Archie Karas Poker Tournament Updates

Level 2 Update: Chino Doing Well

Jun 10, '09

Blinds: 75-150 with a 25 ante

Entrants: 72

Chip Counts:

1. Huck Seed – 32,000
2. Vanessa Rousso – 31,000
3. Sam Grizzle – 30,000
4. Mike Matusow – 30,000
5. Jeff Lisandro – 30,000
6. Amnon Filippi – 30,000
7. Archie Karas – 30,000
8. Tim Phan – 30,000
9. Johnny Chan – 30,000
10. Erick Lindgren – 30,000

Average Chip Count: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

None

Big Hands:

Rheem Chipping Up

Chino Rheem raised to 425 before the first draw and the player in seat 6 raised to 1,500 total. “I’m gonna give it back to you,” Rheem said as he threw in the call and it was time to draw.

Draw: Rheem draws 1 card, Seat 6 stands pat

Seat 6 stood pat and checked before Rheem even received his card. Rheem glanced down and then fired 3,200 and seat 6 made the call. Rheem showed down 8-6-5-4-2 and his opponent mucked. Rheem took in the pot and was at almost 40,000 total.

Karas And Nguyen Get Involved, Neither Takes The Pot

Archie Karas raised to 400 from the big blind before the draw and Scotty Nguyen made the call from the cutoff. The button in seat 3 also came along and it was time to draw.

Draw: Karas draws 1 card, Nguyen draws 1 card, Seat 3 draws 2 cards

After the draw, Karas checked and Nguyen did the same. The player in seat 3 checked and turned over his Queen-low. Nguyen then showed the K to signify a king-low and then mucked his hand. Karas also mucked and seat 3 took the pot. Nguyen was down to 24,000 total while Karas was down to 34,000.

David Williams Arrives, Takes Pot Off Rousso And Lisandro

David Williams arrived to the tournament toward the end of level 1 and took his seat at the table holding Vanessa Rousso and Jeff Lisandro. We pick this hand up at the draw.

Draw: Rousso draws 2 cards, Lisandro draws 2 cards, Williams draws 1 card.

There was 1,000 in the pot and the action was checked to Williams. He fired 600 into the pot and both of his opponents mucked. Williams raked in the pot and he was around 32,000 total.

Fitoussi Takes A Pot From Bellande

Bruno Fitoussi tangled with Jean-Robert Bellande in a hand. There was 1,200 in the pot after both players drew cards. The action was checked all around and Fitoussi tabled 9-7-6-3-2 and Bellande mucked. Fitoussi took the pot and was around 33,000 total while Bellande was down to around 25,000 total.

Left In The Deck:

Another 10k Event, Another Cash?

Ville Wahlbeck has taken his seat at a table holding Johnny Chan and Erick Lindgren. Wahlbeck has already made two final tables in $10,000 buy-in events. He finished 3rd in the 10k Stud event and won the 10k mixed games event. It will be interesting to see if Wahlbeck can keep his hot streak going.

Player Tags: Scotty Nguyen,   Jeffrey Lisandro,   Bruno Fitoussi,   Archie Karas,   David Williams,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Jean-Robert Bellande,   Vanessa Rousso,   Chino Rheem

Level 14 Update: Eric Kesselman Eliminated

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 700 ante

Players Remaining: 22 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso — 275,000
2. Roland de Wolfe — 262,000
3. Nick Schulman — 235,000
4. Max Pescatori — 220,000
5. John Juanda — 191,000
6. Justin Smith — 198,000
7. Archie Karas — 165,000
8. Michael Binger — 165,000
9. John-Robert Bellande — 160,000
10. David Benyamine — 144,000

Average Chip Count: 130,909

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Bueno
Eric Kesselman

Big Hands:

Nick Schulman vs. John Hanson

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 from the button, John Hanson reraises to 25,000 from the big blind and Schulman calls.

Both players stand pat.

Hanson bets 35,000 after the draw and Schulman tanks for a few minutes before making the call with 97532. Hanson mucks his cards and Schulman rakes the pot. Schulman climbs up the leaderboard with 235,000 this hand while Hanson falls down to 60,000 in chips.

Eric Kesselman Eliminated by Tim Phan

Eric Kesselman gets it all in before the draw for 50,000 and change. Tim Phan calls and has him covered.

Kesselman stands pat with a J-10-6-5-2 while Phan draws one card. Phan draws to a 10-8-6 low and eliminates Eric Kesselman from the tournament.

Karas Draws Three, Makes the Best Hand

Roland de Wolfe raises to 10,000 before the draw, Ville Wahlbeck calls behind him and Archie Karas calls from the big blind.

First to draw, Karas draws three cards while both de Wolfe and Wahlbeck each draw one.

Wahlbeck bets 27,000, Karas calls and de Wolfe folds. Wahlbeck turns over 9-6-4-3-2, but Karas shows 8-7-4-3-2 and rakes the pot.

Doug Booth Doubles Through Nick Schulman

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 before the draw and Doug Booth moves all in for just about 50,000. Schulman calls and has him covered.

Schulman stands pat while Booth draws one card. Schulman turns over a made 10-7-5-3-2 while Booth draws to a 9-8-7-6-2. Booth doubles up to over 100,000 in chips this hand while Schulman takes a little dip.

Left in the Deck

The remaining 22 players will take a twenty-minute break at the completion of this level as the tournament staff races off the 100 chips.

Player Tags: Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Roland de Wolfe,   John Hanson,   Eric Kesselman,   Nick Schulman

Level 12 Update: Phan Rolling

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,000-2,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 27 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso – 215,000
2. Roland de Wolfe – 210,000
3. Jean-Robert Bellande – 188,000
4. John Juanda – 181,000
5. David Benyamine – 165,000
6. Ville Wahlbeck – 160,000
7. Daniel Harmetz – 145,000
8. Anton Allemann – 130,000
9. Max Pescatori – 125,000
10. Justin Smith – 122,000

Average Chip Count: 106,667

Notable Eliminations:

Mickey Appleman

Big Hands:

Matusow Can’t Make The Call

Tim Phan raised to 6,000 from the button and the action was on Mike Matusow. He raised it to 21,000 total from the small blind and Phan made the call after a bit of thought.

Draw: Matusow stands pat, Phan draws 1 card

Matusow checked and Phan fired 28,000 into the pot. Matusow went into a massive tank session and stared down Phan. Eventually, Matusow released his hand and he was down to 50,000 while Phan improved to 112,000.

Binger Muscled Off A Hand

Michael Binger raised to 6,000 from the hijack position and action folded to seat 1 on the button. He raised it to 24,500 and the action came back to Binger. After a brief moment of thought, he mucked his hand and he was down to 75,000 in chips.

Ducks Fly Together

The player in seat 1 raised to 6,000 from the small blind and Tim Phan made the call from the big blind.

Draw: Seat 1 draws 2 cards, Phan draws 2 cards

Phan was surprised his opponent elected to draw two cards and decided to take two himself. Both players then checked and Phan showed a pair of deuces. His opponent then mucked and Phan scored the victory with a pair. He was up to 123,000 after the hand.

Wahlbeck Eliminates Appleman

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 17,000 before the draw and Mickey Appleman moved in for 23,000 total. Wahlbeck called the 6,000 and it was time to draw.

Draw: Wahlbeck stands pat, Appleman draws 1 card

Wahlbeck turned over a Jack-low and Appleman showed 8-7-5-3, but he received a Queen on the draw and he was eliminated.

