The Poker Thread

Begleiter A Little Lighter

On a flop of Steve Begleiter called a bet of 1,200 from his opponent before firing 1,700 on the turn. His opponent made the call before both players checked down the river.

Begleiter's opponent opened for the overpair which was good to rake in the pot. Begleiter slips to 27,500 in the early goings.

Johnny Doublin' Chan

We picked up the action on a flop in an increasingly large pot involving Johnny Chan. There was about 9,000 already in the pot when we walked up, and Johnny Chan had check-raised an additional 8,700 after letting his opponent bet the flop. The unknown player promptly moved all in for 25,500, and Chan made the call to put him at risk.

Chan tabled for middle set, and his opponent couldn't believe that his had run into such bad luck. The turn gave him some chop outs, but the river was not what he was looking for.

So it goes that Johnny Chan has eliminated a player in the first orbit, doubling up to 61,500 in the process. A fine start indeed.

Seed Uprooted Already

Huck Seed may have won the Tournament of Champions, but he won't be following that with a Main Event final table, or really, much of a Main Event at all. Seed was down to his last 500 chips, which he got in with . An opponent with called to finish off Mr. Seed. See ya next year, Huck.

Overheard on Twitter:

"Players at Hellmuth's table anted up $100 each for a pool -- whoever busts Hellmuth wins all the cash." #waitingonhellmuth

Mr. Brat is scheduled to arrive to the Rio in just about five minutes.

Game Over for Super Dario

Good game, Dario. A player from middle position bet 4,000 at a flop. Dario Minieri then shipped in his remaining 23,000. His opponent called with for the overpair. Minieri held for a flush draw, but neither the turn nor the river were diamonds. Minieri disappeared in five seconds flat, leaving his table with two other stops on the spectrum of manliness - Mike "Little Man" Sica and Patrik Antonius.

Negreanu Flushed


Daniel Negreanu opened to 225 from middle position and found one caller, before the player in the cutoff three-bet to 1,050.

Negreanu made the call and the player caught in the middle folded as the dealer dropped a flop.

Negreanu checked and his opponent fired out 1,550 with Negreanu making the call as two ESPN TV camera crews came over to film the hand playing out.

The on the turn was greeted by two checks as the river landed the and Negreanu checked the action over to his opponent once again only to be faced with a bet of 3,650.

With both cameras firmly pointed in the Negreanu direction, he took a swig of his Fiji water before shuffling chips in his right hand.

He then released the chips and rested his head on that same hand for just a few moments before returning to shuffling chips once again.

Tilting his head to the side, Negreanu let his tongue slip out of his mouth as he continued to ponder the decision before - with his left hand - cutting the amount required to call and sitting those chips next to his cards.

He peeked at his hand once more and then dropped the chips into the pot only to tap the table at the sight of his opponent's to slip to 23,925 in chips.

Enter Hellmuth

It's become an annual spectacle that only gets bigger each year. He's shown up dressed as a NASCAR driver, Caesar, and now Phil Hellmuth can add MMA fighter to that list. Let's just thank our higher power that he did not take the costuming literally, showing up shirtless, barefoot, and in short shorts.

About 200 or so poker fans and media braved the 108-degree heat and flanked the red carpet laid out for Hellmuth's arrival. Following a lengthy hip-hop dance performance by some scantily clad women, Hellmuth emerged, wearing a silk black-and-gold boxer's robe and was trailed into the Amazon Room by a group of models holding cardboard signs in the shape of WSOP bracelets (although Hellmuth has 11, we counted only 10 bracelet-bearers. Oops).

Hellmuth is now ensconced on the secondary featured table, taking a seat on Mike Beasley's left.

The Moon is Shining

Darvin Moon, last year's Main Event runner-up, has been spotted on the spectator side of the ropes.

A fan approached Moon and jokingly asked, "Are you a poker player?"

"Nope, I just watch. I don't play," Moon joked back.

Negreanu Wins Game of Chicken

Daniel Negreanu fired a flop of and was check-called by one player. The turn didn't slow Negreanu down. He put another 1,800 out there and was check-called a second time. The river was the and brought a third bet from Negreanu of 2,400. This time, however, Negreanu's opponent pondered and then cut out a check-raise to 5,800.

Negreanu is normally a chatty player at the table, but during this hand he remained mostly silent. After thirty to forty seconds, he re-raised to 11,200.

"How much more do you have?" Negreanu's opponent asked. The answer was about 17,000. It seemed like the player wanted to pull the trigger on a shove but couldn't do it. He eventually folded.

"You had the right idea," said Negreanu. "I was just goofing around. I didn't have anything." He flipped open a total airball, !

"Neither did I," responded Negreanu's opponent.

"Crazy internet stuff," Negreanu continued.

A minute went by. Negreanu's opponent was still thinkng about the hand.

"Damn, I should have put it all in," he said.

"You were going to. I was like, 'Oh no, I screwed up again.'"

As it turned out, Negreanu made a great read and exerted the right amount of pressure to induce the fold he needed. He's up to 40,000 in chips.

Negreanu Chips Up

On a board reading , Daniel Negreanu fired out 2,600 into a pot of 7,050.

