Young Phan Poker Tournament Updates

Live Fast, Double Young

Jul 19, '17

From under the gun Young Phan moved all-in for 7,200. It folded around to the player in the big blind who called with the AJ.

Phan was drawing plenty live with the KQ.

The board ran out QJ87 and Phan made a flush to secure the double up.

Player Tags: Young Phan

Level 9 Update

Feb 22, '09

Level: 9

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Left: 261 out of 696
 

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Score Board

Notable Chip Counts

Antonio Esfandiari - 300,000
Kofi Farkye - 176,000
KJ Nam - 175,000
Mickey Mills - 151,000
Zach Hyman - 141,000
Mike Sowers - 139,000
Dan O'Brien - 129,000
Anthony Venturini - 125,000
Phil Ivey - 122,000
Young Phan - 120,000

Average:53,333

Notable Eliminations

Joe Sebok
Mike Matusow
Erik Seidel
David Tran
Roy Winston
Jason Potter
Tony Cousineau
Gavin Griffin
Vanessa Rousso
Theo Tran
Raymond Davis
Philippe Rouas
Noah Schwartz
Thayer Rasmussen
Allen Cunningham
Chad Batista
Jared Hamby
Van Nguyen

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Featured Table

Table 19

Seat 1: Paul Smith
Seat 2: Nick Schulman
Seat 3: Greg Thompson
Seat 4: Eric Hershler
Seat 5: Dan O'Brien -- 87,000
Seat 7: Karga Holt
Seat 8: Isaac Haxton
Seat 9: Paul Wasicka -- 85,000

Paul Smith Takes a Hit

On a board of Q726. with 2,400 in the pot, Paul Smith bet 3,500 and Greg Thompson made the call. The 9 fell on the river and seat 3 bet 3,500. Smith thought for a moment and then mucked his hand.

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Big Hands:

Joe Sebok Eliminated by Farzad Bonyadi

Joe Sebok was short stacked and all in holding A-Q against the pocket sevens of Freddy Bonyadi. The board offered no help and Sebok was eliminated from the tournament.

James "Jsizzle20" St. Hilaire Can't Get Action From Danny Wong

The betting action is unknown, but James St. Hilaire held a set of nines on a board of 9-8-3-7-K. Wong thought over his option on the river before mucking bottom set of threes, keeping himself alive in the tournament.

Erik Seidel Eliminated by Young Phan

Erik Seidel got it all in holding kings and feeling comfortable, but his outlook changed when he saw Young Phan's pocket aces. The board helped neither player and Seidel was eliminated from the tournament.

Gavin Griffin Loses Out to a Flopped Flush

Gavin Griffin was all in holding pocket nines and up against his opponent's A10. The flop brings three clubs and Griffin is drawing very slim. The turn and river bricked his runner-runner outs and Griffin was eliminated from the tournament.

Phil Hellmuth Doubles Up Through David Chiu

On a flop of K55 Phil Hellmuth checked and David Chiu bet. Hellmuth check-raised and Chiu shoved all in. Hellmuth made the all-in call and flipped over K-10. Chiu held AJ and the turn and river fell 74. Hellmuth doubled up on the hand to survive.

Shenko's Shank

With over 15,000 in the pot and K32AJ on the board, Yevgeniy Timoshenko bet 9,500 from the button and his opponent went into the tank in middle position. He eventually made the call and Timoshenko flipped over AJ to win the pot.





 

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Joe Sebok,   Danny Wong,   James St Hilaire

Young Phan Eliminated in Fifth Place ($7,079)

Oct 27, '08

Young Phan moved all in for 64,500 preflop and Blake Cahail made the call. Their cards:

Phan: 33
Cahail: QJ

Board: K98210

Phan was eliminated in fifth place when the 10 on the river made a straight for Cahail and he will take home $7,079 in prize money.








 

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Blake Cahail

Grant Hillman Eliminated in 10th Place ($3,218)

Oct 27, '08

Grant Hillman moved all in preflop on a short stack and Young Phan called him down. Their cards:

Phan: A-9
Hillman: Q-9

Board: Q-J-4-10-A

Hillman was eliminated in 10th place and he took home $3,218 in prize money.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Grant Hillman

$1,500 No Limit Hold'em - Ulliott Doubles Up

Jun 30, '08

Note: Players are now on a 20-minute break.

