Gavin Smith Poker Tournament Updates

Level Six Hour Two: Gavin Smith Eliminates a Player

Jul 10, '10

Blinds: 250-500 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 2,285 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Charles Alexandre Sylvestre — 260,000
2. Dave Sands — 233,000
3. Steve Billirakis — 233,000
4. Robert Miller — 212,500
5. Jason DeWitt — 191,300
6. Khamsy Nuanmanee — 182,000
7. Matt Keikoan — 175,000
8. Vanessa Rousso — 170,000
9. Filippo Candio — 167,000
10. Tristan Wade — 160,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 97,500
Mike Matusow — 12,700
Roy Winston — 15,000
Jennifer Harman — 34,025
Jeff Shulman – 42,675

Notable Eliminations:

Gavin Smith
Todd Brunson
John Phan

Big Hands:

Richey Chips Up With Set

Brett Richey was heads up when his opponent bet 2,500 on a flop of 1034. Richey called and his opponent checked when the K hit on the turn.

Richey bet 6,000 and his opponent made the call. On the 5 river his opponent checked and Richey bet big — 17,500. His opponent called and Richey turned over 33 for a flopped set.

His opponent mucked and Richey’s stack soared to 140,000.

Swick Knocked Out

Mike Swick of the UFC was down to his last 11,000 or so when he got all in preflop again the player in seat 1. Their hands:

Swick: AQ
Opponent: AK

Swick was trailing and the board ran 69656. His opponent’s king played and Swick was eliminated early in day 2b.

Andy Bloch Eliminated

With the board reading 10269 on the turn, John Moore led out for 4,100 from early position and Andy Bloch raised to 11,600.

After asking how much Bloch had behind, Moore made the call. The river was the 3 and Moore just moved Bloch all in. Bloch made the call and showed 99, giving him a set, but Moore showed A8, giving him the nut flush.

Bloch’s Series comes to a close. He finishes with three cashes, totaling over $100,000 and a couple of near misses deep in some events.

Violette Uses Some Aggression to Earn Chips

Cyndy Violette called a raise from the big blind and saw a flop of 423. Violette led out for 3,000 and was called by the preflop raiser.

The turn was the 9 and Violette bet 6,000, which got a call. The river was the A and she bet 3,000. The bet on the river was enough to win her the pot as her opponent mucked her hand and she increased her stack to 85,000.

Kassela Flushes Opponent

Frank Kassela got his opponent all-in on a flop of Q82. He had his opponent covered and was holding K9. His opponent was drawing dead when he tabled K9.

The turn was the 8 and the river was the 5, which was dealt as a formality before pushing the pot to Kassela. Kassela is up to 135,000 in chips.

Griffin Takes a Hit

Gavin Griffin called a raise of 1,250 from a player in middle position and the player in the cutoff raised to 4,200. The original raiser folded but Griffin raised to around 20,000, enough to put the cutoff player all in. He called. Their hands:

Griffin: 1010
Opponent: KK

Griffin was well behind and found no help on a board that ran 5QJ94. Griffin lost the pot and dropped to around 48,000 in chips.

Pavilion Room Coverage

Gavin Smith Eliminates a Player

Gavin Smith raised to 1300 from middle position and a player on the button move all in for about 13,000 total. Action was folded back to Smith. He insta-called with the AK and was ahead of the AQ of his opponent. The board ran out 10107K4[[suit:diamond] and Smith recorded the knockout. He was at around 100,000 after the hand.

Chris Ferguson Makes the Wrong Call

On a board of A4310 a player in middle position bet 3,500 and Chris Ferguson called. The river brought the 5 and Ferguson’s opponent bet 7,000 this time. Ferguson tanked before finally making the call. His opponent tabled the QJ for a flush and Ferguson mucked. He was at about 40,000 after the hand.

Johnny Lodden Eliminates a Player

Johnny Lodden opened the pot from middle position and a player to his left moved all in for 5,600 total. Lodden tanked before making the call with the K10. He was ahead against the QJ of his opponent. The board ran out 998A2 and Lodden took the pot. He was at 110,000 after the hand.

Ryan D’Angelo Gets Little Respect

On a flop of 865 a player in the small blind bet and Ryan D’Angelo raised. His opponent quickly called. The turn brought the 3 and D’Angelos opponent checked. D’Angelo bet 9,000 and his opponent check-raised to 24,000. D’angelo insta-mucked and his opponent exposed the 1010. D’Angelo vented his frustration after the hand.

Player Tags: Andy Bloch,   Gavin Smith,   Cyndy Violette,   Gavin Griffin,   Brett Richey,   Ryan D'Angelo,   Johnny Lodden,   Mike Swick

Level 16 Hour Two Update: We're In The Money

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 2,500-5,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 708 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 310,127

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 290,000
Jon Freidberg — 92,000
Shannon Shorr — 355,000
Matt Matros — 375,000
Andrew Brokos — 465,000
Josh Brikis — 1,200,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Matt Affleck – 1,350,000
2. Theo Jorgensen – 1,325,000
3. Duy Le – 1,320,000
4. Martijn Schirp – 1,275,000
5. Bartolome Gomilaromero – 1,200,000
6. Josh Brikis – 1,125,000
7. Filippo Candio – 1,100,000
8. Tony Dunst – 1,060,000
9. Matthew Brown – 1,055,000
10. Phil Galfond – 1,050,000

Notable Eliminations:

Kido Pham
Tim McDonald (Bubble Boy)
Gavin Smith
Amit Makhija
Eric Mizrachi

Big Hands:

Kido Pham Eliminated

Kido Pham moved all-in under-the-gun for his last 35,000 and was called by Josh Brikis.