His opponent made the call before Negreanu splashed the pot with two 5,000-denomination chips when the river landed the .

Negreanu's opponent folded for the 10,000-chip bet and 'KidPoker' climbed to 52,300 in chips.

Shirt of the Day

"That's right! Jerry Yang! Praise the Lord!" the gray-haired man called out to his hero, ensconced in the seven seat at the orange section featured table.

This particular gentleman took fandom to a whole other level, donning an official "O Praise Jesus '07 WSOP Champion Jerry Yang Fan Club" bowling shirt.

Seriously. We're not making this stuff up.

Esfandiari Pushed Out

There was a few thousand in the pot and a board reading when a young lady in Seat 6 raised Antonio Esfandiari's bet by 1,600 more. Esfandiari called and then checked the on the river.

Seat 6 wasted little time before declaring herself all in, which sent Esfandiari into the tank. The ESPN camera crew captured the action and the stage was set for something exciting, but Esfandiari quietly mucked. He is sitting with around 40,000.

Try to Bluff Johnny Chan? Really??

We found Johnny Chan involved in a pot on a turned board showing . There was about 3,000 in the pot, and the player next to Johnny put out a bet of 2,300. Chan called, and the river filled out the board. Chan faced another bet, 5,000 this time, and he took a long, hard tank to stare down his opponent. Then called.

His opponent mucked instantly, and Chan tabled a meager . Meager or not, it's good enough to take the pot and move him to 91,000.

Double Baby!

The Prince is back! Scotty Nguyen has found a much needed double up. With a raise to 775 from middle position, Nguyen popped it to 2,250 before his opponent re-raised to 5,725. Nguyen moved all in for 9,875 in total and his opponent made the call.

Nguyen:

Opponent:

Nguyen was in a dominant position to double up and it stayed that way on the board of .

"You know baby? I thought it was gonna come a five-ball for sure!" laughed Nguyen as he doubled up to 20,150.

Duke Doubles

Annie Duke was all in after the turn on a board of , and she found action for her . That's likely because her opponent held , and the river was safe for the lady.

Duke has doubled back to 32,000 courtesy of those aces.

Johnny F***in' Chan!

Johnny Chan raised to 800 in early position, and he was called in two places.

The three men took a flop of , and the small blind led out with a bet of 1,100. That folded the big blind, but Johnny Chan promptly raised to 3,100. His opponent snap-reraised to 12,100 total, and Chan called.

The turn drew a tiny bet of 3,000 from the small blind. Chan instantly raised and his opponent instantly shoved, and Chan called, well... instantly. He turned up for top set, and his opponent and his were drawing dead and eliminated on the river.

With that, Chan has moved his way toward the top of the board with 130,000 just as the dinner break approaches.

Farha Moving Chips

With a raise from the button to 1,625, Sam Farha defended his big blind with a call.

"Let's see how you go in position!" chuckled Farha as the flop landed . Both players checked and the turn was the . Farha fired 2,000 and his opponent called.

The river brought the and Farha fired out a hefty 7,000. His opponent thought long and hard but eventually released as Farha has been very active after dinner to chip up to around 70,000 chips.

Yang Takes a Big Hit

We heard all in and a call on table #316 and Jerry Yang had all his chips in the center of the table...

Yang ended up all in pre-flop with his pocket kings against an opponents pocket aces.

The board left Yang with less than 8,000 chips.

Hellmuth Pinned to the Mat

Phil Hellmuth was just eliminated in a big pot over on the secondary featured table. The player who did the deed has since lost almost all of those chips, so we don't want to ask Mr. Grumpy for the details. What we do know is that Hellmuth had pocket jacks on his final hand, and he was up against pocket queens and ace-king.

The board came down king-high but with four diamonds, and the in the pocket queens hand scooped the pot and sent Hellmuth to the rail.

But not out of the room. The big ESPN boom camera swung around to the aisle to watch Hellmuth chat with the fans and the tape recorders for about 15 minutes. He signed autographs and posed for photos with fans and everyone was laughing and jolly as Hellmuth finished up his last tidbits of publicity and PR for the 2010 WSOP.

Perhaps trying to put a point on the spectacle, T.D. Steve took the mic and announced to both the Amazon Room and the Pavilion that Hellmuth had been eliminated.

A great and lengthy cheer ensued.

One for Elezra

With a raise in middle position to 850 and a call, Eli Elezra defended his big blind with a call too.

The flop came out and Elezra check-called a 1,375-chip bet from the initial raiser. The turn card was the and Elezra check-called again, now a 2,200-chip bet.

The river brought the to the table, Elezra fired a 4,000-chip bet and took the pot.

Eli Elezra is now up to 32,000 chips.

All Aboard!

Another tail-end pot.

The board read on Johnny Chan's table, and there had been some heavy action between he and an early-position opponent who ended up tabling . Chan managed to work his into a flush, though, and that was indeed better than three sevens.

Johnny Chan looks like our chip leader again, sitting pretty with 165,000 now.