Archie Karas Doubles Up Against Binger’s Number Two

Archie Karas was all in for about 40,000 and Michael Binger made the call. That’s when things got interesting. Binger was not sure how many cards to draw and the clock was eventually called by Binger himself. Binger had 60 seconds to draw or else he would be forced to stand pat. After a good amount of time, Binger finally drew one card and then Karas turned over 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts.

“I’m drawing dead,” Binger said. He then received his card and salt was added to his wound. “I caught it too!” he said as he showed 7-6-4-3-2 for the second best hand in lowball. Karas raked in the pot and was at 84,000 while Binger was down to 96,000.

Left In The Deck:

The players have gone on a 60 minute dinner break and will return at approximately 7:30 p.m.

Player Tags: Mickey Appleman,   Mike Matusow,   Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Michael Binger

Final Table Update: Quickly Down to Four

Jun 12, '09

Blinds: 6,000-12,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Ville Wahlbeck — 740,000
2. John Juanda — 650,000
3. Steve Sung — 420,000
4. Nick Schulman — 295,000

Average Chip Count: 720,000

Notable Eliminations:

8. Michael Binger – $24,545
7. David Benyamine – $30,492
6. Vince Musso – $39,697
5. Archie Karas – $53,783

Big Hands:

Michael Binger Eliminated in Eighth Place ($24,545)

Michael Binger moved all in from early position to open the action and John Juanda made the call.

Binger chose to draw two and Juanda stood pat. Juanda turned over a 10-8-6-4-2 and Binger turned over 9-9-K-7-2. Binger was eliminated in eighth place.

David Benyamine Eliminated in Seventh Place ($30,492)

Steve Sung raised to 32,000 from the cutoff and David Benyamine reraised all in for 86,000 from the button.

Sung stood pat and Benyamine drew one card. Sung turned over J-8-7-3-2 and Benyamine conjured 9-6-5-4. He was drawing live but he paired his 9 and was eliminated in seventh place.

Vince Musso Eliminated in Sixth Place ($39,697)

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 35,000 and Vince Musso reraised all in. Wahlbeck called him and stood pat. Musso drew one card.

Wahlbeck turned up 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts and Musso was eliminated before he received his draw card with a 9-5-4-2. Musso was eliminated in sixth place.

Archie Karas Eliminated in Fifth Place ($53,783)

Archie Karas moved all in for 86,000 under the gun and Steve Sung made the call. Both players stood pat and Sung turned up 10-9-8-7-3. Karas held J-10-8-5-2 and he was eliminated in fifth place.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   David Benyamine,   Archie Karas,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Steve Sung,   Michael Binger,   Vince Musso

Level 2 Update: Chino Doing Well

Jun 10, '09

Blinds: 75-150 with a 25 ante

Entrants: 72

Chip Counts:

1. Huck Seed – 32,000
2. Vanessa Rousso – 31,000
3. Sam Grizzle – 30,000
4. Mike Matusow – 30,000
5. Jeff Lisandro – 30,000
6. Amnon Filippi – 30,000
7. Archie Karas – 30,000
8. Tim Phan – 30,000
9. Johnny Chan – 30,000
10. Erick Lindgren – 30,000

Average Chip Count: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

None

Big Hands:

Rheem Chipping Up

Chino Rheem raised to 425 before the first draw and the player in seat 6 raised to 1,500 total. “I’m gonna give it back to you,” Rheem said as he threw in the call and it was time to draw.

Draw: Rheem draws 1 card, Seat 6 stands pat

Seat 6 stood pat and checked before Rheem even received his card. Rheem glanced down and then fired 3,200 and seat 6 made the call. Rheem showed down 8-6-5-4-2 and his opponent mucked. Rheem took in the pot and was at almost 40,000 total.

Karas And Nguyen Get Involved, Neither Takes The Pot

Archie Karas raised to 400 from the big blind before the draw and Scotty Nguyen made the call from the cutoff. The button in seat 3 also came along and it was time to draw.

Draw: Karas draws 1 card, Nguyen draws 1 card, Seat 3 draws 2 cards

After the draw, Karas checked and Nguyen did the same. The player in seat 3 checked and turned over his Queen-low. Nguyen then showed the K to signify a king-low and then mucked his hand. Karas also mucked and seat 3 took the pot. Nguyen was down to 24,000 total while Karas was down to 34,000.

David Williams Arrives, Takes Pot Off Rousso And Lisandro

David Williams arrived to the tournament toward the end of level 1 and took his seat at the table holding Vanessa Rousso and Jeff Lisandro. We pick this hand up at the draw.

Draw: Rousso draws 2 cards, Lisandro draws 2 cards, Williams draws 1 card.

There was 1,000 in the pot and the action was checked to Williams. He fired 600 into the pot and both of his opponents mucked. Williams raked in the pot and he was around 32,000 total.

Fitoussi Takes A Pot From Bellande

Bruno Fitoussi tangled with Jean-Robert Bellande in a hand. There was 1,200 in the pot after both players drew cards. The action was checked all around and Fitoussi tabled 9-7-6-3-2 and Bellande mucked. Fitoussi took the pot and was around 33,000 total while Bellande was down to around 25,000 total.

Left In The Deck:

Another 10k Event, Another Cash?

Ville Wahlbeck has taken his seat at a table holding Johnny Chan and Erick Lindgren. Wahlbeck has already made two final tables in $10,000 buy-in events. He finished 3rd in the 10k Stud event and won the 10k mixed games event. It will be interesting to see if Wahlbeck can keep his hot streak going.

Player Tags: Scotty Nguyen,   Jeffrey Lisandro,   Bruno Fitoussi,   Archie Karas,   David Williams,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Jean-Robert Bellande,   Vanessa Rousso,   Chino Rheem

Level 14 Update: Eric Kesselman Eliminated

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 700 ante

Players Remaining: 22 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso — 275,000
2. Roland de Wolfe — 262,000
3. Nick Schulman — 235,000
4. Max Pescatori — 220,000
5. John Juanda — 191,000
6. Justin Smith — 198,000
7. Archie Karas — 165,000
8. Michael Binger — 165,000
9. John-Robert Bellande — 160,000
10. David Benyamine — 144,000

Average Chip Count: 130,909

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Bueno
Eric Kesselman

Big Hands:

Nick Schulman vs. John Hanson

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 from the button, John Hanson reraises to 25,000 from the big blind and Schulman calls.

Both players stand pat.

Hanson bets 35,000 after the draw and Schulman tanks for a few minutes before making the call with 97532. Hanson mucks his cards and Schulman rakes the pot. Schulman climbs up the leaderboard with 235,000 this hand while Hanson falls down to 60,000 in chips.

Eric Kesselman Eliminated by Tim Phan

Eric Kesselman gets it all in before the draw for 50,000 and change. Tim Phan calls and has him covered.

Kesselman stands pat with a J-10-6-5-2 while Phan draws one card. Phan draws to a 10-8-6 low and eliminates Eric Kesselman from the tournament.

Karas Draws Three, Makes the Best Hand

Roland de Wolfe raises to 10,000 before the draw, Ville Wahlbeck calls behind him and Archie Karas calls from the big blind.

First to draw, Karas draws three cards while both de Wolfe and Wahlbeck each draw one.

Wahlbeck bets 27,000, Karas calls and de Wolfe folds. Wahlbeck turns over 9-6-4-3-2, but Karas shows 8-7-4-3-2 and rakes the pot.

