Nicolas Levi Poker Tournament Updates

Level 27 Update: Nicolas Levi Eliminated in 9th Place

Jul 03, '13

Level: 27

Blinds: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 8 out of 1,736

Average Chip Count: 1,627,500

Chip Counts:

Seat 1: Sebastian Comel – 2,190,000
Seat 3: Sergey Lebedev – 1,100,000
Seat 4: Nicolas Faure – 1,000,000
Seat 5: Josh Arieh – 1,225,000
Seat 6: Vincent Maglio – 2,135,000
Seat 7: Dan Owen – 2,180,000
Seat 8: Nikolaus Teichert – 1,600,000
Seat 9: Kirill Rabtsov – 650,000

Players Eliminated:

9th: Nicolas Levi – $53,593

Live Updates:

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in Ninth Place ($53,593)

Nikolaus Teichert raised to 90,000 and Nicolas Levi reraised all in. Teichert called and the two players tabled their hands.

Teichert: AQ
Levi: A3

Board: 1074AJ

Teichert won the pot with a queen-kicker to grow his stack to 1.6 million and Levi was eliminated in ninth place.

Player Tags: Nicolas Levi,   Nikolaus Teichert

Level 24: Final Four: Levi 6th, Vinas 5th

Jun 05, '11

Blinds: 15,000-30,000

Players Remaining: 4 out of 249

Average Chip Count: 1,867,500

Chip Counts:

1. Jarred Solomon – 2,800,000
2. Amir Lehavot – 2,360,000
3. Sam Stein – 1,450,000
4. Stephen Chidwick – 800,000

Eliminations:

5th. Thomas Vinas – $150,453
6th. Nicolas Levi – $114,525

Thomas Vinas Eliminated in 5th Place ($150,453)

Jarred Solomon opened to 70,000 from under the gun and Thomas Vinas called from the button.

The flop came Q 9 7, Solomon bet 75,000, Vinas raised to 275,000, Solomon made a pot-sized reraise, Vinas shoved and Solomon called.

Vinas turned over 7 7 for bottom set while Solomon showed 9 9 for middle set.

The turn and river were the 8 and the 8, no help for Thomas Vinas who was eliminated in 5th place ($150,453) with the bottom full house.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated in 6th Place ($114,525)

Amir Lehavot opened the pot for 65,000, Nicolas Levi reraised to 200,000, Lehavot made a pot-sized reraise and Levi called all in.

Levi showed 7 7 for the lead while Lehavot showed A Q.

The board came A 9 5 10 4, giving Lehavot top pair on the flop. Nicolas Levi was eliminated in 6th place ($114,525).

Be sure to check back hourly for level-by-level updates of this final table.

Player Tags: Thomas Vinas,   Nicolas Levi,   Amir Lehavot,   Jarred Solomon

Level 22: Jaffe Eliminated 10th, Final Table Now Underway

Jun 05, '11

NOTE: Play ended last night with 15 players and resumed today at 3:00pm. The final 10 players consolidated to one table, and with the elimination of Jonathan Jaffe in 10th place ($40,890), the official nine-handed final table is now underway.

Blinds: 10,000-20,000

Players Remaining: 9 out of 249

Average Chip Count: 830,000

Chip Counts:

1. Jared Solomon – 1,427,000
2. Thomas Vinas – 1,409,000
3. Amir Lehavot – 1,268,000
4. Stephen Chidwick – 772,000
5. Michael Benvenuti – 670,000
6. Sam Stein – 599,000
7. Nicolas Levi – 579,000
8. Eric Cloutier – 457,000
9. McLean Karr – 290,000

Payouts:

1st. $573,456
2nd. $354,460
3rd. $264,651
4th. $198,927
5th. $150,453
6th. $114,525
7th. $87,702
8th. $67,596
9th. $52,406

Be sure to check back hourly for level-by-level updates of this final table.

Player Tags: Eric Cloutier,   Thomas Vinas,   Nicolas Levi,   Amir Lehavot,   Stephen Chidwick,   Mclean Karr,   Jarred Solomon,   Michael Benvenuti,   Sam Stein

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

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

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

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

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

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

Shak and Awe

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

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

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

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

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

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

Show The Bluff

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

Up and Down Day for Lacay

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

Present for Praz

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

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

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

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

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

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

Level 9 Update: Ivey Leads The Way

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 500-1,000 with 100 ante

Players Remaining: 130 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Phil Ivey — 302,000
2 Viktor Blom — 275,000
3 Antonio Esfandiari — 225,000
4 James Mitchell — 210,000
5 Barny Boatman — 185,000
6 McLean Karr — 185,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 180,000
9 Nick Schulman — 169,000
10 John Eames — 162,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 87,000

Average Chip Count: 79,846

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Walsh
Ted Lawson
Leo Margets

Big Hands:

Phil Ivey Takes a Large Chip Lead

Four players saw a K 10 6 flop before James Keys bet 7,500 from the cutoff. Phil Ivey raised to 18,500 from the small blind and the two other players mucked. Keys raised to 40,000 and Ivey reraised to 80,000. Keys moved all in and Ivey made the call. Their cards:

Ivey: 10 10
Keys: K Q

Turn and River: J 2

Ivey now has 317,000 and he is a dominant chip leader as even his closest competitors lag behind by a six-digit deficit.

Viktor Bloom into Second

Viktor Bloom and Jason Gray got all of their chips into the middle on a 6 5 4 flop and although Gray held pocket fives, he received some bad news when Bloom revealed pocket sixes. The turn and river didn’t make any difference and Gray hit the rail on the losing side of a classic set-over-set situation.

Kelly Takes Bite Out of Ivey

Current chip leader Phil Ivey bets 2,700 from late position and JP Kelly calls from the button. The flop is 7 6 2 and Ivey bets 4,000. Kelly calls and the turn is the 2. Ivey then fires again, this time for 11,000, and once more Kelly makes the call. The river is the 8 and Ivey bets 25,000. Kelly thinks for a minute and then moves all in for 55,300 more. Ivey goes into the tank and begrudgingly folds. He stares into the distance, looking quite perplexed as Kelly rakes in the chips. The 2009 WSOP and WSOPE double bracelet winner now has more than 135,000 in chips. Ivey drops to 302,000, but is most likely still the chip leader at this stage.

Walsh Wiggs Out

Anton Wigg bets 2,300 from under the gun and Ted Lawson calls from middle position. Pat Walsh moves all in from the small blind and Wigg reraises it to 45,000. Lawson thinks for two minutes and then passes. It’s heads up, Lykov versus Walsh, and the flop comes K 5 10 5 A. Walsh’s 7 7 are not good enough however as Lykov has a better pocket pair – 9 9. Walsh is out and Lykov is now on 85,000 in chips.

Stout Collects

JP Kelly bets 2,500 from the hijack and Matt Stout calls form the cutoff. The flop is K Q 7 and Kelly bets 5,400. Stout calls and the turn is the 8. Kelly bets 12,200 and Stout moves all in. Kelly insta-mucks and Stout is now on 71,000 in chips.

