Alexandre Gomes Poker Tournament Updates

Level Two Update: Joe Hachem on the Rise

Jul 10, '11

NOTE: Levels are two hours in length and players are starting with 30,000 in chips. Registration will remain open until the end of the second level.

Players on Day 1D: Approximately 2,500

Blinds: 100-200

Notables Remaining:

Card Player Chip Counts:

Jeff Shulman — 30,050
Matt Matros — 26,000

Featured Poker Tweets — Jeff Shulman

Notables Eliminated This Level:

Tom Dwan
James Mackey
Steve Zolotow
Prahlad Friedman
Frank Kassela
Chino Rheem

Hands:

Joe Hachem Knocks Out an Opponent

Middle position raised to 450 and Joe Hachem (UTG+1) reraised to 1,400 preflop. Middle position made the call and the flop fell A 7 4. The two players checked and the turn fell 2.

Hachem bet 2,725 and middle position made the call. The river fell 2 and Hachem bet 25,000. Middle position made the all-in call but he mucked and left the tournament field when Hachem revealed 7 7 for the full house.

Hachem held 50,000 after the hand.

Matt Matros Grabs Some Chips

There was 1,150 in the pot and a board of 7 4 3 K sat on the table when middle position bet 1,100. Matt Matros raised to 2,900 and he picked up an uncontested pot when his opponent mucked. Matros held 26,000.

Featured Poker Tweet — Cliff Josephy

Shawn Keller Side Steps a Straight Flush

Shawn Keller raised to 500 preflop in early position and the button made the call. The flop fell 6 3 2 and Keller bet 700. The button made the call and the turn fell 4. Both players checked and the river fell 7. Keller checked and the button bet 1,000. Keller mucked and he found out that was a good decision when his opponent revealed the 5 as he collected the pot.

Player Tags: Jeff Shulman,   Shawn Keller,   Cliff Josephy,   Joe Hachem,   Alexandre Gomes,   Matt Matros

Level 15 Update: Who Will Bubble?

Apr 27, '10

Blinds: 2,000-4,000 with a 300 ante

Players Remaining: 133 out of 848

Average Chip Count: 191,278

Chip Counts:

1. El Mostafa Bel Khayate — 420,000
2. Paul Berende — 410,000
3. Cristiano Guerro — 400,000
4. Nicolas Levi — 370,000
5. Thiago Nishijima — 370,000
6. Ronald Grauer — 355,000
7. Domenico Iannone — 350,000
8. Simon Munz — 340,000
9. Ramzi Jelassi — 330,000
10. Ekaterina Kolobekova — 320,000

Notable Eliminations:

Humberto Brenes
John Kabbaj
Ross Boatman
Katja Thater
Brent Wheeler
Andrew Scott

Big Hands:

Humbero Brenes Eliminated

Team PokerStars Pro Humberto Brenes was all in holding K-7, but was called by an opponent who had him dominated with K-Q.

The board failed to bring any sevens and Brenes was eliminated.

Crowe Vs. Gomes

Alexandre Gomes raiased to 10,500 and Owen Crowe reraised to 26,500.

Gomes then reraised to 77,500 and Crowe didn’t hesitate to move in for just over 200,000. Gomes folded instantly and left his last 188,000 behind him.

Ronald Grauer Wins Big Pot From Chris Moneyaker

On a board reading J988Q, Ronald Grauer was all in for his last 125,000 and Chris Moneymaker made the call.

Grauer showed 98 for the full house and Moneymaker flashed the 10d, indicating his rivered straight. Gruaer is now up to 355,000 and Moneymaker has fallen to 250,000.

Katja Thater Eliminated on Bad Beat

Team PokerStars Pro Katja Thater was all in holding pocket kings against the pocket eights of Sergey Lebedev.

The flop brought an eight and just like that, Thater was eliminated.

