levy revealed K Q and the crowd around the rail got excited as the flop came down 6 4 3. The turn was the 4 keeping Lee ahead, but the K on the river sent the pot the Frenchman’s way.

A little after, Levi bet 75,000, Daniel Steinberg called from the button, and James Bord made the call from the small blind. The flop came down A J 4 and it was checked around. They also checked the Q turn but when the 7 was dealt on the river, Levi bet 110,000. Steinberg made the call and Bord folded. Levi showed K Q to add some more to his increasing stack

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

Dan Fleyshman bet 64,000 and big blind Danny Steinberg raised it up to 205,000. Fleyshman then quickly popped it up to 569,000 and Steinberg insta-shoved for 1,117,000. Fleyshman wasn’t too happy about this but elected to make the call. He turned over A Q while Steinberg flipped over K K. The board came out 10 10 10 8 6 and Steinberg doubled up.

Just before break time, Levi bet 73,000 and Fleyshman called from the big blind. The flop came down A J 3 and Fleyshman checked. Levi bet a little more this time – 75,000, and Fleyshman made the call. The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The river was the 2 and Fleyshman bet 375,000. Levi went into the tank and reached for the chips. He looked as if he was calling, and the other players started to complain that he was feigning a call, so Jack Effel stepped in and determined that it was indeed a call. To Fleyshman’s disappointment, Levi then showed A-10 and took down the pot.

The young entrepreneur is now the shortest stack with 400,000.

The 1,000 chips are being removed during this break as we strive forward to find our 2010 champion.

Player Tags: Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. They will return at 8.45 p.m. local time.

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Viktor Blom — 450,000
2 Darren Woods — 310,000
3 Phil Ivey — 296,000
4 Thomas Bichon — 290,000
5 Dan Shak — 285,000
6 Barny Boatman — 255,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 240,000
8 Rob Akery — 225,000
9 Bojan Gledovic — 220,000
10 Nick Schulman — 218,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

Magnus Persson raised preflop UTG+1 and Viktor Blom reraised preflop. Persson made the call and the two saw a flop of 9 6 5. Both players checked and then the 2 fell on the turn. Persson checked, Blom bet 13,500, and Persson made the call. The river fell 5 and Persson checked again. Blom bet 49,000 and Persson made the call. Blom flipped over AA and Persson mucked. Blom held 480,000 after the hand as he continues to increase his chip lead. He ended the level with 450,000 in chips.

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

Nicolas Levi raised to 3,000 UTG +1 and Nick Schulman made the call from late position. Ivey made the call from the big blind as well. The flop fell A 4 3 and Ivey and Levi check. Schulman bet 6,500. Ivey mucked and Levi called. The 8 fell on the turn and Levi checked. Schulman bet 15,000. Levi called. The river fell 2. Levi checked and Schulman bet 25,000. Levi called and mucked when Schulman flipped over 4 4. Levi held 100,000 after the hand. During happier times at the start of the day he was one of the chip leaders. Schulman rose above 200,000 after the hand.

Shak and Awe

On a flop of J 9 5, Antonio Esfandiari had led out, only to be raised to 18,000 by Dan Shak. Esfandiari went into the tank, only to eventually announce all-in for around 140,000 in total. Shak called without hesitation, and the players revealed their hands.

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

With a dominant flush draw, gut shot straight draw, and the currently good king-high, Esfandiari was a strong favorite with all but a few thousand of his chips in the middle.

The turn came the 2, leaving Shak drawing only to the remaining non-diamond threes and sixes.

The 3 did roll off on the river, and Esfandiari exploded out of his seat in shocked disgust. As the dealer laboriously counted out the stacks, Esfandiari politely said “Nice hand.” Shak apologized about the bad beat, but unsurprisingly this did little to salve Esfandiari’s wounds.

Shak’s stack grew to around 280,000 after the hand.

Show The Bluff

Phil Laak bets 3,000 from mid-position and Andy Frankenberger calls from the cut-off. Dan Fleyshman calls also, from the big blind. The flop is dealt A J 2 and it is checked around. The turn comes the 7. Fleyshman checks, Laak bets 5,000, Frankenberger calls, and Fleyshman folds. The river is the Q, Laak bets 11,000 and Frankenberger thinks for some time. He then raises it to 26,000, putting the decision back to Laak. Laak goes into the tank – he has about 58,000 behind his original bet. Eventually Laak passes and instantly starts trying to get Frankenberger to show his cards, “Show the bluff and make me crazy. I’ll pay you, just say the number!” He takes out some sterling notes and places them on the table. “I’ll give you £40 to show me the bluff,” he says smiling. Frankenberger stays quiet as the others debate what he had. He now has 147,000 in chips.

Up and Down Day for Lacay

Coming in late into the action, Ludovic Lacay has moved all in for 22,000 on a J 8 4 5 8 board with about 15,000 already in the middle. The decision is on Daniel Steinberg and he takes his time. He finally calls and mucks when he sees Lacay’s A A for the nut flush. Steinberg has 120,000 remaining while Lacay reaches the 74,000 mark. He soon loses a good few chips however when he calls Eugene Katchalov’s all in with pocket nines. Katchalov has A Q and the board falls Q 5 8 8 J. “It’s been like this all day!” says Lacay.

Present for Praz

Allen Cunningham bets 3,500 from UTG and Roland de Wolfe calls from the small blind. Praz Bansi calls from the big blind and the flop comes 9 6 5. De Wolfe and Bansi check and Cunningham bets 6,000. De Wolfe folds but Bansi pops it to 14,800. “What do you have behind?” asks Cunningham. It’s about 33,000. After a few minutes Cunningham passes and Bansi mucks. The British pro is nearing the 60,000 mark just before dinner time.