Blinds/Antes: 100-200 with a 25 Ante

Players Left: 1,620 of 2,700

Chip Leaders:

Grant Levy: 15,300
Erica Schoenberg: 15,000
Chris Ferguson: 13,000
Phil Laak: 13,000
Allen Le: 12,000
Juha Helppi: 11,000
Morgan Machina: 11,000
Kristy Gazes: 9,000
Jacobo Fernandez: 9,000
Benjamin Fineman: 7,900

Average Stack: 4,987

Eliminations: Andrew Black, Joe Awada, Tom Schneider, Max Pescatori

Big Hands:

You Don't Always Need the Best Hand Before the Flop to Quadruple Up
Young Phan was moved the little bit of chips he had into the pot and three other players were in against him. He had A10 clearly the worst hand against AK, QQ and AA. The flop came 1053, giving Phan some outs. Then the turn dropped the 10 giving Phan the best of it with a set. The 5 fell on the river, filling him up and he was up to about 3,000 after the hand.

An Eight Is Enough

Max Pescatori moved all in on a board reading 8842 and his opponent called with 77. Pescatori turned over 87 for a dominated hand before the flop and a monster of a hand after the flop. The river was the K and Pescatori doubled up to just over 9,000 in chips. He would later give all those chips away, however, as he busted out late in the hour.

"Have You Ever Danced WIth the Devil in the Pale Moonlight?"

Dave "Devil Fish" Ulliott raised to 2,400 preflop and the his opponent made the call from under the gun. The flop came 1075 and Ulliott's opponent moved all in, trying to take the pot right then and there. But Ulliott would have none of it as he made the call and turned over JJ. His opponent held QJ and the case J fell on the turn cementing the hand for Ulliott. The 8 completed the board and Ulliott doubled to around 10,000.

Matros With the Power Move

On a board of 10725A, the player in seat 2 bet 900 into a pot of around 2,000. Matt Matros thought for a few moments, then he raised 2,500 more. Seat 2 quickly mucked and Matros raked in the pot. Matros was around 5,000 after the hand.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Max Pescatori,   European Report

$1,500 No Limit Hold'em - Action Picks Up

Jun 30, '08

Note: Players are now on a 20-minute break

Blinds/Antes: 50-100

Players Left: 2,280 of 2,700

Average Stack: 3,286

Eliminations: Beth Shak, Antonio Esfandiari, Marco Traniello, J.C. Alvarado

Big Hands:

Schoenberg Won't Be Pushed Around

Action folded around to seat 6 in the small blind who raised to 425. Erica Schoenberg was in the big blind and she made the call. The flop came K49. Seat 6 bet 350 and Schoenberg made the call. The A on the turn saw both players checked. The 10 on the river drew a bet of 850 and Schoenberg made her move, raising to 2,200. Seat 6 then took forever to make his decision. He looked at Schoenberg many times. Who knows if it was to get a read, or simply to admire her beauty. Either way, he finally mucked and Schoenberg improved her stack to 5,200.

Laak And Ulliot Tangle

Usually when the action folds to the blinds, the ensuing pot is uneventful. Good luck having that happen when Phil Laak is in the small blind with Dave "Devil Fish" Ulliot is in the big blind. Laak completed the big blind and Ulliot checked his option in this particular hand. The flop came A3Q. Laak fired 150 and Ulliot made the call. The 6 drew a check from Laak. Ulliot tried to take control of the hand, betting 300. Laak then quickly grabbed a stack of yellow and black chips. The raised totaled somewhere around 4,800 or some obscene number in that vicinity. Ulliot mucked 85 face up and Laak took the pot. He was well over 6,000 while Ulliot was around 4,000.

Obey Your Master

On a board that read 862, Men "The Master" Nguyen bet 200 and his opponent in seat 7 made the call. The 10 was checked by both players on the turn. The river brought the 9 and seat 7 bet 225. Nguyen quickly threw out two blue chips worth 500 each. Seat 7 called all in and Nguyen turned over A4 for the nut flush and seat 7 simply tapped the table and made his exit. Nguyen was over 8,000 after the hand.