Player Tags: Humberto Brenes,   Chris Moneymaker,   Owen Crowe,   Katja Thater,   Alexandre Gomes,   Ronald Grauer

Level 12 Update: Chris Moneymaker Reigns Atop Leaderboard

Apr 27, '10

Blinds: 1,000-2,000 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 230 out of 848

Average Chip Count: 110,608

Chip Counts:

1. Chris Moneymaker — 460,000
2. Simon Munz — 340,000
3. Owen Crowe — 310,000
4. Ramzi Jelassi — 260,000
5. Aaron Gustavson — 250,000
6. Toby Lewis — 250,000
7. Paul Berende — 225,000
8. Thiago Nishijima — 215,000
9. Nicolas Levi — 185,000
10. Russell Carson — 180,000

Notable Eliminations:

Liam Flood
Vanessa Rousso
Alfio Battisti
J.J. Liu
Liz Lieu
Nickl Binger

Big Hands:

Mel Judah Chips Up Big

Juan Manuel Pastor raised to 5,200 and the button called before Mel Judah reraised to 33,000, nearly half of his stack.

Pastor folded, but the button moved all in and Judah called for his last 35,000 with AK.

The button showed pocket queens, but Judah connected on a board of A3246 to double up to just under 150,000.

Liam Flood Eliminated

Liam Flood was all in on a queen high flop holding K-Q. Unfortunately, his opponent held A-Q for a higher kicker and ended Flood’s tournament when the turn and river failed to bring a king.

Allie Prescott Doubles Up

Allie Prescott moved all in from the cutoff for his last 30,000 with pocket kings and was called by an opponent holding AJ.

The board rolled out 108334 and Prescott is now sitting with just over 60,000 in chips.

Alfio Battisti Busted by Neil Channing

Team PokerStars Online Pro Alfio Battisti raised to 4,500 and Neil Channing reraised to 14,500 behind him. Battisti then moved all in for 74,000 and Channing immediately made the call, showing pocket kings.

Battisti could only sheepishly reveal pocket tens and they couldn’t find friends on a board of Q8779. Channing is now up to 220,000.

Nothing But A Flesh Wound

Team PokerStars Pro Alex Gomes called a short stacks push of 32,000 with As10h and saw that he was in good shape against his opponent’s QJ.

Unfortunately, the board fell J82K5 and the short stack doubled up. Gomes is still strong, however, with 160,000 in chips.

Aaron Gustavson Takes A Hit

Aaron Gustavson was well on his way to the chip lead, but he lost about 70,000 from his stack after calling Martin Schmidkunz’s all in with pocket queens.

Schmidkunz showed pocket kings and they held to boost his stack to 145,000. Gustavson still has 250,000 to work with.

Player Tags: Mel Judah,   Neil Channing,   Allie Prescott,   Liam Flood,   Aaron Gustavson,   Alexandre Gomes,   Alfio Battisti

Alexandre Gomes Out

Apr 28, '10

Team PokerStars Pro Alexandre Gomes reraised Gilbert Diaz’s opening raise all in and Diaz made the call for just a few thousand more.

Gomes showed AK and Diaz showed pocket nines. The board rolled out queen high and Diaz gave a mini fist pump as Gomes exited the tournament area.

Player Tags: Alexandre Gomes,   Gilbert Diaz

Gomes Busts Kitai

Apr 28, '10

Davidi Kitai was all in holding pocket eights against Alexandre Gomes and his pocket tens. Juan Manuel Pastor, who was contemplating a decision with pocket tens, excitedly patted himself on the back while the board ran out 4423K.

Kitai is out and Gomes is up to 600,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Davidi Kitai,   Alexandre Gomes

Simon Munz Out

Apr 28, '10

Simon Munz, one of the starting day chip leaders, was just eliminated by Alexandre Gomes. Gomes raised in middle position and Munz moved all in for his last 50,000 or so. Gomes called and showed Q10, but was temporarily behind to Munz and his AJ.

The board came QQ8K6 and Gomes hit trips to bust Munz.

Player Tags: Simon Munz,   Alexandre Gomes

Level 15 Update: Who Will Bubble?