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

Guy Gorelik bets 3,000 from late position and Roland de Wolfe calls from the hijack. Martin Davis makes it 9,500 and Gorelik steps aside. Players begin to make their way out for the dinner break as de Wolfe and David go head to head. De Wolfe asks Davis, “A-K?” “Yep, I have,” answers Davis, and then sadds, “Maybe.” De Wolfe calls and the flop is dealt K Q 6. Davis bets 9,000 and smiles. De Wolfe sighs and debates whether he wants to come back after dinner with 10 big blinds. “I know I’m behind,” he says. As the room eventually clears, de Wolfe moves all in for 17,300. Davis calls and shows A K. De Wolfe reveals Q J. The turn is the A and the river is the 10 giving de Wolfe a straight. He smiles mischievously as Davis simply says, “Shit!”

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

The last two levels of the tournament have truly created a new hierarchy within the chip counts. Viktor Blom, the alleged “Isildur1” has been crushing it today and he now holds more than 400,000 to lead the way. We have two players at the 300,000 level and they are Phil Ivey and Darren Woods. The 200,000 club can count Barny Boatman, Nick Schulman, Thomas Bichon and Andre Pantling among its members.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Laak,   Dan Shak,   Eugene Katchalov,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nick Schulman,   Martin Davis,   Nicolas Levi,   Praz Bansi,   Ludovic Lacay,   Andy Frankenberger,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 17 Update: Day 3 Ends -- 22 Return Tomorrow

Sep 26, '10

NOTE: Play has ended for the night and the final 22 will return tomorrow at noon local time to play down to the final table of nine players. Stay tuned for a recap of the day’s events, and check back tomorrow for more live coverage of the 2010 WSOP Europe main event.

Blinds: 3,000-6,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 22 of 346

Official Chip Counts:

Ronald Lee	947,000
David Peters	829,000
Andrew Pantling	821,000
Daniel Steinberg	768,000
Viktor Blom	705,000
Phil Ivey	657,000
Hoyt Corkins	566,000
Nicolas Levi	515,000
Bojan Gledovic	500,000
Arnaud Mattern	468,000
James Bord	445,000
Clint Coffee	438,000
Fabrizio Baldassari	382,000
Barny Boatman	379,000
Jean Paul Seatelli	356,000
Dan Fleyshman	336,000
Thomas Bichon	308,000
Anthony Newman	280,000
Brian Powell	264,000
Jani Sointula	181,000
Greg Mueller	151,000
Roland de Wolfe	113,000

Average Chip Count: 471,818

Notable Cashes:

23	Barry Greenstein	26,400
24	Yevgeniy Timoshenko	26,400
25	Hoi Cheung	26,400
26	Alex Keating	26,400
27	John Eames	26,400
28	Michael Benvenuti	21,106

Big Hands:

Michael Benvenuti Eliminated in 28th Place (₤21,106)

Just back from dinner break and Michael Benvenuti moves all in with two black sevens. Daniel Steinberg makes the call with A Q and the flop comes down 10 7 2. Benevenuti hits his set but is in danger of Steinberg hitting his flush on fourth and fifth street. The K turn doesn’t change anything but the 4 floats in on the river and puts Benvenuti on the other side of the rail. With his elimination there is a redraw for this year’s final three tables.

Blom Takes Chunk Out of Greenstein

Coming in late into the action, there was a healthy pot on the line, and it was between Barry Greenstein and Viktor Blom. A board of 7 4 3 10 was showing and Greenstein had checked and was patiently waiting for Blom to make his move. Blom then slid out a couple stacks of chips, totaling just under 70,000 and it didn’t take long for Greenstein to announce he was all in. Blom’s tournament life was on the line as Greenstein had him covered, but after he had put his roughly 190,000 in chips in the middle, he looked a little more relieved to see Greenstein had pocket fives. Blom flipped over pocket aces which stayed ahead on the 7 river. Greenstein’s stack took quite a blow, pushing him down to 162,000. Blom now has more than 555,000 in chips.

Alex Keating Eliminated in 26th Place (£26,400)

It was pocket eights that stopped Alex Keating’s run in the main event. All in preflop his 7 6 could not better the pocket pair when the board ran out.

Yevgeniy Timoshenko Eliminated in 24th Place (£26,400)

David Peters bet 14,000 from mid-late position and Yevgeniy Timoshenko shoved his 137,000 stack in from the button. It was folded back to Peters who called and showed pocket kings. A shocked Timoshenko flipped over K 10 and although a 10 dropped on the flop, the turn and river could not muster anything to improve his hand and Peters is now the new owner of his stack. He moves to over 730,000 after this hand.

Barry Greenstein Eliminated in 23rd Place (£26,400)

Daniel Steinberg raised to 15,000 under the gun and Barry Greenstein reraised to 45,000. Steinberg went into the tank and eventually reraised enough chips to put Greenstein all in. Greenstein made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Greenstein: A A
Steinberg: 101 10

Board: 10 4 3 7 3

Steinberg made a full house and he won the hand to eliminate Greenstein in 23rd place (£26,400).