They were off to the races when Pham showed 88 and Brikis tabled AK. The board ran out 2J710Q. Brikis rivered a straight to end Pham’s tournament just four spots shy of a main event cash.

Makhija Forces a fold

There was a flop of Q84, there was already approximately 85,000 in the middle and a player checked over to Amit Makhija in the hijack seat. Makhija moved all-in for his remaining chips and the television cameras rushed over.

Eventually his opponent folded and Makhija increased his stack to 190,000.

Cunningham Gets Bluffed

Allen Cunningham bet 40,000 into John Ambrust for 40,000 on a flop of AKA. Amburst made the call and the turn card was a 10.

Cunningham now checked and Ambrust put out a bet. Cunningham folded fairly quickly and Abrust showed 8-7, showing a complete airball.

Cunningham slipped to 210,000 and Ambrust is up to 890,000.

Bubble Bursts As Tim McDonald Is Eliminated In 748th Place

Ismail Erkenov raised to 10,000 from the hijack and Tim McDonald repopped to 30,000. Erkenov made the call and the flop came down AA2.

McDonald shoved for 37,500 and Erkenov snapped him off. McDonald tabled QQ but Erkenov flopped the joint as he tabled A2 for a full house.

The turn was the 7, leaving McDonald drawing dead. To add a bit of insult to injury, the river was the Q to give him a dead full house. McDonald earned the distinction of being the 2010 WSOP Main Event bubble boy. He went home with no cash, but did receive a buy-in to the 2011 Main Event.

Amit Makhija Eliminated

Picking up the action after the flop fell 943, Amit Makhija moved all in for 150,000 and the small blind made the call.

Makhija: JJ
Small Blind: A2

Makhija was ahead with the overpair but had to dodge the nut-flush draw and wheel draw. The turn was the 9 and relatively harmless, but the river was the 4 to make the flush and Makhija was out.

Smith Busts

Max Casal put in a raise from the cutoff and Gavin Smith moved in from the big blind for 29,500. The cutoff called and they showed their cards:

Smith: 33
Casal: A6

Smith was racing but fell behind on the AK10 flop. The board finished off 2 and 8 and Smith was eliminated.

Player Tags: Allen Cunningham,   Gavin Smith,   Kido Pham,   Amit Makhija

Level 15 Hour Two Update: Mercier Makes a Mistep

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 2,000-4,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 801 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 274,120

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 290,000
Jon Freidberg — 92,000
Shannon Shorr — 403,000
Tony Dunst — 423,000
Matt Matros — 445,000
Josh Brikis — 880,000
Andrew Brokos — 465,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Theo Jorgensen – 1,275,000
2. Matt Affleck – 1,160,000
3. Martijn Schirp – 1,120,000
4. Bartolome Gomilaromero – 1,080,000
5. Matthew Brown – 1,030,000
6. Duy Le – 1,025,000
7. Isaac Krantz – 1,014,000
8. Phil Galfond – 900,000
9. Gerasimos Deres – 885,000
10. Max Casal – 861,000

Notable Eliminations:

none

Big Hands:

Mercier Takes a Hit

We got to the table just in time to see Jason Mercier playing a big pot. His opponent held AA and Mercier showed A9.

The board ran out 7910QJ and Mercier doubled the player up to over 400,000 and Mercier was left with just 90,000.

Brown Cracks a Million

Matthew Brown cracked the one million chip mark when he got his opponent to move all-in with AQ and he called with 1010.

The board came 94542 and Brown’s pair held up and he moved up to 1,030,000.

Smith Moves All-in and Survives

Action folded to Gavin Smith in middle position and he moved all of his 43,000 chips into the middle and everybody folded around to the blinds. Both players contemplated calling, but eventually folded.

Smith showed KK while he picked up the blinds and antes and is around 57,000.

South Drops One

Cole South raised from the cutoff and the small blind called. Both players checked the flop of QJJ.

The 4 came on the turn and the small blind checked over to South, who bet 18,500. The small blind made it 45,000 and South put in another raise to 138,000. The small blind made the call and they saw the 9 come on the river.

Both players checked and the small blind showed A10, giving him an ace-high flush. South went to go muck his hand, but one of the players at the table asked to see his hand so the dealer flipped up the K5, giving him the king-high flush.

Player Doubles Up Through Phillips

With over 100,000 in the middle, the board read 87Q4 and Carter Phillips bet 63,000.

His opponent moved all-in for 215,000 more. Phillips made the call after a while with A8 and his opponent showed AQ. The 7 on the river and Phillips slipped to 225,000.

Dunst Chips Up Without Showdown

The flop was A109 and Tony Dunst bet out 3,500, which was called by his opponent.

The 5 came on the turn and both players checked to see 6 peel off on the river. Dunst moved all-in for 190,000 and his opponent thought for quite some time before folding. Dunst moved up to 565,000 with the pot.