Apr 27, '10

Blinds: 2,000-4,000 with a 300 ante

Players Remaining: 133 out of 848

Average Chip Count: 191,278

Chip Counts:

1. El Mostafa Bel Khayate — 420,000
2. Paul Berende — 410,000
3. Cristiano Guerro — 400,000
4. Nicolas Levi — 370,000
5. Thiago Nishijima — 370,000
6. Ronald Grauer — 355,000
7. Domenico Iannone — 350,000
8. Simon Munz — 340,000
9. Ramzi Jelassi — 330,000
10. Ekaterina Kolobekova — 320,000

Notable Eliminations:

Humberto Brenes
John Kabbaj
Ross Boatman
Katja Thater
Brent Wheeler
Andrew Scott

Big Hands:

Humbero Brenes Eliminated

Team PokerStars Pro Humberto Brenes was all in holding K-7, but was called by an opponent who had him dominated with K-Q.

The board failed to bring any sevens and Brenes was eliminated.

Crowe Vs. Gomes

Alexandre Gomes raiased to 10,500 and Owen Crowe reraised to 26,500.

Gomes then reraised to 77,500 and Crowe didn’t hesitate to move in for just over 200,000. Gomes folded instantly and left his last 188,000 behind him.

Ronald Grauer Wins Big Pot From Chris Moneyaker

On a board reading J988Q, Ronald Grauer was all in for his last 125,000 and Chris Moneymaker made the call.

Grauer showed 98 for the full house and Moneymaker flashed the 10d, indicating his rivered straight. Gruaer is now up to 355,000 and Moneymaker has fallen to 250,000.

Katja Thater Eliminated on Bad Beat

Team PokerStars Pro Katja Thater was all in holding pocket kings against the pocket eights of Sergey Lebedev.

The flop brought an eight and just like that, Thater was eliminated.

Player Tags: Humberto Brenes,   Chris Moneymaker,   Owen Crowe,   Katja Thater,   Alexandre Gomes,   Ronald Grauer

Level 12 Update: Chris Moneymaker Reigns Atop Leaderboard

Apr 27, '10

Blinds: 1,000-2,000 with a 200 ante

Players Remaining: 230 out of 848

Average Chip Count: 110,608

Chip Counts:

1. Chris Moneymaker — 460,000
2. Simon Munz — 340,000
3. Owen Crowe — 310,000
4. Ramzi Jelassi — 260,000
5. Aaron Gustavson — 250,000
6. Toby Lewis — 250,000
7. Paul Berende — 225,000
8. Thiago Nishijima — 215,000
9. Nicolas Levi — 185,000
10. Russell Carson — 180,000

Notable Eliminations:

Liam Flood
Vanessa Rousso
Alfio Battisti
J.J. Liu
Liz Lieu
Nickl Binger

Big Hands:

Mel Judah Chips Up Big

Juan Manuel Pastor raised to 5,200 and the button called before Mel Judah reraised to 33,000, nearly half of his stack.

Pastor folded, but the button moved all in and Judah called for his last 35,000 with AK.

The button showed pocket queens, but Judah connected on a board of A3246 to double up to just under 150,000.

Liam Flood Eliminated

Liam Flood was all in on a queen high flop holding K-Q. Unfortunately, his opponent held A-Q for a higher kicker and ended Flood’s tournament when the turn and river failed to bring a king.

Allie Prescott Doubles Up

Allie Prescott moved all in from the cutoff for his last 30,000 with pocket kings and was called by an opponent holding AJ.

The board rolled out 108334 and Prescott is now sitting with just over 60,000 in chips.

Alfio Battisti Busted by Neil Channing

Team PokerStars Online Pro Alfio Battisti raised to 4,500 and Neil Channing reraised to 14,500 behind him. Battisti then moved all in for 74,000 and Channing immediately made the call, showing pocket kings.

Battisti could only sheepishly reveal pocket tens and they couldn’t find friends on a board of Q8779. Channing is now up to 220,000.

Nothing But A Flesh Wound

Team PokerStars Pro Alex Gomes called a short stacks push of 32,000 with As10h and saw that he was in good shape against his opponent’s QJ.

Unfortunately, the board fell J82K5 and the short stack doubled up. Gomes is still strong, however, with 160,000 in chips.

Aaron Gustavson Takes A Hit

Aaron Gustavson was well on his way to the chip lead, but he lost about 70,000 from his stack after calling Martin Schmidkunz’s all in with pocket queens.