Back-To-Back-To-Back Aces On Table 34

On a flop of J82, the player in seat 4 moved all in for his last 1,025 and Young Phan made the call. They turned over their cards.

Seat 4: AA
Phan: 55

The table couldn't believe it as seat 4 showed a pair of aces, and neither could Phan. The turn and river brought the K and the 4, and this was now the third hand in a row that a player at table 34 was dealt pocket aces. Not to mention, all three times pocket aces held up. Seat 4 doubled through Phan, and just as the dealer was about to shuffle the deck and possibly deal out a fourth pair of aces, he was replaced and the table shared some mixed emotions over his untimely exit.

Moneymaker Reads Opponent As Weak, Correct Until River

Chris Moneymaker thought for a long time before calling his opponent's bet of 825 on a board Q657. Moneymaker stared down his opponent instead of the A that hit on the river. His opponent bet all in with his remaining 1,025. Moneymaker leaned back and studied his opponent, asking him, "You got aces?" His opponent didn't answer, but was visibly nervous and shaking slightly. Moneymaker made the call and his opponent turned over AK for a rivered pair of aces. Moneymaker looked upset, having correctly thought his opponent was weak on the turn only to have him catch up on the river. Moneymaker mucked his hand and lost a large pot.

Ramdin Takes Down Pot Uncontested

The player in seat 6 raised to 250 and was called by Victor Ramdin and the player in seat 8. The flop of 964 was checked by all three players. When the 2 fell on the turn action was checked to Ramdin who bet out 600. Both of his opponents folded and Ramdin took a small pot early in level 2.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Men Nguyen,   Phil Laak,   Chris Moneymaker,   Victor Ramdin,   Erica Schoenberg,   European Report

Event 49 - $1500 NLHE - Level 10 - Bubble Burst and End of Day

Jun 28, '08

Blinds: 600-1,200

Ante: 100

Players Remaining: 215

Average Stack: 37,926

Chip Leaders:

Micah Raskin: 175,000
Young Phan: 128,000
Greg "FBT" Mueller: 120,000
Manny Minaya: 105,000
Gregg Merkow: 98,000
Jason Smith: 95,000
Greg Alexander: 95,000
JC Tran: 93,000
David Pham: 90,000
Frank Nichols: 89,000

Eliminations: Jeff Madsen

Notable Hands and Storylines:
Vivek's Bubble Play Backfires

During hand for hand play, Vivek Rajkumar raised to 3,200 before the flop and was called only by the small blind in seat 8, who checked the flop of Q76. Psyduck made a continuation bet of 4,800, but was then check raised for an additional 15,000. After going into the tank for a minute or so, Vivek folded his hand. His opponent showed AQ and raked in the pot.

Bubble Bursts - Shenanigans Ensue

Around this time Andy Black stood up and held a twenty dollar bill up in the air, offering it to the next person to get eliminated from the tournament and burst the bubble. Tournament staff then got on the microphone to inform Mr. Black that what he was doing was technically collusion, giving him a playful warning for his behavior.

Silly behavior continued throughout the level, however. First there was the string of celebrations that accompanied the eventual bubble burst. Amidst the multiple rounds of cheering and excited texts to love ones, Men the Master ran into the middle of the field to feign tossing his hat in the air in celebration.

Even after the 271st player was officially eliminated, there were still a handful of tables where action continued. Since play was technically still hand for hand, everyone else continued to wait on these stubborn players. Greg Mueller tried to help the situation by standing and yelling that stalling was no longer profitable, encouraging those still involved in hands to hurry up and play their cards. Shortly thereafter, possibly from fear of being brutally cross-checked by Mueller, the players finished their hands and normal play resumed.

Around this time, Greg Mueller earned the audible support of a handful of drunken railbirds. For the rest of the level, Mueller's vocal fans scampered around the Amazon room brandishing giant novelty drink glasses and yelling "Let's Go Mueller!" Even the floor got caught up in their enthusiasm, once again jumping on the microphone to join in the refrain. The much adored Mueller did little other than laugh out loud for the remainder of the evening.