Levi Sends Lawson Home

Ted Lawson bets 2,700 from under the gun and Nicolas Levi raises it to 6,500. It’s folded around to Lawson who calls, and the two see a J 7 5 flop. Lawson checks and Levi has a look to see what the American has left behind. It’s around 22,200. Levi checks. The turn is the 10 and Lawson bets 7,500. Almost before the last chip hits the felt Levi throws out 35,000, ultimately putting Lawson all in. Lawson takes a bite of his snack and contemplates the call. After a few minutes in the tank he calls and flips over 8 8. Levi shows 10 10 and the river is the 7. Lawson is out and Levi adds what once were American chips to his French collection.

Left in the Deck

Card Player TV – Phil Laak’s Wild Ride

Player Tags: Ted Lawson,   Phil Ivey,   Pat Walsh,   Matt Stout,   Nicolas Levi,   J.P. Kelly,   Anton Wigg,   Viktor Blom

Level 7 Update: Stars are Rising

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Remaining: 180 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 178,850
2 John Dolan — 173,700
3 Hoyt Corkins — 169,000
4 Phil Ivey — 145,000
5 Quinn Do — 140,450
6 Adam Fletcher — 136,025
7 Nicolas Levi — 135,000
8 Sam Trickett — 135,000
9 Leo Margets — 130,000
10 Bruno Fitoussi — 120,250

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 57,700

Average Chip Count: 57,666

Notable Eliminations:

John Juanda
Chris Bjorin
Dan O’Brien
Jeffrey Lisandro
Andrew Lichtenberger
Neil Channing
Tommy Vedes
Adam Levy

Big Hands:

Nicolas Levi Busts One

John Tabatai raised to 1,500 preflop and Nicolas Levi made the call behind him. Jomer Meelis reraised to 5,200 and Tabatai mucked. Levi bet 30,000 and Meelis made the all-in call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Meelis: A A

Board: 10 2 5 A K

Levi made a flush and Meelis was eliminated from the tournament in spite of his three aces.

Tilly in The Tank

Chris Moorman bets 1,600 from the cut-off and Hoyt Corkins raises it to 4,300 from the small blind. Jennifer Tilly pops it to 15,000 and Moorman folds. Corkins thinks for a few moments and elects to call. The flop comes 7s 7d 6d and Corkins checks. Tilly bets 25,000 and Corkins makes it 50,000. Tilly stands to see what he has left. He has roughly 60,000 in chips behind, while Tilly has a little under 70,000. Tilly goes into the tank for six minutes, repeatedly standing up to see all the chips and sitting back down, trying to make her decision. Eventually she mucks and says, “Show the bluff. I had to go all in or fold.”

Shortly after this Tilly took a hit from Jim Collopy. It wasn’t as damaging but after starting the day in the top 20, she now has 55,000 in front of her. Collopy has 50,000. But the clear chip leader of that table is Corkins who has 169,000 going into the first break of the day.

Brynn Kenney Almost Triples Up

Bryn Kenney moved all in for 18,575 on a A A 6 5 board after one player bet 10,000 and Faraz Jaka had made the call ahead of him. The original player to act mucked and Jaka made the call. Kenney flipped over A K, which held to win the hand and grow his stack to 75,000.

Roland de Wolfe Getting Low

Ludovic Lacay moved all in 16,300 with flop of 7 3 3 sitting on the table and Roland de Wolfe went into the tank for five minutes before he made the call. Their cards:

De Wolfe: K 7
Lacay: J J

Turn and River: 4 and A

Lacay doubled up to 50,000 after the hand while De Wolfe held 26,000.

Left in the Deck

Official Payout Information

1: £830,401
2: £513,049
3: £376,829
4: £278,945
5: £208,119
6: £156,530
7: £118,643
8: £90,617
9: £69,754
10-12: £54,114
13-15: £42,454
16-18: £33,285
19-27: £26,400
28-36: £21,106

Player Tags: Hoyt Corkins,   Jennifer Tilly,   Nicolas Levi,   John Tabatabai,   Jim Collopy

Level 14 Update: Kid Poker Hits Rail

Sep 26, '10

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 400 ante

Players Remaining: 43 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Andrew Pantling — 795,000
2 Bojan Gledovic — 720,000
3 Darren Woods — 550,000
4 Phil Ivey — 435,000
5 Daniel Steinberg — 409,000
6 Arnaud Mattern — 365,000
7 Viktor Blom — 350,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 346,000
9 David Baker — 340,000
10 Yevgeniy Timoshenko — 340,000

Average Chip Count: 241,395

Notable Eliminations:

Eli Elezra
Daniel Negreanu
Anton Wigg

Big Hands:

2009 Runner-Up Eliminated

Daniel Negreanu just handed his stack over to Darren Woods who has already been sitting in the top 10 since early yesterday. Woods bets 7,100 from the cut-off and Negreanu makes it 20,100 from the small blind. Woods thought for a while and raised it up. However Negreanu insta-shoved for just a little more and Woods was committed to call. It was A-K versus pocket threes for Negreanu and Woods respectively. The threes held however and Negreanu stood up looking a little pale. He said, " I can’t believe you thought I was going to fold there. I’m never folding in that spot."

Negreanu’s hopes of taking a seat at his third consecutive World Series of Poker Europe main event final table have now been destroyed, along with many others’ as the field has been quickly demolished on day 3.

Loss for Levi

Freddy Deeb bets 7,500 from the hijack and the button, Anthony Newman. moves all in for 41,000. Nicolas Levi calls from the big blind and Deeb folds showing an ace. The board comes 8 7 4 2 8. Levi holds J J but Newman has Q Q and so improves to 88,000. Levi has 150,000 in chips now.

Blom Versus de Wolfe

Roland de Wolfe is on Viktor Blom’s left and the two have been battling it out in the past level, along with Thomas Bichon. De Wolfe bet 7,200 and Bichon made it 21,500. Blom called, as did de Wolfe, and the three saw a 9 5 4 board. It was checked to the K turn and de Wolfe and Blom checked again. Bichon bet 41,000 and his two opponents folded their cards. De Wolfe dropped a little to 120,000 while Bichon increased his stack to 355,000.

It wasn’t long before de Wolfe was involved in another pot, but this time for his tournament life. Blom made it 6,800 from mid-late position and de Wolfe called from the hijack. The two went heads up to the J 7 6 flop and Blom bet 14,500. De Wolfe looked at his opponent and then called. The turn was the 10 and both players quietly checked. The river was the 5 and Blom bet 25,000. De Wolfe moved all in and it was 61,800 more for Blom to call. After a few minutes he did, but de Wolfe turned over 5 5 for a rivered set and Blom mucked his hand. De Wolfe improves to 215,000.

Blondeau Takes from Ivey

Two other players going to battle are Rudy Blondeau and Phil Ivey. With around 41,000 in the pot and the board showing A K 2 2 6 Ivey was staring down Blondeau as he decided how much to bet. He went for 23,000, but Ivey didn’t take long to make it 81,000. Blondeau went into the tank but eventually called and flipped over A J. Ivey showed A Q and the two chopped the pot.

They didn’t have to wait much longer to face each other again. Ivey bet 7,500 from the hijack and Blondeau made it 21,500 from the button. Ivey let it go. In the next hand Ivey then bet 7,500 again and Blondeau made it 21,500 once more. This time Ivey called and they saw a 7 5 2 flop. Ivey studied his opponent with widened, darting eyes and then checked. Blondeau did not make eye contact and quietly put 26,500 out in front of him. Ivey let his hand go again and drops to 430,000, which is still among the top 10. Blondeau improves to 246,000.

