Level 22 Update
Dec 18, '08
Scoreboard
Level: 22
Blinds/Antes: 20,000-40,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Left: 9 of 497
Average: 2,485,000
Notable Chip Counts
Evan McNiff - 5,695,000
Chino Rheem - 3,170,000
Steve Sung - 2,860,000
Ben Straate - 2,785,000
Justin Young - 2,350,000
Amnon Filippi - 1,785,000
Hoyt Corkins - 1,510,000
Joe McGowan - 1,160,000
Mike Matusow - 860,000
In the Money Eliminations
$72,060
12th: Brett Richey
11th: Robert Mizrachi
$86,470
10th: Clonie Gowen
Big Hands:
Steve Sung Gets Frustrated Into the Break
Steve Sung raised from middle position to 80,000 and Evan McNiff called from the cutoff. The flop came 4
4
3 and Sung checked. McNiff bet 100,000 and Sung check raised to 250,000. McNiff called and the turn was the 2
. Sung bet 400,000 and McNiff moved all in. Sung tanked for over 10 minutes, well into the break, going over each and ever possibility. Eventually, the clock was called and Sung mucked his hand, saving his last 1 million in chips for later. McNiff raised his chip lead to 3.8 million.
Steve Sung Doubles Through Clonie Gowen
Right after the break, Steve Sung got his chips back and then some from Clonie Gowen. Gowen raised to 100,000 from the small blind and Sung made the call from the big blind. The flop came down 108
4 and Gowen bet 100,000. Sung called and the turn was the 4. Gowen checked, Sung bet 250,000 and Gowen moved in. Sung tanked for a minute before calling with 109 for top pair. Gowen could only show 98 for middle pair and the river 2 doubled Sung up. After the hand, Sung was up to 2 million while Gowen took a hit down to 1 million.
Brett Richey Eliminated in 12th Place ($72,060)
Brett Richey raised to 110,000 and Chino Rheem reraised to 410,000 from the big blind. Richey moved all in and Rheem instantly called with pocket aces. Richey showed big slick and was unable to catch up, busting in 12th place.
Robert Mizrachi Eliminated in 11th Place ($72,060)
Evan McNiff raised to 100,000 from the button and Robert Mizrachi reraised to 375,000 from the small blind. McNiff moved in and Mizrachi called with AJ. McNiff showed pocket queens and they held when the board failed to produce any aces or diamonds, busting Mizrachi in 11th place.
Clonie Gowen Eliminated in 10th Place ($86,470)
Clonie Gowen raised to 110,000 in middle position and Steve Sung reraised to 340,000. Gowen moved all in for 825,000 and Sung called with AQ. Gowen showed pocket sixes, but they failed to hold up when the board came Q332A.
Left In The Deck:
After reviewing the tapes, it was determined that Tom Pniak's elimination hand was still in progress when the shuffle began on the other table. As a result, the ruling is that all three players will share 14th place and chop the prize money. After averaging it out, each player pocketed $67,255.
Player Tags: Clonie Gowen, Brett Richey, Chino Rheem, Steve Sung, Evan McNiff
Level 21 Update
Dec 18, '08
Scoreboard
Level: 21
Blinds/Antes: 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante
Players Left: 12 of 497
Average: 1,720,385
Notable Chip Counts
Evan McNiff - 3,430,000
Ben Straate - 2,360,000
Justin Young - 2,215,000
Amnon Filippi - 2,100,000
Clonie Gowen - 2,050,000
Chino Rheem - 1,891,000
Hoyt Corkins - 1,787,000
Brett Richey - 1,770,000
Steve Sung - 1,628,000
Mike Matusow - 1,140,000
Robert Mizrachi - 878,000
Joe McGowan - 694,000
In the Money Eliminations
$57,635
18th: Bill Klein
17th: Ben Tollerene
16th: Tom Pniak
$72,060
15th: Martin DeKnijff
14th: Jack Wu
13th: Nick Schulman
Big Hands:
Bill Klein Eliminated in 18th Place ($57,635)
Evan McNiff raised to 75,000 preflop and Bill Klein reraised to 215,000. McNiff reraised all in and Klein made the all-in call. Their cards:
Klein: JJ
McNiff: AK
Board: K9278
Klein was eliminated in 18th place, the first elimination of the day coming six hands in to play.
Ben Tollerene Eliminated in 17th Place ($57,635)
Ben Tollerene moved all in preflop and Chino Rheem made the call. Their cards:
Rheem: AK
Tollerene: A9
Board: 76228
Tollerene was eliminated in 17th place and Rheem was up to 1.85 million.