Schmidkunz showed pocket kings and they held to boost his stack to 145,000. Gustavson still has 250,000 to work with.

Player Tags: Mel Judah,   Neil Channing,   Allie Prescott,   Liam Flood,   Aaron Gustavson,   Alexandre Gomes,   Alfio Battisti

Alexandre Gomes Out

Apr 28, '10

Team PokerStars Pro Alexandre Gomes reraised Gilbert Diaz’s opening raise all in and Diaz made the call for just a few thousand more.

Gomes showed AK and Diaz showed pocket nines. The board rolled out queen high and Diaz gave a mini fist pump as Gomes exited the tournament area.

Player Tags: Alexandre Gomes,   Gilbert Diaz

Gomes Busts Kitai

Apr 28, '10

Davidi Kitai was all in holding pocket eights against Alexandre Gomes and his pocket tens. Juan Manuel Pastor, who was contemplating a decision with pocket tens, excitedly patted himself on the back while the board ran out 4423K.

Kitai is out and Gomes is up to 600,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Davidi Kitai,   Alexandre Gomes

Simon Munz Out

Apr 28, '10

Simon Munz, one of the starting day chip leaders, was just eliminated by Alexandre Gomes. Gomes raised in middle position and Munz moved all in for his last 50,000 or so. Gomes called and showed Q10, but was temporarily behind to Munz and his AJ.

The board came QQ8K6 and Gomes hit trips to bust Munz.

Player Tags: Simon Munz,   Alexandre Gomes

Level 2 Update: Antonio Esfandiari Hits the Rail

Apr 18, '10

Blinds: 100-200 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 145 out of 149

Chip Counts:

1. Shawn Buchanan — 180,000
2. Prahlad Friedman — 175,000
3. Kathy Liebert — 155,000
4. Daniel Negreanu — 155,000
5. Alex Kamberis — 152,000
6. Benjamin Fineman — 145,000
7. David Benyamine — 145,000
8. Phil Ivey — 140,000
9. Chris Moore — 140,000
10. Carlos Mortensen — 140,000

Average Chip Count: 102,000

Notable Eliminations:

Antonio Esfandiari

Big Hands:

Soheil Shamseddin Eliminates Antonio Esfandiari

On a flop of AQ4, Antonio Esfandiari fired in a bet of 3,700. The original preflop raiser check-raised to 20,000 and Soheil Shamseddin called.

Esfandiari then called off his last 14,000 and the turn was the K. The original raiser bet 30,000 and Shamseddin moved all in for just a few thousand more. His opponent called and showed a set of kings, but Shamseddin held 108 for the flush.

Esfandiari then mucked his hand, presumably drawing dead. The river was the 9 and Shamseddin chipped up to 135,000.

Henry Tran Busts One

On a flop of K77, seat 9 bet and an unknown in seat 4 raised. Henry Tran then reraised to 15,000 and after about a minute in the tank, seat 9 folded.

Seat 4 then moved all in for an additional 38,275 and Tran wasted no time before making the call with 76.

Seat 4 sheepishly pushed his cards forward face down and gathered his belongings. On his way out the door, the dealer turned up his hand and revealed J10. Tran wanted his hand to be dead since he had mucked and left the room, but the dealer explained that an all-in hand is still live, a rule created to prevent collusion.

The turn and river fell 510 and Tran chipped up to 148,000. Despite the dealer’s explanation, however, he continued to question the ruling and had the floor called over, who confirmed the dealer’s ruling.

Steve O’Dwyer Takes One From Alexandre Gomes

Alexandre Gomes raised to 600 and Steve O’Dwyer reraised to 2,050. Gomes called and the flop came down AA5.

Gomes checked and O’Dwyer continued with a bet of 2,700. Gomes called and both players checked the 4 on the turn.

The river was the Q and Gomes checked. O’Dwyer decided to bet 5,700 and Gomes quickly mucked. O’Dwyer is now up to 115,000 and Gomes is down to 81,000.

