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10pm: Level over

Level four is over. We now usher in level five.

9.55pm: Small pairs

Daniel Negreanu’s bounty has been claimed.

Joe Gibbons and the Team PokerStars Pro found themselves all-in preflop.

Negreanu: [2d][2s]

Gibbons: [6d][6s]

The board, [5h][3c][jc][qs][10d], brought Negreanu no help and he was sent to the rail, leaving only two PokerStars Pro at the feature table. —AV

9.55pm: Klodnicki ousts Elias

This one isn’t especially pleasant, especially if your name is Darren Elias. He got his last chips in the pot pre-flop, called by Chris Klodnicki. Klodnicki “only” had [ad][2d] and Elias probably thought he was on for a double up with his [ah][8s].

But the flop came [2c][4s][2h], the turn was [as] and the river [6c]. Klodnicki’s come-from-behind boat sent Elias out. — HS

9.50pm: Dombrowski downs Schwartz

Justin Schwartz is “flipping badly” – and certainly that pessimistic assertion was confirmed in the last hand he played at Mohegan Sun tonight. After Chris Dombrowski opened to 1,600, Schwartz moved all in for his last 6,000-ish. And then they were flipping.

Schwartz: [8h][8d]

Dombrowski: [ah][qs]

The flop favoured the overcards. It came [kd][9c][qh] and the [js][jc] turn and river changed nothing. Schwartz is out. — HS

9.45pm: Cannibalism

The Team PokerStars Pros are at it again. This time it was Victor Ramdin who found himself all-in against Vanessa Selbst.

Ramdin held [as][kc] and was up against Selbst’s [ah][7c] on a [qh][2d][8c] flop. The turn was a [7h], giving Selbst a pair. The river changed nothing and Selbst added a PokerStars Team Pro bounty chip on top of hers. —AV

9.40pm: Another three way

Joe Sweeney raised to 1,600 from the cutoff and things were about to heat up, shootout style.

Darren Elias re-raised to 4,200 from the button and Alex Keating moved all-in for 16,450 from the big blind. Sweeney moved all-in too, and Elias, who had them both covered, quickly called.

Showdown

Sweeney: [kc][jd]

Keating: [qh][qs]

Elias: [ad][as]

The flop came [kh][9s][3d], pairing Sweeney’s King. The turn, [jh], paired his other card and the [js] on the river gave him the full house.

Sweeney won Keating’s bounty chip and is up 52,000. Elias is now down to 10,000. —AV

9.35pm: Three way

When you have a three way all in pre-flop before the first break, you expect to see some premium hands. So it was in a confrontation between Pat Pezzin, Jonathan Tamayo and Nenad Medic, which ended up earning Medic his second bounty, tripling up Pezzin and sending Tamayo out.

As stated, they got it all in pre-flop. Pezzin was the short stack but had the best hand: [kc][kd]. Tamayo had Pezzin covered, but had the worst hand: [ad][qd]. Medic had the most chips and had [js][jc].

The board ran [5c][2c][7h][6c][6s] and that meant that Pezzin won the main pot, Medic won the side pot, and Tamayo won nothing. Medic claimed the bounty from the side pot with Tamayo. — HS

LEVEL UP. BLINDS 400-800-100 IN LEVEL 4

9.30pm: Time for Timoshenko

The shootout massacre continues. This time, Dan Shak and Yevgeniy Timoshenko were the ones who went all-in preflop.

Shak: [as][qs]

Timoshenko: [jd][kc]

The board was an unforgiving [6d][qd][jc][2h][5d] and Shak was forced to hand his bounty chip over to Timoshenko, who now has over 50,000. —AV

9.25pm: Lind cracks Stein’s aces

George Lind III has claimed his second bounty on the feature table, this time cracking the aces of Sam Stein. Lind had [qd][ts] but made two pair on the [kd][qc][8c][th][6c] board, which was precisely one pair more than Stein had. — HS

9.20pm: No mercy

Team PokerStars Pro Joe Cada raised to 1,400 and Alex Wice re-raised to 3,500. Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier made it 7,150 to go and Cada got out of the way. Wice opted for the 5-bet option and went all-in, Mercier made the call.

Mercier had Wice covered but Wice’s [as][kc] was ahead of Mercier’s [ah][qd].

The flop came [kh][js][2s], giving Mercier a straight draw and déjà vu. “Now you’ve got 4 outs,” said a tablemate. “Last time you hit it on the turn,” said Ronnie Bardah.

The turn was indeed a [10s], giving Mercier the straight and prompting suspicion among his tablemates. “Is this real life?” asked Bardah.

The river was a [5c] and Mercier won another bounty. He’s now past the 90,000 mark. —AV

9.10pm: Medic sends Heimiller to mortuary

Dan Heimiller has become the latest casualty, finding this particular Medic to be particularly damaging to his health. Heimiller flopped a set with his pocket tens, but by the time the board had been dealt all the way – [9d][10h][ah][js][7d] – Nenad Medic’s [6h][8h] had made a straight. I didn’t see the action, but it seems likely that the money went in on the flop. — HS

9.05pm: Battle of the pros

Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein and Jason Mercier got it all-in preflop.

Mercier: [kd][qh]

Greenstein: [qs][qd]

The flop came [9c][jd][3d], giving Mercier the straight draw. The [10c] came on the turn, giving Mercier his straight.



“Oh God no, a king is coming,” Mercier said as the river was being dealt.

But it was a [6h], proving his gut wrong and earning him a Barry Greenstein bounty chip and autographed copy of “Ace on the River.”

“Three years I’ve been playing against Barry,” said Mercier. “And I finally win a book.” —AV

9pm: Waxman wilts

Max Waxman has become the second player to depart from Greg DeBora’s table, following Bryn Kenney out the door. This time it was Kyle Loman who took the bounty after the following.

Allen Bari opened to 1,200 from the cut off. Waxman moved all in for his last 1,900 from the button. Loman re-raised to 5,000 from the small blind, which was enough to get Bari out the way, and the two of them were heads up with Waxman under threat.

Waxman: [as][2d]

Loman: [10c][10s]

The board blanked and Waxman melted. Bounty goes to Loman. — HS

LEVEL UP. BLINDS: 300-600 IN LEVEL 3

9.05pm: Not the worst hand

Kyle Loman raised to 400 from under the gun and Jonathan Jaffe raised to 2,600. Both Matt Waxman, in the big blind, and Loman made the call.

The flop came [9d][3d][7c] and action was folded to Jaffe who bet 4,600. Waxman moved all-in, Loman folded and Jaffe made the call.