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Alex Keating,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 21 Update: One More Elimination Before the Day Ends

Sep 27, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break and they will return at 9:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 8,000-16,000 with a 2,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Ronald Lee — 1,864,000
2. Dan Fleyshman — 1,667,000
3. James Bord — 1,540,000
4. Roland de Wolfe — 1,138,000
5. Daniel Steinberg – 1,092,000
6. Fabrizio Baldassari — 1,076,000
7. Nicolas Levi — 693,000
8. David Peters — 596,000
9. Brian Powell — 440,000
10. Marc Inizan — 274,000

Average Chip Count: 1,038,000

Notable Cashes:

12	Arnaud Mattern	£54,114
11	Andrew Pantling	£54,114

Big Hands:

Arnaud Mattern Eliminated in 12th Place (£54,114)

Arnaud Mattern moved all in under the gun for 124,000 and Brian Powell reraised all in over the top of him to isolate. The gambit worked and the two players flipped over their cards:

Mattern: K 10
Powell: K J

Board: 8 7 5 5 4

Powell grew his stack to 375,000 and Mattern was eliminated in 12th place (£54,114).

Andrew Pantling Eliminated in 11th Place (£54,114)

Nicolas Levi raised to 39,000 and Andrew Pantling reraised to 103,000. Daniel Steinberg reraised all in from the small blind and Levi mucked. Pantling made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Pantling: Q Q
Steinberg: 6 6

Board: K 8 6 K 7

Pantling was eliminated in 11th place and the took home £54,114 in prize money. Steinberg held over 1 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Brian Powell,   Arnaud Mattern,   Andrew Pantling,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 26 Update -- Steinberg, Levi, and de Wolfe Out

Sep 28, '10

NOTE: The players are now on dinner break and they will return at 9:40 p.m. local time (1:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 6,830,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,480,000
3: James Bord – 1,120,000

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

6	Daniel Steinberg	£156,530
5	Nicolas Levi	£208,119
4	Roland de Wolfe	£278,945

Big Hands:

Daniel Steinberg Eliminated in Sixth Place (£156,530)

Ronald Lee raised to 110,000 and Daniel Steinberg reraised to 285,000 total from the big blind. Chip leader Lee then moved all in and Steinberg went into the tank. He had about 900,000 behind and after contemplating his decision intensely, he decided to call. The two revealed their cards:

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

Pocket fours were enough to scoop the whole lot and Steinberg hit the rail £156,530 richer.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in Fifth Place (£208,119)

Nicolas Levi bet 135,000 from the cut-off and Lee raised enough from the big blind to put the Frenchman all in. Just moments before this hand Levi had made the all-in move but this time he was calling all in. After some thought, Levi called and showed 9 9. Lee flipped over K Q.

The board ran out 8 5 4 K 10 and with that Lee had destroyed another finalist.

Roland de Wolfe Eliminated in Fourth Place (£278,945)

Roland De Wolfe moved all in from the small blind with his short stack and Fabrizio Baldassari called.

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

The board went in Baldasarri’s favour: A 8 3 2 9 and the popular Brit hits the rail just before the dinner break.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante.

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,136,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,277,000
3: Nicolas Levi – 1,560,000
4: Roland de Wolfe – 1,130,000
5: James Bord – 962,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 961,000
7: Dan Fleyshman – 400,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

Ronald Lee has been putting the pressure on in the last level. In one explosive hand, Lee raised from UTG and Nicolas Levi moved all in for 399,000 on top. It was folded back to Lee who thought for a moment and then made the call flipping over 5 5. Levy revealed K Q and the crowd around the rail got excited as the flop came down 6 4 3. The turn was the 4 keeping Lee ahead, but the K on the river sent the pot the Frenchman’s way.

A little after, Levi bet 75,000, Daniel Steinberg called from the button, and James Bord made the call from the small blind. The flop came down A J 4 and it was checked around. They also checked the Q turn but when the 7 was dealt on the river, Levi bet 110,000. Steinberg made the call and Bord folded. Levi showed K Q to add some more to his increasing stack

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

Dan Fleyshman bet 64,000 and big blind Danny Steinberg raised it up to 205,000. Fleyshman then quickly popped it up to 569,000 and Steinberg insta-shoved for 1,117,000. Fleyshman wasn’t too happy about this but elected to make the call. He turned over A Q while Steinberg flipped over K K. The board came out 10 10 10 8 6 and Steinberg doubled up.

Just before break time, Levi bet 73,000 and Fleyshman called from the big blind. The flop came down A J 3 and Fleyshman checked. Levi bet a little more this time – 75,000, and Fleyshman made the call. The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The river was the 2 and Fleyshman bet 375,000. Levi went into the tank and reached for the chips. He looked as if he was calling, and the other players started to complain that he was feigning a call, so Jack Effel stepped in and determined that it was indeed a call. To Fleyshman’s disappointment, Levi then showed A-10 and took down the pot.

The young entrepreneur is now the shortest stack with 400,000.

The 1,000 chips are being removed during this break as we strive forward to find our 2010 champion.

Player Tags: Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. They will return at 8.45 p.m. local time.

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Viktor Blom — 450,000
2 Darren Woods — 310,000
3 Phil Ivey — 296,000
4 Thomas Bichon — 290,000
5 Dan Shak — 285,000
6 Barny Boatman — 255,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 240,000
8 Rob Akery — 225,000
9 Bojan Gledovic — 220,000
10 Nick Schulman — 218,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

Magnus Persson raised preflop UTG+1 and Viktor Blom reraised preflop. Persson made the call and the two saw a flop of 9 6 5. Both players checked and then the 2 fell on the turn. Persson checked, Blom bet 13,500, and Persson made the call. The river fell 5 and Persson checked again. Blom bet 49,000 and Persson made the call. Blom flipped over AA and Persson mucked. Blom held 480,000 after the hand as he continues to increase his chip lead. He ended the level with 450,000 in chips.