Doug Booth Doubles Through Nick Schulman

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 before the draw and Doug Booth moves all in for just about 50,000. Schulman calls and has him covered.

Schulman stands pat while Booth draws one card. Schulman turns over a made 10-7-5-3-2 while Booth draws to a 9-8-7-6-2. Booth doubles up to over 100,000 in chips this hand while Schulman takes a little dip.

Left in the Deck

The remaining 22 players will take a twenty-minute break at the completion of this level as the tournament staff races off the 100 chips.

Player Tags: Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Roland de Wolfe,   John Hanson,   Eric Kesselman,   Nick Schulman

Level 12 Update: Phan Rolling

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,000-2,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 27 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso – 215,000
2. Roland de Wolfe – 210,000
3. Jean-Robert Bellande – 188,000
4. John Juanda – 181,000
5. David Benyamine – 165,000
6. Ville Wahlbeck – 160,000
7. Daniel Harmetz – 145,000
8. Anton Allemann – 130,000
9. Max Pescatori – 125,000
10. Justin Smith – 122,000

Average Chip Count: 106,667

Notable Eliminations:

Mickey Appleman

Big Hands:

Matusow Can’t Make The Call

Tim Phan raised to 6,000 from the button and the action was on Mike Matusow. He raised it to 21,000 total from the small blind and Phan made the call after a bit of thought.

Draw: Matusow stands pat, Phan draws 1 card

Matusow checked and Phan fired 28,000 into the pot. Matusow went into a massive tank session and stared down Phan. Eventually, Matusow released his hand and he was down to 50,000 while Phan improved to 112,000.

Binger Muscled Off A Hand

Michael Binger raised to 6,000 from the hijack position and action folded to seat 1 on the button. He raised it to 24,500 and the action came back to Binger. After a brief moment of thought, he mucked his hand and he was down to 75,000 in chips.

Ducks Fly Together

The player in seat 1 raised to 6,000 from the small blind and Tim Phan made the call from the big blind.

Draw: Seat 1 draws 2 cards, Phan draws 2 cards

Phan was surprised his opponent elected to draw two cards and decided to take two himself. Both players then checked and Phan showed a pair of deuces. His opponent then mucked and Phan scored the victory with a pair. He was up to 123,000 after the hand.

Wahlbeck Eliminates Appleman

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 17,000 before the draw and Mickey Appleman moved in for 23,000 total. Wahlbeck called the 6,000 and it was time to draw.

Draw: Wahlbeck stands pat, Appleman draws 1 card

Wahlbeck turned over a Jack-low and Appleman showed 8-7-5-3, but he received a Queen on the draw and he was eliminated.

Archie Karas Doubles Up Against Binger’s Number Two

Archie Karas was all in for about 40,000 and Michael Binger made the call. That’s when things got interesting. Binger was not sure how many cards to draw and the clock was eventually called by Binger himself. Binger had 60 seconds to draw or else he would be forced to stand pat. After a good amount of time, Binger finally drew one card and then Karas turned over 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts.

“I’m drawing dead,” Binger said. He then received his card and salt was added to his wound. “I caught it too!” he said as he showed 7-6-4-3-2 for the second best hand in lowball. Karas raked in the pot and was at 84,000 while Binger was down to 96,000.

Left In The Deck:

The players have gone on a 60 minute dinner break and will return at approximately 7:30 p.m.

Player Tags: Mickey Appleman,   Mike Matusow,   Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Michael Binger

Final Table Update: Quickly Down to Four

Jun 12, '09

Blinds: 6,000-12,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Ville Wahlbeck — 740,000
2. John Juanda — 650,000
3. Steve Sung — 420,000
4. Nick Schulman — 295,000

Average Chip Count: 720,000

Notable Eliminations:

8. Michael Binger – $24,545
7. David Benyamine – $30,492
6. Vince Musso – $39,697
5. Archie Karas – $53,783

Big Hands:

Michael Binger Eliminated in Eighth Place ($24,545)

Michael Binger moved all in from early position to open the action and John Juanda made the call.

Binger chose to draw two and Juanda stood pat. Juanda turned over a 10-8-6-4-2 and Binger turned over 9-9-K-7-2. Binger was eliminated in eighth place.

David Benyamine Eliminated in Seventh Place ($30,492)

Steve Sung raised to 32,000 from the cutoff and David Benyamine reraised all in for 86,000 from the button.

Sung stood pat and Benyamine drew one card. Sung turned over J-8-7-3-2 and Benyamine conjured 9-6-5-4. He was drawing live but he paired his 9 and was eliminated in seventh place.

Vince Musso Eliminated in Sixth Place ($39,697)

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 35,000 and Vince Musso reraised all in. Wahlbeck called him and stood pat. Musso drew one card.

Wahlbeck turned up 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts and Musso was eliminated before he received his draw card with a 9-5-4-2. Musso was eliminated in sixth place.

Archie Karas Eliminated in Fifth Place ($53,783)

Archie Karas moved all in for 86,000 under the gun and Steve Sung made the call. Both players stood pat and Sung turned up 10-9-8-7-3. Karas held J-10-8-5-2 and he was eliminated in fifth place.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   David Benyamine,   Archie Karas,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Steve Sung,   Michael Binger,   Vince Musso

Level 2 Update: Chino Doing Well

Jun 10, '09

Blinds: 75-150 with a 25 ante

Entrants: 72

Chip Counts:

1. Huck Seed – 32,000
2. Vanessa Rousso – 31,000
3. Sam Grizzle – 30,000
4. Mike Matusow – 30,000
5. Jeff Lisandro – 30,000
6. Amnon Filippi – 30,000
7. Archie Karas – 30,000
8. Tim Phan – 30,000
9. Johnny Chan – 30,000
10. Erick Lindgren – 30,000

Average Chip Count: 30,000

Notable Eliminations:

None

Big Hands:

Rheem Chipping Up

Chino Rheem raised to 425 before the first draw and the player in seat 6 raised to 1,500 total. “I’m gonna give it back to you,” Rheem said as he threw in the call and it was time to draw.

Draw: Rheem draws 1 card, Seat 6 stands pat

Seat 6 stood pat and checked before Rheem even received his card. Rheem glanced down and then fired 3,200 and seat 6 made the call. Rheem showed down 8-6-5-4-2 and his opponent mucked. Rheem took in the pot and was at almost 40,000 total.

Karas And Nguyen Get Involved, Neither Takes The Pot

Archie Karas raised to 400 from the big blind before the draw and Scotty Nguyen made the call from the cutoff. The button in seat 3 also came along and it was time to draw.

Draw: Karas draws 1 card, Nguyen draws 1 card, Seat 3 draws 2 cards

After the draw, Karas checked and Nguyen did the same. The player in seat 3 checked and turned over his Queen-low. Nguyen then showed the K to signify a king-low and then mucked his hand. Karas also mucked and seat 3 took the pot. Nguyen was down to 24,000 total while Karas was down to 34,000.

David Williams Arrives, Takes Pot Off Rousso And Lisandro

David Williams arrived to the tournament toward the end of level 1 and took his seat at the table holding Vanessa Rousso and Jeff Lisandro. We pick this hand up at the draw.

Draw: Rousso draws 2 cards, Lisandro draws 2 cards, Williams draws 1 card.

There was 1,000 in the pot and the action was checked to Williams. He fired 600 into the pot and both of his opponents mucked. Williams raked in the pot and he was around 32,000 total.