Jaffe showed [7s][3d] for bottom two pair and Waxman tabled his [qd][qc].

“I’ll take a nine said Waxman,” looking for the counterfeit.

But an [8s] on the turn and an [ac] on the river wasn’t what he was looking for. Jaffe doubled up to 50,000 while Waxman is now under the 2,000 mark. —AV

8.50pm: Lind busts Li, makes for uncomfortable road trip

George Lind III and Andrew Li are heading off on a road-trip after this event, but there was no love lost between the buddies on the feature table. Lind has just sent Li out of the tournament, giving him ample time to prepare the car.

It was a straight race. Li had [9s][9d] and Lind had [ad][jd]. The jack flopped and did Li could not pull off a redraw. That was that. — HS

8.45pm: Kenney’s resurgence cut short by Illingworth

Bryn Kenney was the last player to register for this event, but he has become the first to leave. Jonathan Jaffe opened the pot, making it 1,000 to go from the cut off. Daniel Illingworth, on the button, raised to 2,500 and Kenney moved all in from the small blind.

Jaffe folded, but Illingworth called. He had Kenney covered despite the latter’s recent double up through Greg DeBora. It was another flip for Kenney, who had [ad][kh] against Illingworth’s [jd][jh].

The board again favoured the pair. It came [10c][9s][4c][9c][5h] and Kenney was sent packing. — HS

8.35pm: Kenney climbing

With only 3,800 left, Bryn Kenney moved all-in from early position. Everyone folded and he took down the blinds.

The very next hand Kenney employed the same technique. This time, Team PokerStars Pro Greg DeBora decided to call.

Debora showed [ad][jc] and Kenney showed a small pair, [4s][4h].

“Anyone fold an ace?” asked DeBora, and one player raised his hand. “What about a Jack?” And another player raised his hand, diminishing his odds.

The board fell ³[2c][kd][8h][9c] and Kenney doubled up to about 11,000. DeBora is down to 14,500. —AV

8.25pm: Great minds think alike

Allen Bari raised to 400 from under the gun and Jonathan Jaffe re-raised to 1,200. Bari 4-bet to 2,575 and Jaffe made the call.

The flop came [9c][7h][6h] and both players suspiciously checked. The turn, [10c], brought another round of checks. The river was an [8d] and both players checked yet again.

Bari showed [as][ks] and Jaffe showed the same cards with different suits, [ad][kc]. They chopped the pot but Bari won the extra green 25 chip. —AV

LEVEL UP. PLAYING 200-400-50 IN LEVEL 2

8.25pm: Strong-arm Junglen

Adam Junglen just quietly suggested to Jim Alex that tangling with him is a bad idea, putting Alex to a decision for his tournament life on the last hand of level one.

The two of them were at a flop of [jh][ah][8h] and Junglen, who had been under-the-gun pre-flop, bet 1,000. Alex, on the button, raised to 3,000 and Junglen immediately eyed his opponent’s stack.

“You have 19 behind?” said Junglen. That was indeed what Alex still had left. After a few seconds, Junglen moved 19,000 of his own in the middle. Alex thought for a couple of minutes, twitched his mouth, and folded. — HS

8.20pm: Raskin roasts Li

Micah Raskin has just doubled up through Andrew Li, leaving Li very short indeed. Li opened the pot pre-flop and Daniel Negreanu raised. Micah Raskin then four bet, before Li five-bet to 21,525. Negreanu folded, but Raskin called for all his chips, and the two of them were racing:

Raskin [ah][kc]

Li: [qh][qd]

Raskin got there the hard way, making a flush to his king on the [9c][3c][8c][4c]x board. Li had Raskin covered, but he is now in big trouble, while Raskin leads the feature table. — HS

8.10pm: Cada outmuscles Dombrowski

This is a stacked field and no mistake, and while the likes of Vanessa Selbst, Daniel Negreanu and Victor Ramdin, among others, do battle on the feature table, there’s also a wealth of talent on table four.

In a row there are Joe Cada, Adam Junglen and Alex Wice, then comes the Team PokerStars Pro duo of Jason Mercier and Barry Greenstein. Mercier also happens to be the defending champion in this event.

Chris Dombrowski isn’t one to be intimidated, although he was just forced to lay something down to Cada after the 2009 World Champion found a check raise. Dombrowski had opened to 500 from the button and both Cada and Junglen had called from the blinds.

The flop came [8d][5s][7s] and after Cada and Junglen checked, Dombrowski bet 800. Cada then bumped it to 2,800, which turned out to be enough to drive both of them away. — HS

8.05pm: Tamayo takes some

The board read [qd][kd][3s] and Dan Heimiller bet out 1,100. Jonathan Tamayo raised to 3,000 and Heimiller shot back with a blue chip, raising to 8,000.

Tamayo made the call and a [4s] came on the river. Both players cautiously checked and Tamayo showed [qc][qs] for a set of queens. Heimiller looked at his cards, sighed and threw them in the muck. He now has just over 16,000. —AV

8pm: Counterfeit, but still good

Kyle Loman opened for 550 from early position and Daniel Illingworth called on the button. That tempted Scott Baumstein in from the big blind, and he ended up happy to have been tempted.

The flop came [5c][3s][9h] and Baumstein checked. Loman bet 850, which Illingworth raised to 2,225. After Baumstein called, Loman thought better of it and folded.

The turn was [9s] and Baumstein led for 3,275. Illingworth called. The river was [5c] and Baumstein now tickled 2,000 at that. Illingworth called the small bet quickly, and Baumstein said: “I got a counterfeited boat.” He tabled [3d][3c].

He seemed to be fearing the worst, but ended up scooping as Illingworth mucked. — HS

7.50pm: Re-organising again

The continued delay to the start here is because the Main Event has just wrapped for the day, allowing Vanessa Selbst and Dan Shak, both of whom are on that final table, to join the Bounty Shootout action. Steve O’Dwyer, another Main Event final table-ist, opted not to play here despite having registered. His seat has been filled by Bryn Kenney.

7.35pm: Two down

It seems as though Dan Shak and Steve O’Dwyer will not be playing in the Bounty Shootout. Both of them are still involved in the Main Event, which is now nine handed. — HS

7.30pm: Starting?

After the mandatory 30 minute delay, players have now arrived to the Bounty Shootout room and flight B should be starting in about 10-15 minutes.

7pm: Flight B to begin

After a quick-fire flight A of the $10,000 Bounty Shootout, during which Scott Blackman, Eugene Katchalov, Jimmie Guinther and Michael Pesek booked their spot at the final, you join us now for Flight B, with a bigger field and a few very famous names.