Back to Vivek

After the burst, Vivek Rajkumar found himself in another tangle with the same player in seat 8. Vivek check called a bet of 3,700 on a flop of AJ4. Both players then checked the turn, 9. On the river, the Q Vivek checked once again, convincing himself to call after his opponent bet another 4,100. Seat 8 showed A6, and Vivek mucked his cards and sent more of his chips across the felt to his persistent table nemesis.

After the hand, the table broke, and Vivek found himself seated at table one between John Murphy and Young Phan.

It was at this table, near the end of the level, where our last Vivek hand for the evening took place. While contemplating his action on the button, Rajkumar looked up to see Young Phan miming an all-in shove gesture. Phan burst into laughter when he was caught in the act, and Vivek decided to indulge him by actually moving in for an additional 16,900. The small blind folded, and the decision was left on Phan, who slowly peeked at one card. His eyebrows raised pensively, and he peeked at the other card. Over the next few minutes, Phan stacked and restacked his massive pile of chips, apparently contemplating a call. Eventually he made the fold, proudly showing Q7 and announcing that he had decided not to gamble despite the rush he was on.

Madsen Made Moot

Jeff Madsen popped it to 3,100 from late position. The button then reraised for an additional 6,000, and Madsen moved all in. His opponent called instantly, showing AK. Madsen held 1010, his last hand of the tournament, the board running out AK247. Madsen exited in the first level of payouts, earning a meager $2,782.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Greg Mueller,   Jeff Madsen,   V R

$1,500 No-Limit Hold'em - Level Six Recap

Jun 28, '08

Notes: Players are on a 90-minute dinner break. Play will resume at 8:20 p.m.

The payouts have been announced. Two-hundred seventy players will finish in the money, and the winner will receive $631,170.

Blinds/Antes: 200-400-50

Players Remaining: 572 of 2,718

Average Chip Stack: 14,250

Chip Leaders:

J.R. Bluldan - 61,000
Ayaz Mahmood - 47,000
John Murphy - 46,000
Jamie Mills - 37,000
Greg Mueller - 34,500
Young Phan - 31,000
Doug Kim - 30,000
Jeff Madsen - 29,000
Danny Wong - 27,000
Joe Awada - 27,000

Eliminations:

Beth Shak
Gavin Smith

Hands and Storylines:

Kim takes down big pot with jacks

In the last hand of the level, after a player limped the cutoff moved all in for 7,050. Doug Kim called from the small blind and both others folded. Kim had pocket jacks and was a big favorite against his opponent's pocket fives. The board came K-9-8-7-7 and Kim was up to 30,000 chips after the hand.

Earlier in the level a player raised to 1,200 in early position with just another 1,075 left. Doug Kim raised to 2,700 in the small blind and then the big blind moved all in for another 5,025. The short stack called all in and Kim reluctantly folded, as he was getting good odds but was worried his A-J was dominated. He was disappointed to see the big blind show pocket sevens and the player all in hold K-J. The board of A-A-Q-6-4 didn't help either.

Phan and another chops Master's chips

Young Phan moved all in for 1,200 from early position and a player in late position moved all in for 2,700. Men Nguyen called in the small blind and Phan called as well. The flop was Q-7-5 and after Nguyen checked Phan bet 2,500. Nguyen folded and Phan and the player all in showed A-Q. The two chopped the pot, much to the dismay of Nguyen, who said he had A-K.

Rajkumar folds top pair

After a flop of T43, the big blind checked and then called Vivek Rajkumar's bet of 1,900. After the 6 on the turn both players checked, and then the blind bet 5,000 when the Q came on the river. Rajkumar thought it over for a couple minutes and then flashed a queen as he folded his hand. Going into the dinner break Rajkumar had roughly 10,000 chips.