Shorr Picks On a Girl

Lauren Kling raised to 10,000 from middle position and Shannon Shorr three-bet to 28,000 next to act. Kling made it 60,000 to go and Shorr went into the tank.

Shorr called after a couple of minutes of thought and the flop came Q76 and both players checked. The 7 and fell on the turn and Kling checked again. Shorr thought for almost a full three minutes before firing a bet of 75,000 out into the middle.

Kling folded instantly and slipped to 185,000 while Shorr moves to 460,500.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Shannon Shorr,   Cole South,   Tony Dunst,   Jason Mercier,   Lauren Kling,   Carter Phillips

Level Six Hour Two: Gavin Smith Eliminates a Player

Jul 10, '10

Blinds: 250-500 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 2,285 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Charles Alexandre Sylvestre — 260,000
2. Dave Sands — 233,000
3. Steve Billirakis — 233,000
4. Robert Miller — 212,500
5. Jason DeWitt — 191,300
6. Khamsy Nuanmanee — 182,000
7. Matt Keikoan — 175,000
8. Vanessa Rousso — 170,000
9. Filippo Candio — 167,000
10. Tristan Wade — 160,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 97,500
Mike Matusow — 12,700
Roy Winston — 15,000
Jennifer Harman — 34,025
Jeff Shulman – 42,675

Notable Eliminations:

Gavin Smith
Todd Brunson
John Phan

Big Hands:

Richey Chips Up With Set

Brett Richey was heads up when his opponent bet 2,500 on a flop of 1034. Richey called and his opponent checked when the K hit on the turn.

Richey bet 6,000 and his opponent made the call. On the 5 river his opponent checked and Richey bet big — 17,500. His opponent called and Richey turned over 33 for a flopped set.

His opponent mucked and Richey’s stack soared to 140,000.

Swick Knocked Out

Mike Swick of the UFC was down to his last 11,000 or so when he got all in preflop again the player in seat 1. Their hands:

Swick: AQ
Opponent: AK

Swick was trailing and the board ran 69656. His opponent’s king played and Swick was eliminated early in day 2b.

Andy Bloch Eliminated

With the board reading 10269 on the turn, John Moore led out for 4,100 from early position and Andy Bloch raised to 11,600.

After asking how much Bloch had behind, Moore made the call. The river was the 3 and Moore just moved Bloch all in. Bloch made the call and showed 99, giving him a set, but Moore showed A8, giving him the nut flush.

Bloch’s Series comes to a close. He finishes with three cashes, totaling over $100,000 and a couple of near misses deep in some events.

Violette Uses Some Aggression to Earn Chips

Cyndy Violette called a raise from the big blind and saw a flop of 423. Violette led out for 3,000 and was called by the preflop raiser.

The turn was the 9 and Violette bet 6,000, which got a call. The river was the A and she bet 3,000. The bet on the river was enough to win her the pot as her opponent mucked her hand and she increased her stack to 85,000.

Kassela Flushes Opponent

Frank Kassela got his opponent all-in on a flop of Q82. He had his opponent covered and was holding K9. His opponent was drawing dead when he tabled K9.

The turn was the 8 and the river was the 5, which was dealt as a formality before pushing the pot to Kassela. Kassela is up to 135,000 in chips.

Griffin Takes a Hit

Gavin Griffin called a raise of 1,250 from a player in middle position and the player in the cutoff raised to 4,200. The original raiser folded but Griffin raised to around 20,000, enough to put the cutoff player all in. He called. Their hands:

Griffin: 1010
Opponent: KK

Griffin was well behind and found no help on a board that ran 5QJ94. Griffin lost the pot and dropped to around 48,000 in chips.

Pavilion Room Coverage

Gavin Smith Eliminates a Player

Gavin Smith raised to 1300 from middle position and a player on the button move all in for about 13,000 total. Action was folded back to Smith. He insta-called with the AK and was ahead of the AQ of his opponent. The board ran out 10107K4[[suit:diamond] and Smith recorded the knockout. He was at around 100,000 after the hand.

Chris Ferguson Makes the Wrong Call

On a board of A4310 a player in middle position bet 3,500 and Chris Ferguson called. The river brought the 5 and Ferguson’s opponent bet 7,000 this time. Ferguson tanked before finally making the call. His opponent tabled the QJ for a flush and Ferguson mucked. He was at about 40,000 after the hand.

Johnny Lodden Eliminates a Player

Johnny Lodden opened the pot from middle position and a player to his left moved all in for 5,600 total. Lodden tanked before making the call with the K10. He was ahead against the QJ of his opponent. The board ran out 998A2 and Lodden took the pot. He was at 110,000 after the hand.

Ryan D’Angelo Gets Little Respect

On a flop of 865 a player in the small blind bet and Ryan D’Angelo raised. His opponent quickly called. The turn brought the 3 and D’Angelos opponent checked. D’Angelo bet 9,000 and his opponent check-raised to 24,000. D’angelo insta-mucked and his opponent exposed the 1010. D’Angelo vented his frustration after the hand.