The organisers have squeezed an additional table into the Bounty Shootout room, and have put an extra chair around most of them. We’re now going to watch four nine-handed tables and one eight-handed one, with the 44 players angling for that final table felt.

Players will earn $40,000 if they win their heat ($36,000 for the eight-handed table) and $2,000 for each bounty chip they pick up. At time of writing, two of the registered players (Dan Shak and Steve O’Dwyer) are still going in the Main Event, so they may un-register from this. We will obviously keep you posted.

Here’s the table draw for this second flight, and please click over to the results page to see who won what earlier on.

Flight B table assigments

Table 1 – Spades

1 Joe Sweeney

2 Darren Elias

3 Chris Klodnicki

4 Alex Keating

5 Dan Suied

6 Gregory Merson

7 Dan Shak

8 Yevgeniy Timoshenko

9 Charbel Azzi

Table 2 – Hearts

1 Nick Binger

2 Eric Froehlich

3 Dan Heimiller

4 David Paredes

5 Pat Pezzin

6 Jason Somerville

7 Jonathan Tamayo

8 Nenad Medic

9 Taylor von Kriegenbergh

Table 3 – Diamonds

1 Joe Gibbons

2 George Lind III

3 Andrew Li

4 Bryan Colin

5 Victor Ramdin

6 Daniel Negreanu

7 Micah Raskin

8 Sam Stein

Table 4 – Clubs

1 Jim Alex

2 Chris Dombrowski

3 Joe Cada

4 Adam Junglen

5 Alex Wice

6 Jason Mercier

7 Barry Greenstein

8 Justin Schwartz

9 Ronnie Bardah

Table 5

1 Kyle Loman

2 Greg DeBora

3 Pat Walsh

4 Jonathan Jaffe

5 Daniel Illingworth

6 Steve O’Dwyer

7 Scott Baumstein

8 Allen Bari

9 Matt Waxman

Levels last 30 minutes and starting stacks are 25,000.

Reporting team: Howard Swains and Alex Villegas. Photographs: Joe Giron.

This NAPT is brought to you by PokerStars, the official sponsor of the North American Poker Tour. Win your way into the biggest events North America has to offer at North America.

7:45pm: Corey Hochman busts in 9th, final table set

Down to around 300,000, Corey Hochman open-shoved from middle position and after asking for a count, Vincent Rubianes re-shoved from the small blind. Steve O’Dwyer folded his big blind and the cards went on their backs.

Hochman [Qh][Th]

Rubianes [Ad][Qd]

It was over for Hochman on the turn, the board running out [5h][Jd][5s][Ac][Td]. He’ll take home $26,000 for his ninth-place finish.

The final eight are currently bagging and tagging their chips. We’ll have official chip counts and a full wrap shortly. —KB

LEVEL UP. BLINDS 15,000-30,000-3,000

7:01pm: Final table redraw

Here’s how the final nine have taken their seats.—BW

Seat 1: Corey Hochman

Seat 2: Joe Tehan

Seat 3: Thomas Hoglund, Jr.

Seat 4: Dan Shak

Seat 5: Vincent Rubianes

Seat 7: Steve O’Dwyer

Seat 7: Tyler Kenney

Seat 8: Aaron Overton

Seat 9: Vanessa Selbst

6:53pm: Stefanski bubbles (unofficial) final table

The televised final table of NAPT events is eight-handed, but the unofficial final table comes together with nine players remaining. That has just happened after Tyler Kenney came in for a raise from the button. David Stefanski shoved all in for a little more than 400,000 from the small blind. His [ac][tc] looked good until Kenney turned up [as][kd]. Kenney’s hand held up and Stefanski left in 10th place. —BW

6:38pm: Hoglund doubles, Fernandez departs

Thomas Hoglund made a stand, moving all-in for 310,000 with pocket queens and David Stefanski looked him up with [As][Qh]. The ladies held and Hoglund chipped up to 660,000.

Meanwhile, one table over, Jacobo Fernandez got the rest of his chips in the middle preflop with [Kh][Qs] and Joe Tehan made the call with pocket jacks Again, the pocket pair was good and Fernandez hit the rail in 11th place. —KB

6:32pm: Selbst doubles Overton, loses chip lead

Tournament short stack Aaron Overton moved all-in for his last 350,000 and Vanessa Selbst made the call, turning over [7c][7s]. Overton showed [9d][Td] and hit a nine on the flop, doubling his stack to 740,000.

For the first time all day, Selbst has fallen below 2 million in chips and out of the top spot.—KB

6:25pm: Selbst can’t bluff Shak

After taking a bit of a tumble by doubling up Vincent Rubianes, Dan Shak has regained most of those lost chips. Vanessa Selbst limped in from the small blind and Shak checked his option from the big. Selbst led out for 28,000 on the [Qd][7h][5c] flop and Shak made the call. The turn brought the [8h] and Selbst loaded another bullet, making it 63,000 to go. Shak called again, and they went to the river which fell the [Th]. Selbst bet 157,000 and Shak quickly called.

“You got it,” Selbst said, as Shak turned up [Qs][7c] for two pair.

Shak is back up to 1.45 million while Selbst slipped to 2.45 million. —KB

6:13pm: Rubianes doubles through Shak

Vincent Rubianes’ downward slide today has ended. After starting Day 4 with more than a million in chips, Rubianes was down to half of that. He finally just got all-in with Dan Shak. Rubianes held [ah][ks] to Shak’s [td][tc]. Rubianes made his pair on the flop and got back up around where he started the day. —BW

BLINDS UP, PLAYING 12,000-24,000-2,000 IN LEVEL 23

5:30pm: Kenney climbing

A pair of pots late in the level have pushed Tyler Kenney up to second in chips. In the first, Steve O’Dwyer opened for 43,000 from the cutoff, Kenney three-bet to 115,000 on the button and O’Dwyer made the call. Both players checked on the [As][3s][9s] flop, then did the same when the [8s] hit the turn. The river fell the [5h] and O’Dwyer check-called Kenney’s 125,000 bet. Kenney turned up [Qs][Qh] for the flush and O’Dwyer mucked.

A few minutes later, O’Dwyer opened again for 43,000, Kenney flat-called and Thomas Hoglund made it 143,000 to go from the cutoff. O’Dwyer folded and Kenney called. Hoglund led out for 150,000 on the [Kc][7c][2d] flop, earned a call, then made it the same amount when the [4d] came on the turn. Hoglund called again and both players checked the [5d] on the river. Kenney showed [Kd][Th] for the win and vaulted to 1.85 million in chips. Hoglund was left with 350,000.

Players are now on a 15-minute break.