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

Nicolas Levi raised to 3,000 UTG +1 and Nick Schulman made the call from late position. Ivey made the call from the big blind as well. The flop fell A 4 3 and Ivey and Levi check. Schulman bet 6,500. Ivey mucked and Levi called. The 8 fell on the turn and Levi checked. Schulman bet 15,000. Levi called. The river fell 2. Levi checked and Schulman bet 25,000. Levi called and mucked when Schulman flipped over 4 4. Levi held 100,000 after the hand. During happier times at the start of the day he was one of the chip leaders. Schulman rose above 200,000 after the hand.

Shak and Awe

On a flop of J 9 5, Antonio Esfandiari had led out, only to be raised to 18,000 by Dan Shak. Esfandiari went into the tank, only to eventually announce all-in for around 140,000 in total. Shak called without hesitation, and the players revealed their hands.

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

With a dominant flush draw, gut shot straight draw, and the currently good king-high, Esfandiari was a strong favorite with all but a few thousand of his chips in the middle.

The turn came the 2, leaving Shak drawing only to the remaining non-diamond threes and sixes.

The 3 did roll off on the river, and Esfandiari exploded out of his seat in shocked disgust. As the dealer laboriously counted out the stacks, Esfandiari politely said “Nice hand.” Shak apologized about the bad beat, but unsurprisingly this did little to salve Esfandiari’s wounds.

Shak’s stack grew to around 280,000 after the hand.

Show The Bluff

Phil Laak bets 3,000 from mid-position and Andy Frankenberger calls from the cut-off. Dan Fleyshman calls also, from the big blind. The flop is dealt A J 2 and it is checked around. The turn comes the 7. Fleyshman checks, Laak bets 5,000, Frankenberger calls, and Fleyshman folds. The river is the Q, Laak bets 11,000 and Frankenberger thinks for some time. He then raises it to 26,000, putting the decision back to Laak. Laak goes into the tank – he has about 58,000 behind his original bet. Eventually Laak passes and instantly starts trying to get Frankenberger to show his cards, “Show the bluff and make me crazy. I’ll pay you, just say the number!” He takes out some sterling notes and places them on the table. “I’ll give you £40 to show me the bluff,” he says smiling. Frankenberger stays quiet as the others debate what he had. He now has 147,000 in chips.

Up and Down Day for Lacay

Coming in late into the action, Ludovic Lacay has moved all in for 22,000 on a J 8 4 5 8 board with about 15,000 already in the middle. The decision is on Daniel Steinberg and he takes his time. He finally calls and mucks when he sees Lacay’s A A for the nut flush. Steinberg has 120,000 remaining while Lacay reaches the 74,000 mark. He soon loses a good few chips however when he calls Eugene Katchalov’s all in with pocket nines. Katchalov has A Q and the board falls Q 5 8 8 J. “It’s been like this all day!” says Lacay.

Present for Praz

Allen Cunningham bets 3,500 from UTG and Roland de Wolfe calls from the small blind. Praz Bansi calls from the big blind and the flop comes 9 6 5. De Wolfe and Bansi check and Cunningham bets 6,000. De Wolfe folds but Bansi pops it to 14,800. “What do you have behind?” asks Cunningham. It’s about 33,000. After a few minutes Cunningham passes and Bansi mucks. The British pro is nearing the 60,000 mark just before dinner time.

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

Guy Gorelik bets 3,000 from late position and Roland de Wolfe calls from the hijack. Martin Davis makes it 9,500 and Gorelik steps aside. Players begin to make their way out for the dinner break as de Wolfe and David go head to head. De Wolfe asks Davis, “A-K?” “Yep, I have,” answers Davis, and then sadds, “Maybe.” De Wolfe calls and the flop is dealt K Q 6. Davis bets 9,000 and smiles. De Wolfe sighs and debates whether he wants to come back after dinner with 10 big blinds. “I know I’m behind,” he says. As the room eventually clears, de Wolfe moves all in for 17,300. Davis calls and shows A K. De Wolfe reveals Q J. The turn is the A and the river is the 10 giving de Wolfe a straight. He smiles mischievously as Davis simply says, “Shit!”

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

The last two levels of the tournament have truly created a new hierarchy within the chip counts. Viktor Blom, the alleged “Isildur1” has been crushing it today and he now holds more than 400,000 to lead the way. We have two players at the 300,000 level and they are Phil Ivey and Darren Woods. The 200,000 club can count Barny Boatman, Nick Schulman, Thomas Bichon and Andre Pantling among its members.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Laak,   Dan Shak,   Eugene Katchalov,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nick Schulman,   Martin Davis,   Nicolas Levi,   Praz Bansi,   Ludovic Lacay,   Andy Frankenberger,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 17 Update: Day 3 Ends -- 22 Return Tomorrow

Sep 26, '10

NOTE: Play has ended for the night and the final 22 will return tomorrow at noon local time to play down to the final table of nine players. Stay tuned for a recap of the day’s events, and check back tomorrow for more live coverage of the 2010 WSOP Europe main event.