Player Tags: Antonio Esfandiari,   Henry Tran,   Soheil Shamseddin,   Steve O'Dwyer,   Alexandre Gomes

Level 7 Update: Last Level of the Night

Jan 11, '10

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Notable Eliminations:

John Duthie
Cornel Andrew Cimpan
Alexandre Gomes
Jani Sointula
Tommy Vedes

Big Hands:

New Chip Leader

Dmitry Stelmak is now stacked with a more than healthy 240,000 in chips. The bulk of the damage was done in two hands. On the first, he made a bigger full house than Justin “boostedJ” Smith to get started.

A few hands later, he eliminated John Duthie when he made aces up with A-6.

Chad Brown Doubles Through Mike Matusow

Chad Brown and Mike Matusow somehow found themselves in a preflop raising war. When it ended, Brown was all in holding AK against Matusow’s pocket tens.

The board fell 953A8 and Brown doubled up to 80,000 with his pair of aces. Matusow is still near average with 71,000.

Alexandre Gomes Hits the Rail

Team PokerStars Pro Alexandre Gomes is now out of the tournament thanks to a surging Kevin Saul.

Gomes held pocket sevens and was willing to risk the rest of his stack with them, but Saul’s pocket aces could not be denied, making a full house to send the Brazilian packing.

Left In The Deck:

Unofficial Field Count and Prizes

As has been the case with many of the tournaments at this year’s PCA, the official field sizes, prize pools and payouts must first be confirmed by PokerStars before they are released to the players and media.

Due to the late hour, that will have to be taken care of tomorrow morning. But we have received word, unofficially, that there were 84 players in this year’s field. A whopping 16 of them will make the money, with first place receiving somewhere in the neighborhood of $575,000. Min-cashers will make about $40,000 for their efforts.

Matt Marafioti Shows Up

Registration has been closed for some time now, but half way through the final level of the evening, Matt Marafioti had not shown up.

It turns out that Marafioti was just a few feet away, playing at the final two tables of the $5,000 no-limit hold’em event. After busting in 10th place, Marafioti raced over to the High Roller section and sat down with 36,000 of his original 50,000 in chips.

Player Tags: Mike Matusow,   Kevin Saul,   Alexandre Gomes,   Matthew Marafioti

Level 7 Update: Here Comes Phil Ivey

Jan 06, '10

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Remaining: 665 out of 846

Notable Chip Counts:

Vanessa Rousso — 145,000
Annette Obrestad — 125,000
Phil Ivey — 120,000
J.C. Alvarado — 100,000
Darryll Fish — 90,000
Paul Wasicka — 85,000
Alex Kamberis — 80,000
John Racener — 75,000
Joe Cassidy — 75,000
Carlos Mortensen — 70,000

Average Chip Count: 38,165

Notable Eliminations:

Jayde Nicole
Boris Becker
Alexandre Gomes
Vitaly Lunkin

Left In the Deck

Official Numbers

The PokerStars Caribbean Adventure has officially surpassed last year’s mark of 1,347. A total of 846 players bought in for day 1B and with day 1A’s 669, have formed a field of 1,515.

Prize pool and payout information has yet to be passed along, but last year’s tournament awarded a cool $3 million for first. We’re expecting around $3.5 million this time around.

Big Hands:

That’s Game For Boris Becker

Boris Becker came over the top of a player’s opening raise for his last 11,000 in chips with AQ and was called by AK.

Becker couldn’t overcome the domination as the board ran out J521010, ending his main event late in the day.

Jayde Nicole Exits, Room Suffers

Playboy Playmate Jayde Nicole raised to 1,300 from middle position and Andrew McNamee raised all in from the big blind. Nicole called all in for her last 12,000 or so and the cards went on their backs.

Nicole showed two red jacks and McNamee was racing with AK. The board came 966AQ and McNamee paired his ace on the turn to send Nicole from the tournament area.

After the hand, McNamee said, “I almost didn’t like that ace.” Neither did we, Andrew.

Phil Ivey Makes Kings Work

Phil Ivey raised to 1,600, Chris “SloppyKlod” Klodnicki raised to 4,500 and then Dominic Nitsche moved all in for 27,000. Ivey called and Klodnicki folded.

Nitsche showed pocket queens, but Ivey’s pocket kings were best, holding on a board reading 752A8. Ivey is now pushing 115,000 in chips.