Player Tags: Doug Kim,   Young Phan,   Men Nguyen,   V R

$2,000 No Limit Hold'em - Level One

Jun 27, '08

Blinds/Antes: 25/50

Players Remaining: 2,282

Average Stack: 4,000

Chip Counts:
Gioi Luong - 9,000
Terrence Chan - 4,300
Can Kim Hua - 4,000
Humberto Brenes - 4,000
Erik Seidel - 4,000
Bill Gazes - 4,000
David Benyamine - 4,000
Burt Boutin - 4,000
Alexander Kravchenko - 4,000
Jeff Madsen - 4,000

Big Hands/Storylines:

Tilly Builds Stack Early

Jennifer Tilly raised to 125 pre-flop and the action folded to the player in the big blind, who made the call. The two saw the K75 flop heads up, and the big blind checked. Tilly bet 150, and her opponent folded.

Seidel Gets Some Respect

In the Brazilian Room, Erik Seidel made it 150 to go from middle position and was called by an opponent in the cut-off. All other players folded, and the two players saw a flop of J74. Seidel followed through with a bet of 375, and his opponent deliberated before releasing his hand.

Humberto Brenes Nearly Doubles Up

On a board of Q96, a player made a bet of 500 and his lone opponent, Humberto Brenes, raised an additional 1,000. After pausing to size up the situation, the player called. The dealer put down the 4 on the turn, and the player checked. Brenes continued with a bet of 1,000. His opponent counted out his remaining chips and pensively stared at Brenes before releasing his hand into the muck. Brenes picked up several thousand in chips from that hand alone, and is healthy in the tournament’s early stages.

Gavin Smith Can’t Be Bluffed

On a table that he is currently sharing with Mike Matusow in an overflow room, Gavin Smith showed his table that he can’t easily be bluffed. A player in early position raised to 150 and Smith made the call from middle position. All other players folded, and the dealer dealt a flop a 973. The player checked and Smith bet 225. His opponent called, and the 2 was dealt on the turn. This time the other player took the lead, betting 300. Smith quickly called, and the 3 was dealt as the river. The bet from his opponent this time was 500, and Smith made the call. “Nothing,” his opponent said as he flipped over AK. Smith showed the 75 and collected the pot.

Young Phan Busted Already?

“They got me! I busted,” Young Phan announced to the press, referring to the empty felt in front of him normally reserved for a player’s chips. Phan was being facetious. Due to his late entry into today’s event, Phan’s chip stack was being held by the dealer until his next blind was due. This has been standard protocol for all late entry players in this year’s World Series of Poker.

Shak Survives All-In

Beth Shak committed her final 1750 in chips on a board of JK386. Her lone opponent mulled the decision for a long time, then finally committed to the call. Shak showed JJ for the flopped set, while her opponent was forced to muck K8 for two pair.

Player Tags: Humberto Brenes,   Young Phan,   Erik Seidel,   Gavin Smith,   Jennifer Tilly,   Beth Shak

No Limit Hold 'Em Level 3

Jun 21, '08

Players are now back from break.

Blinds: 100-200

Eliminations: Phil Hellmuth, John Juanda, Katthy Liebert

Players Remaining: 1,560-2,720

Chip Leaders:

Scott Clements: 17,500
Erick Lindgren: 17,000
Maureen Feduniak: 15,200
Steve O'Dwyer: 14,000
Jeff Williams: 13,800
David Williams: 11,500
Mark Seif: 11,000
Bill Chen: 10,000
Joe Tehan: 9,500
Grant Hinkle: 9,500

Big Hands:

Phan Eliminated

Young Phan was eliminated after he went all in from the big blind over the top of an under the gun raise. "Of course you call, you have two queens," said Phan, who tabled AK. In reality, he was in worse shape than that, as his opponent revealed AA. The board ran out J63K9, and Phan's day was done.

James Begs For Call

The under the gun player made it 600 to go and the player two seats to his left raised to 2,000. The action folded around to Kenna James on the big blind, who decided to move all in for 3,400 more. "C'mon," taunted James, "I gave you 3,000." Ultimately his opponent chose to fold, showing AJ before tossing them into the muck.