Tom Pniak Elimimnated in 16th Place ($57,635)
Tom Pniak raised from the small blind to 85,000 and Hoyt Corkins reraised all in from the big blind. Pniak made the all-in call and they turned up their cards:
Corkins: Q8
Pniak: 99
Board: AK7Q3
Pniak was eliminated in 16th place and Corkins grew his stack to more than 1.7 million.
Clonie Gowen Scores a Double Knockout
Martin DeKnijff moved all in under the gun and Clonie Gowen moved all in over the top of him from the small blind. Jack Wu made the call from the big blind and Gowen had both of her opponents covered. Their cards:
Gowen: QQ
DeKnijff: AJ
Wu: AQ
Board: 652210
Gowen knocks out DeKnijj in 15th place and Wu in 14th place, but there is some confusion regarding the elimination order for spots 16-14 (you can read more about this below in Left in the Deck). In any case Gowen now holds just over 2 million.
Nick Schulman's Swan Song
Nick Schulman was the short stack left in the field with 13 remaining and he decided to move his chips into the middle to make something happen. Two times for him this worked out well, as he doubled up with king-high to take his stack to 303,000, and then he doubled up again with sevens-up to jump up to 580,000. He eventually met his doom though, when he moved all in preflop with pocket jacks against Justin Young, who held A-K. The board was dealt A-K-10-3-3 to send Schulman to the rail in 13th place. He will take home $72,060 in prize money.
Left in the Deck:
To the Tapes
The Bellagio tournament staff is currently reviewing the elimination hands for Tom Pniak, Martin DeKnijff, and Jack Wu. The staff said that it looks like both hands began simultaneously so they are now firguing out how to split up the prize money for places 16-14. We'll let you know if they break it down by stack sizes or just divide things evenly among the three, and how the payouts are adjusted when that information is released by the tournament staff.
Player Tags: Hoyt Corkins, Tom Pniak, Clonie Gowen, Chino Rheem, Martin DeKnijff, Evan McNiff, Jack Wu, Bill Klein, Benjamin Tollerene
Level 25
Dec 19, '08
Scoreboard
Level: 25
Blinds/Antes: 50,000-100,000 with a 10,000 ante
Players Left: 2 of 497
Average: 11,182,500
Notable Chip Counts
Chino Rheem - 8,185,000
Justin Young - 14,100,000
Eliminations
5th: Amnon Filippi -- $288,235
4th: Steve Sung -- $396,205
3rd: Evan McNiff -- $540,440
Big Hands:
Amnon Filippi Doubles Up
Evan McNiff opened up a pot for 250,000 preflop and Amnon Filippi raised all in for 1.3 million. McNiff made the call and they turned up their hands:
McNiff: A5
Filippi: AJ
Board: A76106
Filippi doubled up on the hand to survive and play continued five handed.
Justin Young Knocks Out Two
Amnon Filippi moved all in for 975,000 and Steve Sung made the call. Justin Young then moved all in over the top of everyone and Sung called all in to produce a three-way all in. Their cards:
Sung: KK
Young: AA
Filippi: 99
Board: 7443J
Filippi was eliminated in fifth place ($288,235), Sung was eliminated in fourth place ($396,205), and Young became the dominant chip leader at the final table with over 14 million after the hand.
Chino Rheem Doubles Up
Justin Young raised to 260,000 and Evan McNiff reraised to 825,000. Rheem then moved all in for 2.87 million and Young mucked. McNiff made the call and they turned up their hands:
McNiff: AJ
Rheem: A9
Board: A7793
Rheem doubled up on the hand to survive and McNiff was crippled.
Evan McNiff Eliminated in Third Place ($540,440)
Evan McNiff moved all in preflop and Chino Rheem called him down. Their cards:
McNiff: 104
Rheem: 109
Board: 732AK
McNiff was eliminated in third place and action was down to heads up.
Heads-Up Chip Counts
Justin Young: 14,100,000
Chino Rheem: 8,185,000
Player Tags: Amnon Filippi, Chino Rheem, Steve Sung, Evan McNiff
Level 24
Dec 19, '08
Scoreboard
Level: 24
Blinds/Antes: 40,000-80,000 with a 10,000 ante
Players Left: 5 of 497
Average: 4,473,000
Notable Chip Counts
Seat 1: Chino Rheem - 3,940,000
Seat 2: Amnon Filippi - 1,865,000
Seat 4: Steve Sung - 4,250,000
Seat 5: Justin Young - 6,310,000
Seat 6: Evan McNiff - 6,020,000
Eliminations
6th: Hoyt Corkins ($216,795)
Big Hands:
Justin Young Doubles Up Through Chino Rheem
Justin Young raised to 220,000 from under the gun and got a caller in Chino Rheem. The flop came A52 and Young bet 310,000. Rheem raised to 835,000 and Young moved in for 1,335,0000. Rheem called with AJ but was behind to Young's flopped two pair with A5. The turn and river came 64 and Young doubled up to nearly 5 million in chips.