Blinds: 3,000-6,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 22 of 346

Official Chip Counts:

Ronald Lee	947,000
David Peters	829,000
Andrew Pantling	821,000
Daniel Steinberg	768,000
Viktor Blom	705,000
Phil Ivey	657,000
Hoyt Corkins	566,000
Nicolas Levi	515,000
Bojan Gledovic	500,000
Arnaud Mattern	468,000
James Bord	445,000
Clint Coffee	438,000
Fabrizio Baldassari	382,000
Barny Boatman	379,000
Jean Paul Seatelli	356,000
Dan Fleyshman	336,000
Thomas Bichon	308,000
Anthony Newman	280,000
Brian Powell	264,000
Jani Sointula	181,000
Greg Mueller	151,000
Roland de Wolfe	113,000

Average Chip Count: 471,818

Notable Cashes:

23	Barry Greenstein	26,400
24	Yevgeniy Timoshenko	26,400
25	Hoi Cheung	26,400
26	Alex Keating	26,400
27	John Eames	26,400
28	Michael Benvenuti	21,106

Big Hands:

Michael Benvenuti Eliminated in 28th Place (₤21,106)

Just back from dinner break and Michael Benvenuti moves all in with two black sevens. Daniel Steinberg makes the call with A Q and the flop comes down 10 7 2. Benevenuti hits his set but is in danger of Steinberg hitting his flush on fourth and fifth street. The K turn doesn’t change anything but the 4 floats in on the river and puts Benvenuti on the other side of the rail. With his elimination there is a redraw for this year’s final three tables.

Blom Takes Chunk Out of Greenstein

Coming in late into the action, there was a healthy pot on the line, and it was between Barry Greenstein and Viktor Blom. A board of 7 4 3 10 was showing and Greenstein had checked and was patiently waiting for Blom to make his move. Blom then slid out a couple stacks of chips, totaling just under 70,000 and it didn’t take long for Greenstein to announce he was all in. Blom’s tournament life was on the line as Greenstein had him covered, but after he had put his roughly 190,000 in chips in the middle, he looked a little more relieved to see Greenstein had pocket fives. Blom flipped over pocket aces which stayed ahead on the 7 river. Greenstein’s stack took quite a blow, pushing him down to 162,000. Blom now has more than 555,000 in chips.

Alex Keating Eliminated in 26th Place (£26,400)

It was pocket eights that stopped Alex Keating’s run in the main event. All in preflop his 7 6 could not better the pocket pair when the board ran out.

Yevgeniy Timoshenko Eliminated in 24th Place (£26,400)

David Peters bet 14,000 from mid-late position and Yevgeniy Timoshenko shoved his 137,000 stack in from the button. It was folded back to Peters who called and showed pocket kings. A shocked Timoshenko flipped over K 10 and although a 10 dropped on the flop, the turn and river could not muster anything to improve his hand and Peters is now the new owner of his stack. He moves to over 730,000 after this hand.

Barry Greenstein Eliminated in 23rd Place (£26,400)

Daniel Steinberg raised to 15,000 under the gun and Barry Greenstein reraised to 45,000. Steinberg went into the tank and eventually reraised enough chips to put Greenstein all in. Greenstein made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Greenstein: A A
Steinberg: 101 10

Board: 10 4 3 7 3

Steinberg made a full house and he won the hand to eliminate Greenstein in 23rd place (£26,400).

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Alex Keating,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 21 Update: One More Elimination Before the Day Ends

Sep 27, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break and they will return at 9:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 8,000-16,000 with a 2,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Ronald Lee — 1,864,000
2. Dan Fleyshman — 1,667,000
3. James Bord — 1,540,000
4. Roland de Wolfe — 1,138,000
5. Daniel Steinberg – 1,092,000
6. Fabrizio Baldassari — 1,076,000
7. Nicolas Levi — 693,000
8. David Peters — 596,000
9. Brian Powell — 440,000
10. Marc Inizan — 274,000

Average Chip Count: 1,038,000

Notable Cashes:

12	Arnaud Mattern	£54,114
11	Andrew Pantling	£54,114

Big Hands:

Arnaud Mattern Eliminated in 12th Place (£54,114)

Arnaud Mattern moved all in under the gun for 124,000 and Brian Powell reraised all in over the top of him to isolate. The gambit worked and the two players flipped over their cards:

Mattern: K 10
Powell: K J

Board: 8 7 5 5 4

Powell grew his stack to 375,000 and Mattern was eliminated in 12th place (£54,114).

Andrew Pantling Eliminated in 11th Place (£54,114)

Nicolas Levi raised to 39,000 and Andrew Pantling reraised to 103,000. Daniel Steinberg reraised all in from the small blind and Levi mucked. Pantling made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Pantling: Q Q
Steinberg: 6 6

Board: K 8 6 K 7

Pantling was eliminated in 11th place and the took home £54,114 in prize money. Steinberg held over 1 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Brian Powell,   Arnaud Mattern,   Andrew Pantling,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 26 Update -- Steinberg, Levi, and de Wolfe Out

Sep 28, '10

NOTE: The players are now on dinner break and they will return at 9:40 p.m. local time (1:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 6,830,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,480,000
3: James Bord – 1,120,000

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

6	Daniel Steinberg	£156,530
5	Nicolas Levi	£208,119
4	Roland de Wolfe	£278,945

Big Hands:

Daniel Steinberg Eliminated in Sixth Place (£156,530)

Ronald Lee raised to 110,000 and Daniel Steinberg reraised to 285,000 total from the big blind. Chip leader Lee then moved all in and Steinberg went into the tank. He had about 900,000 behind and after contemplating his decision intensely, he decided to call. The two revealed their cards:

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

Pocket fours were enough to scoop the whole lot and Steinberg hit the rail £156,530 richer.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in Fifth Place (£208,119)

Nicolas Levi bet 135,000 from the cut-off and Lee raised enough from the big blind to put the Frenchman all in. Just moments before this hand Levi had made the all-in move but this time he was calling all in. After some thought, Levi called and showed 9 9. Lee flipped over K Q.

The board ran out 8 5 4 K 10 and with that Lee had destroyed another finalist.