Grindin'

Michael Mizrachi decided to risk his last 625 chips after an early position player moved all in for 1,250. Mizrachi was in the lead with 55 against the A6. The board ran out QJ3Q3 and Mizrachi's pair held. He was at 1,500 after the hand.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Kenna James,   Michael Mizrachi

Hour 5 Recap

Jul 09, '07

Nick Binger Doubles Up
On a flop of 8 7 6, Nick Binger gets it all in with K K against his opponent's Q Q.  The turn and river came 6 4, and Binger doubled up to $38,000.  Binger has been doing his best to step out of his brother's shadow in recent months, and with a few final table here and there, he is starting to get the recognition he deserves.  In fact, during the hand, ESPN did not hesitate to come over and film for their coverage. 

Phone Controversy
Yarom Limor just finished with a telephone controversy.  Limor was on the phone, away from the table when the dealer started to shuffle and deal.  Limor made it known that he got back to the table before the last card hit the button.  So when the dealer asked for his cards, he began to protest.  The floor was called over and he explained the situation.  The first tournament director believed his hand was playable because he was away from the table while he was on the phone.  But a second tournament director quickly jumped in to announce his hand was dead, despite making it back in time to his seat.  Limor explained that he was fully aware of all the rules and knew this ruling to be incorrect.  But the next dealer coming in for the push said that the ruling was changed early on in the Series, around event #4.  Before, talking on the phone was allowed during the deal as long as the player was seated before the last card hit the button.  But now, according to tournament officials, if a player is on the phone during any part of the deal, his hand will be declared dead.  Limor continued to argue, pointing out that one director had already sided with him and also pointed out that the floor was still convening on the other side of the room debating the situation.  After all this, Limor exclaimed that it didn't really matter since he wasn't going to play his Q-8 offsuit anyway. 

Theo Tran Makes A Great Laydown
A player limped under the gun and Theo Tran raised it up to $1,500.  Carlos Mortensen reraised behind him to $4,500.  The under the gun player folded, and Tran thought for a few moments before calling.  The flop came 10 9 7, and Tran checked.  Mortensen bet out $7,000 and Tran winced before counting out his remaining $18,000 several times.  Tran looked as though he was agonizing his decision and regretted getting into a pot with the only other pro at the table.  Mortensen looked calm and relaxed as he reached for his sunglasses and smiled.  As Tran rechecked his cards, it became clear that he wasn't posturing anymore and truly had a tough decision with Q Q.  He thought for awhile longer before mucking them face up.  Mortensen, with a friendly gesture, past his cards over to Tran, so that he and he alone, could look down at pocket Aces. 

Negreanu Building Back Up
New Pokerstars ambassador, Daniel Negreanu has slowly built stack out of the danger zone with a few well-timed plays.  Negreanu hit a beautiful flop with A 9 when the flop came A 4 3, but he failed to get much action.  The player in Seat One then announced that if he had played he would have been ahead in the hand.  With the ESPN cameras rolling, Negreanu announced, "Not in a billion years would you have been ahead of me in that pot."  A few hands later Negreanu got some revenge on that same player getting paid off on Negreanu's $3,000 value bet on the river when he hit trip Queens.

Hurricane Karina Stirs Up River
Karina Jett put a bad beat on a short-stacked opponent.  Jett raised $2,350 with A K from the button after the cutoff limped, the player in Seat 5 pushed all in for $4,000 more with K K from the small blind, the cutoff folded, and Jett called.  Seat 5 was safe until the river as the board ran out J 6 4 9 A, and Jett took the pot.

Young & Gus The Spectators
After two limpers, Young Phan raised to $1,600 from middle position.  The player in seat 8 called from the big blind, and both limpers (Seat 1 and Gus Hansen) made the call.  The flop was A J 6, Seat 8 bet $4,000, Seat 1 called, and Hansen and Phan both got out of the way.  The turn was the 5, Seat 8 now bet $6,000, leaving himself about $7,000 behind.  Seat 1 tapped him raising to $15,000.  Seat 8 tanked for a few minutes and made the crying call.  Seat 1 showed the K 10 for the nut flush, and Seat 8 showed J J for the now-trailing flopped set.  The river was the 3 and Seat 1 took the pot, Phan commented after the hand, "He hasn't missed a hand today"

Stay tuned to Cardplayer.com for hourly updates and your favorite Pro Blogs.