Player Tags: Andy Bloch,   Gavin Smith,   Cyndy Violette,   Gavin Griffin,   Brett Richey,   Ryan D'Angelo,   Johnny Lodden,   Mike Swick

Level 16 Hour Two Update: We're In The Money

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 2,500-5,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 708 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 310,127

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 290,000
Jon Freidberg — 92,000
Shannon Shorr — 355,000
Matt Matros — 375,000
Andrew Brokos — 465,000
Josh Brikis — 1,200,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Matt Affleck – 1,350,000
2. Theo Jorgensen – 1,325,000
3. Duy Le – 1,320,000
4. Martijn Schirp – 1,275,000
5. Bartolome Gomilaromero – 1,200,000
6. Josh Brikis – 1,125,000
7. Filippo Candio – 1,100,000
8. Tony Dunst – 1,060,000
9. Matthew Brown – 1,055,000
10. Phil Galfond – 1,050,000

Notable Eliminations:

Kido Pham
Tim McDonald (Bubble Boy)
Gavin Smith
Amit Makhija
Eric Mizrachi

Big Hands:

Kido Pham Eliminated

Kido Pham moved all-in under-the-gun for his last 35,000 and was called by Josh Brikis.

They were off to the races when Pham showed 88 and Brikis tabled AK. The board ran out 2J710Q. Brikis rivered a straight to end Pham’s tournament just four spots shy of a main event cash.

Makhija Forces a fold

There was a flop of Q84, there was already approximately 85,000 in the middle and a player checked over to Amit Makhija in the hijack seat. Makhija moved all-in for his remaining chips and the television cameras rushed over.

Eventually his opponent folded and Makhija increased his stack to 190,000.

Cunningham Gets Bluffed

Allen Cunningham bet 40,000 into John Ambrust for 40,000 on a flop of AKA. Amburst made the call and the turn card was a 10.

Cunningham now checked and Ambrust put out a bet. Cunningham folded fairly quickly and Abrust showed 8-7, showing a complete airball.

Cunningham slipped to 210,000 and Ambrust is up to 890,000.

Bubble Bursts As Tim McDonald Is Eliminated In 748th Place

Ismail Erkenov raised to 10,000 from the hijack and Tim McDonald repopped to 30,000. Erkenov made the call and the flop came down AA2.

McDonald shoved for 37,500 and Erkenov snapped him off. McDonald tabled QQ but Erkenov flopped the joint as he tabled A2 for a full house.

The turn was the 7, leaving McDonald drawing dead. To add a bit of insult to injury, the river was the Q to give him a dead full house. McDonald earned the distinction of being the 2010 WSOP Main Event bubble boy. He went home with no cash, but did receive a buy-in to the 2011 Main Event.

Amit Makhija Eliminated

Picking up the action after the flop fell 943, Amit Makhija moved all in for 150,000 and the small blind made the call.

Makhija: JJ
Small Blind: A2

Makhija was ahead with the overpair but had to dodge the nut-flush draw and wheel draw. The turn was the 9 and relatively harmless, but the river was the 4 to make the flush and Makhija was out.

Smith Busts

Max Casal put in a raise from the cutoff and Gavin Smith moved in from the big blind for 29,500. The cutoff called and they showed their cards:

Smith: 33
Casal: A6

Smith was racing but fell behind on the AK10 flop. The board finished off 2 and 8 and Smith was eliminated.

Player Tags: Allen Cunningham,   Gavin Smith,   Kido Pham,   Amit Makhija

Level 15 Hour Two Update: Mercier Makes a Mistep

Jul 13, '10

Blinds: 2,000-4,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 801 out of 7,319

Average Chip Count: 274,120

Card Player Chip Counts

Adam Schoenfeld — 290,000
Jon Freidberg — 92,000
Shannon Shorr — 403,000
Tony Dunst — 423,000
Matt Matros — 445,000
Josh Brikis — 880,000
Andrew Brokos — 465,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Theo Jorgensen – 1,275,000
2. Matt Affleck – 1,160,000
3. Martijn Schirp – 1,120,000
4. Bartolome Gomilaromero – 1,080,000
5. Matthew Brown – 1,030,000
6. Duy Le – 1,025,000
7. Isaac Krantz – 1,014,000
8. Phil Galfond – 900,000
9. Gerasimos Deres – 885,000
10. Max Casal – 861,000

Notable Eliminations:

none

Big Hands:

Mercier Takes a Hit

We got to the table just in time to see Jason Mercier playing a big pot. His opponent held AA and Mercier showed A9.

The board ran out 7910QJ and Mercier doubled the player up to over 400,000 and Mercier was left with just 90,000.

Brown Cracks a Million

Matthew Brown cracked the one million chip mark when he got his opponent to move all-in with AQ and he called with 1010.

The board came 94542 and Brown’s pair held up and he moved up to 1,030,000.

Smith Moves All-in and Survives

Action folded to Gavin Smith in middle position and he moved all of his 43,000 chips into the middle and everybody folded around to the blinds. Both players contemplated calling, but eventually folded.

Smith showed KK while he picked up the blinds and antes and is around 57,000.

South Drops One

Cole South raised from the cutoff and the small blind called. Both players checked the flop of QJJ.

The 4 came on the turn and the small blind checked over to South, who bet 18,500. The small blind made it 45,000 and South put in another raise to 138,000. The small blind made the call and they saw the 9 come on the river.

Both players checked and the small blind showed A10, giving him an ace-high flush. South went to go muck his hand, but one of the players at the table asked to see his hand so the dealer flipped up the K5, giving him the king-high flush.