Roland de Wolfe Eliminated in Fourth Place (£278,945)

Roland De Wolfe moved all in from the small blind with his short stack and Fabrizio Baldassari called.

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

The board went in Baldasarri’s favour: A 8 3 2 9 and the popular Brit hits the rail just before the dinner break.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante.

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,136,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,277,000
3: Nicolas Levi – 1,560,000
4: Roland de Wolfe – 1,130,000
5: James Bord – 962,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 961,000
7: Dan Fleyshman – 400,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

Ronald Lee has been putting the pressure on in the last level. In one explosive hand, Lee raised from UTG and Nicolas Levi moved all in for 399,000 on top. It was folded back to Lee who thought for a moment and then made the call flipping over 5 5. Levy revealed K Q and the crowd around the rail got excited as the flop came down 6 4 3. The turn was the 4 keeping Lee ahead, but the K on the river sent the pot the Frenchman’s way.

A little after, Levi bet 75,000, Daniel Steinberg called from the button, and James Bord made the call from the small blind. The flop came down A J 4 and it was checked around. They also checked the Q turn but when the 7 was dealt on the river, Levi bet 110,000. Steinberg made the call and Bord folded. Levi showed K Q to add some more to his increasing stack

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

Dan Fleyshman bet 64,000 and big blind Danny Steinberg raised it up to 205,000. Fleyshman then quickly popped it up to 569,000 and Steinberg insta-shoved for 1,117,000. Fleyshman wasn’t too happy about this but elected to make the call. He turned over A Q while Steinberg flipped over K K. The board came out 10 10 10 8 6 and Steinberg doubled up.

Just before break time, Levi bet 73,000 and Fleyshman called from the big blind. The flop came down A J 3 and Fleyshman checked. Levi bet a little more this time – 75,000, and Fleyshman made the call. The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The river was the 2 and Fleyshman bet 375,000. Levi went into the tank and reached for the chips. He looked as if he was calling, and the other players started to complain that he was feigning a call, so Jack Effel stepped in and determined that it was indeed a call. To Fleyshman’s disappointment, Levi then showed A-10 and took down the pot.

The young entrepreneur is now the shortest stack with 400,000.

The 1,000 chips are being removed during this break as we strive forward to find our 2010 champion.

Player Tags: Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute dinner break. They will return at 8.45 p.m. local time.

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Viktor Blom — 450,000
2 Darren Woods — 310,000
3 Phil Ivey — 296,000
4 Thomas Bichon — 290,000
5 Dan Shak — 285,000
6 Barny Boatman — 255,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 240,000
8 Rob Akery — 225,000
9 Bojan Gledovic — 220,000
10 Nick Schulman — 218,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

Magnus Persson raised preflop UTG+1 and Viktor Blom reraised preflop. Persson made the call and the two saw a flop of 9 6 5. Both players checked and then the 2 fell on the turn. Persson checked, Blom bet 13,500, and Persson made the call. The river fell 5 and Persson checked again. Blom bet 49,000 and Persson made the call. Blom flipped over AA and Persson mucked. Blom held 480,000 after the hand as he continues to increase his chip lead. He ended the level with 450,000 in chips.

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

Nicolas Levi raised to 3,000 UTG +1 and Nick Schulman made the call from late position. Ivey made the call from the big blind as well. The flop fell A 4 3 and Ivey and Levi check. Schulman bet 6,500. Ivey mucked and Levi called. The 8 fell on the turn and Levi checked. Schulman bet 15,000. Levi called. The river fell 2. Levi checked and Schulman bet 25,000. Levi called and mucked when Schulman flipped over 4 4. Levi held 100,000 after the hand. During happier times at the start of the day he was one of the chip leaders. Schulman rose above 200,000 after the hand.

Shak and Awe

On a flop of J 9 5, Antonio Esfandiari had led out, only to be raised to 18,000 by Dan Shak. Esfandiari went into the tank, only to eventually announce all-in for around 140,000 in total. Shak called without hesitation, and the players revealed their hands.

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

With a dominant flush draw, gut shot straight draw, and the currently good king-high, Esfandiari was a strong favorite with all but a few thousand of his chips in the middle.

The turn came the 2, leaving Shak drawing only to the remaining non-diamond threes and sixes.

The 3 did roll off on the river, and Esfandiari exploded out of his seat in shocked disgust. As the dealer laboriously counted out the stacks, Esfandiari politely said “Nice hand.” Shak apologized about the bad beat, but unsurprisingly this did little to salve Esfandiari’s wounds.

Shak’s stack grew to around 280,000 after the hand.

Show The Bluff

Phil Laak bets 3,000 from mid-position and Andy Frankenberger calls from the cut-off. Dan Fleyshman calls also, from the big blind. The flop is dealt A J 2 and it is checked around. The turn comes the 7. Fleyshman checks, Laak bets 5,000, Frankenberger calls, and Fleyshman folds. The river is the Q, Laak bets 11,000 and Frankenberger thinks for some time. He then raises it to 26,000, putting the decision back to Laak. Laak goes into the tank – he has about 58,000 behind his original bet. Eventually Laak passes and instantly starts trying to get Frankenberger to show his cards, “Show the bluff and make me crazy. I’ll pay you, just say the number!” He takes out some sterling notes and places them on the table. “I’ll give you £40 to show me the bluff,” he says smiling. Frankenberger stays quiet as the others debate what he had. He now has 147,000 in chips.