Notable Chip Counts

Paul Magriel	69,000
Dario Minieri	64,000
Dee Luong	58,000
Layne Flack	43,000
Jon Turner	40,000
Chris Tsiprailidis	39,800
Carlos Mortensen	39,000
Young Phan	38,000
David Benyamine	38,000
Michael Binger	37,000
Bill Edler	37,000
John Phan	35,000
Maria Ho	34,500
Jean Gaspard	34,000
Freddy Deeb	34,000
Isaac Haxton	33,000
Chris Grigorian	32,500
Chip Reese	32,000
Vinnie Vinh	31,500
Prahlad Friedman	29,000
Dutch Boyd	29,000
John Racener	28,200
Thor Hansen	28,000
Daniel Negreanu	25,000
Leif Force	23,000
Ted Forrest	22,300
Ed Moncada	22,000
Chip Jett	22,000
Brett Jungblut	22,000
Jamie Gold	21,600
Mimi Tran	21,500
Surinder Sunar	20,000
Steve Zolotow	20,000
Rafi Amit	20,000
Gus Hansen	20,000
Doug "Rico" Carli	20,000
Sorel "Imper1um" Mizzi	19,000
Brian Haveson	13,000
Ron "Grumpy" Ware	12,700
Robert Williamson III	12,000
Gavin Smith	10,000
Cyndy Violette	9,600
Erik Friberg	9,000
David Chiu	8,300
Bryan Micon	8,200
Shawn Sheikhan	8,000
Erica Schoenberg	8,000
David Plastik	7,000
Antonio Esfandiari	7,000
Nam Le	5,000
Erick Lindgren	4,000
Phil Hellmuth	1,400

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Gus Hansen,   Daniel Negreanu,   Carlos Mortensen,   Karina Jett,   Yarom Limor,   Theo Tran,   Nick Binger

The Grind Continues

Jun 29, '07

Faces in the Crowd

A few more familiar faces popped up in the field during the afternoon. Anna Wroblewski, Joe Pelton, Darrell Dicken, Roland De Wolfe, Michael Mizrachi, Burt Boutin, and Jonathan Little were all alive and kicking during the late stages of the afternoon. One familiar face who had been lost was Sean McCabe.

“Noooooooo”

The telltale voce of Humberto Brenes rose above the chatter and chip ruffling of the tournament field, when it rang out, “Noooooooo.” Upon further investigation it was discovered that he had flopped the nut straight, but received not a single call on his raise. “Nice flop for you,” said Young Phan after the hand, with a sheepish grin on his face.

Grinding

Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi bet $1,500 from late position. Seat one, Juha Helppi, and seat seven all made the call. The flop rolled out Q 9 8 and Hellpi moved all in. Seat seven then reraised all in and Mizrachi tanked for a moment. He finally tossed in his chips and said, “These are horrible cards.” Seat one mucked and the player turned up their hole cards. Mizrachi showed Q 4, Helppi turned up 8 5, and seat seven turned over A 10. The turn and river brought the Q and the 10, and Mizrachi busted two opponents for the price of one.

To hear the table tell it, they now thought of Mizrachi as superman. He had over $60,000 at this point, which might have been as much as the rest of table combined. “Bring the alternates over here,” said Mizrachi in reference to the seat on his right. “I’m still offering my seat for 50 percent of your stacks,” said a player at the table who had position on “The Ginder.” Mizrachi then moved in for $20,000 preflop on the next hand, which would have put any player at the table all in, and everyone folded. Only one player had more chips than Mizrachi at this point, and that was Tony Cousineau, who held almost $80,000.

Tom McEvoy	25,000
Barry Greenstein	24,000
Young Phan	24,000
Nick Frangos	22,000
Kirk Morrison	21,000
Jordan Morgan	19,000
James English	19,000
Alan Sass	18,800
David Redlin	18,500
Anna Wroblewski	16,000
Amir Vahedi	16,000
Nick Binger	15,500
Clonie Gowen	15,000
JC Tran	13,500
Joe Sebok	10,000
TJ Cloutier	9,000
David Singer	1,500

Player Tags: Juha Helppi,   Humberto Brenes,   Young Phan,   Michael Mizrachi

Players On Break

Jun 27, '07

Players are now on a short fifteen minute break where the tournament staff will be coloring up the $100 chips. Only 94 players still remain with an average chip stack of $22,723, and although we are getting closer to the money, chances are that we won’t hit the bubble until tomorrow’s restart.