Alexandre Gomes Runs Into Kings

Team PokerStars Pro Alexandre Gomes has fallen short of his triple crown, at least for the time being, when his big slick ran into an opponent’s pocket kings.

Suck, Resuck, For Vitaly Lunkin

WSOP superstar Vitaly Lunkin just went through a wide range of emotions in a very short span. Lunkin showed pocket eights on a flop of 10107, but Kasey Thompson revealed pocket sevens for the under full.

Lunkin had four outs to survive and one hit when the 10 peeled off the turn. Just one-out separated the Russian from a double up, but the 7 came on the river to end his tournament. Brutal.

Player Tags: Phil Ivey,   Vitaly Lunkin,   Boris Becker,   Alexandre Gomes

Level 4 Update

Aug 22, '09

Blinds: 150-300 with a 25 ante

Players Remaining: 234 out of 279

Chip Counts:

1. Marco Johnson — 94,000
2. Alexandre Gomes — 94,000
3. Adam Geyer — 85,000
4. Toto Leonidas — 75,000
5. Nick Schulman — 73,000
6. Jonathan Aguiar — 72,500
7. Eugene Katchalov — 71,000
8. Carter King — 71,000
9. Vanessa Rousso — 70,000
10. David Williams — 60,000

Average Chip Count: 35,000

Notable Eliminations:

Beth Shak
Adam Weinraub

Hand of the Level:

Alexandre Gomes Wins Massive Pot

The most recent WPT champion, Alexandre Gomes, is doing his best to go back-to-back. On a board reading AQ743, Gomes bet 15,000 and the cutoff moved all in.

The big blind tanked for a bit before folding and Gomes insta-called with 65 for the nut straight. The cutoff showed 74 for two pair, not realizing he had the second best hand. After being informed, he made the slow walk out of the event center and Gomes moved his stack to a very healthy 94,000.

Level Summary:

About two tables dropped during a relatively quiet fourth level. The blinds are finally starting to pick up, but the players haven’t quite responded and for the most part, the notables in today’s field held strong.

Marco Johnson and Alexandre Gomes share the lead, but both Toto Leonidas and Nick Schulman are riding surges that see them both in the top five of the chip counts.

Ironically, the top three stacks in the room have a history together. Gomes famously sucked out on Johnson at the WSOP, giving Gomes his first bracelet. At the 2009 PokerStars Carribbean Adventure, Gomes sucked out on Adam Geyer in a monster pot that catapulted him to the final table, where he finished fourth.

Player Tags: Adam Geyer,   Marco Johnson,   Alexandre Gomes

Day 4 Ends: 10 Remain

Jul 17, '09

NOTE: Play ended for the night when the final 10 were reached, with 21 minutes and eight seconds remaining in level 19. The field will return at noon tomorrow and continue play from this point.

Blinds: 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 out of 268

Final Table Seating Chart with Chip Counts:

Seat 1: Sam Stein — 666,000
Seat 2: Faraz Jaka — 3,299,000
Seat 3: Erik Seidel — 1,799,000
Seat 4: Christopher Sonesson — 786,000
Seat 5: Alexandre Gomes — 1,713,000
Seat 6: Mimi Tran — 690,000
Seat 7: Justin Smith — 2,620,000
Seat 8: Alec Torelli — 1,919,000
Seat 9: Pavel Reshetov — 507,000
Seat 10: Ray Taylor — 1,085,000

Average Chip Count: 1,608,000

Notable Eliminations:

12. Claudio Baptista — $46,485
11. Anthony Spnella — $46,485

Hand of the Level:

Anthony Spinella Eliminated in 11th Place ($46,485)

Alexandre Gomes raised from middle position to 51,000 and Anthony Spinella reraised all in for 345,000 from the cutoff. Gomes made the call and they flipped up their cards:

Gomes: A9
Spinella: 33

Board: KQ469

Gomes won the hand with a pair of nines and Spinell was eliminated in 11th place, good for $46,485 in prize money. Gomes grew his stack to 1,713,000 after the hand.