Up and Down Day for Lacay

Coming in late into the action, Ludovic Lacay has moved all in for 22,000 on a J 8 4 5 8 board with about 15,000 already in the middle. The decision is on Daniel Steinberg and he takes his time. He finally calls and mucks when he sees Lacay’s A A for the nut flush. Steinberg has 120,000 remaining while Lacay reaches the 74,000 mark. He soon loses a good few chips however when he calls Eugene Katchalov’s all in with pocket nines. Katchalov has A Q and the board falls Q 5 8 8 J. “It’s been like this all day!” says Lacay.

Present for Praz

Allen Cunningham bets 3,500 from UTG and Roland de Wolfe calls from the small blind. Praz Bansi calls from the big blind and the flop comes 9 6 5. De Wolfe and Bansi check and Cunningham bets 6,000. De Wolfe folds but Bansi pops it to 14,800. “What do you have behind?” asks Cunningham. It’s about 33,000. After a few minutes Cunningham passes and Bansi mucks. The British pro is nearing the 60,000 mark just before dinner time.

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

Guy Gorelik bets 3,000 from late position and Roland de Wolfe calls from the hijack. Martin Davis makes it 9,500 and Gorelik steps aside. Players begin to make their way out for the dinner break as de Wolfe and David go head to head. De Wolfe asks Davis, “A-K?” “Yep, I have,” answers Davis, and then sadds, “Maybe.” De Wolfe calls and the flop is dealt K Q 6. Davis bets 9,000 and smiles. De Wolfe sighs and debates whether he wants to come back after dinner with 10 big blinds. “I know I’m behind,” he says. As the room eventually clears, de Wolfe moves all in for 17,300. Davis calls and shows A K. De Wolfe reveals Q J. The turn is the A and the river is the 10 giving de Wolfe a straight. He smiles mischievously as Davis simply says, “Shit!”

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

The last two levels of the tournament have truly created a new hierarchy within the chip counts. Viktor Blom, the alleged “Isildur1” has been crushing it today and he now holds more than 400,000 to lead the way. We have two players at the 300,000 level and they are Phil Ivey and Darren Woods. The 200,000 club can count Barny Boatman, Nick Schulman, Thomas Bichon and Andre Pantling among its members.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Phil Laak,   Dan Shak,   Eugene Katchalov,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nick Schulman,   Martin Davis,   Nicolas Levi,   Praz Bansi,   Ludovic Lacay,   Andy Frankenberger,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 17 Update: Day 3 Ends -- 22 Return Tomorrow

Sep 26, '10

NOTE: Play has ended for the night and the final 22 will return tomorrow at noon local time to play down to the final table of nine players. Stay tuned for a recap of the day’s events, and check back tomorrow for more live coverage of the 2010 WSOP Europe main event.

Blinds: 3,000-6,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 22 of 346

Official Chip Counts:

Ronald Lee	947,000
David Peters	829,000
Andrew Pantling	821,000
Daniel Steinberg	768,000
Viktor Blom	705,000
Phil Ivey	657,000
Hoyt Corkins	566,000
Nicolas Levi	515,000
Bojan Gledovic	500,000
Arnaud Mattern	468,000
James Bord	445,000
Clint Coffee	438,000
Fabrizio Baldassari	382,000
Barny Boatman	379,000
Jean Paul Seatelli	356,000
Dan Fleyshman	336,000
Thomas Bichon	308,000
Anthony Newman	280,000
Brian Powell	264,000
Jani Sointula	181,000
Greg Mueller	151,000
Roland de Wolfe	113,000

Average Chip Count: 471,818

Notable Cashes:

23	Barry Greenstein	26,400
24	Yevgeniy Timoshenko	26,400
25	Hoi Cheung	26,400
26	Alex Keating	26,400
27	John Eames	26,400
28	Michael Benvenuti	21,106

Big Hands:

Michael Benvenuti Eliminated in 28th Place (₤21,106)

Just back from dinner break and Michael Benvenuti moves all in with two black sevens. Daniel Steinberg makes the call with A Q and the flop comes down 10 7 2. Benevenuti hits his set but is in danger of Steinberg hitting his flush on fourth and fifth street. The K turn doesn’t change anything but the 4 floats in on the river and puts Benvenuti on the other side of the rail. With his elimination there is a redraw for this year’s final three tables.

Blom Takes Chunk Out of Greenstein

Coming in late into the action, there was a healthy pot on the line, and it was between Barry Greenstein and Viktor Blom. A board of 7 4 3 10 was showing and Greenstein had checked and was patiently waiting for Blom to make his move. Blom then slid out a couple stacks of chips, totaling just under 70,000 and it didn’t take long for Greenstein to announce he was all in. Blom’s tournament life was on the line as Greenstein had him covered, but after he had put his roughly 190,000 in chips in the middle, he looked a little more relieved to see Greenstein had pocket fives. Blom flipped over pocket aces which stayed ahead on the 7 river. Greenstein’s stack took quite a blow, pushing him down to 162,000. Blom now has more than 555,000 in chips.

Alex Keating Eliminated in 26th Place (£26,400)

It was pocket eights that stopped Alex Keating’s run in the main event. All in preflop his 7 6 could not better the pocket pair when the board ran out.

Yevgeniy Timoshenko Eliminated in 24th Place (£26,400)

David Peters bet 14,000 from mid-late position and Yevgeniy Timoshenko shoved his 137,000 stack in from the button. It was folded back to Peters who called and showed pocket kings. A shocked Timoshenko flipped over K 10 and although a 10 dropped on the flop, the turn and river could not muster anything to improve his hand and Peters is now the new owner of his stack. He moves to over 730,000 after this hand.

