Day 2b is in the books.

About a third of the total main event field remains with 2,557 coming back on Monday for day 3 action. When the chips were bagged at the end of day 2b, Vanessa Selbst was among the chip leaders.

Also still going strong are Phil Galfond, Dave Sands, Jason Mercier, David Benyamine, JJ Liu, Alexander Kostritsyn, Robert Varkonyi, Steve Billirakis, Vanessa Rousso, Kenny Tran and plenty more.

Not surviving the day were Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson, Chris Ferguson, Jeff Shulman, Roy Winston, Marco Traniello, and many more notable pros.

Those who survived day 2a and day 2b will return for one more hour of level nine starting at noon on Monday.

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 1,359 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Gabriel Walls – 410,000
2. Ricardo Fasanaro – 310,000
3. David Assouline – 300,000
4. Charles Sylvestre – 253,000
5. Jim Collopy – 242,000
6. Steve Billirakis – 227,000
7. Florian Langmann – 218,000
8. Jason DeWitt – 216,000
9. Christopher Lee – 215,000
10. Mike Mustafa – 215,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 162,000
Mike Matusow — 11,000
Jon Friedberg – 80,000
Roy Winston — 22,000
Jennifer Harman — 41,000
Jeff Shulman – 16,000

Notable Eliminations:

Ludovic Lacay
Doyle Brunson
Layne Flack

Big Hands:

Chris Ferguson Doubles Up

Chris Ferguson looked down at the QQ with a raise and call in front of him. He had just 16,000 in his stack and decided to move all in. The initial bettor called with the 44 and the other opponent folded. The board ran out 9109J2 and Ferguson doubled to 41,000.

Ludovic Lacay Eliminated

Ludovic Lacay was short and move all in with the A9 and was called by the AJ of an opponent. The board ran out A6677 and Lacay was gone.

Jon Friedberg Wins a Flip

Jon Friedberg had player with a short stack all in preflop. Friedberg exposed the AJ while his opponent tabled the 88. The board ran out 1033J6 and Friedberg won the hand. He was at 72,000 after the hand.

Sands Doesn’t Fear Overcards

We caught up with this hand on the river with the board reading 6A368 and David Sands was facing a river bet of 8,500 into a pot of about 14,000.

Sands tossed his hand back and forth as he counted out the chips to make the call and tried talking out what his opponent could have. Eventually Sands made the call and his opponent nodded his head and acknowledged the good call. He was reluctant to turn his hand up, but eventually showed 910.

Sands turned up QQ and took the pot to climb to 210,000.

Doyle Brunson Eliminated

Every ESPN employee in the amazon room rushed over to the table in the orange section to see Doyle Brunson all-in and behind.

On a flop of 843, Brunson got all his chips in the middle of the table with 77 and his opponent tabled JJ.

The turn was the 4, leaving Brunson with one of the two remaining sevens in the deck to take the pot and stay alive. The river wasn’t favorable to Brunson, as the dealer peeled off the 6 to eliminate Brunson from the tournament.

Brunson got a round of applause from entire room on his way out. Brunson’s series is over, and he is happy it is since Brunson did not have a single cash all summer.

Galfond’s Ace-High Good

With the board showing 8582K Phil Galfond checked to seat 4 who bet 10,000. Galfond went deep into the tank, thinking over the possibilities. He finally made the call and showed just A3. His opponent mucked, and the very nice call gave Galfond 173,000 in chips.

Cantu Crippled

After multiple raises preflop, Brandon Cantu and two other players saw a flop of 594. All players checked the flop and saw the 7 fall on the turn.

There was a bet of 9,500 and Cantu called. After the 8 came on the river, Cantu faced a bet of 28,500. Cantu made the call and wasn’t happy with the results when he saw the 66, giving his opponent a straight flush and the pot.

Cantu is now down to just 10,000 in chips.