Player Doubles Up Through Phillips

With over 100,000 in the middle, the board read 87Q4 and Carter Phillips bet 63,000.

His opponent moved all-in for 215,000 more. Phillips made the call after a while with A8 and his opponent showed AQ. The 7 on the river and Phillips slipped to 225,000.

Dunst Chips Up Without Showdown

The flop was A109 and Tony Dunst bet out 3,500, which was called by his opponent.

The 5 came on the turn and both players checked to see 6 peel off on the river. Dunst moved all-in for 190,000 and his opponent thought for quite some time before folding. Dunst moved up to 565,000 with the pot.

Shorr Picks On a Girl

Lauren Kling raised to 10,000 from middle position and Shannon Shorr three-bet to 28,000 next to act. Kling made it 60,000 to go and Shorr went into the tank.

Shorr called after a couple of minutes of thought and the flop came Q76 and both players checked. The 7 and fell on the turn and Kling checked again. Shorr thought for almost a full three minutes before firing a bet of 75,000 out into the middle.

Kling folded instantly and slipped to 185,000 while Shorr moves to 460,500.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Shannon Shorr,   Cole South,   Tony Dunst,   Jason Mercier,   Lauren Kling,   Carter Phillips

Level 8 Update: Justin Bonomo Doubles Up

Jun 30, '10

Blinds: 800-1,600 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 out of 191

Average Chip Count: 146,173

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Daniel Negreanu — 400,000
2. Sam Trickett — 383,000
3. Philippe D’Auteuil — 380,000
4. Dave Sands — 360,000
5. McLean Karr — 350,000
6. Alex Roumeliotis — 320,000
7. Chris Oliver — 320,000
8. Nick Schulman — 315,000
9. Mikael Thuritz — 294,000
10. Bryn Kenney — 275,000

Notable Eliminations:

Gavin Smith

Player Twitter Accounts:

Beth Shak
Daniel Kelly
Kevin Saul
Dani Stern
Justin Bonomo
Daniel Negreanu
David Sands

Big Hands:

Davidi Kitai Doubles Up

David Kitai was all in with the AA versus the 55 of Isaac Haxton. Kitai was up to 195,000 and Haxton was down to 160,000.

Justin Bonomo Doubles Up

Justin Bonomo was all in for 80,000 after a five-bet versus Elijah Berg. Bonomo tabled the 99 and was in a coin flip against Berg’s AK. The board ran out QJ9A6 and Bonomo doubled to 165,000. Berg was at 73,000 after the hand.

Tobias Reinkemeier Eliminated

Tobias Reinkemeier’s pocket fours were beat by the KQ of Hoyt Corkins. Reinkemeier was sent to the rail while Corkins raked in the pot.

Gavin Smith Eliminated

Gavin Smith was all in with the 55. Unfortunately for Smith he ran into the pocket kings of his opponent. Smith was eliminated.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Justin Bonomo,   Davidi Kitai

Final Table Update: Gavin Smith Wins

Jun 27, '10

Blinds: 40,000-80,000
Stakes: 80,000-160,000

Players Remaining: 1 out of 507

Average Chip Count: 3,810,000

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Gavin Smith — 3,810,000

Eliminations:

2. Danny Hannawa — $166,005

Big Hands:

Danny Hannawa Eliminated in 2nd Place ($166,005)

Limit Hold’em

Danny Hannawa raised from the button and Gavin Smith reraised. Hannawa called all in and exposed the 108 and had live cards versus the AQ of Smith. The board ran out AK2JJ and Hannawa was eliminated.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Danny Hannawa

Final Table Update: Gavin Smith Heads Up

Jun 26, '10

Blinds: 25,000-50,000
Stakes: 50,000-100,000

Players Remaining: 2 out of 507

Average Chip Count: 1,901,250

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Danny Hannawa — 1,950,000
2. Gavin Smith — 1,850,000

Notable Eliminations:

4. Michael Michnik — $81,871
3. Timothy Finne — $110,324

Big Hands:

Michael Michnik Eliminated in 4th Place ($81,871)

Limit Hold’em

Michael Michnik bet and Gavin Smith three-bet. Action was folded to Michnik who got the last of his chips into the middle. Smith called and tabled pocket kings and was up against the QJ of his opponent. The pocket kings held and Michnik was eliminated. Smith was at 1,500,000 after the hand.

Timothy Finne Eliminated in 3rd Place ($110,324)

Limit Hold’em

Danny Hannawa raised and Timothy Finne got the last of his chips into the middle. Action was back to Hannawa and he made the call. Hannawa tabled the AJ and was ahead against the 86 of Finne. Hannawa paired his ace on the flop. The turn and river bricked for Finne and he was out.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Timothy Finne,   Michael Michnik

Hour 4 Update: Round 1 Complete

Jun 18, '10

Blinds: 1,000-2,000

Players Remaining: 128 out of 256

Starting Chip Stack: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Sandra Naujoks
Barny Boatman

Notable Advancements to Round Two at 10 p.m. PST:

Phil Ivey
Antonio Esfandiari
Jason Somerville
Jordan Morgan
James Mackey
David Williams
Blair Hinkle
Jonathan Aguiar
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Jonathan Little
Justin Smith
Josh Arieh
Amit Makhija
Jason Rosenkrantz
Annette Obrestad
Phil Gordon
Vanessa Rousso
Brian Rast
Gavin Smith
Leo Wolpert
Tom Dwan