More Farha Gold

Sammy Farha is now up to 77,000 after raking in more chips with his any-two-cards approach. We caught this one on the river with the board reading . Farha fired 4,000 and his opponent made the call.

Farha showed for two pair which was good to collect the pot.

Dwan Folds to the Five-Bet

Tom Dwan continues to create a stir at his table. He recently four-bet pre-flop to 5,125 from the button after a player opened for 825 and a second player re-raised to 2,250. Dwan's four-bet was enough to fold the first raiser, but the second then moved all in with a five-bet. Dwan, with 15,000 behind his initial raise, mucked his hand.

Jerry Yang Eliminated

Jerry Yang moved all-in from the small blind for 3,200 and the big blind made the call. Yang turned over and was behind to his opponent's .

Yang hit top pair on the flop, but his opponent turned an ace. The river was the and Jerry Yang's Main Event came to an end as he was trailed out of the room by ESPN's cameras.

Dwan in Trouble Again

Tom Dwan's stack has been a bouncing yo-yo for the last two hours. It's falling to the floor again after a recent spot of trouble with Lee Markholt. Dwan opened pre-flop for 1,050 and was called by Markholt (in position) and the big blind. Dwan continued for 2,275 on a nine-high flop, . Only Markholt called.

Both players checked the turn. When the river fell a third club, , Dwan tried a bet of 4,850. Markholt tanked for more than a minute before finally calling with a pair of nines, . Dwan showed an airball with to fall to 6,000 in chips.

Durrrr-ceased

Tom Dwan's quest to destroy the poker economy is over for now. Two last hands did him in. First, he opened to 1,025 pre-flop from under the gun and was called in three spots. On a , Dwan tried a continuation-bet for another 1,025. One player called. From there, the two checked it down to showdown, and . Dwan's opponent turned over , to which Dwan could only stare at the ceiling and muck.

The very next hand Dwan, sitting in the big blind, called a late-position player's raise to 1,100. The rest of Dwan's stack, about 2,000 in total, went into the middle on a flop of . Dwan turned up for top two pair, jacks and tens. He was up against , a six-outer draw. The turn was a blank , but the river ended Dwan's tournament by giving his opponent a straight.

Dwan stood up and started to walk away from the table. Then he turned back, ripped the button with a picture of Peter Jetten hugging a koala off of his chest and threw it down on his chair before exiting the floor.

Jacks For Joe

Joe Cada open-raised, and a short-stacked player three-bet to commit most of his stack. Cada went ahead and put him in, and his opponent called his last 6,600 with . The news was not friendly; Cada turned up and was poised for the knockout.

The board came , and that's just fine with Cada. He's eliminated a player, and the defending champ is at about 55,000 near night's end.

Day 1c a Wrap with Sauriol and Chan in the Lead

The day began twelve hours ago with high expectations as more than 2,300 players crowded into the Rio to hear Joe Cada announce, "Shuffle up and deal!" For some, it was all downhill from there while others ended the day atop a chip mountain. Mathiu Sauriol bagged up more chips than any of the other 1,600+ players who made it through the day. He'll return with 168,900, which makes him the third biggest stack in the room to start Day 2a. (Day 1a's chip leader, Corwin Cole, has 228,200.)

Former Main Event Champion Johnny Chan ended the night right behind Sauriol with 163,700. Lauren Kling crushed the later levels, finishing with 149,650. Barny Boatman, Michael Reed, and Robert Mizrachi also accumulated field-leading stacks.

David Williams jetted to an early lead, crossing the 100,000-chip mark shortly after the first break. He lost a little momentum in the middle levels, but ended the day strong with 112,225. Lex Veldhuis, Todd Terry, Jennifer Leigh, Dan Smith, Billy Kopp, and Hoyt Corkins will also return with large stacks. Joe Cada, Patrik Antonius, and Daniel Negreanu finished in the middle of the pack, and Dennis Phillips and James Van Alstyne have their work cut out for them when the come back among the shortest stacks.

Alex Outhred jumped to a the top of the counts in the middle of the day, then crashed and burned just as quickly, not making it to bag-and-tag. Outhred wasn't alone, of course. Nearly 700 of the players who began the day found their Main Event dreams sidelined before the end of the night. Huck Seed, fresh from winning the Tournament of Champions a few days ago, barely stuck around for an hour, and Dario Minieri didn't last much longer. Former Main Event Champions Phil Hellmuth and Jerry Yang won't be repeating, nor will November Niner Steven Begleiter. Ayaz Mahmood, Men Nguyen, and Ryan Welch all picked up WSOP hardware earlier this year, but they won't be capping off successful summers with deep Main Event runs. Tom Dwan, Chad Brown, Bill Gazes, Neil Channing, Chau Giang, and Jeff Madsen won't be back either. Non-poker celebs Scott Ian, Shanna Moakler, and Anthony Rapp also ended their brief start turns in the poker world.

For now, the players who survived the day are off to rest for their return to the Rio on Friday. While they take it easy, the Rio is gearing up for the biggest day of the summer. Day 1d's massive field will join the 4,625 who already played to make this the second largest Main Event on record. Tune in tomorrow to follow all of the Main Event insanity as it happens.