Fitoussi Takes A Pot From Bellande

Bruno Fitoussi tangled with Jean-Robert Bellande in a hand. There was 1,200 in the pot after both players drew cards. The action was checked all around and Fitoussi tabled 9-7-6-3-2 and Bellande mucked. Fitoussi took the pot and was around 33,000 total while Bellande was down to around 25,000 total.

Left In The Deck:

Another 10k Event, Another Cash?

Ville Wahlbeck has taken his seat at a table holding Johnny Chan and Erick Lindgren. Wahlbeck has already made two final tables in $10,000 buy-in events. He finished 3rd in the 10k Stud event and won the 10k mixed games event. It will be interesting to see if Wahlbeck can keep his hot streak going.

Player Tags: Scotty Nguyen,   Jeffrey Lisandro,   Bruno Fitoussi,   Archie Karas,   David Williams,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Jean-Robert Bellande,   Vanessa Rousso,   Chino Rheem

Level 14 Update: Eric Kesselman Eliminated

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 700 ante

Players Remaining: 22 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso — 275,000
2. Roland de Wolfe — 262,000
3. Nick Schulman — 235,000
4. Max Pescatori — 220,000
5. John Juanda — 191,000
6. Justin Smith — 198,000
7. Archie Karas — 165,000
8. Michael Binger — 165,000
9. John-Robert Bellande — 160,000
10. David Benyamine — 144,000

Average Chip Count: 130,909

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Bueno
Eric Kesselman

Big Hands:

Nick Schulman vs. John Hanson

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 from the button, John Hanson reraises to 25,000 from the big blind and Schulman calls.

Both players stand pat.

Hanson bets 35,000 after the draw and Schulman tanks for a few minutes before making the call with 97532. Hanson mucks his cards and Schulman rakes the pot. Schulman climbs up the leaderboard with 235,000 this hand while Hanson falls down to 60,000 in chips.

Eric Kesselman Eliminated by Tim Phan

Eric Kesselman gets it all in before the draw for 50,000 and change. Tim Phan calls and has him covered.

Kesselman stands pat with a J-10-6-5-2 while Phan draws one card. Phan draws to a 10-8-6 low and eliminates Eric Kesselman from the tournament.

Karas Draws Three, Makes the Best Hand

Roland de Wolfe raises to 10,000 before the draw, Ville Wahlbeck calls behind him and Archie Karas calls from the big blind.

First to draw, Karas draws three cards while both de Wolfe and Wahlbeck each draw one.

Wahlbeck bets 27,000, Karas calls and de Wolfe folds. Wahlbeck turns over 9-6-4-3-2, but Karas shows 8-7-4-3-2 and rakes the pot.

Doug Booth Doubles Through Nick Schulman

Nick Schulman raises to 9,000 before the draw and Doug Booth moves all in for just about 50,000. Schulman calls and has him covered.

Schulman stands pat while Booth draws one card. Schulman turns over a made 10-7-5-3-2 while Booth draws to a 9-8-7-6-2. Booth doubles up to over 100,000 in chips this hand while Schulman takes a little dip.

Left in the Deck

The remaining 22 players will take a twenty-minute break at the completion of this level as the tournament staff races off the 100 chips.

Player Tags: Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Roland de Wolfe,   John Hanson,   Eric Kesselman,   Nick Schulman

Level 12 Update: Phan Rolling

Jun 11, '09

Blinds: 1,000-2,000 with a 500 ante

Players Remaining: 27 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Vince Musso – 215,000
2. Roland de Wolfe – 210,000
3. Jean-Robert Bellande – 188,000
4. John Juanda – 181,000
5. David Benyamine – 165,000
6. Ville Wahlbeck – 160,000
7. Daniel Harmetz – 145,000
8. Anton Allemann – 130,000
9. Max Pescatori – 125,000
10. Justin Smith – 122,000

Average Chip Count: 106,667

Notable Eliminations:

Mickey Appleman

Big Hands:

Matusow Can’t Make The Call

Tim Phan raised to 6,000 from the button and the action was on Mike Matusow. He raised it to 21,000 total from the small blind and Phan made the call after a bit of thought.

Draw: Matusow stands pat, Phan draws 1 card

Matusow checked and Phan fired 28,000 into the pot. Matusow went into a massive tank session and stared down Phan. Eventually, Matusow released his hand and he was down to 50,000 while Phan improved to 112,000.

Binger Muscled Off A Hand

Michael Binger raised to 6,000 from the hijack position and action folded to seat 1 on the button. He raised it to 24,500 and the action came back to Binger. After a brief moment of thought, he mucked his hand and he was down to 75,000 in chips.

Ducks Fly Together

The player in seat 1 raised to 6,000 from the small blind and Tim Phan made the call from the big blind.

Draw: Seat 1 draws 2 cards, Phan draws 2 cards

Phan was surprised his opponent elected to draw two cards and decided to take two himself. Both players then checked and Phan showed a pair of deuces. His opponent then mucked and Phan scored the victory with a pair. He was up to 123,000 after the hand.

Wahlbeck Eliminates Appleman

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 17,000 before the draw and Mickey Appleman moved in for 23,000 total. Wahlbeck called the 6,000 and it was time to draw.

Draw: Wahlbeck stands pat, Appleman draws 1 card

Wahlbeck turned over a Jack-low and Appleman showed 8-7-5-3, but he received a Queen on the draw and he was eliminated.

Archie Karas Doubles Up Against Binger’s Number Two

Archie Karas was all in for about 40,000 and Michael Binger made the call. That’s when things got interesting. Binger was not sure how many cards to draw and the clock was eventually called by Binger himself. Binger had 60 seconds to draw or else he would be forced to stand pat. After a good amount of time, Binger finally drew one card and then Karas turned over 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts.

“I’m drawing dead,” Binger said. He then received his card and salt was added to his wound. “I caught it too!” he said as he showed 7-6-4-3-2 for the second best hand in lowball. Karas raked in the pot and was at 84,000 while Binger was down to 96,000.

Left In The Deck:

The players have gone on a 60 minute dinner break and will return at approximately 7:30 p.m.

Player Tags: Mickey Appleman,   Mike Matusow,   Archie Karas,   Tim Phan,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Michael Binger

Final Table Update: Quickly Down to Four

Jun 12, '09

Blinds: 6,000-12,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 96

Chip Counts:

1. Ville Wahlbeck — 740,000
2. John Juanda — 650,000
3. Steve Sung — 420,000
4. Nick Schulman — 295,000

Average Chip Count: 720,000

Notable Eliminations:

8. Michael Binger – $24,545
7. David Benyamine – $30,492
6. Vince Musso – $39,697
5. Archie Karas – $53,783

Big Hands:

Michael Binger Eliminated in Eighth Place ($24,545)

Michael Binger moved all in from early position to open the action and John Juanda made the call.

Binger chose to draw two and Juanda stood pat. Juanda turned over a 10-8-6-4-2 and Binger turned over 9-9-K-7-2. Binger was eliminated in eighth place.

David Benyamine Eliminated in Seventh Place ($30,492)

Steve Sung raised to 32,000 from the cutoff and David Benyamine reraised all in for 86,000 from the button.

Sung stood pat and Benyamine drew one card. Sung turned over J-8-7-3-2 and Benyamine conjured 9-6-5-4. He was drawing live but he paired his 9 and was eliminated in seventh place.

Vince Musso Eliminated in Sixth Place ($39,697)

Ville Wahlbeck raised to 35,000 and Vince Musso reraised all in. Wahlbeck called him and stood pat. Musso drew one card.

