Level: 28

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante

Live Updates:

Eddie Blumenthal Eliminated in 4th Place ($146,053)

Eddie Blumenthal came into four-handed play as the short stack and was the next player eliminated. Simon Charette opened the pot for a min-raise to 100,000, Luis Rodriguez Cruz reraised to 230,000 from the button, Blumenthal four-bet to 620,000 from the small blind, Charette five-bet shoved, Cruz folded and Blumenthal called all in.

Charette led before the flop with AA against Blumenthal’s AQ.

The board came Q84J2, Blumenthal failed to improve by the river and was eliminated in 4th place ($146,053). Charette retook the chip lead that hand with about 3.4 million.

Luis Rodriguez Cruz eliminated in 3rd Place ($225,511)

Simon Charette opened the pot for 125,000 from the small blind, Luis Rodriguez Cruz moved all in from the big blind and Charette called.

Cruz was all in for his tournament life and led before the flop with 66 against Charette’s A8.

The board came K979A, giving Charette top pair on the river to win the pot. Luis Rodriguez Cruz was eliminated in 3rd place ($225,511), while Simon Charette took the chip lead going into heads-up play with about 5.3 million.

Simon Charette Wins Event no. 23 ($567,624)
Artem Metalidi Eliminated in 2nd Place ($350,806)

Simon Charette just eliminated his final three opponents in record fashion this level, one right after the other. First he busted Eddie Blumenthal in 4th place with pocket aces against A-Q offsuit and then he busted Luis Rodriguez Cruz in 3rd place after spiking an ace on the river to crack Cruz’s pocket pair. Charette took a sizable chip lead going into heads-up play and it wasn’t long before he then knocked out Artem Metalidi in 2nd place to win the tournament.

On the final hand of the night, Simon Charette opened the button for 125,000, Artem Metalidi reraised to 350,000 from the big blind, Charette four-bet to 600,000, Metalidi moved all in and Charette called.

Charette led before the flop with 66 against Metalidi’s A2.

The board came KJ98J, offering no help to Artem Metalidi who was eliminated in 2nd place ($350,806). Simon Charette wins Event no. 23, taking home the $567,624 grand prize and the twenty-third gold bracelet of the 2012 WSOP.

Be sure to check back with Card Player for all of your final table action, current chip counts, and prize distributions for each gold bracelet event.

Level: 26

Blinds: 15,000-30,000 with a 5,000 ante

Players Remaining: 5 out of 924

Average Chip Count: 1,663,200

Chip Counts:

Seat no. 1 — Artem Metalidi — 1,200,000
Seat no. 2 — Simon Charette — 2,800,000
Seat no. 3 — Luis Rodriguez Cruz — 2,500,000
Seat no. 4 — Eddie Blumenthal — 1,200,000

Seat no. 6 — Foster Hays — 500,000

Live Updates:

Foster Hays Doubles Through Eddie Blumenthal

Foster Hays was left on the short stack after Bertrand Grospellier was eliminated last level, but managed to double up through Eddie Blumenthal early in Level 26. Eddie Blumenthal opened the button for 64,000, Foster Hays moved all in for 605,000 from the small blind and Blumenthal called.

Hays was all in for his tournament life and trailing before the flop with QJ against Blumenthal’s AJ.

The board came Q969J, giving Hays top pair on the flop to win the pot and double up. Hays moved up to about 1.3 million that hand while Blumenthal was put on the short stack with just under 1 million.

The remaining five players took a one hour dinner break at the conclusion of Level 26 and will return at approximately 9:10pm local time to resume play.

Be sure to check back with Card Player at the conclusion of each level for regular updates with all of the action, current chip counts, and prize distributions.

The final table of Event no. 23 ($3,000 No-Limit Hold’em Six Handed) is now underway, and Card Player will be posting level-by-level updates with all of the action, current chip counts, and prize distributions.

Day 3 began with 18 players spread out over 3 tables, and with the elimination of Scott Montgomery in 7th Place ($49,214), the official 6-handed final table is now set. Play will begin in Level 24 with blinds of 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante, and will continue until a winner is determined.

With cards now back in the air, here is a look at the final table and how these players match up:

Seat no. 1 — Artem Metalidi — 1,180,000
Seat no. 2 — Simon Charette — 2,370,000
Seat no. 3 — Luis Rodriguez Cruz — 1,933,000
Seat no. 4 — Eddie Blumenthal — 1,570,000
Seat no. 5 — Bertrand Grospellier — 302,000
Seat no. 6 — Foster Hays — 940,000

While only 6 remain, this event gathered 924 players, creating a total prize pool of $2,522,520. Here is a look at the final payouts:

1st Place — $567,624
2nd Place — $350,806
3rd Place — $222,511
4th Place — $146,053
5th Place — $98,756
6th Place — $86,738

Be sure to check back with Card Player at the conclusion of each level for regular updates with all of the action, current chip counts, and prize distributions.