Trouble for Inizan

Marc Inizan bets 7,075 from UTG+1 and gets two callers, the button and the big blind. The flop comes down 10 4 7 and Inizan bets 10,100. Hoi Cheung (the button) comes along for the ride, while the big blind steps aside. The turn is the 2 and Inizan bets 22,500. Cheung moves all in for 58,200 and Inizan goes into the tank. He eventually folds and Cheung collects the pot.

Mitchell Takes a Hit

James Mitchell bets 7,300 from the hijack and Viktor Blom calls. Ronald Lee then moves all in for another 79,300 and Mitchell calls. Blom folds and the two flip over their cards.

Mitchell: J J
Lee: A K

Board: A Q 9 Q 8

Mitchell’s stack takes a hit and he is now on 126,000. Lee doubles up just before break.

Timoshenko vs. Seed

Yevgeniy Timoshenko raised to 8,000 preflop and Huck Seed reraised to 23,500. Timoshenko made the call and the flop fell 10 9 5. Both players checked and the Q fell on the turn. Timoshenko bet 29,000 after some thought and Seed made the call.

The river fell 4 and Timoshenko checked after spending some time in the tank. Seed checked as well and he flipped over J J after Timoshenko had revealed K Q. Seed dropped to 115,000 after the hand and Timoshenko rose to 360,000.

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

Andrew Pantling has had a fantastic level and has come to the fore as chip leader with just under 800,000 in chips. It’s still a tough leader board however with the likes of Phil Ivey, Arnaud Mattern, Viktor Blom, and Thomas Bichon in the top 10. Mattern is on Pantling’s left with just under 400,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Huck Seed,   Daniel Negreanu,   Phil Ivey,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan,   James Mitchell,   Viktor Blom,   Rudy Blondeau

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

Sep 28, '10

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

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

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

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

Big Hands:

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

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

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

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

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

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

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

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

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

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

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

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

Level 25 Update: Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 6 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 2,550,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,250,000
3: James Bord – 2,200,000
4: Dan Steinberg – 1,500,000
5: Nicolas Levi – 1,275,000
6: Roland de Wolfe – 550,000

Average Chip Count: 1,730,000

Notable Cashes:

7

Dan Fleyshman

£118,643

Big Hands:

Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Ronald Lee raised it to 85,000 preflop and Dan Fleyshman reraised all in for 250,000. Lee made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Lee: K 5
Fleyshman: J 10

Board: K 7 3 8 A

Fleyshman was eliminated in seventh place and he took home £118,643 in prize money while Lee continued to build his chip lead.

James Bord Doubles Up and Ignites the Crowd

Ronald Lee raised to 85,000 preflop under the gun and Nicolas Levi reraised to 225,000 from the cutoff. James Bord then reraised all in after thinking for quite some time. Lee got out of the way and Levi made the call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Bord: J J

Board: 9 5 5 5 7

Bord won the hand to double up and the cheers from the crowd could be heard throughout the Empire Casino.

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up

Roland de Wolfe raised to 95,000 preflop and Nicolas Levi reraised all in for 595,000. De Wolfe made the call after spending a moment in the tank and they flipped over their cards:

De Wolfe: A 10
Levi: A 8

Board: 8 6 2 A 5

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered another setback.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   James Bord

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

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

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

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

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

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

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

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

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

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

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

Level 23 Update: Marc Inizan (9th) and Brian Powell (8th) Eliminated

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 12,000-24,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,164,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,063,000
3: Dan Fleyshman – 1,797,000
4: James Bord – 1,059,000
5: Roland de Wolfe – 931,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 787,000
7: Nicolas Levi – 584,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Notable Cashes:

9	Marc Inizan	£54,114
8	Brian Powell	£69,754

Big Hands:

Marc Inizan Eliminated in Ninth Place (£54,114) and Brian Powell Eliminated in Eighth Place (£69,754) on the Same Hand

Marc Inizan moved all in preflop for 313,000 preflop and Brian Powell moved all in over the top of him before Ronald Lee made the call and had both opponents covered. Their cards:

Lee: A K
Inizan: 8 8
Powell: 8 8

Board: J 10 6 K 4

Lee won the hand to take a dominating chip lead with more than 3 million. Inizan was eliminated in ninth place (£54,114) and Powell took home eight-place money (£69,754).

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up Through Roland de Wolfe

Dan Fleyshman limped preflop and Roland de Wolfe also joined the pot from the cutoff. Nicolas Levi then moved all in from the small blind for 336,000. Fleyshman mucked and de Wolfe made the call. Their cards:

Levi: 10 10
De Wolfe: A K

Board: Q 9 4 8 8

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered a setback to start the day.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Brian Powell,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

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

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

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

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

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

Shak and Awe

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

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

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

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

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

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

Show The Bluff

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

Up and Down Day for Lacay

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

Present for Praz

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

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

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

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

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

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

Level 9 Update: Ivey Leads The Way

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 500-1,000 with 100 ante

Players Remaining: 130 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Phil Ivey — 302,000
2 Viktor Blom — 275,000
3 Antonio Esfandiari — 225,000
4 James Mitchell — 210,000
5 Barny Boatman — 185,000
6 McLean Karr — 185,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 180,000
9 Nick Schulman — 169,000
10 John Eames — 162,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 87,000

Average Chip Count: 79,846

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Walsh
Ted Lawson
Leo Margets

Big Hands:

Phil Ivey Takes a Large Chip Lead

Four players saw a K 10 6 flop before James Keys bet 7,500 from the cutoff. Phil Ivey raised to 18,500 from the small blind and the two other players mucked. Keys raised to 40,000 and Ivey reraised to 80,000. Keys moved all in and Ivey made the call. Their cards:

Ivey: 10 10
Keys: K Q

Turn and River: J 2

Ivey now has 317,000 and he is a dominant chip leader as even his closest competitors lag behind by a six-digit deficit.

Viktor Bloom into Second

Viktor Bloom and Jason Gray got all of their chips into the middle on a 6 5 4 flop and although Gray held pocket fives, he received some bad news when Bloom revealed pocket sixes. The turn and river didn’t make any difference and Gray hit the rail on the losing side of a classic set-over-set situation.

Kelly Takes Bite Out of Ivey

Current chip leader Phil Ivey bets 2,700 from late position and JP Kelly calls from the button. The flop is 7 6 2 and Ivey bets 4,000. Kelly calls and the turn is the 2. Ivey then fires again, this time for 11,000, and once more Kelly makes the call. The river is the 8 and Ivey bets 25,000. Kelly thinks for a minute and then moves all in for 55,300 more. Ivey goes into the tank and begrudgingly folds. He stares into the distance, looking quite perplexed as Kelly rakes in the chips. The 2009 WSOP and WSOPE double bracelet winner now has more than 135,000 in chips. Ivey drops to 302,000, but is most likely still the chip leader at this stage.

Walsh Wiggs Out

Anton Wigg bets 2,300 from under the gun and Ted Lawson calls from middle position. Pat Walsh moves all in from the small blind and Wigg reraises it to 45,000. Lawson thinks for two minutes and then passes. It’s heads up, Lykov versus Walsh, and the flop comes K 5 10 5 A. Walsh’s 7 7 are not good enough however as Lykov has a better pocket pair – 9 9. Walsh is out and Lykov is now on 85,000 in chips.