Wahlbeck turned up 7-5-4-3-2 for the nuts and Musso was eliminated before he received his draw card with a 9-5-4-2. Musso was eliminated in sixth place.

Archie Karas Eliminated in Fifth Place ($53,783)

Archie Karas moved all in for 86,000 under the gun and Steve Sung made the call. Both players stood pat and Sung turned up 10-9-8-7-3. Karas held J-10-8-5-2 and he was eliminated in fifth place.

Player Tags: John Juanda,   David Benyamine,   Archie Karas,   Ville Wahlbeck,   Steve Sung,   Michael Binger,   Vince Musso

$2,500 2-7 Triple Draw - Level Six Recap

Jun 22, '08

Note: Players are now on a 90-minute break. Play will resume just before 8:30 p.m.

Blinds: 200-400
Limits: 400-800

Players Remaining: 90 of 238

Average Chip Stack: $13,200

Chip Counts:

Nick Shulman - 33,000
Trung Ly - 31,500
Bill Chen - 28,000
Chau Giang - 18,000
Shawn Sheikhan - 17,000
Raymond Davis - 16,200
David Chiu - 15,300
Thor Hansen - 15,000
Freddy Deb - 14,000
George Penzer - 13,200

Eliminations:

Steve Zolotow
Bruno Fitoussi
Robert Williamson III
Greg Mueller
Steve Wong

Hands and Storylines: 

Griffin takes pot off Brown

Gavin Griffin raised under the gun and Chad Brown called from the button. Griffin took one card and bet without looking while Brown took two and called. After both players took one card they checked. They took one card again and this time Griffin bet. Brown quickly folded. When the level ended they both had roughly 13,000 chips.

Nuts over second nuts creates huge pot

Ross Hooper called bets by Archie Karas every round and drew one card each time. Then on the last round of betting he raised Karas's bet to 1,600. Karas then reraised to 2,400 and Hooper made another raise to 3,200. Karas called and Hooper showed him the nuts, 7-5-4-3-2. Karas shook his head and showed 7-6-4-3-2. The pot dropped Karas, who was near the chip lead earlier, to about 12,000 chips. Hooper had roughly the same number of chips after the hand.

Oppenheim survives thanks to a trey

David Oppenheim was all in and took one card on the third draw. He was up against 7-6-5-4-2, held 7-6-5-2, and had not yet seen his final card. Needing a three to win or four to tie, he looked slowly and announced that it was now "50-50" and his card was either the ace of spades or three of spades. Finally he flipped his card over and saw it was in fact the three. Oppenheim headed to break with roughly 7,000 chips.

Player Tags: David Oppenheim,   Gavin Griffin,   Archie Karas,   Ross Hooper

$2,500 2-7 Triple Draw - Level One Recap

Jun 22, '08

Blinds: 25-50
Limits: 50-100

Players Registered So Far: 194

Notable Names in the Field:

Daniel Negreanu
Jeff Lisandro
Grag Raymer
John Juanda
Scotty Nguyen
Gavin Smith

Hands and Storylines:

Raymer Gets There on Second Draw

Greg Raymer, Davidson Matthew and two other players all check after the first draw. Three of the players took two cards again, while the player in the big blind, drew four cards instead of three. Raymer joked that there must be nothing but low cards left in the deck, and then bet out and got one caller. Raymer stood pat and then bet out again and was called. He showed 9-6-4-3-2 and took down the pot.

Bellande and Filippi Talk Prop Bets

Jean-Robert Bellande and Amnon Filippi seem to be bit bored and have been going back and forth all level. At one point they were discussing their recent tournaments, and then debated when the first player would be eliminated. Bellande wanted to bet that nobody would go out in the first level, while Filippi said a player would be out by the first break, which is after the second level. A couple minutes later they still had not broken their stalemate.

Negreanu Takes Two Down

Daniel Negreanu stood pat and bet out after every draw and took down the pot when his opponent folded, then one the following hand with a 10-7 high.

Archie Karas Takes Down a Multi-Way Pot With the Nuts

Men Nguyen limped in for 50, Archie Karas raised to 100, and Tom Schneider reraised to 150. Both Nguyen and Karas called the raise. Karas and Schneider each drew one card on the first draw while Nguyen stood pat. Nguyen bet 100 and they both called. On the next draw, all three of them stood pat, this time Karas bet 100 and everyone called. The same thing happened on the third draw, and Karas showed the nuts (2-3-4-5-7). Karas raked the pot.

Player Tags: Men Nguyen,   Tom Schneider,   Archie Karas,   Greg Raymer,   Amnon Filippi,   Jean-Robert Bellande

$1,500 Razz - Day 2 - Level 11 Recap

Jun 14, '08

Limits:  1000-2,000, 200 ante, 300 bring in

Players Left:  58 of 456

Chip Leaders:
Tom Schneider - 74,000
David Levi - 68,000
Joseph Michael - 54,000
Tom Chambers - 52,000
Jonathan Schwartz - 52,000
Frank Kassela - 51,000
Andrew Brown - 45,000
Barry Greenstein - 44,000
Archie Karas - 38,000
Larry St. Jean - 34,200

Average Stack: 23,600

Eliminations:
David Sklansky

Big Hands and Storylines:

Lawson Takes Another Hit

Barry Greenstein: 79610
Ted Lawson: Q-4-A-A

We entered the hand on 6^th street when Greenstein bet into Lawson’s freshly paired aces. Lawson asked Greenstein what he had and Greenstein jokingly responded, “I think I have a flush.” Lawson made the call, and, after Greenstein checked dark on the river, Lawson checked behind. Greenstein turned over (A-6-8) for a 9-8-7-6-A low and Lawson muttered, “two pair,” as he mucked. Greenstein has 44,000 in chips after winning the 13k pot while Lawson, with 20,000, is looking to reverse his recent ill fortune.

Levi Pours it On

David Levi: A-4-3-5
Ed Nassif: 10-4-3
Seat 1: A-7-6-6

David Levi continues to assert his dominance at the table with a little help from the dealers. Levi bet out on every street in this instance, causing Nassif to abandon his hand on 5^th street and the player in seat 1 to give up on 6^th. This pot brings Levi up to 68,000, behind only Tom Schneider’s 74,000.

Lisandro Doubles Up Seely

Jeffrey Lisandro: 48J9
Jim Seely: 42Q8

Seely completed on 3^rd street and Lisandro raised him. Seely called and the two saw 4^th street. With 4-2 showing Seely bet out and Lisandro called. Both 5^th street and 6^th street went check-check, then on 7^th street Lisandro bet and Seely reluctantly tossed the last of his chips in. Seely showed his (7-6-2) for an 8-7-6-4-2 and Lisandro, claiming a nine, mucked his cards. The hand doubled Seely up to 14,000 and dropped Lisandro to 27,000.

Player Tags: Frank Kassela,   Barry Greenstein,   David Levi,   Ted Lawson,   Larry St. Jean,   Tom Schneider,   Jeffrey Lisandro,   David Sklansky,   Archie Karas,   Andrew Brown,   Edward Nassif,   Tom Chambers,   Joseph Michael,   European Report

$1,500 Razz - Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th place ($19,607)

Jun 15, '08

Blinds/Antes: 2,000 ante, 2,000 bring-in, 8,000 completion

Players Left: 6

Chip Counts:
Chris Viox: 368,000
Barry Greenstein: 300,000
Mark Tenner: 280,000
Joseph Michael: 200,000
Chris Klodnicki: 160,000
Brandon Leeds: 122,000

Eliminations:
Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th Place ($19,607)

Big Hands:

Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th Place ($19,607)

Barry Greenstein brought it in with the high card for 2,000 and Archie Karas completed the bet to 8,000. Brandon Leeds reraised to 16,000 and Karas called all in for 3,000 more. "The Greek" ended up making an eight-low on seventh street while Leeds went on to make a six-low. Leeds raked the pot and Archie Karas was eliminated in 7th place ($19,607).