Player Twitter Accounts:

Phil Ivey
Justin Smith
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Johnathan Little
Faraz Jaka
Amit Makhija
Barry Greenstein
Annette Obrestad
Kevin Saul
Mike Sowers
Steve Sung
David Williams

Big Hands:

Gavin Smith Advances

Gavin Smith’s opponent bet 3,000 and Smith made the call. The flop came 854 and Smith checked. His opponent bet 5,000 and Smith raised to 10,000. Smith’s opponent moved all in and Smith called with the A8 and was up against the opened-end straight draw with the 6-3. The turn and river were safe for Smith and he advanced.

Sandra Naujoks Eliminated

Naujoks was all in with the AJ versus the AK of Per Magnus Ummer. The board ran out 95452 and Naujoks was eliminated.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Tom Dwan,   Leo Wolpert,   Sandra Naujoks

Hour 2 Update: Chau Giang and Dani Stern Eliminated

Jun 18, '10

Blinds: 400-800

Players Remaining: 243 out of 256

Starting Chip Stack: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

David Baker
Scott Montgomery
Chau Giang
Johnny Chan
John Juanda
Dani Stern
Jordan Smith
Brandon Cantu
Brandon Adams

Notable Advancements to Round Two at 10 p.m. PST:

Phil Ivey
Antonio Esfandiari
Jason Somerville
Jordan Morgan
James Mackey
David Williams
Blair Hinkle
Jonathan Aguiar
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Jonathan Little
Justin Smith

Player Twitter Accounts:

Phil Ivey
Justin Smith
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Johnathan Little
Faraz Jaka
Amit Makhija
Barry Greenstein
Annette Obrestad
Kevin Saul
Mike Sowers
Steve Sung
David Williams

Big Hands:

Chau Giang Eliminated

Brendan Murphy bet on the button with the 97. Giang made the call and the flop came 1085. Action went check-check. The 6 fell on the turn and Giang bet 2,000. Murphy raised to 5,600. Giang moved all in for 20,000 total and Murphy called. Giang exposed the J10 but was drawing dead against the straight of Murphy.

Antoine Saout Doubles Up

Antoine Saout was all in preflop with pocket eights versus the pocket sixes of Scott Clements. The over pair held and Saout doubled to 16,400.

Dani Stern Eliminated

Dani Stern was all in preflop with the A4 for just 11,000. Darren Woods made the call with the 108. The board ran out 105229 and Stern was eliminated.

Gavin Smith Doubles Up

Gavin Smith was all in after a flop of J87. Smith tabled the 87 for two pair and was ahead of the 1010 of his opponent. Check out Card Player’s odds calculator to see the exact percentages! The Q hit the turn and the K fell on the river. Smith doubled to about the starting stack of 30,000.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Chau Giang,   Paul Wasicka,   Scott Clements,   Brendan Murphy,   Antoine Saout,   Dani Stern

Hour 3 Update: Melanie Weisner, Gavin Smith and Scott Clements Advance -- Round 1 Complete

Jun 19, '10

Blinds: 3,000-6,000

Players Remaining: 32 out of 256

Round Three Starting Chip Stack: 120,000

Notable Eliminations:

Mike Leah
Andrew Feldman
Jonathan Little
Amit Makhija

Notable Advancements to Round Four:

Melanie Weisner
Gavin Smith
Scott Clements
Faraz Jaka
David Williams

Player Twitter Accounts:

Faraz Jaka
Kevin Saul
David Williams
Ludovic Lacay

Big Hands:

Melanie Weisner Advances

Melanie Weisner opened to 9,800 and Dee Tiller called. The flop came AK7 and Tiller checked. Weisner bet 10,400 and Tiller called. The 5 on the turn prompted a quick check from Tiller. Weisner bet 18,800 and Tiller moved all in for 82,000 total. Weisner made the call and exposed the AK while Tiller tabled the A6 and was drawing dead. Weisner advanced to round four.

Gavin Smith Advances

On a flop of 10-8-4 Gavin Smith and Gabe Kaplan both checked. A deuce hit the turn and Kaplan moved all in for 24,000. Smith called. Kaplan exposed 8-7 for middle pair and was dominated by the J10 of Smith. The river failed to offer any help to Kaplan and he was gone.

Scott Clements Advances

Scott Clements knocked off Robbie Verspui. Verspui limped on the button with K-J and Scott Clements raised to 6,000. Verspui moved all in. Clements called with A-10 and it held to eliminate his opponent. Clements is looking for his third World Series of Poker bracelet.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Scott Clements

Hour 4 Update: Round 1 Complete

Jun 18, '10

Blinds: 1,000-2,000

Players Remaining: 128 out of 256

Starting Chip Stack: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

Sandra Naujoks
Barny Boatman

Notable Advancements to Round Two at 10 p.m. PST:

Phil Ivey
Antonio Esfandiari
Jason Somerville
Jordan Morgan
James Mackey
David Williams
Blair Hinkle
Jonathan Aguiar
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Jonathan Little
Justin Smith
Josh Arieh
Amit Makhija
Jason Rosenkrantz
Annette Obrestad
Phil Gordon
Vanessa Rousso
Brian Rast
Gavin Smith
Leo Wolpert
Tom Dwan

Player Twitter Accounts:

Phil Ivey
Justin Smith
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Johnathan Little
Faraz Jaka
Amit Makhija
Barry Greenstein
Annette Obrestad
Kevin Saul
Mike Sowers
Steve Sung
David Williams

Big Hands:

Gavin Smith Advances

Gavin Smith’s opponent bet 3,000 and Smith made the call. The flop came 854 and Smith checked. His opponent bet 5,000 and Smith raised to 10,000. Smith’s opponent moved all in and Smith called with the A8 and was up against the opened-end straight draw with the 6-3. The turn and river were safe for Smith and he advanced.