Stout Collects

JP Kelly bets 2,500 from the hijack and Matt Stout calls form the cutoff. The flop is K Q 7 and Kelly bets 5,400. Stout calls and the turn is the 8. Kelly bets 12,200 and Stout moves all in. Kelly insta-mucks and Stout is now on 71,000 in chips.

Levi Sends Lawson Home

Ted Lawson bets 2,700 from under the gun and Nicolas Levi raises it to 6,500. It’s folded around to Lawson who calls, and the two see a J 7 5 flop. Lawson checks and Levi has a look to see what the American has left behind. It’s around 22,200. Levi checks. The turn is the 10 and Lawson bets 7,500. Almost before the last chip hits the felt Levi throws out 35,000, ultimately putting Lawson all in. Lawson takes a bite of his snack and contemplates the call. After a few minutes in the tank he calls and flips over 8 8. Levi shows 10 10 and the river is the 7. Lawson is out and Levi adds what once were American chips to his French collection.

Left in the Deck

Card Player TV – Phil Laak’s Wild Ride

Player Tags: Ted Lawson,   Phil Ivey,   Pat Walsh,   Matt Stout,   Nicolas Levi,   J.P. Kelly,   Anton Wigg,   Viktor Blom

Level 7 Update: Stars are Rising

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Remaining: 180 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 178,850
2 John Dolan — 173,700
3 Hoyt Corkins — 169,000
4 Phil Ivey — 145,000
5 Quinn Do — 140,450
6 Adam Fletcher — 136,025
7 Nicolas Levi — 135,000
8 Sam Trickett — 135,000
9 Leo Margets — 130,000
10 Bruno Fitoussi — 120,250

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 57,700

Average Chip Count: 57,666

Notable Eliminations:

John Juanda
Chris Bjorin
Dan O’Brien
Jeffrey Lisandro
Andrew Lichtenberger
Neil Channing
Tommy Vedes
Adam Levy

Big Hands:

Nicolas Levi Busts One

John Tabatai raised to 1,500 preflop and Nicolas Levi made the call behind him. Jomer Meelis reraised to 5,200 and Tabatai mucked. Levi bet 30,000 and Meelis made the all-in call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Meelis: A A

Board: 10 2 5 A K

Levi made a flush and Meelis was eliminated from the tournament in spite of his three aces.

Tilly in The Tank

Chris Moorman bets 1,600 from the cut-off and Hoyt Corkins raises it to 4,300 from the small blind. Jennifer Tilly pops it to 15,000 and Moorman folds. Corkins thinks for a few moments and elects to call. The flop comes 7s 7d 6d and Corkins checks. Tilly bets 25,000 and Corkins makes it 50,000. Tilly stands to see what he has left. He has roughly 60,000 in chips behind, while Tilly has a little under 70,000. Tilly goes into the tank for six minutes, repeatedly standing up to see all the chips and sitting back down, trying to make her decision. Eventually she mucks and says, “Show the bluff. I had to go all in or fold.”

Shortly after this Tilly took a hit from Jim Collopy. It wasn’t as damaging but after starting the day in the top 20, she now has 55,000 in front of her. Collopy has 50,000. But the clear chip leader of that table is Corkins who has 169,000 going into the first break of the day.

Brynn Kenney Almost Triples Up

Bryn Kenney moved all in for 18,575 on a A A 6 5 board after one player bet 10,000 and Faraz Jaka had made the call ahead of him. The original player to act mucked and Jaka made the call. Kenney flipped over A K, which held to win the hand and grow his stack to 75,000.

Roland de Wolfe Getting Low

Ludovic Lacay moved all in 16,300 with flop of 7 3 3 sitting on the table and Roland de Wolfe went into the tank for five minutes before he made the call. Their cards:

De Wolfe: K 7
Lacay: J J

Turn and River: 4 and A

Lacay doubled up to 50,000 after the hand while De Wolfe held 26,000.

Left in the Deck

Official Payout Information

1: £830,401
2: £513,049
3: £376,829
4: £278,945
5: £208,119
6: £156,530
7: £118,643
8: £90,617
9: £69,754
10-12: £54,114
13-15: £42,454
16-18: £33,285
19-27: £26,400
28-36: £21,106

Player Tags: Hoyt Corkins,   Jennifer Tilly,   Nicolas Levi,   John Tabatabai,   Jim Collopy

Level 14 Update: Kid Poker Hits Rail

Sep 26, '10

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 400 ante

Players Remaining: 43 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Andrew Pantling — 795,000
2 Bojan Gledovic — 720,000
3 Darren Woods — 550,000
4 Phil Ivey — 435,000
5 Daniel Steinberg — 409,000
6 Arnaud Mattern — 365,000
7 Viktor Blom — 350,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 346,000
9 David Baker — 340,000
10 Yevgeniy Timoshenko — 340,000

Average Chip Count: 241,395

Notable Eliminations:

Eli Elezra
Daniel Negreanu
Anton Wigg

Big Hands:

2009 Runner-Up Eliminated

Daniel Negreanu just handed his stack over to Darren Woods who has already been sitting in the top 10 since early yesterday. Woods bets 7,100 from the cut-off and Negreanu makes it 20,100 from the small blind. Woods thought for a while and raised it up. However Negreanu insta-shoved for just a little more and Woods was committed to call. It was A-K versus pocket threes for Negreanu and Woods respectively. The threes held however and Negreanu stood up looking a little pale. He said, " I can’t believe you thought I was going to fold there. I’m never folding in that spot."

Negreanu’s hopes of taking a seat at his third consecutive World Series of Poker Europe main event final table have now been destroyed, along with many others’ as the field has been quickly demolished on day 3.

Loss for Levi

Freddy Deeb bets 7,500 from the hijack and the button, Anthony Newman. moves all in for 41,000. Nicolas Levi calls from the big blind and Deeb folds showing an ace. The board comes 8 7 4 2 8. Levi holds J J but Newman has Q Q and so improves to 88,000. Levi has 150,000 in chips now.

Blom Versus de Wolfe

Roland de Wolfe is on Viktor Blom’s left and the two have been battling it out in the past level, along with Thomas Bichon. De Wolfe bet 7,200 and Bichon made it 21,500. Blom called, as did de Wolfe, and the three saw a 9 5 4 board. It was checked to the K turn and de Wolfe and Blom checked again. Bichon bet 41,000 and his two opponents folded their cards. De Wolfe dropped a little to 120,000 while Bichon increased his stack to 355,000.

It wasn’t long before de Wolfe was involved in another pot, but this time for his tournament life. Blom made it 6,800 from mid-late position and de Wolfe called from the hijack. The two went heads up to the J 7 6 flop and Blom bet 14,500. De Wolfe looked at his opponent and then called. The turn was the 10 and both players quietly checked. The river was the 5 and Blom bet 25,000. De Wolfe moved all in and it was 61,800 more for Blom to call. After a few minutes he did, but de Wolfe turned over 5 5 for a rivered set and Blom mucked his hand. De Wolfe improves to 215,000.

Blondeau Takes from Ivey

Two other players going to battle are Rudy Blondeau and Phil Ivey. With around 41,000 in the pot and the board showing A K 2 2 6 Ivey was staring down Blondeau as he decided how much to bet. He went for 23,000, but Ivey didn’t take long to make it 81,000. Blondeau went into the tank but eventually called and flipped over A J. Ivey showed A Q and the two chopped the pot.