Chris Klodnicki Doubles Through Joseph Michael

Short stack Chris Klodnicki got the rest of his chips in the pot on fifth street against Joseph Michael.

Klodnicki: K-3-2-4 - A-9-4
Michael: 2-J-4-Q - 10-7-X

Klodnicki made a nine-low on the river while Michael bricked. Klodnicki went from the short stack to over 150,000 chips that hand.

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Archie Karas,   Chris Klodnicki,   Brandon Leeds,   Joseph Michael

$1,500 Razz Final Table Preview

Jun 15, '08

The $1,500 Razz final table starts today at 3 pm local time and here is a look at the final eight players and their starting chip counts…

Christopher Viox of Glen Carbon, Illinois comes to this final table first in chips (359,500) and with some prior WSOP experience. This will be Christopher’s fourth cash and second WSOP final table. Viox cashed in both the ‘06 and ‘07 Main Event, and placed third in ‘06 $2,000 Pot-Limit Hold’em event, taking home his biggest prize to date of $85,904. Christopher Viox has over a quarter million dollars in live action tournament winnings and comes here tonight looking for both his first bracelet and his first six-figure cash.

Barry Greenstein, affectionately known as “Bear”, comes to his second WSOP final table of the year second in chips (243,000), and looking to score his third gold bracelet. One of the game’s most recognizable faces, this is Greenstein’s twelfth WSOP final table and 34th overall WSOP cash, making him 55th on the WSOP all-time money list. Greenstein now has over $6 million in live tournament winnings and in addition to his success at the World Series, Greenstein has three WPT Championships under his belt. As respected away from the game as he is feared on the table, Greenstein is considered one of the industry’s greatest philanthropists, donating his poker winnings to charity and earning himself the nickname, “Robin Hood of Poker”.

Brandon Leeds of Phoenix, Arizona comes to this final table third in chips (206,500), and with only two prior WSOP cashes, Leeds comes here tonight locking down the biggest cash of his career with a guaranteed $13,382 ninth place pay-out.

Joseph Michael of Austin, Texas has three lifetime WSOP cashes, all in 2007, and spread out over a wide variety of games. This will be Michael’s first final table and with 155,000 (4th) in chips, and although Michael might be one of the least experienced players at table, he has more than enough fire power to hold his ground.

Archie “The Greek” Karas is one of the world’s most infamous gamblers, and is said by many to be the world’s biggest loser. In his lifetime, Karas is rumored to have gone from broke to over $25 million, and then back to broke again. Karas built up a formidable bankroll as a pool hustler, moving on to poker, and eventually ending up at Binion’s Horsehoe Casino in 1993 where he challenged the greatest poker players in the world to the greatest stakes of all time. Chip Reese, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan…at one time or another, “The Greek” had beat them all. Karas then took an eight-figure bankroll to the craps pits and started rolling the dice at a million dollars a toss. One time on Mr. Karas’ Wild Ride, he had won all of the Horseshoe’s $5,000 chips, and Binion had to buy them all back from him. Karas comes to the table fifth in chips with 113,000. This is Karas’ third WSOP cash and third final table, all of which have come in some variation of stud.

Local resident, Mark Tenner of Henderson, Nevada comes to his first WSOP final table with 120,000 in chips (6th) and four prior WSOP cashes. Tenner cashed in this event in 2005, with his most impressive finish coming in the main event of that same year. Tenner has just over $108,500 in live winnings, and is eagerly looking forward to adding to that number here tonight. This is Tenner’s fifth WSOP in-the-money finish and his first final table.

Chris Klodnicki of Worhees, New Jersey comes to the final table as one of the short stacks (7th) with 105,000 in chips. This is Klodnicki’s second WSOP cash and his first final table. His most impressive finish coming at the EPT’s Poker Stars Caribbean Adventure of this year, Klodnicki came in 35th place and cashed for $32,000. Klodnicki has guaranteed himself a five figure cash here tonight, escalating his live tournament winnings into six-figure territory.

Mike Wattel is a true veteran of the game with 16 WSOP cashes, ten final tables and one bracelet. Going after his second here today, Wattel has a lot of obstacles to overcome and a major chip deficit as the short stack with only 74,000. This is Wattel and Karas’ second WSOP final table together. Wattel finished 5th and Karas finished 4th in this very same event just three years ago in 2005. In fact, this is Wattel’s fourth time at the final table in this event since 1999. Even with the minimum, Mike Wattel has just hit a pivotal moment in his career. This final table guarantees Wattel enough prize money to break the million dollar mark and grant him exclusive access in the poker-made millionaires club. Wattel is clearly one of the biggest threats at this table, and with his chip count down, don’t count him out because experience counts for a lot in this game and Wattel has plenty of it.

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Michael Wattel,   Mark Tenner,   Archie Karas,   Chris Klodnicki,   Chris Viox,   Brandon Leeds,   Joseph Michael

$1,500 Razz - Day 2 - Level 11 Recap

Jun 14, '08

Limits:  1000-2,000, 200 ante, 300 bring in

Players Left:  58 of 456

Chip Leaders:
Tom Schneider - 74,000
David Levi - 68,000
Joseph Michael - 54,000
Tom Chambers - 52,000
Jonathan Schwartz - 52,000
Frank Kassela - 51,000
Andrew Brown - 45,000
Barry Greenstein - 44,000
Archie Karas - 38,000
Larry St. Jean - 34,200

Average Stack: 23,600

Eliminations:
David Sklansky

Big Hands and Storylines:

Lawson Takes Another Hit

Barry Greenstein: 79610
Ted Lawson: Q-4-A-A

We entered the hand on 6^th street when Greenstein bet into Lawson’s freshly paired aces. Lawson asked Greenstein what he had and Greenstein jokingly responded, “I think I have a flush.” Lawson made the call, and, after Greenstein checked dark on the river, Lawson checked behind. Greenstein turned over (A-6-8) for a 9-8-7-6-A low and Lawson muttered, “two pair,” as he mucked. Greenstein has 44,000 in chips after winning the 13k pot while Lawson, with 20,000, is looking to reverse his recent ill fortune.

Levi Pours it On

David Levi: A-4-3-5
Ed Nassif: 10-4-3
Seat 1: A-7-6-6

David Levi continues to assert his dominance at the table with a little help from the dealers. Levi bet out on every street in this instance, causing Nassif to abandon his hand on 5^th street and the player in seat 1 to give up on 6^th. This pot brings Levi up to 68,000, behind only Tom Schneider’s 74,000.

Lisandro Doubles Up Seely

Jeffrey Lisandro: 48J9
Jim Seely: 42Q8

Seely completed on 3^rd street and Lisandro raised him. Seely called and the two saw 4^th street. With 4-2 showing Seely bet out and Lisandro called. Both 5^th street and 6^th street went check-check, then on 7^th street Lisandro bet and Seely reluctantly tossed the last of his chips in. Seely showed his (7-6-2) for an 8-7-6-4-2 and Lisandro, claiming a nine, mucked his cards. The hand doubled Seely up to 14,000 and dropped Lisandro to 27,000.