5:01pm: Selbst leaves Overton on the short stack

Vanessa Selbst opened for a min-raise to 40,000 from early position, Aaron Overton three-bet to 122,000 from the big blind and Selbst made the call. Overton led out for 202,000 when the flop fell [Qh][7c][3d] and after about a minute in the tank, Selbst moved all-in.

Overton elected to save his remaining 260,000 and folded. Selbst is up to 2.7 million.—KB

4:44pm: Plouffe go poof

(Yes, we’ve been waiting to use that headline for a couple of days now). Steve O’Dwyer opened to 44,000 and got a flat call from Tyler Kenney. That opened the door to a 431,000 shove from Philippe Plouffe. O’Dwyer must have had something on Plouffe, because he made the call with [as][9c]. Kenney got out of the way, and Plouffe turned up [8c][tc]. The board ran out [kc][[4s][jh][kh][7h] and Plouffe exited in12th place. —BW

LEVEL UP. BLINDS 10,000-20,000-2,000

4:09pm: The kids might call this a “level”

This hand wasn’t so remarkable for the betting sequence or the result, but for the sheer amount of time Corey Hochman took to make his decision. As the final seconds ticked off Level 21, Hochman opened for 32,000 in the cutoff and Steve O’Dwyer called on the button. The flop came down [As][Ks][4c] and Hochman checked to O’Dwyer, who bet 42,000. With the ESPN cameras trained on his face, Hochman began mumbling something about putting O’Dwyer specifically on the [8h][Th] and sat in the tank as the 15-minute break ticked away.

“Seriously, this might take the whole break,” Hochman said. O’Dwyer remained stone-faced as his opponent hemmed and hawed.

After six and a half minutes ticked off the clock, Hochman finally settled on a raise to 125,000. O’Dwyer snap-folded and headed off for what was left of his break showing no signs of tilt as Hochman continued to mug for the cameras. —KB

4:02pm: Matte’s day is done

With just minutes to go before the third break of the day Jean-Philippe Matte took his half-average stack and got it in the middle with [ad][9d]. It was a bad spot. David Stefanski was sitting with black kings, flopped his set, and put Matte out in 13th. Players are now on a 15-minute break. —BW

3:50pm: Updated chip counts

Head over to the NAPT chip count page for fresh-from-the-oven updates on our 13 remaining players. Vanessa Selbst is still atop the pack with 2.5 million, with Dan Shak in second with 1.68 million. —KB

3:29pm: Another scalp for Selbst

The wheels could still come off, but for now Vanessa Selbst is ruling the day. She just opened for 38,000. When Ara Melikian shoved for 176,000, Selbst snap-called with [ac][kc]. Melikian was way behind with his meager [kh][qh]. The board ran out [8c][8d][7s][ts][6c] and Melikian was gone in 14th place. —BW

3:14pm: Gibbons gutted

Following an opening raise to 35,000 from Phillipe Plouffe, David Stefanski three-bet to 85,000 on the button, only to be met with a shove from Joseph Gibbons in the big blind. Plouffe gave up his hand and Stefanski called. Stefanski had Gibbons dominated with [Ad][Ks] to his [Kc][Tc], the board running out [5h][5d][7h][9d][Qc] to send him home in 16th place. —KB

3:05pm: Phillipe Plouffe doubles through Joseph Gibbons

Phillipe Plouffe’s stack has been rising and falling faster than the Dow Jones index today. Only minutes after busting Taylor von Kriegenbergh, Plouffe saw nearly all those chips go “poof” when he played a massive pot against David Stefanski right before the last break, Stefanski claiming all but 189,000 of Plouffe’s stack. However, Plouffe is back on the rise after doubling through Joseph Gibbons in dramatic fashion.

Gibbons limped in, as he’s prone to do, and Plouffe moved all-in for 265,000. After a long tank, Gibbons made the call and turned up the best hand— pocket nines against Plouffe’s [Kc][8c]. The [Qh][6c][2h] flop agreed with Gibbons, as did the [4d] on the turn, but the [Kd] spiked on the river, saving Plouffe’s tournament life.

“Yes!” Plouffe exclaimed.

“F**k!” cried Gibbons, before apologizing for his profanity.

Gibbons is down to 300,000 while Plouffe is back up to 555,000. —KB

2:55pm: Redraw

With 16 players remaining, here’s how they are seated now. —BW

Table 1

1. Aaron Overton

2. Vincent Rubianes

3. Vanessa Selbst

4. Dan Shak

5. Nenad Medic

6. Joe Tehan

7. Jacobo Fernandez

8. Ara Melikian

Table 2

1. Philippe Plouffe

2. Jean-Philippe Matte

3. David Stefanski

4. Thomas Hoglund Jr.

5. Joe Gibbons

6. Corey Hochman

7. Steve O’Dwyer

8. Tyler Kenney

2:54pm: Overton ousts Olivier

Aaron Overton opened for 36,000 on the button and Olivier Busquet three-bet to 65,000. Overton called the extra 29k, and they went heads-up to a [Ad][Js][5d] flop. Busquet checked, Overton bet 45,000 and Busquet called. The turn brought the [Kd] and Busquet moved all-in. Overton snap-called, revealing [Kc][Jd] to Busquet’s pocket queens. The [3s] on the river sent Busquet to the rail in 17th place while Overton hit the million-chip mark.

With 16 players remaining, they’re re-drawing for seats on two tables.—KB

2:48pm: Players are back in action

The third level of the day is underway. A fresh chip count is up on our chip counts page (just see that little black box on the right).—BW

LEVEL UP. BLINDS 8,000-16,000,2,000

2:12pm: Plouffe busts Von Kriegenbergh in 18th

Following a 27,000 opening raise from Taylor von Kriegenbergh Phillipe Plouffe moved all-in for 276,000 and Von Kriegenbergh made the call for his last 271,000. Unfortunately, his [Ad][Tc] was dominated, as Plouffe tabled the [Ah][Qc]. No help on the board for Von Kriegenbergh and he departed in 18th place. Plouffe can cool down a bit now, he’s up to a far healthier 586,000 in chips. —KB

2:07pm: Plouffe steamy

Philippe Plouffe is not a weak man. He looks like the type of guy that could handle himself in a bar fight. RIght now is not the time to cross him. Moments ago, Corey Hochman came in for a raise to 26,000. Plouffe made it 80,000 to play. Hochman moved all-in for 348,000 and Plouffe snap-called with pocket kings. Up again Hochman’s [as][kh], Plouffe was in good shape until the [ah] hit on the flop. Suffice it to say, the five-foot radius around Plouffe is now a place you enter only if you are collecting hazardous duty pay. —BW

2:00pm: Selbst invites Busquet to value-town, Busquet declines

Vanessa Selbst opened for 27,000 from under-the-gun and Olivier Busquet called from the big blind. Both players checked the [Ac][9s][7d] flop. The turn came the [5d] and Busquet checked again. Selbst bet 38,000 and Busquet came along. When the [Qh] hit the river, Busquet checked to Selbst who made it 48,000 to go. After a long think, Busquet folded. Selbst flashed the [6d][8h] for the turned straight.