Sandra Naujoks Eliminated

Naujoks was all in with the AJ versus the AK of Per Magnus Ummer. The board ran out 95452 and Naujoks was eliminated.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Tom Dwan,   Leo Wolpert,   Sandra Naujoks

Hour 2 Update: Chau Giang and Dani Stern Eliminated

Jun 18, '10

Blinds: 400-800

Players Remaining: 243 out of 256

Starting Chip Stack: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

David Baker
Scott Montgomery
Chau Giang
Johnny Chan
John Juanda
Dani Stern
Jordan Smith
Brandon Cantu
Brandon Adams

Notable Advancements to Round Two at 10 p.m. PST:

Phil Ivey
Antonio Esfandiari
Jason Somerville
Jordan Morgan
James Mackey
David Williams
Blair Hinkle
Jonathan Aguiar
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Jonathan Little
Justin Smith

Player Twitter Accounts:

Phil Ivey
Justin Smith
Paul Wasicka
Daniel Negreanu
Johnathan Little
Faraz Jaka
Amit Makhija
Barry Greenstein
Annette Obrestad
Kevin Saul
Mike Sowers
Steve Sung
David Williams

Big Hands:

Chau Giang Eliminated

Brendan Murphy bet on the button with the 97. Giang made the call and the flop came 1085. Action went check-check. The 6 fell on the turn and Giang bet 2,000. Murphy raised to 5,600. Giang moved all in for 20,000 total and Murphy called. Giang exposed the J10 but was drawing dead against the straight of Murphy.

Antoine Saout Doubles Up

Antoine Saout was all in preflop with pocket eights versus the pocket sixes of Scott Clements. The over pair held and Saout doubled to 16,400.

Dani Stern Eliminated

Dani Stern was all in preflop with the A4 for just 11,000. Darren Woods made the call with the 108. The board ran out 105229 and Stern was eliminated.

Gavin Smith Doubles Up

Gavin Smith was all in after a flop of J87. Smith tabled the 87 for two pair and was ahead of the 1010 of his opponent. Check out Card Player’s odds calculator to see the exact percentages! The Q hit the turn and the K fell on the river. Smith doubled to about the starting stack of 30,000.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Chau Giang,   Paul Wasicka,   Scott Clements,   Brendan Murphy,   Antoine Saout,   Dani Stern

Hour 3 Update: Melanie Weisner, Gavin Smith and Scott Clements Advance -- Round 1 Complete

Jun 19, '10

Blinds: 3,000-6,000

Players Remaining: 32 out of 256

Round Three Starting Chip Stack: 120,000

Notable Eliminations:

Mike Leah
Andrew Feldman
Jonathan Little
Amit Makhija

Notable Advancements to Round Four:

Melanie Weisner
Gavin Smith
Scott Clements
Faraz Jaka
David Williams

Player Twitter Accounts:

Faraz Jaka
Kevin Saul
David Williams
Ludovic Lacay

Big Hands:

Melanie Weisner Advances

Melanie Weisner opened to 9,800 and Dee Tiller called. The flop came AK7 and Tiller checked. Weisner bet 10,400 and Tiller called. The 5 on the turn prompted a quick check from Tiller. Weisner bet 18,800 and Tiller moved all in for 82,000 total. Weisner made the call and exposed the AK while Tiller tabled the A6 and was drawing dead. Weisner advanced to round four.

Gavin Smith Advances

On a flop of 10-8-4 Gavin Smith and Gabe Kaplan both checked. A deuce hit the turn and Kaplan moved all in for 24,000. Smith called. Kaplan exposed 8-7 for middle pair and was dominated by the J10 of Smith. The river failed to offer any help to Kaplan and he was gone.

Scott Clements Advances

Scott Clements knocked off Robbie Verspui. Verspui limped on the button with K-J and Scott Clements raised to 6,000. Verspui moved all in. Clements called with A-10 and it held to eliminate his opponent. Clements is looking for his third World Series of Poker bracelet.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Scott Clements

Level 1 Update: Gavin Smith Eliminated

May 29, '10

Blinds: 25-25

Starting Stack: 3,000

Notable Eliminations:

Gavin Smith

Big Hands:

Smith Forced to Fold

Four players saw a flop of Q97 and everybody checked to the player on the button who bet 75 and was called by Gavin Smith. The turn card was the 6 and Smith checked again.

The button bet 200 and Smith called one more time and saw the 10 hit the river. Smith checked and button took a minute or so to bet 400. Smith, visibly displeased at the bet, eventually let his hand hit the muck.