Player Tags: Frank Kassela,   Barry Greenstein,   David Levi,   Ted Lawson,   Larry St. Jean,   Tom Schneider,   Jeffrey Lisandro,   David Sklansky,   Archie Karas,   Andrew Brown,   Edward Nassif,   Tom Chambers,   Joseph Michael,   European Report

$1,500 Razz - Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th place ($19,607)

Jun 15, '08

Blinds/Antes: 2,000 ante, 2,000 bring-in, 8,000 completion

Players Left: 6

Chip Counts:
Chris Viox: 368,000
Barry Greenstein: 300,000
Mark Tenner: 280,000
Joseph Michael: 200,000
Chris Klodnicki: 160,000
Brandon Leeds: 122,000

Eliminations:
Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th Place ($19,607)

Big Hands:

Archie Karas Eliminated in 7th Place ($19,607)

Barry Greenstein brought it in with the high card for 2,000 and Archie Karas completed the bet to 8,000. Brandon Leeds reraised to 16,000 and Karas called all in for 3,000 more. "The Greek" ended up making an eight-low on seventh street while Leeds went on to make a six-low. Leeds raked the pot and Archie Karas was eliminated in 7th place ($19,607).

Chris Klodnicki Doubles Through Joseph Michael

Short stack Chris Klodnicki got the rest of his chips in the pot on fifth street against Joseph Michael.

Klodnicki: K-3-2-4 - A-9-4
Michael: 2-J-4-Q - 10-7-X

Klodnicki made a nine-low on the river while Michael bricked. Klodnicki went from the short stack to over 150,000 chips that hand.

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Archie Karas,   Chris Klodnicki,   Brandon Leeds,   Joseph Michael

$1,500 Razz Final Table Preview

Jun 15, '08

The $1,500 Razz final table starts today at 3 pm local time and here is a look at the final eight players and their starting chip counts…

Christopher Viox of Glen Carbon, Illinois comes to this final table first in chips (359,500) and with some prior WSOP experience. This will be Christopher’s fourth cash and second WSOP final table. Viox cashed in both the ‘06 and ‘07 Main Event, and placed third in ‘06 $2,000 Pot-Limit Hold’em event, taking home his biggest prize to date of $85,904. Christopher Viox has over a quarter million dollars in live action tournament winnings and comes here tonight looking for both his first bracelet and his first six-figure cash.

Barry Greenstein, affectionately known as “Bear”, comes to his second WSOP final table of the year second in chips (243,000), and looking to score his third gold bracelet. One of the game’s most recognizable faces, this is Greenstein’s twelfth WSOP final table and 34th overall WSOP cash, making him 55th on the WSOP all-time money list. Greenstein now has over $6 million in live tournament winnings and in addition to his success at the World Series, Greenstein has three WPT Championships under his belt. As respected away from the game as he is feared on the table, Greenstein is considered one of the industry’s greatest philanthropists, donating his poker winnings to charity and earning himself the nickname, “Robin Hood of Poker”.

Brandon Leeds of Phoenix, Arizona comes to this final table third in chips (206,500), and with only two prior WSOP cashes, Leeds comes here tonight locking down the biggest cash of his career with a guaranteed $13,382 ninth place pay-out.

Joseph Michael of Austin, Texas has three lifetime WSOP cashes, all in 2007, and spread out over a wide variety of games. This will be Michael’s first final table and with 155,000 (4th) in chips, and although Michael might be one of the least experienced players at table, he has more than enough fire power to hold his ground.

Archie “The Greek” Karas is one of the world’s most infamous gamblers, and is said by many to be the world’s biggest loser. In his lifetime, Karas is rumored to have gone from broke to over $25 million, and then back to broke again. Karas built up a formidable bankroll as a pool hustler, moving on to poker, and eventually ending up at Binion’s Horsehoe Casino in 1993 where he challenged the greatest poker players in the world to the greatest stakes of all time. Chip Reese, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan…at one time or another, “The Greek” had beat them all. Karas then took an eight-figure bankroll to the craps pits and started rolling the dice at a million dollars a toss. One time on Mr. Karas’ Wild Ride, he had won all of the Horseshoe’s $5,000 chips, and Binion had to buy them all back from him. Karas comes to the table fifth in chips with 113,000. This is Karas’ third WSOP cash and third final table, all of which have come in some variation of stud.

Local resident, Mark Tenner of Henderson, Nevada comes to his first WSOP final table with 120,000 in chips (6th) and four prior WSOP cashes. Tenner cashed in this event in 2005, with his most impressive finish coming in the main event of that same year. Tenner has just over $108,500 in live winnings, and is eagerly looking forward to adding to that number here tonight. This is Tenner’s fifth WSOP in-the-money finish and his first final table.

Chris Klodnicki of Worhees, New Jersey comes to the final table as one of the short stacks (7th) with 105,000 in chips. This is Klodnicki’s second WSOP cash and his first final table. His most impressive finish coming at the EPT’s Poker Stars Caribbean Adventure of this year, Klodnicki came in 35th place and cashed for $32,000. Klodnicki has guaranteed himself a five figure cash here tonight, escalating his live tournament winnings into six-figure territory.

Mike Wattel is a true veteran of the game with 16 WSOP cashes, ten final tables and one bracelet. Going after his second here today, Wattel has a lot of obstacles to overcome and a major chip deficit as the short stack with only 74,000. This is Wattel and Karas’ second WSOP final table together. Wattel finished 5th and Karas finished 4th in this very same event just three years ago in 2005. In fact, this is Wattel’s fourth time at the final table in this event since 1999. Even with the minimum, Mike Wattel has just hit a pivotal moment in his career. This final table guarantees Wattel enough prize money to break the million dollar mark and grant him exclusive access in the poker-made millionaires club. Wattel is clearly one of the biggest threats at this table, and with his chip count down, don’t count him out because experience counts for a lot in this game and Wattel has plenty of it.

Player Tags: Barry Greenstein,   Michael Wattel,   Mark Tenner,   Archie Karas,   Chris Klodnicki,   Chris Viox,   Brandon Leeds,   Joseph Michael

$10,000 Seven-Card Stud World Championship - Day 1 - Level 6 Recap

Jun 07, '08

Limits: 600/1,200 - 100 ante, 200 bring in

Players Left:  115 of 158

Chip Leaders:
Men Nguyen - 54,500
David Benyamine - 51,200
Nick Schulman - 46,000
Shahram "Shawn" Sheikhan - 46,000
Chad Brown - 44,000
Carlos Mortensen - 44,000
Minh Ly - 43,000
Phil Ivey - 41,000
Allen Kessler – 41,000
Steve Zolotow - 40,000
Andrew Black - 39,000

Average Stack: 27,478

Eliminations:
David Grey
Justin Bonomo
Phil Hellmuth

Big Hands and Storylines:

Hellmuth Arrives Late, Departs Early

Phil Hellmuth gets the last of his chips in the pot with (2)(3)254Q against Minh Ly’s (7)(4)K7A6. Hellmuth is in bad shape, with Ly having both a better pair and draw. The final card – (6) – pairs Ly and leaves Hellmuth drawing slim. Hellmuth squeezes the card but tosses it face up into the much when he sees that it’s the (8). Ly eliminates Hellmuth and pads his stack which now stands at 43,000.