Blinds: 400-800 with a 100 ante

Players Remaining: 1,836 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Gabriel Walls — 435,000
2. David Assouline — 330,000
3. Charles Sylvestre — 240,000
4. Jason DeWitt — 239,000
5. Max Casal — 220,000
6. Christopher Lee — 215,000
7. Dave Sands — 210,000
8. Vanessa Selbst — 205,000
9. Ricardo Fasanaro — 204,000
10. Steve Billirakis — 200,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 97,500
Mike Matusow — 11,300
Jon Friedberg – 30,000
Roy Winston — 19,000
Jennifer Harman — 22,000
Jeff Shulman – 23,500

Notable Eliminations:

Freddy Deeb
JC Tran
Gavin Griffin

Big Hands:

Brunson’s Bluff Gets Picked Off

One hand after raising to 2,100 from middle position and taking down the blind, Brunson raised to 2,100 again and this time was called by Jameson Singer in the big blind.

The flop ran 647 and Singer checked to Doyle, who also checked. The turn was the K and when Singer checked, Brunson fired 4,500. Singer thought for a while and called.

On the K river Singer checked and Brunson bet out 11,000 this time. As the ESPN cameras swarmed, Singer went into the tank for a couple of minutes. “You’re getting your TV time,” said Brunson. Singer smiled and finally made the call, showing 75 for top two pair. Brunson mucked his hand and dropped to around 34,000.

Oh Captain! My Captain!

One table down from Brunson, Captain Tom Franklin raised to 2,200 from the button and was called by the player in the big blind.

The flop ran 9K5 and the big blind led out for 3,000. Franklin mucked, but still had around 62,000 in chips.

Selbst Doubles Up Opponent

Vanessa Selbst raised to 3,000 and the player in seat 6 raised to 11,300. When action folded back to Selbst she pushed in a stack of 5,000 chips, enough to put seat 6 all in. He tanked for a while, then called. Their hands:

Selbst: JJ
Seat 6: AQ

The flop ran 99Q, putting Selbst’s opponent in the lead. The board finished with the 2 and the 10 and Selbst took a hit of 35,000, doubling up her opponent. After the hand she still had around 180,000 in chips.

Buchman Wins Race to Double

Eric Buchman got into a preflop raising war with his opponent that led to him getting all-in.

Buchman held AK and was up against the JJ of his opponent. Buchman hit an ace on the turn to win the pot and double up to 125,000

Selbst Gets Aces and Action

Selbst raised to 1,800 from middle position and was three-bet by a player to 7,200. Action got back to Selbst and Selbst made it 20,200. Her opponent moved almost all of his cihps into the middle and Selbst jammed all-in and her opponent made the call.

Selbst shows AA and was up against her opponent’s AK. The flop was K22 and Selbst needed to dodge a king. She was successful in that venture with the 7 on the turn and the Q on the river.

The NAPT Mohegan Sun champion is up to 205,000 in chips with that pot.

Mizrachi Hits His Spades

Michael and Robert advanced to day 3 yesterday and their brother Eric is trying to join them there.

Eric Mizrachi called a raise of 2,200 and check-called a flop of K47. Both players checked the J turn card and saw the 3 fall on the river.

Mizrachi led out on the river and was called by his opponent. Mizrachi tabled the 89 and took the flush. Mizrachi is up to 110,000 with the pot.

Pavilion Room Coverage

David Singer Doubles Up

A player in early position bet and David Singer moved all in for 13,000 more. His opponent made the all and exposed the A10. Singer was ahead with the KK. The board ran out 1063QQ an singer doubled to around the starting stack of 30,000.

Layne Flack Short

Layne Flack bet preflop and and was called by a player in the big blind. The flop came A75 and the player in the big blind bet 3,000. Flack called. The turn brought the 10 and action went check-check. The 2 fell on the river an Flack’s opponent bet 5,000. Flack called and was unhappy to see the KJ. Flack was down to just 12,000 after the hand.

Chris Ferguson Caught

On a board reading 1072102 Chris Ferguson bet 10,000 and his opponent went into the tank. He eventually made the call and Ferguson tapped the table. His opponent exposed the AK and took the pot. Ferguson was down to 26,000 after the hand.