Hoyt Corkins Eliminated in Sixth Place ($216,795)
Hoyt Corkins almost moved all in from under the gun for about 1.5 million. He left a few chips on his hole cards as a card protector and forgot to say all in. Justin Young called and both players got the other 10,000 in chips all in on a flop of KQ6. Corkins revealed AQ but was in terrible shape against Young's AK. The turn and river came K10 and Corkins was eliminated from the tournament in sixth place.
Evan McNiff Picks Off a Bluff
Steve Sung limped on the button, Justin Young completed and Evan McNiff checked his option in the big blind. The flop came J93 and Young checked to McNiff, who bet 175,000. Sung called and Young folded. The turn was the 10 and McNiff checked to Sung who bet 400,000. McNiff called and the river was the A. Sung continued with a large bet of 1.2 million and McNiff made the call after thinking it over for just under a minutes. McNiff showed QJ and Sung mucked, giving his opponent a large pot.
Chino Rheem Doubles Up With Broadway, Then a Flush
Evan McNiff raised to 210,000 from under the gun and Chino Rheem moved all in for 1.7 million. McNiff called with pocket nines and Rheem needed help with QJ. The flop came down AK10 giving Rheem a broadway straight and a shot at the royal flush. The turn was the 5 giving Rheem a flush and the winning hand, doubling him up to 4 million in chips.
Player Tags: Hoyt Corkins, Chino Rheem, Steve Sung, Evan McNiff
Level 23
Dec 19, '08
Scoreboard
Level: 23
Blinds/Antes: 30,000-60,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Left: 6 of 497
Average: 3,727,500
Notable Chip Counts
Seat 1: Chino Rheem - 3,570,000
Seat 2: Amnon Filippi - 2,365,000
Seat 3: Hoyt Corkins - 2,045,000
Seat 4: Steve Sung - 5,635,000
Seat 5: Justin Young - 2,235,000
Seat 6: Evan McNiff - 6,535,000
Eliminations
None
Big Hands:
Steve Sung Lays It Down Early
Amnon Filippi raised to 160,000 and Steve Sung took some time before reraising to 480,000. Filippi called and the flop came J72. Filippi led for 575,000 and Sung mucked, surrendering the first pot of the evening.
Evan McNiff Chips Up With Top Pair
Evan McNiff raised to 150,000 on the button and Amnon Filippi called in the big blind. The flop came down J96 and Filippi checked. McNiff bet 210,000 and Filippi called. The turn was the 10 and agin McNiff fired, this time a bet of 525,000. Filippi called and the river was the 4. Both players checked and McNiff showed AJ to take the pot.
One More For McNiff
Evan McNiff raised to 180,000 from the small blind and Chino Rheem called from the big blind. The flop came Q53 and both players checked. The turn was the A and McNiff bet 240,000. Rheem raised to 780,000 and McNiff announced a reraise. Before he could even spit out the amount, Rheem mucked and surrendered the pot.
Player Tags: Amnon Filippi, Chino Rheem, Steve Sung, Evan McNiff
We arrived at the table to find Evan McNiff all-in on a flop of 9
8
with the A
A
up against the Q
Tom Braband led out for 1,100 from the big blind with the board reading Q
Evan McNiff was all in holding pocket jacks against the A-4 of Shannon Shorr.
Before the hand began, Sorel Mizzi began a discussion with the table (possibly a bet), about a scenario where Erik Cajelais and Gus Hansen fight to the death.
So far today there have been double ups galore.
Sorel Mizzi [pictured left] has been taking a hands on approach to his short stack, and so far it has been paying off. Betting 7,200 from the hijack, Sargon Ruya called from the button and the flop came A
David Chiu Doubles Through Greg Raymer
Double Elimination For David Baker
Nam Le Busts In a Suck, Re-Suck Situation
Evan McNiff and Owen Crowe get it all in on a flop of 6
Evan McNiff raised to 3,100 in the cutoff and was called by Chris Amaral on the button, Jimmy Fricke in the small blind and Sam Stein in the big blind.
Evan McNiff found himself all in holding pocket eights and up against the pocket tens of Keith Ferrera.