Young Phan made some good moves this level and managed to earn some chips right before the break, winning two consecutive pots in a row. On a flop of 7 4 3, the player in seat no. 5 bet out while Phan called behind him and the player in seat no. 7 called all-in behind him. The turn brought the 5 and seat no. 5 bet into Phan who made the call. The river brought the K and this time seat no. 5 checked to Phan who bet out – seat no. 5 called. Phan turned over for A Q 5 2, the nut flush for the high hand and the A-2 nut low. Seat no. 5 showed A 7 9 2 for the nut low, and seat no.7 (all-in) turned over A 5 4 3 for the third best hand and was eliminated. Phan takes ¾ of a three-way pot and gives himself a little more security as we close in on the end of the night.

The very next hand, on a flop of 9 8 3, the player in seat no. 9 bet out and Young Phan made the call. The turn brought the 6, and once again seat no. 9 bet out and Phan called. The river brought the Q and this time seat no. 9 checked to Phan who bets – seat no. 9 called. Phan turned over A 7 5 3 for the nut straight and the A-8 low, scooping the pot while his opponent shook his head and tossed his hand into the muck.

John Juanda wouldn’t be so lucky at the close of the level, being forced to split several big pots while taking some bad beats on the river. John Juanda came in for a raise and got one caller out of the big blind. The flop came 6 5 2, and Juanda pushed his short-stacked opponent all-in. The big blind calls and turned over J 8 7 2 while Juanda turned over A 10 8 5 for the lead. The 7 hit the turn and Juanda lost the high pot right there to his opponent’s flush, and the A on the river gave his opponent the same low hand, forcing Juanda to settle for ¼ of the pot.

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Player Tags: Young Phan,   John Juanda

In the Money

Jun 28, '07

The bubble has been broken and the field is officially in the money. In typical fashion, several players busted out shortly after the bubble burst and the field has been trimmed down to 43 players.

One of the first players to fall victim to the flurry after the bubble was Michel Abecassis, who was eliminated in 53rd place. Stuey Paterson raised to $6,000 before the flop and Abecassis reraised all in for $7,500. Paterson called and both players flipped over their cards. Paterson held A 10 9 2 and Abecassis was holding A K Q Q. The board came A 7 6 2 3 and Paterson took down the hand with two pair. Paterson was up to $57,000 after the hand.

Elsewhere in the tournament, Young Phan was not having as much luck. Battling a short stack, Phan finally caught a break on the brink of elimination. First to act, Phan bet his last $4,500 into the pot. The player in the big blind called and the players showed their hands. Phan had A K J 5 and his opponent looked at his cards in his hand. The dealer put out K 6 2 3 4 and Phan yelled out, "The wheel baby!" Phan's opponent mucked his hand and Phan continued to play up his good fortune. "Scooby dooby doo, where are you? Scooby dooby doo" sang Phan in a high pitched voice as he collected his chips. Phan's good fortune didn't last long however, and he was eliminated in 45th place.

Thang Luu has emerged as the new chip leader, followed by Blair Rodman and Marcel Luske. Stuey Paterson ($67,000), John Juanda ($63,000) and Tony Cousineau ($42,000)  are all still in the field and dangerous with chips.

Player Tags: Tony Cousineau,   Young Phan,   John Juanda,   Blair Rodman,   Marcel Luske,   Stuart Paterson

Day Two Restart

Jun 28, '07

Day two of yesterday's $2,000 Omaha eight-or-better tournament is set to begin at 2 p.m. There are 77 players returning on day two and play is scheduled to continue until there is a winner. There are still 23 more players to get through until the money is even reached so strap in and get ready for a long night.

Play ended last night with 36 minutes remaining in the level and when the dust settled Blair Rodman was the official chip leader. Not far behind, Marcel Luske and Young Phan are third and fourth respectively. Keep your browsers locked on CardPlayer.com to follow all the action and see what unfolds on what will surely be a very long day two.

Player Tags: Young Phan,   Blair Rodman,   Marcel Luske