They didn’t have to wait much longer to face each other again. Ivey bet 7,500 from the hijack and Blondeau made it 21,500 from the button. Ivey let it go. In the next hand Ivey then bet 7,500 again and Blondeau made it 21,500 once more. This time Ivey called and they saw a 7 5 2 flop. Ivey studied his opponent with widened, darting eyes and then checked. Blondeau did not make eye contact and quietly put 26,500 out in front of him. Ivey let his hand go again and drops to 430,000, which is still among the top 10. Blondeau improves to 246,000.

Trouble for Inizan

Marc Inizan bets 7,075 from UTG+1 and gets two callers, the button and the big blind. The flop comes down 10 4 7 and Inizan bets 10,100. Hoi Cheung (the button) comes along for the ride, while the big blind steps aside. The turn is the 2 and Inizan bets 22,500. Cheung moves all in for 58,200 and Inizan goes into the tank. He eventually folds and Cheung collects the pot.

Mitchell Takes a Hit

James Mitchell bets 7,300 from the hijack and Viktor Blom calls. Ronald Lee then moves all in for another 79,300 and Mitchell calls. Blom folds and the two flip over their cards.

Mitchell: J J
Lee: A K

Board: A Q 9 Q 8

Mitchell’s stack takes a hit and he is now on 126,000. Lee doubles up just before break.

Timoshenko vs. Seed

Yevgeniy Timoshenko raised to 8,000 preflop and Huck Seed reraised to 23,500. Timoshenko made the call and the flop fell 10 9 5. Both players checked and the Q fell on the turn. Timoshenko bet 29,000 after some thought and Seed made the call.

The river fell 4 and Timoshenko checked after spending some time in the tank. Seed checked as well and he flipped over J J after Timoshenko had revealed K Q. Seed dropped to 115,000 after the hand and Timoshenko rose to 360,000.

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

Andrew Pantling has had a fantastic level and has come to the fore as chip leader with just under 800,000 in chips. It’s still a tough leader board however with the likes of Phil Ivey, Arnaud Mattern, Viktor Blom, and Thomas Bichon in the top 10. Mattern is on Pantling’s left with just under 400,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Huck Seed,   Daniel Negreanu,   Phil Ivey,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan,   James Mitchell,   Viktor Blom,   Rudy Blondeau

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

Sep 28, '10

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

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

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

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

Big Hands:

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

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

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

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

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

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

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

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

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

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

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

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

Level 25 Update: Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 6 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 2,550,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,250,000
3: James Bord – 2,200,000
4: Dan Steinberg – 1,500,000
5: Nicolas Levi – 1,275,000
6: Roland de Wolfe – 550,000

Average Chip Count: 1,730,000

Notable Cashes:

7

Dan Fleyshman

£118,643

Big Hands:

Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Ronald Lee raised it to 85,000 preflop and Dan Fleyshman reraised all in for 250,000. Lee made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Lee: K 5
Fleyshman: J 10

Board: K 7 3 8 A

Fleyshman was eliminated in seventh place and he took home £118,643 in prize money while Lee continued to build his chip lead.

James Bord Doubles Up and Ignites the Crowd

Ronald Lee raised to 85,000 preflop under the gun and Nicolas Levi reraised to 225,000 from the cutoff. James Bord then reraised all in after thinking for quite some time. Lee got out of the way and Levi made the call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Bord: J J

Board: 9 5 5 5 7

Bord won the hand to double up and the cheers from the crowd could be heard throughout the Empire Casino.

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up

Roland de Wolfe raised to 95,000 preflop and Nicolas Levi reraised all in for 595,000. De Wolfe made the call after spending a moment in the tank and they flipped over their cards:

De Wolfe: A 10
Levi: A 8

Board: 8 6 2 A 5

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered another setback.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   James Bord

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

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

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

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

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

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

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

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

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

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

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

Level 23 Update: Marc Inizan (9th) and Brian Powell (8th) Eliminated

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 12,000-24,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,164,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,063,000
3: Dan Fleyshman – 1,797,000
4: James Bord – 1,059,000
5: Roland de Wolfe – 931,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 787,000
7: Nicolas Levi – 584,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Notable Cashes:

9	Marc Inizan	£54,114
8	Brian Powell	£69,754

Big Hands:

Marc Inizan Eliminated in Ninth Place (£54,114) and Brian Powell Eliminated in Eighth Place (£69,754) on the Same Hand

Marc Inizan moved all in preflop for 313,000 preflop and Brian Powell moved all in over the top of him before Ronald Lee made the call and had both opponents covered. Their cards:

Lee: A K
Inizan: 8 8
Powell: 8 8

Board: J 10 6 K 4

Lee won the hand to take a dominating chip lead with more than 3 million. Inizan was eliminated in ninth place (£54,114) and Powell took home eight-place money (£69,754).

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up Through Roland de Wolfe

Dan Fleyshman limped preflop and Roland de Wolfe also joined the pot from the cutoff. Nicolas Levi then moved all in from the small blind for 336,000. Fleyshman mucked and de Wolfe made the call. Their cards:

Levi: 10 10
De Wolfe: A K

Board: Q 9 4 8 8

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered a setback to start the day.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Brian Powell,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan

Level 10 Update: Viktor Blom Rockin' It

Sep 25, '10

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

Blinds: 600-1,200 with 200 ante

Players Remaining: 98 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 81,000

Average Chip Count: 105,918

Notable Eliminations:

John Racener
Tyler Bonkowski
Jim Collopy
Charles Chua
Andy Black

Big Hands:

Viktor Blom Takes the Lead

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

Three Streets of Value for Schulman

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

Shak and Awe

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

Esfandiari: K 10

Shak: 6 3

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

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

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

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

Show The Bluff

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

Up and Down Day for Lacay

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

Present for Praz

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

De Wolfe Gets Lucky

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

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

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

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

Level 9 Update: Ivey Leads The Way

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 500-1,000 with 100 ante

Players Remaining: 130 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Phil Ivey — 302,000
2 Viktor Blom — 275,000
3 Antonio Esfandiari — 225,000
4 James Mitchell — 210,000
5 Barny Boatman — 185,000
6 McLean Karr — 185,000
7 Andrew Pantling — 183,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 180,000
9 Nick Schulman — 169,000
10 John Eames — 162,000

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 87,000

Average Chip Count: 79,846

Notable Eliminations:

Pat Walsh
Ted Lawson
Leo Margets

Big Hands:

Phil Ivey Takes a Large Chip Lead

Four players saw a K 10 6 flop before James Keys bet 7,500 from the cutoff. Phil Ivey raised to 18,500 from the small blind and the two other players mucked. Keys raised to 40,000 and Ivey reraised to 80,000. Keys moved all in and Ivey made the call. Their cards:

Ivey: 10 10
Keys: K Q

Turn and River: J 2

Ivey now has 317,000 and he is a dominant chip leader as even his closest competitors lag behind by a six-digit deficit.

Viktor Bloom into Second

Viktor Bloom and Jason Gray got all of their chips into the middle on a 6 5 4 flop and although Gray held pocket fives, he received some bad news when Bloom revealed pocket sixes. The turn and river didn’t make any difference and Gray hit the rail on the losing side of a classic set-over-set situation.