“I was hoping to get some value there,” she said. Busquet confessed to having a suited ace in diamonds for top pair on the flop and a flush draw on the turn. —KB

1:52pm: So long, Sandhu

Joe Tehan came in for a raise to 26,000 from the cutoff. Sukh Sandhu had 102,000 more and moved all-in. Tehan made the call with [9h][th]. Sanhu held [5c][5s]. He looked good on the [ac[2s][8d] flop, but that [js] turn and [qd] river ended his day in 19th place. —BW

1:35pm: Adam Geyer out in 20th

Adam Geyer met his tournament end following a battle of the blinds that saw him get the rest of his chips in the pot with [As][Tc] against David Stefanski’s [Ad][Jd]. Stefanski hit top pair on the turn, the board running out [7h][8c][2s][Jd][6d] to send Geyer to the rail. Stefanski is up to 745,000. —KB

1:20pm: Tryba’s day ends

An early-days chip leader, Chris Tryba could go no further than 21st place. The end came just now when he opened to 20,000. Jacobo Fernandez three-bet to 60,000. Tryba shoved for 184,000 total, and Fernandez made the call. Tryba’s [6s][6h] was behind [jc][jh]. The board ran out [7c][8c][8s][as][8h] and Tryba headed for the rail. —BW

1:11pm: Back in action

The 21 remaining players are back in their seats and ready to play at 6,000-12,000-1,000. —BW

1:04pm: A few words from our chip leader

If you were wondering what was on Vanessa Selbst’s mind as she sat down today with the chip lead, here’s a little peek. —BW

LEVEL UP. BLINDS NOW 6,000-12,000-1,000

12:57pm: Battle of blinds ends Loman

Kyle Loman was down below 200,000 and in desperate need of a double-up. With [ah][jc] in the small blind, he didn’t figure to get a better chance. Unfortunately for Loman, Steve O’Dwyer woke up with [ac][kc] in the big blind. O’Dwyers hand held and Loman left in 22nd place. Players are now on a 15-minute break. —BW

12:55pm: Phillipe Plouffe doubles through Adam Geyer

On the last hand before the break, Adam Geyer opened for 23,000 and got a call from Joe Tehan in the cutoff before Phillipe Plouffe shoved from the small blind. Geyer re-shoved and Tehan folded.

It was a standard race, Plouffe’s [Ac][Jh] up against Geyer’s [8h][8c]. Plouffe flopped a jack and turned an ace to double his stack to 440,000 while Geyer fell to 385,000. —KB

12:38pm: Eric Froehlich eliminated in 23rd place, Selbst nears 2 million

And the rich get richer.

Vanessa Selbst opened for 22,000 from the cutoff and Eric Froehlich made the call from the big blind. Froehlich checked the [Tc][9d][2d] flop over to Selbst, who made it 28,000 to go. Froehlich called, and the [Qc] landed on the turn. Froehlich checked, Selbst bet 62,000, Froehlich moved all-in, and Selbst snap-called, revealing a set of deuces. Froehlich needed serious help with [Js][Th] but he could not fill his straight draw on the river, the [Jh] falling instead to give him a no-good two pair. Froehlich hit the payout desk in 23rd while Selbst’s stack crested the 2,000,000 mark. —KB

12:28pm: Jonathan Schroer eliminated in 24th place

Jonathan Schroer, our man of a thousand quirks (resting his head on the table during all-ins, scooting his chair three feet back from the table to peer at his hole cards) is Day 4’s first casualty. After Thomas Hoglund opened for 21,000, Schroer shoved from the cutoff, only to have Dan Shak re-shove right behind him on the button. Hoglund folded and the cards went on their backs, Shak with pocket tens and Schroer with [Ad][Kc]. Schroer could not catch up on the [9h][5h][3c][Qd][6c] board and departed in 24th place, while Shak’s stack rose to 670,000. —KB

12:21pm: Busquet takes it with a four-bet

Following Jean-Phillipe Matte’s opening raise to 21,000, Nenad Medic made it 56,000 to go from middle position. The action folded to Olivier Busquet in the big blind, who made a cold four-bet to 100,000. Matte quickly folded and Medic, after quite a long tank, did the same.—KB

12:18pm: David Stefanski doubles through Joe Tehan

Adam Geyer opened for 22,000 from under-the-gun, Joe Tehan flat-called and David Stefanski moved all-in from the big blind. Geyer folded and Tehan called.

Stefanski: [As][Ks]

Tehan: [Ah][Qh]

No disasters for Stefanski on the [Ad][8c][4s][Jd][5d] board and he doubled to 322,000, leaving Tehan on 380,000. —KB

12:15pm: Joseph Gibbons doubles through Jacobo Fernandez

Jonathan Schroer led off the action with a raise to 22,000 and Joseph Gibbons called on the button before Jacobo Fernandez made it an additional 65,000 to go from the small blind. Schroer folded and after a long tank, Gibbons called. The flop came down [Kd][9c][7c] and Fernandez moved all-in,having Gibbons significantly covered. He snap-called, turning over [7d][7s] for bottom set while Fernandez revealed [As][Ks]. The set held through the [Tc] on the turn and the [2s] on the river, doubling Gibbons to 215,000. —KB

12:10pm: Play underway

The final 24 players have kicked off play for the day. As the cards went in the air on Table 1, the players started calling out their ages. Nenad Medic thought he was getting old at age 28. Olivier Busquet, on his way to 30, said he had Medic beat. The old man at the table, Jean-Philippe Matte, quietly informed them he was the senior member of the table at 30 years old. I’ve never felt so aged and decrepit. —BW

As we set up our gear this morning, a polite young man approached the media desk, asking where on the PokerStars Blog he could find the post containing the overnight chip counts.

“All I can find is last year’s, when Vanessa Selbst was the chip leader,” he said.

We informed him that no, he was not hallucinating, he had indeed found the correct post and that Selbst was once again the overnight chip leader following a Day 3 that saw the field trimmed from 74 to the 24 that will unbag their chips in about thirty minutes’ time. Today’s mission? To play down to a final table of eight that could very well include defending champion Selbst. Stacked at 1,406,000, she has a 383,000 lead over second-in-chips Vincent Rubianes, the only other player who has crossed the seven-figure mark.