Blinds: 300-600 with a 75 ante

Players Remaining: 2,097 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Gabriel Walls – 300,000
2. Robert Miller – 212,000
3. Dave Sands – 210,000
4. Steve Billirakis – 200,000
5. Khamsy Nuanmanee – 186,500
6. Dan Santoro – 180,000
7. Jason DeWitt – 177,000
8. Matt Keikoan – 170,000
9. Bryn Kenney – 170,000
10. Robert Varkonyi – 160,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 97,500
Mike Matusow — 12,700
Roy Winston — 20,000
Jennifer Harman — 34,000
Jeff Shulman – 43,500

Notable Eliminations:

Kirk Morrison

Big Hands:

Varkonyi Takes Some From Rousso

Former main event champ Robert Varkonyi called Vanessa Rousso’s raise of 1,500 and the two saw a flop of 548. Varkonyi checked and Rousso’s bet 2,000. Varkonyi then check-raised to 6,000. Vanessa called.

The J hit on the turn and Varkonyi led out for 12,000. Rousso tanked and asked Varkonyi how many chips he had. “Well over 100k,” he told her. After some time, Rousso just called.

The 3 finished the board and Varkonyi checked. Rousso followed suit and announced that she had missed all sorts of draws, flipping up 56. Varkonyi showed 88 for a flopped set and took down the pot.

Varkonyi had around 140,000 in chips after the hand. Rousso was still going strong with around 175,000.

Morrison On Life Support

Kirk Morrison limped into the pot in middle position and three others came along for the ride.

The flop ran 4AA and Morrison bet 500. Everyone folded except the player in seat 7, who called. Both players checked the 2 turn and again on the Q river.

Seat 7 turned up Q3 for a busted flush draw that hit a pair on the river. Morrison looked like he wanted to tear up his cards as he mucked. He was down to just 4,350.

Nguyen Makes Great Fold

We caught up wit the action with a short stacked player already all-in and there was over 48,000 in the middle. Nguyen thought about the decision to call off all his chips for three minutes before making the fold.

He showed KK face up and was happy to see that the other player had turned up AA. Nguyen saved himself some chips and has 75,000.

Kirk Morrison Bounced

Kirk Morrison moved all-in after the player under-the-gun raised. The player on the button called Morrison’s all-in and the player under-the-gun made it 12,275. The player on the button opted to move all-in for 16,600 total and there was a three-way showdown.

The player under-the-gun showed 66, Morrison showed AK, and the player on the button showed AA.

Aces held up in the three-way all-in all Morrison’s WSOP has come to an end.

Cantu Scores a Knockout

Brandon Cantu had an opponent all-in with AK and had his opponent dominated when he showed AQ.

The board ran out 9J476, keeping Cantu’s big slick in the lead and he chips up to 90,000.

Pavilion Room Coverage

Tony Ma Wins a Pot

On a board reading A109Q Tony Ma checked. His opponent bet 2,400 and Ma raised to 6,400. His opponent called. The river brought the 9 and Ma checked. His opponent quickly checked behind. Ma announced straight and turned over the J8. His opponent mucked. Ma was at over 100,000 after the hand.

Prahlad Friedman Free-rolling

There was massive confusion and lots of debating around a table in the Pavilion Room. The story goes that Prahlad Friedman was in the big blind and was squared off in a hand versus the small blind. The flop came jack-high and Friedman’s opponent bet into him. Friedman called and there was heavy betting on the turn. On the river, the small blind bet 80,000, which was more than enough to put Friedman all in. Friedman went into the tank for minutes before his opponent finally called the clock on him. The floor came over and started giving the countdown. With three seconds left, Friedman announced call and everyone at the table heard him. However, apparently the floor didn’t hear the call, continued the countdown to zero and announced that Friedman’s hand was dead. Friedman’s opponent tabled top two and Friedman didn’t turn over his dead hand. Friedman said that his opponent had the best hand. Allegedly, Friedman should have been eliminated but from the ruling was still alive and free-rolling the rest of the way.