Gavin Smith Eliminated

Gavin Smith got the rest of his short stack in on a flop of 1099 with the 108 and was called by an opponent with the A10. Smith failed to draw out and was eliminated early on Day 1A.

Bad Board, but Devo’s Kings Hold

After Brock Parker limped under the gun, Bryan Devonshire raised to 100 on the button. The player in the small blind called, as did Parker. All three players checked it down as the board ran out A32J10.

Devonshire tabled the KK, which was good for the pot.

Tommy Vedes Loses Some Chips

On a paired board, Tom Vedes bet 100 with the A7 for jacks and sevens and was called by an opponent with two eights in the hole. Vedes lost the small pot and is down to 2,700.

Elimination at Lauren Kling’s Table

Two players got it all in on a flop of QJ3, with one tabling QJ for top two pair and the other exposed pocket threes for bottom set. Bottom set held up and one of the first casualties of the tournament has hit the rail.

Lex Veldhuis Eliminates a Player

Lex Veldhuis was in the big blind with about 2,800 when the button raised to 75. The small blind called and Veldhuis raised to 325. The button made a quick call and the small blind folded. The flop came 942 and Veldhuis continuation bet 425. The button made the call. The 5 hit the turn and this time Veldhuis bet 850 and the button took awhile before calling. The river brought the A and Veldhuis took some time to consider before moving all in for 1,625. The button tanked for a few minutes and finally made the call for his tournament life. Veldhuis tabled A5 for two pair. His opponent mucked and Veldhuis raked in the large pot. He is at 5,700 after the hand.

Left in the Deck:

One Big-Blind Hand

Over at Brock Parker and Bryan Devonshire’s table (Green 197), a hand was played with just one big blind. The tournament staff was called over to look at the problem in the early stages of the 2010 World Series of Poker.

Tough Table Draws and Notable Entrants

Prior to his elimination, poker pros Gavin Smith, Kara Scott, and Allen Kessler were sitting at the same table among a sea of unknowns. At the table right next door sits a member of the Card Player Family — Allyn Jaffrey Shulman. Allyn’s husband and Card Player Publisher, Barry Shulman, is also in the field. Some other tough draws include a table with Joe Bartholdi, David Plastik, Jamie Rosen, and Soheil Shamseddin. As well as a table that includes Tommy Vedes, Andy Black, Tom Marchese and Brandon Cantu. For such a big field, some unknowns got a pretty unlucky table draw.

Lex Veldhuis Talks with Adam and Diego

Poker pro Lex Veldhuis discusses the 2009 WSOP TV coverage that built a ton of buzz around his aggressive game, his lighthearted rivalry with Eli Elezra and how he took advantage of being on TV in a recent episode of ‘The Scoop’ brought to you by Full Tilt Poker.

Player Tags: Barry Shulman,   Gavin Smith,   Allen Kessler,   Brock Parker,   Bryan Devonshire,   Lex Veldhuis,   Kara Scott,   Lauren Kling

Dwyte Pilgrim Doubles Through Gavin Smith

Apr 19, '10

Dwyte Pilgrim was short stacked and made his all in push with AQ and was looked up by Gavin Smith holding AJ.

The board fell nicely for Pilgrim when it came A936K and Pilgrim doubled up to 58,000. Smith is now short stacked with 17,000.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Dwyte Pilgrim

Phil Ivey Defeats Gavin Smith

Mar 05, '10

Gavin Smith (pictured right) was down to his last 8,000 or so when he moved all in holding A10.

Phil Ivey called with the AJ and it held when the board fell J63Q3.

Ivey will now advance to play the winner of Scotty Nguyen and Richard Edwards.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Phil Ivey

Level 4 Update: Money Details Coming Soon

Feb 26, '10

Blinds: 100-200 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 621 out of 744

Chip Counts:

1. Jon Luu — 110,000
2. Shawn Buchanan — 75,000
3. Jon Turner — 55,000
4. Mark Seif — 53,000
5. Daniel Negreanu — 52,000
6. Steven Levy — 50,000
7. J.C. Tran — 50,000
8. Lisa Hamilton — 49,000
9. Chris Klodnicki — 48,000
10. William James — 47,000

Average Chip Count: 23,691

Notable Eliminations:

Kevin Saul
Jeff Madsen
Al Barbieri
Andy Bloch

Big Hands:

Kevin Saul Eliminated With Set Over Set

Earlier, we reported that Kevin Saul ran his kings into the pocket aces of Jennifer Tilly. This level, his tournament came to an end when his set of fours ran into an opponent’s set of nines.

Guess it’s just one of those days for the WPT Champion.

Left In The Deck

Prop Bet Blunders

Joe Sebok, Jeff Madsen and Gavin Smith all made a ridiculous last longer bet where the first player out in this event would have to get the other two player’s faces tatooed on his body.

That honor went to Joe Sebok, who was eliminated earlier today when his pocket aces got cracked. The second player out, only had to get the face of the winner tattoed on his body. That player was Jeff Madsen, who must now find a way to buy out of the bet.

Gavin Smith, as the last man standing, will now have to decide whether or not to take pity on his friends, perhaps allowing them to get off with just a monetary penalty.

Player Tags: Gavin Smith,   Kevin Saul,   Joe Sebok,   Jeff Madsen