Kelly Takes Bite Out of Ivey

Current chip leader Phil Ivey bets 2,700 from late position and JP Kelly calls from the button. The flop is 7 6 2 and Ivey bets 4,000. Kelly calls and the turn is the 2. Ivey then fires again, this time for 11,000, and once more Kelly makes the call. The river is the 8 and Ivey bets 25,000. Kelly thinks for a minute and then moves all in for 55,300 more. Ivey goes into the tank and begrudgingly folds. He stares into the distance, looking quite perplexed as Kelly rakes in the chips. The 2009 WSOP and WSOPE double bracelet winner now has more than 135,000 in chips. Ivey drops to 302,000, but is most likely still the chip leader at this stage.

Walsh Wiggs Out

Anton Wigg bets 2,300 from under the gun and Ted Lawson calls from middle position. Pat Walsh moves all in from the small blind and Wigg reraises it to 45,000. Lawson thinks for two minutes and then passes. It’s heads up, Lykov versus Walsh, and the flop comes K 5 10 5 A. Walsh’s 7 7 are not good enough however as Lykov has a better pocket pair – 9 9. Walsh is out and Lykov is now on 85,000 in chips.

Stout Collects

JP Kelly bets 2,500 from the hijack and Matt Stout calls form the cutoff. The flop is K Q 7 and Kelly bets 5,400. Stout calls and the turn is the 8. Kelly bets 12,200 and Stout moves all in. Kelly insta-mucks and Stout is now on 71,000 in chips.

Levi Sends Lawson Home

Ted Lawson bets 2,700 from under the gun and Nicolas Levi raises it to 6,500. It’s folded around to Lawson who calls, and the two see a J 7 5 flop. Lawson checks and Levi has a look to see what the American has left behind. It’s around 22,200. Levi checks. The turn is the 10 and Lawson bets 7,500. Almost before the last chip hits the felt Levi throws out 35,000, ultimately putting Lawson all in. Lawson takes a bite of his snack and contemplates the call. After a few minutes in the tank he calls and flips over 8 8. Levi shows 10 10 and the river is the 7. Lawson is out and Levi adds what once were American chips to his French collection.

Left in the Deck

Card Player TV – Phil Laak’s Wild Ride

Player Tags: Ted Lawson,   Phil Ivey,   Pat Walsh,   Matt Stout,   Nicolas Levi,   J.P. Kelly,   Anton Wigg,   Viktor Blom

Level 7 Update: Stars are Rising

Sep 25, '10

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Remaining: 180 out of 346

Chip Counts:

1 James Mitchell — 178,850
2 John Dolan — 173,700
3 Hoyt Corkins — 169,000
4 Phil Ivey — 145,000
5 Quinn Do — 140,450
6 Adam Fletcher — 136,025
7 Nicolas Levi — 135,000
8 Sam Trickett — 135,000
9 Leo Margets — 130,000
10 Bruno Fitoussi — 120,250

Card Player Family Chip Counts:

Barry Shulman — 57,700

Average Chip Count: 57,666

Notable Eliminations:

John Juanda
Chris Bjorin
Dan O’Brien
Jeffrey Lisandro
Andrew Lichtenberger
Neil Channing
Tommy Vedes
Adam Levy

Big Hands:

Nicolas Levi Busts One

John Tabatai raised to 1,500 preflop and Nicolas Levi made the call behind him. Jomer Meelis reraised to 5,200 and Tabatai mucked. Levi bet 30,000 and Meelis made the all-in call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Meelis: A A

Board: 10 2 5 A K

Levi made a flush and Meelis was eliminated from the tournament in spite of his three aces.

Tilly in The Tank

Chris Moorman bets 1,600 from the cut-off and Hoyt Corkins raises it to 4,300 from the small blind. Jennifer Tilly pops it to 15,000 and Moorman folds. Corkins thinks for a few moments and elects to call. The flop comes 7s 7d 6d and Corkins checks. Tilly bets 25,000 and Corkins makes it 50,000. Tilly stands to see what he has left. He has roughly 60,000 in chips behind, while Tilly has a little under 70,000. Tilly goes into the tank for six minutes, repeatedly standing up to see all the chips and sitting back down, trying to make her decision. Eventually she mucks and says, “Show the bluff. I had to go all in or fold.”

Shortly after this Tilly took a hit from Jim Collopy. It wasn’t as damaging but after starting the day in the top 20, she now has 55,000 in front of her. Collopy has 50,000. But the clear chip leader of that table is Corkins who has 169,000 going into the first break of the day.

Brynn Kenney Almost Triples Up

Bryn Kenney moved all in for 18,575 on a A A 6 5 board after one player bet 10,000 and Faraz Jaka had made the call ahead of him. The original player to act mucked and Jaka made the call. Kenney flipped over A K, which held to win the hand and grow his stack to 75,000.

Roland de Wolfe Getting Low

Ludovic Lacay moved all in 16,300 with flop of 7 3 3 sitting on the table and Roland de Wolfe went into the tank for five minutes before he made the call. Their cards:

De Wolfe: K 7
Lacay: J J

Turn and River: 4 and A

Lacay doubled up to 50,000 after the hand while De Wolfe held 26,000.

Left in the Deck

Official Payout Information

1: £830,401
2: £513,049
3: £376,829
4: £278,945
5: £208,119
6: £156,530
7: £118,643
8: £90,617
9: £69,754
10-12: £54,114
13-15: £42,454
16-18: £33,285
19-27: £26,400
28-36: £21,106

Player Tags: Hoyt Corkins,   Jennifer Tilly,   Nicolas Levi,   John Tabatabai,   Jim Collopy

Level 14 Update: Kid Poker Hits Rail

Sep 26, '10

Blinds: 1,500-3,000 with a 400 ante

Players Remaining: 43 of 346

Chip Counts:

1 Andrew Pantling — 795,000
2 Bojan Gledovic — 720,000
3 Darren Woods — 550,000
4 Phil Ivey — 435,000
5 Daniel Steinberg — 409,000
6 Arnaud Mattern — 365,000
7 Viktor Blom — 350,000
8 Thomas Bichon — 346,000
9 David Baker — 340,000
10 Yevgeniy Timoshenko — 340,000

Average Chip Count: 241,395

Notable Eliminations:

Eli Elezra
Daniel Negreanu
Anton Wigg

Big Hands:

2009 Runner-Up Eliminated

Daniel Negreanu just handed his stack over to Darren Woods who has already been sitting in the top 10 since early yesterday. Woods bets 7,100 from the cut-off and Negreanu makes it 20,100 from the small blind. Woods thought for a while and raised it up. However Negreanu insta-shoved for just a little more and Woods was committed to call. It was A-K versus pocket threes for Negreanu and Woods respectively. The threes held however and Negreanu stood up looking a little pale. He said, " I can’t believe you thought I was going to fold there. I’m never folding in that spot."

Negreanu’s hopes of taking a seat at his third consecutive World Series of Poker Europe main event final table have now been destroyed, along with many others’ as the field has been quickly demolished on day 3.

Loss for Levi

Freddy Deeb bets 7,500 from the hijack and the button, Anthony Newman. moves all in for 41,000. Nicolas Levi calls from the big blind and Deeb folds showing an ace. The board comes 8 7 4 2 8. Levi holds J J but Newman has Q Q and so improves to 88,000. Levi has 150,000 in chips now.