For a full look at the chip counts and today’s table draw, click over to the NAPT Mohegan Sun Day 4 seating assignments. We’ll also be tracking the first day of the $10,000 Bounty Shootout, which is about to start its first flight over on the ESPN set.

Stick around, it’s going to be a jam-packed day of poker up here in the Connecticut woods. We’ll be underway at Noon with 48 minutes remaining in Level 19.

Reporting team (in order of 12-oz. cocktails consumed last night): Kristin “change100” Bihr (2), Brad Willis (0). Photography: Joe Giron

This NAPT is brought to you by PokerStars, the official sponsor of the North American Poker Tour. Win your way into the biggest events North America has to offer at North America.

After a lightning quick day three, the field of the NAPT Mohegan Sun main event was trimmed to 24.

Those players will reconvene on Tuesday to play down to a final table of eight. How they will line up is below.

Check out the prizewinners page for the names of those who have already taken their money and run.

Day four seating assignments

Table one

1 Nenad Medic 350,000

2 Eric Froehlich 420,000

3 Vincent Rubianes 1,023,000

4 Taylor von Kriegenbergh 289,000

5 Aaron Overton 907,000

6 Olivier Busquet 356,000

7 Vanessa Selbst 1,406,000

8 Jean-Philippe Matte 331,000

Table two

1 Corey Hochman 355,000

2 Thomas Hoglund Jr 629,000

3 Joe Tehan 490,000

4 Sukh Sandhu 267,000

5 Philippe Plouffe 293,000

6 David Stefanski 162,000

7 Adam Geyer 803,000

8 Ara Melikian 233,000

Table three

1 Dan Shak 488,000

2 Chris Tryba 361,000

3 Joseph Gibbons 179,000

4 Jacobo Fernandez 813,000

5 Tyler Kenney 478,000

6 Kyle Loman 340,000

7 Steve O’Dwyer 507,000

8 Jonathan Schroer 231,000

This NAPT is brought to you by PokerStars, the official sponsor of the North American Poker Tour. Win your way into the biggest events North America has to offer at North America.

6:36pm: Selbst ends day with chip lead

Last year’s NAPT Mohegan Sun champion has ended Day 3 with the chip lead after a massive hand against Vincent Rubianes.

It began when Olivier Busquet came in for a raise to 21,000. Rubianes made it 51,000 to play. With the button, Selbst bumped it up to 109,000. Busquet got out of the way, but Rubianes called.

On a flop of [2c][5d][tc], Rubianes checked-called Selbst’s 129,000 bet. On the [jc] turn, both players checked. When the river brought the fourth club, the [3c], Rubianes checked again. Selbst took her time in betting, but finally settled on 296,000. Rubianes sat tortured. He threw his head back and looked into the ceiling. When he emerged for his tank, he announced a call.

Selbst turned over [ks][kc]. Rubianes said, “It’s good,” and shoved his hand toward the muck.

We’re still counting up the chips, but there is little doubt Selbst will enter Day 4 with the chip lead.

Moments later, Leonard Cortellino got [ks][qc] all in against Sukh Sandhu’s pocket fours. The pair held and we were down to the final 24. A full wrap-up and chip counts are on the way. —BW

6.20pm: A quarter left

In short order, we’ve also lost the short-stacked Gerald Aiello and Eracles Panayiotou, leaving us with 25 players left. One more needs to perish and day is done. — HS

6.15pm: Rubianas crushes Costa, breaks a million

At the recent break, Vincent Rubianes told reporters that his chip count was 980,000, then nodded agreeably when someone piped up: “Good day.” It has just got even better for Rubianes because he has sent one of the other mighty stacks, Ruben Costa, to the rail in a massive pre-flop confrontation, worth more than a million chips.

Eric Froehlich opened, making it 24,000 and Rubianes raised to 55,000. Costa announced that he was all in – a stack of 450,000 – and although Froehlich folded, Rubianes called!

Rubianes: [kd][ks]

Costa: [10c][10d]

The board bricked, Costa was sent packing and Rubianes has close to 1.5 million, which puts him massively in the lead. — HS

LEVEL UP. PLAYING BLINDS OF 5,000-10,000-1,000 IN LEVEL 19

5.55pm: Level over

That’s the end of level 17. There will now be a 15-minute interlude.

5:50pm: Junglen can’t beat kings

Joe Tehan came in for a raise to 19,000. Adam Junglen pushed for about 100,000 more. Tehan made the quick call with [kh][kc]. Junglen’s [ac][js] was behind and never caught up. Tehan flopped a set that held and sent Junglen out for a $10,500 cash. —BW

5.45pm: Ebanks busts

There are no more details than what you see there in the headline. Joe Ebanks is out. — HS

5.40pm: Can anyone stop Vanessa Selbst?

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: something about Mohegan Sun agrees with Vanessa Selbst. She is now very close to the chip lead on day three after doubling up to 833,000 through Jean-Philippe Matte.

Selbst flat-called a pre-flop raise from Matte, taking the two of them to a flop of [5s][9c][3d]. Matte checked, Selbst bet 32,000, and Matte called. The pattern repeated on the [6h] turn. Matte checked, Selbst bet 63,000, Matte called.

And how about one more time? The [3c] rivered and Matte checked, Selbst moved all in for 296,000, which Matte called. Selbst tabled [7d][8d] for the turned straight, which had become much better than Matte’s pocket jacks.

Selbst is relentless, we already know that. But back-to-back here would be some achievement even for her. — HS

5.30pm: Ramdin bites the dust

Vanessa Selbst is the only remaining Team PokerStars Pro in the field, which is the long way to say that Victor Ramdin has been eliminated.

This hand sounds a lot more complicated than it really was, and involved a lot of hand-wringing and chin scratching from four players, before shaking down to be a pair versus over-pair.

It started when Joseph Gibbons opened under-the-gun to 18,000. Adam Geyer called on the button, before Ramdin announced that he was all in for his last 53,500 from the small blind.

Nenad Medic was probably expected to fold his big blind at this spot, but he actually agonised for a good long while before announcing that he was all in too, for 206,000. Gibbons seemed interested, but folded. Geyer never seemed interested, and folded too.

That left the two of them:

Ramdin: [10c][10d]

Medic: [jd][js]

“I need a ten,” said Ramdin, but it soon proved that that was the last thing he really wanted. The flop came [qc][as][kd] and Ramdin quickly corrected himself. “I want a jack.” But verbal declarations are binding, and the [10s] turned, as Ramdin has first desired, but it now gave Medic a decisive straight.