Player Tags: Anthony Spinella,   Alexandre Gomes

Alexandre Gomes Wins Bellagio Cup V ($1,187,670)

Jul 20, '09

Blinds: 100,000-200,000 with a 20,000 ante

Players Remaining: 1 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 16,085,000

Notable Eliminations:

2. Faraz Jaka — $774,870

Elimination Hands:

Alexandre Gomes Wins Bellagio Cup V ($1,187,670); Faraz Jaka Eliminated in Second Place ($774,870)

With Alexandre Gomes holding a 2-1 chip advantage, the Brazilian PokerStars Pro raised to 545,000 preflop, and Faraz Jaka reraised all in for just under 5 million. Gomes made the call and they flipped up their cards:

Gomes: AJ
Jaka: A7

Board: 86269

Gomes won the hand and he started a spirited celebration with his Brazilian comrades that had stuck around to support him at this late hour. Gomes took home $1,187,670 in prize money. He now has a WSOP gold bracelet and a WPT title in his possession. Jaka was eliminated in second place and he took home $774,870.

Player Tags: Faraz Jaka,   Alexandre Gomes

Final Table Update: Justin Smith Eliminated in Third Place ($464,870)

Jul 20, '09

Blinds: 60,000-120,000 with a 15,000 ante

Players Remaining: 2 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 8,375,000
2. Faraz Jaka — 7,715,000

Average Chip Count: 3,216,000

Notable Eliminations:

3. Justin Smith – $464,870

Elimination Hands:

Justin Smith Eliminated in Third Place ($464,870)

After hurting his knee to the point where he could not walk without assistance during a celebration following a double up, Justin Smith decided to keep playing but he just busted in third place. On the final hand Smith got the last of his chips into the middle preflop against Faraz Jaka. Their cards:

Jaka: KK
Smith: A4

Board: Q8695

Smith was eliminated in third place and he takes home $464,870 in prize money. Jaka grew his stack up to 7,715,000 after the hand. He will take that into battle heads up against the 8,375,000 that Alexandre Gomes holds.

Player Tags: Faraz Jaka,   Alexandre Gomes

Final Table Update: Alec Torelli Eliminated in Fourth Place ($271,165)

Jul 19, '09

Blinds: 50,000-100,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 8,420,000
2. Faraz Jaka — 6,145,000
3. Justin Smith — 1,520,000

Average Chip Count: 3,216,000

Notable Eliminations:

4. Alec Torelli — $271,165

Elimination Hands:

Alec Torelli Eliminated in Fourth Place ($271,165)

Alexandre Gomes raised under the gun to 250,000 and Alec Torelli reraised from the small blind to 710,000. Gomes then moved all in and Torellie made the all-in call. Their cards:

Gomes: 1010
Torelli: AQ

Board: J86K7

Gomes won the hand to grow his stack to 8,420,000 and Torelli was eliminated in fourth place. He will take home $271,165 in prize money.

Player Tags: Alec Torelli,   Alexandre Gomes

Day 4 Ends: 10 Remain

Jul 17, '09

NOTE: Play ended for the night when the final 10 were reached, with 21 minutes and eight seconds remaining in level 19. The field will return at noon tomorrow and continue play from this point.

Blinds: 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante

Players Remaining: 10 out of 268

Final Table Seating Chart with Chip Counts:

Seat 1: Sam Stein — 666,000
Seat 2: Faraz Jaka — 3,299,000
Seat 3: Erik Seidel — 1,799,000
Seat 4: Christopher Sonesson — 786,000
Seat 5: Alexandre Gomes — 1,713,000
Seat 6: Mimi Tran — 690,000
Seat 7: Justin Smith — 2,620,000
Seat 8: Alec Torelli — 1,919,000
Seat 9: Pavel Reshetov — 507,000
Seat 10: Ray Taylor — 1,085,000

Average Chip Count: 1,608,000

Notable Eliminations:

12. Claudio Baptista — $46,485
11. Anthony Spnella — $46,485

Hand of the Level:

Anthony Spinella Eliminated in 11th Place ($46,485)

Alexandre Gomes raised from middle position to 51,000 and Anthony Spinella reraised all in for 345,000 from the cutoff. Gomes made the call and they flipped up their cards:

Gomes: A9
Spinella: 33

Board: KQ469

Gomes won the hand with a pair of nines and Spinell was eliminated in 11th place, good for $46,485 in prize money. Gomes grew his stack to 1,713,000 after the hand.