Blom Versus de Wolfe

Roland de Wolfe is on Viktor Blom’s left and the two have been battling it out in the past level, along with Thomas Bichon. De Wolfe bet 7,200 and Bichon made it 21,500. Blom called, as did de Wolfe, and the three saw a 9 5 4 board. It was checked to the K turn and de Wolfe and Blom checked again. Bichon bet 41,000 and his two opponents folded their cards. De Wolfe dropped a little to 120,000 while Bichon increased his stack to 355,000.

It wasn’t long before de Wolfe was involved in another pot, but this time for his tournament life. Blom made it 6,800 from mid-late position and de Wolfe called from the hijack. The two went heads up to the J 7 6 flop and Blom bet 14,500. De Wolfe looked at his opponent and then called. The turn was the 10 and both players quietly checked. The river was the 5 and Blom bet 25,000. De Wolfe moved all in and it was 61,800 more for Blom to call. After a few minutes he did, but de Wolfe turned over 5 5 for a rivered set and Blom mucked his hand. De Wolfe improves to 215,000.

Blondeau Takes from Ivey

Two other players going to battle are Rudy Blondeau and Phil Ivey. With around 41,000 in the pot and the board showing A K 2 2 6 Ivey was staring down Blondeau as he decided how much to bet. He went for 23,000, but Ivey didn’t take long to make it 81,000. Blondeau went into the tank but eventually called and flipped over A J. Ivey showed A Q and the two chopped the pot.

They didn’t have to wait much longer to face each other again. Ivey bet 7,500 from the hijack and Blondeau made it 21,500 from the button. Ivey let it go. In the next hand Ivey then bet 7,500 again and Blondeau made it 21,500 once more. This time Ivey called and they saw a 7 5 2 flop. Ivey studied his opponent with widened, darting eyes and then checked. Blondeau did not make eye contact and quietly put 26,500 out in front of him. Ivey let his hand go again and drops to 430,000, which is still among the top 10. Blondeau improves to 246,000.

Trouble for Inizan

Marc Inizan bets 7,075 from UTG+1 and gets two callers, the button and the big blind. The flop comes down 10 4 7 and Inizan bets 10,100. Hoi Cheung (the button) comes along for the ride, while the big blind steps aside. The turn is the 2 and Inizan bets 22,500. Cheung moves all in for 58,200 and Inizan goes into the tank. He eventually folds and Cheung collects the pot.

Mitchell Takes a Hit

James Mitchell bets 7,300 from the hijack and Viktor Blom calls. Ronald Lee then moves all in for another 79,300 and Mitchell calls. Blom folds and the two flip over their cards.

Mitchell: J J
Lee: A K

Board: A Q 9 Q 8

Mitchell’s stack takes a hit and he is now on 126,000. Lee doubles up just before break.

Timoshenko vs. Seed

Yevgeniy Timoshenko raised to 8,000 preflop and Huck Seed reraised to 23,500. Timoshenko made the call and the flop fell 10 9 5. Both players checked and the Q fell on the turn. Timoshenko bet 29,000 after some thought and Seed made the call.

The river fell 4 and Timoshenko checked after spending some time in the tank. Seed checked as well and he flipped over J J after Timoshenko had revealed K Q. Seed dropped to 115,000 after the hand and Timoshenko rose to 360,000.

Left in the Deck

Chip Movers and Shakers

Andrew Pantling has had a fantastic level and has come to the fore as chip leader with just under 800,000 in chips. It’s still a tough leader board however with the likes of Phil Ivey, Arnaud Mattern, Viktor Blom, and Thomas Bichon in the top 10. Mattern is on Pantling’s left with just under 400,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Huck Seed,   Daniel Negreanu,   Phil Ivey,   Roland de Wolfe,   Nicolas Levi,   Yevgeniy Timoshenko,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan,   James Mitchell,   Viktor Blom,   Rudy Blondeau

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

Sep 28, '10

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

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

Players Remaining: 3 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 3,460,000

Notable Cashes:

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

Big Hands:

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

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

Steinberg: A J
Lee: 4 4

Board: Q 9 6 3 8

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

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

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

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

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

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

De Wolfe: K Q
Baldassari: A 8

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

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

Level 25 Update: Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 6 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 2,550,000
2: Fabrizio Baldassari – 2,250,000
3: James Bord – 2,200,000
4: Dan Steinberg – 1,500,000
5: Nicolas Levi – 1,275,000
6: Roland de Wolfe – 550,000

Average Chip Count: 1,730,000

Notable Cashes:

7

Dan Fleyshman

£118,643

Big Hands:

Dan Fleyshman Eliminated in Seventh Place (£118,643)

Ronald Lee raised it to 85,000 preflop and Dan Fleyshman reraised all in for 250,000. Lee made the call and they flipped over their cards:

Lee: K 5
Fleyshman: J 10

Board: K 7 3 8 A

Fleyshman was eliminated in seventh place and he took home £118,643 in prize money while Lee continued to build his chip lead.

James Bord Doubles Up and Ignites the Crowd

Ronald Lee raised to 85,000 preflop under the gun and Nicolas Levi reraised to 225,000 from the cutoff. James Bord then reraised all in after thinking for quite some time. Lee got out of the way and Levi made the call. Their cards:

Levi: A Q
Bord: J J

Board: 9 5 5 5 7

Bord won the hand to double up and the cheers from the crowd could be heard throughout the Empire Casino.

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up

Roland de Wolfe raised to 95,000 preflop and Nicolas Levi reraised all in for 595,000. De Wolfe made the call after spending a moment in the tank and they flipped over their cards:

De Wolfe: A 10
Levi: A 8

Board: 8 6 2 A 5

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered another setback.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Dan Fleyshman,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   James Bord

Level 24 Update: Levi and Steinberg Double

Sep 28, '10

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

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

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

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Big Hands:

Levi Doubles Through Lee

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

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

Steinberg Doubles Through Fleyshman

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

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

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

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

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

Level 23 Update: Marc Inizan (9th) and Brian Powell (8th) Eliminated

Sep 28, '10

Blinds: 12,000-24,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 7 of 346

Chip Counts:

1: Ronald Lee – 3,164,000
2: Dan Steinberg – 2,063,000
3: Dan Fleyshman – 1,797,000
4: James Bord – 1,059,000
5: Roland de Wolfe – 931,000
6: Fabrizio Baldassari – 787,000
7: Nicolas Levi – 584,000

Average Chip Count: 1,482,857

Notable Cashes:

9	Marc Inizan	£54,114
8	Brian Powell	£69,754

Big Hands:

Marc Inizan Eliminated in Ninth Place (£54,114) and Brian Powell Eliminated in Eighth Place (£69,754) on the Same Hand

Marc Inizan moved all in preflop for 313,000 preflop and Brian Powell moved all in over the top of him before Ronald Lee made the call and had both opponents covered. Their cards:

Lee: A K
Inizan: 8 8
Powell: 8 8

Board: J 10 6 K 4

Lee won the hand to take a dominating chip lead with more than 3 million. Inizan was eliminated in ninth place (£54,114) and Powell took home eight-place money (£69,754).

Nicolas Levi Doubles Up Through Roland de Wolfe

Dan Fleyshman limped preflop and Roland de Wolfe also joined the pot from the cutoff. Nicolas Levi then moved all in from the small blind for 336,000. Fleyshman mucked and de Wolfe made the call. Their cards:

Levi: 10 10
De Wolfe: A K

Board: Q 9 4 8 8

Levi doubled up on the hand and de Wolfe suffered a setback to start the day.