The [3s] was not one of the chop cards, and Ramdin hit the rail. — HS

5.15pm: Gibbons doubles, Junglen slips

It is going nuts now out there with huge pot following huge pot and players milling all over the place as they try to consolidate the final 32 around four tables. Ad Dan Shak et al heaved their mighty stacks over from their broken table, Adam Junglen and Joseph Gibbons were involved in a pot, which bucked the general bust out trend. In fact Gibbons doubled up.

Vincent Rubianes started it, raising to 25,000. Gibbons called from a couple of seats to his left and, in the small blind, Junglen eaised to 64,000. Rubianes folded but Gibbons moved all in for 145,500, which Junglen called after a moment of thought.

Junglen: [jd][jh]

Gibbons: [kh][qh]

The flop sent Gibbons fist-pumping to his rail. It came [7c][4s][qs]. The [ah] turn changed nothing, and neither did the [10c] river.

Gibbons now has about 300,000. Junglen is down to 140,000.

About two seconds after this, Matt Matros bust from another table, bringing us down to 31. — HS

5:14pm: Royalty no match for Geyer

Bryan Leskowitz did all he could today, but his all-in with [ks][qd] couldn’t outrun Adam Geyer’s pocket tens. The board ran out [8s][9d][ah][[8c][ad] and Leskowitz headed to the cage in 33rd place. —BW

5:12pm: Rubianes running the table

With the board reading [Tc][4d][Kd][Js] on the turn, Vincent Rubianes checked to Adam Junglen, who bet 32,000. Rubianes called, and the [Jh] hit the river. Rubianes checked again, Junglen bet 48,000 and Rubianes raised to 212,000. Junglen folded with a small sigh, saving the 280,000 he had behind while Rubianes moved into the chip lead with 785,000. —KB

5:10pm: Mermelstein is going to Mexico

It looks like Andrew Mermelstein will make that wedding in Mexico after all. After opening from the button, Mermelstein faced a three-bet from Dan Shak in the small blind. Mermelstein called, and they saw a J-T-8 flop. Shak moved all-in, having his opponent covered and Mermelstein made the call, turning up J-8 for top and bottom pair. Shak showed pocket aces. Mermelstein, however, was drawing dead on the turn when Shak spiked another ace to make top set. Shak filled up on the river when the board paired tens and Mermelstein was off to the payout desk, then the airport.

The pot took Shak up to 525,000.—KB

5pm: Tryba ousts Kirkwood, back beyond 300,000

The day one leader Chris Tryba is still in this one, and has now knocked out Christopher Kirkwood, all but doubling up in the process. Tryba limped from early position, which also prompted Joe Tehan to limp. Kirkwood didn’t smell anything too suspicious and shoved from the small blind for about 140,000. Tryba snap called. (Tehan did not.)

It was pair versus pair, but Tryba’s queens were better than Kirkwood’s sevens. The board bricked and Kirkwood was sent packing. There was only the odd 40,000 difference between the stacks but Tryba’s was the bigger and is now at 300,000 . — HS

4:58pm: Geyer smells a rat, Weisner smells the rail

On a [7d][6d][5s] flop, Andrew Weisner moved all in for 92,500. Geyer thought for several minutes before making the call with [kc][5d]. Weisner turned up the flush and straight draws with [ad][4d]. Somehow, the pair of fives held and Weisner is gone. —BW

4.55pm: Right back at ya

The problem with three bets is that sometimes people four bet right back at them – as Taylor von Kriegenbergh could no doubt attest. It happened to him in back-to-back pots against Olivier Busquet and then Ruben Costa, costing him about 100,000 chips total.

First up, Busquet opened to 20,000 from early position and Von Kriegenbergh, in the big blind, made it 55,000. Busquet now four bet to 96,000, which left Von Kriegenbergh smiling and muttering: “That’s an illegal bet” as he folded.

On the next hand, Costa raised from the button to 17,000 and Von Kriegenbergh bumped it to 45,000. Costa slid out 100,000 straight, and Von Kriegenbergh was forced to fold again. Costa showed [kh][8h].

All three players still have between 350,000-450,000, so there’s no need for panic just yet. — HS

4:48pm: Updated chip counts

Get ‘em while they’re fresh! Chip counts on all 36 of our remaining players are up on the NAPT chip count page. Over the last level, Steve O’Dwyer moved into the lead with 770,000 while Victor Ramdin is the shortest stack in the room right now with 66,500. —KB

4.40pm: Take a longer break

First hand back after the break, and Vincent Rubianes has sent David Weisberger back to the hall. Rubianes raised to 19,500 pre-flop in late position, Weisberger shoved behind him and Rubianes snap-called.

Rubianes had aces; Weisberger had [ad][jh] and could not catch up. Weisberger is our 37th-place finisher. — HS

LEVEL UP. BLINDS 4,000-8,000-500

4:24pm: A vulture’s view of Victor Ramdin

It all began when Adam Geyer opened for a raise and Victor Ramdin moved all-in. He only had [ad][tc], but it was probably going to be enough to beat Geyer. The problem was Gerald Aiello in the big blind who woke up with pokert queens. Aiello had 54,500 in his stack and Ramdin was left crippled.

Ramdin laughed and told Aiello, “That was a raise and a re-raise. You were supposed to fold!”

That’s when the vultures started to circle. Ramdin would be gone soon, and his demise would be late afternoon snack.

Ramdin was all-in on the next hand for 7,500. Called in two spots, Ramdin looked ready to find something to do tonight. The Team Pro was holding ace-king and didn’t improve. His opponents couldn’t beat ace-high.

“Oh, baby,” Ramdin declared. “Ship that cheese!”

On the next deal, Ramdin was under the gun and all-in again. “Here we go. This is a real hand, folks.” Play folded around to the big blind. “Don’ fold,” Ramdin implored. “You’re pot-committed. Just call dark. I’m not going to be pissed.”

Ramdin got the fold he wanted. “Thank you,” he said. “I had eight-high.” He showed it. It was Vanessa Selbst’s [8d][4d]

Now in the big blind, Ramdin warned, “You guys know I’m pot-committed, right?”

Everything Ramdin says is a lie. Or the truth. It’s hard to figure out which or when. He folded to a raise, and then folded to a raise in the small blind. With 30,000 in his stack, he pulled the button in front of him and folded to a raise. He did the same when he was in the cutoff.

“If I bust here, I’ll go ship the Super Tuesday,” Ramdin said.

“Victor,” I interrupted. “Today is Monday.”

“I’ll have to stick around then,” he said.