Barry Greenstein Eliminated in 23rd Place (£26,400)

Daniel Steinberg raised to 15,000 under the gun and Barry Greenstein reraised to 45,000. Steinberg went into the tank and eventually reraised enough chips to put Greenstein all in. Greenstein made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Greenstein: A A
Steinberg: 101 10

Board: 10 4 3 7 3

Steinberg made a full house and he won the hand to eliminate Greenstein in 23rd place (£26,400).

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Alex Keating,   Viktor Blom,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 21 Update: One More Elimination Before the Day Ends

Sep 27, '10

NOTE: The players are now on a 90-minute dinner break and they will return at 9:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 8,000-16,000 with a 2,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 of 346

Chip Counts:

1. Ronald Lee — 1,864,000
2. Dan Fleyshman — 1,667,000
3. James Bord — 1,540,000
4. Roland de Wolfe — 1,138,000
5. Daniel Steinberg – 1,092,000
6. Fabrizio Baldassari — 1,076,000
7. Nicolas Levi — 693,000
8. David Peters — 596,000
9. Brian Powell — 440,000
10. Marc Inizan — 274,000

Average Chip Count: 1,038,000

Notable Cashes:

12	Arnaud Mattern	£54,114
11	Andrew Pantling	£54,114

Big Hands:

Arnaud Mattern Eliminated in 12th Place (£54,114)

Arnaud Mattern moved all in under the gun for 124,000 and Brian Powell reraised all in over the top of him to isolate. The gambit worked and the two players flipped over their cards:

Mattern: K 10
Powell: K J

Board: 8 7 5 5 4

Powell grew his stack to 375,000 and Mattern was eliminated in 12th place (£54,114).

Andrew Pantling Eliminated in 11th Place (£54,114)

Nicolas Levi raised to 39,000 and Andrew Pantling reraised to 103,000. Daniel Steinberg reraised all in from the small blind and Levi mucked. Pantling made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Pantling: Q Q
Steinberg: 6 6

Board: K 8 6 K 7

Pantling was eliminated in 11th place and the took home £54,114 in prize money. Steinberg held over 1 million after the hand.

Player Tags: Brian Powell,   Arnaud Mattern,   Andrew Pantling,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 26 Update -- Steinberg, Levi, and de Wolfe Out

Sep 28, '10

NOTE: The players are now on dinner break and they will return at 9:40 p.m. local time (1:40 p.m. PST).

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 6,830,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,480,000
3: James Bord – 1,120,000

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

6	Daniel Steinberg	£156,530
5	Nicolas Levi	£208,119
4	Roland de Wolfe	£278,945

Big Hands:

Daniel Steinberg Eliminated in Sixth Place (£156,530)

Ronald Lee raised to 110,000 and Daniel Steinberg reraised to 285,000 total from the big blind. Chip leader Lee then moved all in and Steinberg went into the tank. He had about 900,000 behind and after contemplating his decision intensely, he decided to call. The two revealed their cards:

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

Pocket fours were enough to scoop the whole lot and Steinberg hit the rail £156,530 richer.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in Fifth Place (£208,119)

Nicolas Levi bet 135,000 from the cut-off and Lee raised enough from the big blind to put the Frenchman all in. Just moments before this hand Levi had made the all-in move but this time he was calling all in. After some thought, Levi called and showed 9 9. Lee flipped over K Q.

The board ran out 8 5 4 K 10 and with that Lee had destroyed another finalist.

Roland de Wolfe Eliminated in Fourth Place (£278,945)

Roland De Wolfe moved all in from the small blind with his short stack and Fabrizio Baldassari called.

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

The board went in Baldasarri’s favour: A 8 3 2 9 and the popular Brit hits the rail just before the dinner break.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante.

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,136,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,277,000
3: Nicolas Levi – 1,560,000
4: Roland de Wolfe – 1,130,000
5: James Bord – 962,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 961,000
7: Dan Fleyshman – 400,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

Ronald Lee has been putting the pressure on in the last level. In one explosive hand, Lee raised from UTG and Nicolas Levi moved all in for 399,000 on top. It was folded back to Lee who thought for a moment and then made the call flipping over 5 5. Levy revealed K Q and the crowd around the rail got excited as the flop came down 6 4 3. The turn was the 4 keeping Lee ahead, but the K on the river sent the pot the Frenchman’s way.

A little after, Levi bet 75,000, Daniel Steinberg called from the button, and James Bord made the call from the small blind. The flop came down A J 4 and it was checked around. They also checked the Q turn but when the 7 was dealt on the river, Levi bet 110,000. Steinberg made the call and Bord folded. Levi showed K Q to add some more to his increasing stack

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

Dan Fleyshman bet 64,000 and big blind Danny Steinberg raised it up to 205,000. Fleyshman then quickly popped it up to 569,000 and Steinberg insta-shoved for 1,117,000. Fleyshman wasn’t too happy about this but elected to make the call. He turned over A Q while Steinberg flipped over K K. The board came out 10 10 10 8 6 and Steinberg doubled up.

Just before break time, Levi bet 73,000 and Fleyshman called from the big blind. The flop came down A J 3 and Fleyshman checked. Levi bet a little more this time – 75,000, and Fleyshman made the call. The 5 was dealt on the turn and both players checked. The river was the 2 and Fleyshman bet 375,000. Levi went into the tank and reached for the chips. He looked as if he was calling, and the other players started to complain that he was feigning a call, so Jack Effel stepped in and determined that it was indeed a call. To Fleyshman’s disappointment, Levi then showed A-10 and took down the pot.

The young entrepreneur is now the shortest stack with 400,000.

The 1,000 chips are being removed during this break as we strive forward to find our 2010 champion.

Player Tags: Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Daniel Steinberg