Player Tags: Roland de Wolfe,   Brian Powell,   Nicolas Levi,   Ronald Lee,   Marc Inizan

Final Table Update: Brent Hanks Eliminated In 6th Place, Levi 5th

Jun 03, '10

Blinds: 12,000-24,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 358

Tournament Leaderboard:

1. Joshua Tieman – 3,005,000
2. Stuart Rutter – 2,406,000
3. Joseph Elpayaa – 2,267,000
4. Neil Channing – 1,269,000

Notable Eliminations:

6. Brent Hanks — $71,998
5. Nicolas Levi — $92,543

Big Hands:

Brent Hanks Eliminated In 6th Place ($71,998)

Brent Hanks raised to 60,000 from the small blind and Nicolas Levi raised to 160,000 from the big blind. Hanks moved in for 600,000 and was called.

Hanks turned over AQ while Levi showed 77.

The board ran out 99573 and Hanks was eliminated.

Nicolas Levi Eliminated In 5th Place ($92,543)

Joshua Tieman raised to 60,000 and Nicolas Levi reraised to 189,000 from the big blind. Tieman put in one more raise and then Levi moved all in. Tieman called and turned over 88. Levi showed JJ and was poised to double up.

However, the board ran out 854A2, giving Tieman a set on the flop and Levi was out.

Player Tags: Brent Hanks,   Nicolas Levi

Huge Pot! Eyster Busts Levi

Apr 28, '10

Nicolas Levi raised to 26,000 and Kevin Eyster called on the button and the big blind. The flop came down 966 and Levi continued with a bet of 39,000.

Eyster called and the turn was the 7. Levi then checked and Eyster bet 88,000. Levi moved all in for another 188,000 and Eyster made the call showing Q6 for trips.

Levi showed down 74 for a pair and a flush draw, but missed when the K hit the river. Levi is out and Eyster is up to 1.7 million.

Player Tags: Nicolas Levi,   Kevin Eyster

Level 5 Update: Whittling Down the Field

Jan 06, '10

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 748 of 835

Average Chip Count: 33,489

Notable Chip Counts:

Vanessa Rousso — 130,000
Darryll Fish — 110,000
Paul Wasicka — 85,000
John Racener — 76,000
Annette Obrestad — 75,000
Liz Lieu — 75,000
Carlos Mortensen — 70,000
JC Alvarado — 70,000
Mats Sundin — 68,000
Mark Newhouse — 65,000

Notable Eliminations:

Justin Young
Alexander Kostritsyn
Justin Young
Arnaud Mattern

Big Hands:

William Thorson’s Wild Ride

One player bet preflop and Team PokerStars pro William Thorson made the call. The flop was dealt 954. His opponent bet 1,800 and Thorson made the call. The turn fell 9 and Thorson called a 4,000 bet from his opponent. The river was dealt 7 and Thorson called a 16,000 bet from his opponent. Thorson turned up 96 and his opponent showed down pocket fours to win the hand.

Nicolas Levi Takes a Pot*

A flop of AA4 sat on the table when Nicolas Levi checked to open the action. Brian England checked in the big blind and Josh Bergmun-Turnbull bet 1,300 under the gun. Levi called and England raised to 3,600. Bergman-Turnbull mucked and Levi made the call.

The Q fell on the turn and Levi checked. England bet 6,000 and Levi called. The river brought the 4 and both players checked. England revealed pocket sixes and Levi showed pocket jacks to top him and win the pot.

Arnaud Mattern Eliminated

Team PokerStars pro Arnaud Mattern made it 750 to go from the cutoff and both blinds called. The flop was dealt J-10-8 and all three players checked. A 5 fell on the turn to put two spades on the board and the small blind checked. Team PokerStars pro Victor Radmin bet 1,000 from the big blind and Matern called. The small blind then raised to 3,600. Ramdin mucked and Mattern made the call with 97 in the hole. The river brought the K and the small blind bet again, this time moving all in. Mattern was forced to muck after missing his draw, which left him on a short stack.

One hand later Mattern was all in for his tournament life with pocket nines. One of his opponents woke up with pocket queens behind him and Mattern was not rescued by the board. He was eliminated from the tournament on the hand.

Eric Baldwin Grabs One

The 2009 Card Player Player of the Year, Eric Baldwin, is in action on day 1B and he just picked up a nice pot. Baldwin raised preflop and one opponent called him in the small blind. The flop was dealt A97 and both players checked. The 5 fell on the turn and Baldwin bet 1,250. Baldwin made the call and the river fell 5. Both players checked again and the small blind flipped over pocket tens. Baldwin showed down pocket kings and he won the hand to grow his stack to 32,000.

Player Tags: William Thorson,   Eric Baldwin,   Arnaud Mattern,   Nicolas Levi,   Brian England

Level 5 Update: Shawn Buchanan Doubles Up

May 28, '09

Blinds: 600-1,200 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 171 out of 201

Chip Counts:

1. Lex Veldhuis — 330,000
2. Matt Glantz — 310,00
3. Antonio Esfandiari — 302,000
4. Scott Seiver — 300,000
5. Charles Lehr — 275,000
6. Justin Bonomo — 275,000
7. Ted Forrest — 270,000
8. Tony G — 270,000
9. Vivek Rajkumar — 262,000
10. Barry Schwartz — 255,000

Average Chip Count: 141,053

Notable Eliminations:

Greg Mueller

Big Hands:

Shawn Buchanan Doubles Up

Michael DeMichele raises to 2,600 from middle position and Shawn Buchanan moves all in for 13,300 more. The action folds back around to DeMichele who makes the call. Buchanan turns over JJ while DeMichele shows A10. The board comes K1024K, and Buchanan’s jacks hold up. Buchanan doubles up to 35,000 this hand while DeMichele takes a slight hit down to 222,000.

Doyle Brunson doubles up Nicolas Levi

Nicolas Levi moved all in pre-flop and was called by Doyle Brunson. Levi exposed QQ and Brunson flipped over 99 and was well behind. The flop bricked for Brunson and the queen on the turn had the 10-time bracelet winner drawing dead.

Shaun Deeb Doubles up Lex Veldhuis

With AK, Alexander Veldhuis moved all in pre-flop and was called quickly by the 44 of Shaun Deeb. The pot stood at about 330,000 and the flop completely missed Veldhuis. However, the ace on the turn put Veldhuis ahead and gave him the massive pot.

Chris Moneymaker Making a Run Up the Leaderboard

Keith Lehr raises to 3,000 from early position and Chris Moneymaker calls from the button. The flop comes Q43, Lehr bets 7,000, Moneymaker calls. The turn is the K and this time Lehr bets 17,000. Moneymaker raises another 25,000 and Lehr folds after a minute in the tank. After the hand Lehr falls down just about 200,000 while Moneymaker climbs up to 260,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Doyle Brunson,   Chris Moneymaker,   Shawn Buchanan,   Keith Lehr,   Michael DeMichele,   Shaun Deeb,   Nicolas Levi

Nicolas Levi is Eliminated

Apr 29, '09

Another French pro has hit the rail. On a K-Q-2 board with two hearts, Nicolas Levi found himself all-in with two pair, K-Q, versus the A K of his opponent.  The sting in the tail came when a heart dropped as the rest of the board was dealt, and another player is flushed away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Player Tags: Nicolas Levi