Finally, on the last hand before the break, Ramdin pushed out 28,500 in chips. “All of it, guys,” he said. “This could hurt your stack.”

One player folded. “Nit,” said Ramdin.

Another player folded. “Another nit,” Ramdin said.

Andre Weisner was having none of it. He moved all-in.

“Show me ace-queen,” Ramdin said. Weisner turned over [as][qs].

Ramdin tabled pocket threes. The board tan out [jh][tc][2h][7c][ts] and Victor Ramdin was back where he started.

“Oh, baby,” Ramdin said again. “I love this game.” —BW

4:20pm: Heimowitz hits the road

Once again, ace-queen has yielded quite a nice pot for Adam Junglen. This time, Lonnie Heimowitz shoved for his last 80,000 from the button with [Ah][9h] and Junglen made the call from the big blind with [Ad][Qh]. Junglen’s kicker played on the [Ac][Jh][3c][4h][Kd] board and Heimowitz exited in 38th place.

Junglen, meanwhile, is up to 540,000. —KB

4:12pm: Nenad Medic doubles

With the action folded around to him on the button, Christopher Kirkwood opened for 14,500 and Nenad Medic moved all-in for 106,000. Kirkwood didn’t take long to make the call, turning up [Ah][Td] to Medic’s [8s][8c]. The eights were safe on the [Qc][3h][2c][4c][6d] board and Medic doubled to just short of 225,000. —KB

4.10pm: Kenney trims the beast’s claws

Olivier Busquet described Joe Ebanks as “a beast” earlier on today, referring to Ebanks’ ability to cling on to tournament life when times are bad and then suddenly burst forward to earn bundles of chips when the opportunity arises. Ebanks has been a short stack for a couple of days, but then suddenly had more than 200,000 on a recent trip round the room.

He pushed Eric Froehlich off a couple of pots to get those chips, but just as it seemed he could do no wrong, along came Tyler Kenney to stop him in his tracks.

Ebanks raised to 13,500 from the hijack, something he’s been doing from all positions on regular occasions. Kenney called in the cut off. The flop came [jh][7h][6c] and Ebanks bet 18,000. Kenney called. The turn was [9h] and Ebanks led 41,000 at that, which spurred Kenney into gear.

Kenney, sitting the other side of the dealer, asked Ebanks how much he was playing behind. Ebanks mutely pushed his chips forward a little for Kenney to see. “How much is that?” Kenney sought confirmation. The dealer did the necessary and said Ebanks had about 164,000 more.

Kenney thought for a while but then cut out a raise to 93,000, which sent Ebanks deep into the tank. He dwelled for a good long while before folding. “You going to show?” Ebanks said.

Kenney didn’t seem that he had intended to, but was persuaded to flip over a [7s]. Ebanks nodded and on they went. — HS

3:54pm: Sweeney’s swan song

Ara Melikian opened for 13,500 and the action was folded around to Joe Sweeney, who moved all-in for only a few thousand more. Melikian quickly called with [Ah][Kh], while Sweeney’s tournament life was at stake with [Qh][Th]. The [Tc][6h][2h] flop was juicy for both players, Sweeney hitting top pair while Melikian picked up the nut flush draw. The turn was the [8c], but the [As] spiked on the river to send Sweeney home in 39th place. —KB

3:45pm: Keeping up with the carnage

If you’d like to keep up with the carnage in a bit cleaner form, we’re also keeping up with the bust-outs over on our NAPT Mohegan Sun prizes and winners page.

3:39pm: Adieu, Lachance and Whalen

On back-to-back hands we’ve lost Ludovic Lachance and David Whalen. Lachance got his last few chips in with [as][qc] vs. Matt Matros’ [jd][9c]. The board, [6d][8h][5d][7d][ad], ran out a straight for Matros, and Lachance was gone.

One table over, David Whalen was shoving with [ad][td] to Ara Melikian’s [ah][kh]. Melikian held, and Whalen is gone. —BW

3:32pm: Markholt finally falls to Selbst

Vanessa Selbst seemed to be making a habit of doubling up Lee Markholt today. It happened more times than we could count. Nonetheless, at some point in the last half an hour, Markholt somehow lost a majority of his chips.

Just now, his last few antes went in the pot. Both he and Selbst had a jack. Markholt’s deuce kicker couldn’t hold up against Selbst’s eight and he’s gone. —BW

3.30pm: Two (vaguely) interesting facts

The day one and day two end-day chip leaders, Chris Tryba and Aaron Overton, are sitting next to one another.

Jacobo Fernandez and the aforementioned Overton are now out front alone, with about 780,000 apiece. — HS

3:25pm: Junglen busts Papola

Jeff Papola took a coinflip for his tournament life, getting the rest of his chips in the middle before the flop with pocket sevens against Junglen’s A-Q. Big Chick once again proved to be a lucky hand for Junglen (it cracked Nick Binger’s aces in the first level), as he rivered the [Qs] to eliminate Papola in 43rd place. —KB

3:20pm: Plouffe flops the nuts

Phillipe Plouffe opened for a 13,500 raise from the hijacks, Matt Matros three-bet to 35,000 and Plouffe made the call. Both players checked the [Kc][6c][5c] flop and checked again when the [Ad] fell on the turn. The river was the [3s] and Plouffe led out for 45,000. After a minute or so in the tank, Matros made what looked to be a reluctant call.

Plouffe showed [Ac][Qc] for the flopped nut flush and Matros mucked.

“If it had been a low flop, you would have got it all,” Matros said as Plouffe stacked up the pot. Matros is down to 215,000 while Plouffe is hovering around the 400,000 mark. —KB

3:15pm: Steve O’Dwyer and the anti-slowroll

Following an opening raise from Steve O’Dwyer, Michael Quibble moved all-in, and with the following declaration, O’Dwyer beat him into the pot.

“I have aces, I call.”

O’Dwyer’s [Ac][Ah] held up against Quibble’s [7s][7d] on the [Kc][9h][Ts][4s][Kh] board and O’Dwyer vaulted to 556,000 in chips while Quibble departed in 44th place. —KB

3.05pm: Leaders

We enter level 17 with 45 players remaining. Aaron Overton started today out front, and he remains there still with close to 800,000 in chips. However there are a few other players creeping up behind him, including the following:

Players who have cashed already (that’s a nice way of putting the fact that they’re out) can be found on the prizewinners’ page. – HS

Reporting team: Kristin Bihr, Howard Swains and Brad Willis. Photography: Joe Giron.

This NAPT is brought to you by PokerStars, the official sponsor of the North American Poker Tour. Win your way into the biggest events North America has to offer at North America.