Lucky Sevens

Jordan Rich: JTK8
Archie Karas: 62J3
Unknown:5T5K

On 3^rd street, the unknown completed and Jordan Rich raised, Karas cold-called the bet and the opponent came along to see 4^th street. On both 4^th and 5^th streets Rich bet out and was called by his two adversaries. The final two rounds of betting delivered much less action, that is to say no action, and the three checked around on both occasions. Rich revealed (7)(7)(3) and both of his opponents shrugged and mucked, letting the youngster rake the pot with only a pair of 7s.

“Chainsaw” Takes a Hit

Allen Kessler: 74K2
Nick Schulman: A385
Unknown: AT63

On 4^th street the unknown player led out with a bet of 600 which was called by Schulman. Kessler then raised it up to 1,200 and was called by both players. The unknown again bet 5^th street when he was dealt his third exposed heart; Kessler and Schulman both called. On 6^th street things changed up: the unknown player checked, Schulman bet, and Kessler and the unknown both called. Then on the end the unknown checked, Schulman bet, Kessler called, and the unknown player folded. Schulman turned over (8)(8)(J) for a set of eights and Schulman took the pot.

Kessler would earn back some of those chips only a few hands later when he took a sizeable pot off of Schulman; Kessler’s rolled up aces making a set on 6^th street. Kessler and Schulman each have quite respectable stacks currently: Schulman with 46,000 and Kessler with 41,000.

Player Tags: Minh Ly,   Men Nguyen,   Carlos Mortensen,   Shawn Sheikhan,   Steve Zolotow,   David Benyamine,   Phil Hellmuth,   Allen Kessler,   David Grey,   Phil Ivey,   Archie Karas,   Jordan Rich,   Justin Bonomo,   Nick Schulman

$10,000 Seven-Card Stud World Championship - Day 1 - Level 5 Recap

Jun 07, '08

Players Left:  131 of 158

Chip Leaders:
Men Nguyen - 48,500
Carlos Mortensen - 44,000
Shahram "Shawn" Sheikhan - 40,500
Phil Ivey - 39,000
Alan Boston - 38,000
Archie Karas - 37,000
Scott Fischman - 37,000
Rolf Slotboom - 36,000
Minh Ly - 34,000
Steve Zolotow - 33,000

Average Stack: 24,122

Eliminations:
Thor Hansen

Big Hands and Storylines:

Raymer Cuts Down Forrest

Greg Raymer: T289
Ted Forrest: T2K2

Forrest bet out on 4^th and 5^th streets and was called by Raymer each time. Forrest slowed down on 6^th street, check-calling Raymer’s bet. Forrest again checked after the final card and reluctantly called one last bet. Raymer revealed (A)(Q)(9) for an ace-high flush, enough to take down the pot. Raymer’s stack is at a healthy 32,000, while Forrest is languishing at only 7,500.

Chad Brown Knocks ‘Em Down; Thor Hansen Eliminated

On 6^th street, with boards reading:

Scott Fischman: A823
Thor Hansen: TJ6T
Chad Brown: 4A52

the action heated up. Hansen checked, Fischman bet, Brown raised, Hansen called the two bets, Fischman 3-bet, and Hansen and Brown both called. On 7^th street, Hansen checked, Fischman bet, Brown raised, Hansen folded, and Fischman called. Brown showed (2)(4)(2) for a boat made on 7^th street and Fischman dejectedly mucked. Fischman and Brown each have about 30,000 in chips. The story isn’t so rosy for Thor. After the hand he was left with 3,000, which he lost on the very next hand.

Karas’ Quads Kill Phil

With the cards displayed:

Archie Karas: AKK6
Phil Hellmuth: 2A28

Karas bet all the way down the line, receiving a call from Hellmuth on each and every street. When Hellmuth made the call on 7^th street, Karas slowly – perhaps too slowly for Phil’s liking – turned over (K)(K) for quad kings. Hellmuth mucked his hand and was left with only 8,000 after the hand. The pot takes Karas up to 25,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Thor Hansen,   Minh Ly,   Men Nguyen,   Scott Fischman,   Carlos Mortensen,   Ted Forrest,   Shawn Sheikhan,   Steve Zolotow,   Phil Hellmuth,   Phil Ivey,   Archie Karas,   Greg Raymer,   Rolf Slotboom,   European Report

$10,000 Seven-Card Stud World Championship - Day 1 - Level 4 Recap

Jun 07, '08

Note: Players just finished a 30-minute break. During the break the light green T25 chips were colored up.

Players Left:  146 of 158

Chip Leaders:
Men Nguyen - 48,500
Shahram "Shawn" Sheikhan - 40,500
Steve Zolotow - 38,000
Rolf Slotboom - 38,000
Alan Boston - 38,000
Scott Fischman - 37,000
Minh Ly - 37,000
Chris Reslock - 31,000
Jennifer Harman-Traniello - 30,000
Greg Raymer - 29,200

Average Stack: 21,644

Eliminations:
Matthew Glantz

Big Hands and Storylines:

Small Pot; Big Aggression

Phil Hellmuth completed with the J up, the highest card at the table. Immediately to his right, Jordan Rich raised it to 800 with the 4 showing. Action folded back around to Hellmuth who flipped (8-2) and asked Rich, “This is a good hold’em hand, right?” Rich, in turn, flipped over his downcards: (J-7). The table had a good laugh at Rich’s bluff. David Grey chimed in, “It's on now!” as Hellmuth quipped good-naturedly, “I’m glad he showed that,” noting that he could use it to his advantage later.

“I Finally Made a Pair”

With boards reading:

Lawson: A83
Karas: K25
Negreanu: 34T

Daniel Negreanu brought in on 3^rd street; Ted Lawson raised, and Archie Karas and Negreanu both called. Action checked around on 4^th street and was checked to Negreanu on 5^th street. Negreanu bet out and both Lawson and Karas folded. Negreanu showed (T)(T )and chuckled, “I finally made a pair!”

Aggression Pays... As Does Hitting Gutshots

Phil Hellmuth called Daniel Negreanu down from start to finish with boards showing

Negreanu: TQ5J
Hellmuth: AQ24

Negreanu flipped over (9)(8)(4) for a straight made on 6^th street. Hellmuth, obviously frustrated with the hand, shuffled and re-shuffled his (K)(Q)(2) before tossing it face up in the muck. Negreanu has chipped back up to 19,000 while Hellmuth – late start and all – is down to about 13,000.

A Temporary Reprieve
Scotty Nguyen completed with 9 showing and Matthew Glantz deliberate putting his last 775 chips into the middle with the 4 up. Nguyen spouted, “It’s now or never, baby!” and Glantz moved his chips in. The player to Nguyen’s right also called with Q showing. The cards ultimately appeared:

Nguyen: 9473
Opponent: Q96K
Glantz: 4687

After being checked to on the river, Scotty bet 800, and, after the third player folded, Nguyen told Glantz, “Aces no good, baby.” And flipped over (J)(J)(7) for jacks-up. Glantz squeezed his final card and tabled the unlikely (2)(2)(2) to take down the pot. Glantz was momentarily up to 3,300 but was eliminated shortly after.

Player Tags: Scotty Nguyen,   Minh Ly,   Men Nguyen,   Scott Fischman,   Daniel Negreanu,   Shawn Sheikhan,   Steve Zolotow,   Phil Hellmuth,   Ted Lawson,   Jennifer Harman,   Archie Karas,   Greg Raymer,   Matthew Glantz,   Rolf Slotboom