Player Tags: Anthony Spinella,   Alexandre Gomes

Alexandre Gomes Wins Bellagio Cup V ($1,187,670)

Jul 20, '09

Blinds: 100,000-200,000 with a 20,000 ante

Players Remaining: 1 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 16,085,000

Notable Eliminations:

2. Faraz Jaka — $774,870

Elimination Hands:

Alexandre Gomes Wins Bellagio Cup V ($1,187,670); Faraz Jaka Eliminated in Second Place ($774,870)

With Alexandre Gomes holding a 2-1 chip advantage, the Brazilian PokerStars Pro raised to 545,000 preflop, and Faraz Jaka reraised all in for just under 5 million. Gomes made the call and they flipped up their cards:

Gomes: AJ
Jaka: A7

Board: 86269

Gomes won the hand and he started a spirited celebration with his Brazilian comrades that had stuck around to support him at this late hour. Gomes took home $1,187,670 in prize money. He now has a WSOP gold bracelet and a WPT title in his possession. Jaka was eliminated in second place and he took home $774,870.

Player Tags: Faraz Jaka,   Alexandre Gomes

Final Table Update: Justin Smith Eliminated in Third Place ($464,870)

Jul 20, '09

Blinds: 60,000-120,000 with a 15,000 ante

Players Remaining: 2 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 8,375,000
2. Faraz Jaka — 7,715,000

Average Chip Count: 3,216,000

Notable Eliminations:

3. Justin Smith – $464,870

Elimination Hands:

Justin Smith Eliminated in Third Place ($464,870)

After hurting his knee to the point where he could not walk without assistance during a celebration following a double up, Justin Smith decided to keep playing but he just busted in third place. On the final hand Smith got the last of his chips into the middle preflop against Faraz Jaka. Their cards:

Jaka: KK
Smith: A4

Board: Q8695

Smith was eliminated in third place and he takes home $464,870 in prize money. Jaka grew his stack up to 7,715,000 after the hand. He will take that into battle heads up against the 8,375,000 that Alexandre Gomes holds.

Player Tags: Faraz Jaka,   Alexandre Gomes

Final Table Update: Alec Torelli Eliminated in Fourth Place ($271,165)

Jul 19, '09

Blinds: 50,000-100,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 4 out of 268

Chip Counts:

1. Alexandre Gomes — 8,420,000
2. Faraz Jaka — 6,145,000
3. Justin Smith — 1,520,000

Average Chip Count: 3,216,000

Notable Eliminations:

4. Alec Torelli — $271,165

Elimination Hands:

Alec Torelli Eliminated in Fourth Place ($271,165)

Alexandre Gomes raised under the gun to 250,000 and Alec Torelli reraised from the small blind to 710,000. Gomes then moved all in and Torellie made the all-in call. Their cards:

Gomes: 1010
Torelli: AQ

Board: J86K7

Gomes won the hand to grow his stack to 8,420,000 and Torelli was eliminated in fourth place. He will take home $271,165 in prize money.

Player Tags: Alec Torelli,   Alexandre Gomes

Event No. 36 Begins at Noon on Thursday

Jun 18, '09

Event No. 36 ($2,000 no-limit hold’em) will begin at noon PDT on Thursday, June 18. Players will begin with 6,000 in tournament chips and blinds will begin at 25-50. Levels will be 60-minutes long and there will be a 20-minute break after every two levels. There will be a 90-minute dinner break after level 6 on day 1. Here is a look at the schedule for the event:

Thursday, June 18, noon: Day 1 (play 10 levels)
Friday, June 19, 2 p.m.: Day 2 (play down to final table)
Saturday, June 20, 2 p.m.: Final Table

In 2008 this event attracted 2,317 players and the champion was Alexandre Gomes, who took home $770,540 in prize money. CardPlayer.com will bring you a summary of the action at the dinner break and end of play during day 1 for this event.

Player Tags: Alexandre Gomes