Blinds: 250-500 with a 50 ante

Players Remaining: 2,734 out of 7,319

Chip Counts:

1. Charles Alexandre Sylvestre — 260,000
2. Steve Billirakis — 233,000
3. Robert Miller — 201,000
4. Khamsy Nuanmanee — 180,000
5. Filippo Candio — 167,300
6. Archie Karas — 160,000
7. Tristan Wade — 160,000
8. Matt Keikoan — 154,000
9. Dave Sands — 153,000
10. Jason DeWitt — 152,000

Card Player Chip Counts:

Josh Brikis — 97,500
Mike Matusow — 12,700
Roy Winston — 10,000
Jennifer Harman — 29,025

Notable Eliminations:

David Saab

Big Hands:

Quads Slow Down Selbst

Seat 4 raised to 1,500 and Vanessa Selbst called from the button. Seat 7 raised to 5,000 and action came back around to seat 4, who called. Selbst thought for a moment and asked seat 4 for a chip count. He counted his stacks out (about 30,000) and Selbst bet enough to put both him and seat 7 all in. Seat 7 insta-called for his last 15,000 and seat 4 looked pained and after a minute he folded QQ face up.

Selbst was heads up with seat 7. Their hands:

Selbst: 1010
Seat 7: KK

Selbst was well behind as the flop ran JKA. Her opponent flopped a set and Selbst was in need of a queen for a straight. Instead, the K turned and her opponent hit quads. The 9 finished the board and Selbst lost a chunk of her stack. She still had around 60,000 after the hand.

Wattel Can’t Top Queens

A player opened to 1,100 from middle position and called from the cutoff. Everybody else folded and the flop came 4610 and Wattel called a bet of 2,000 from his opponent.

The turn was the 8s and Wattel’s opponent bet again, this time 3,000. Wattel made the call and they saw the 2 fall on the river. Wattel called 5,000 from his opponent and mucked when he was shown QQ.

David Baker Eliminated

We saw David Baker move all-in on the turn with the board reading 2469 and Steven Curran made the call.

Baker had a monster draw as he tabled 85, but Curran showed 9h9d, giving him top set. The river was the A and Baker bricked off and is eliminated.

Morrison Getting Short

With 4,200 in the middle preflop, Kirk Morrison and his opponent both checked a flop of QJ7. When the 8c fell on the turn, Morrison’s opponent bet out 5,000 and Morrison called.

Both players checked when the A fell on the river. Morrison’s opponent was going for a check-raise and turned over the A-K with the K, giving him the nut flush.

Pavilion Room Coverage

David Saab Eliminated

A player limped in the pot and David Saab bet 1,450 from late position. A player in the blinds called and the limper called. The flop came 962 and both players checked to Saab. Saab bet 2,200 and the player in the blind raised to 100,000. The limper folded and and Saab thought about it for less than a minute before announcing all in for a little more than the raise. His opponent insta-called and tabled the A7 and was behind the 98 of Saab. With over 200,000 in the middle, the 6 pealed off the deck. Saab’s opponent hit the nut flush and Saab was drawing dead. The river was a 5 and it was official. Day 2b has a new overall chip leader — Charles Alexandre Sylvestre. He was at over 260,000 after the hand.

Humberto Brenes Wins a Hand

Humberto Brenes check-called a bet of 1500 on a flop of QJ3. The turn brought the 6 and Humberto checked from the big blind. His opponent on the button bet 2,500 this time and Brenes check-raised to 7,500. Brenes’ opponent went into the tank before finally folding. Humberto was at about 50,000 after the hand.

Swick Takes Hit From Schneider

Tom Schneider and UFC fighter Mike Swick were heads up on a flop of 67A. Schneider bet 3,000 and Swick raised enough to put Schneider all in for his last 10,000 or so.

Tom made the call and saw that he was ahead, but Swick had plenty of outs. Their hands:

Swick: AJ
Schneider: AK

Swick was one card away from the flush, but the board bricked with a 9 turn and 8 river. Schneider took the pot to double up to around 20,000. Swick was left with around 15,000.

Micon Runs Into Aces

Bryan Micon called another player’s 1,500 raise and they saw a flop of 10108. They both checked and the turn brought the 2. The original raiser bet 2,000 and Micon called.

The river was the 9 and Micon’s opponent again bet, 6,500 this time. Micon took some time to think it over and eventually made the call. His opponent showed AA and Micon mucked his hand, dropping to 23,325 in chips.