It's been an emotional day at the Rio, and we're not just talking about the lady crying in the first stall of the women's bathroom. Right before Event 4's final table started, one of the players' wives started complaining about the 21-plus atmosphere.

"I've seen Phil Hellmuth bring his kids in here! If Hellmuth's kids can be in here, why can't my baby be?!"

And lo and behold, thou lady's wish was granted. The room became kid-friendly and two babies were plopped on the laps of front-row spectators. Babies may cry, but please, do turn off your cell phones.

But some of today's excitement is actually about the cards. After 779 poker-related casualties, Gavin Smith found himself where he's always wanted to be (well at least for the last 48 hours) - heads-up at the final table of Event 4, the $1,500 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold'em event. Eric Lynch was also at the final table, and he finished in seventh place. Gavin held the chip-lead from the get-go and played strong, stealing all the blinds he could and making some good calls. He did get lucky a few times though, but let's not hash on his prospective glory.

As I write this, he and his opponent, Mike Spegal, are on a dinner break, along with their beloved spectators. And when I say beloved, I mean it. There was a lot of love in that room.

Gavin had his own cheering squad that took up three bleachers in the audience just over his shoulder, at perfect hollering distance. Calls of "G. Smith!" and "You're a champion, Gavin!" rang out every few minutes, sometimes at inappropriate times. There was a lot of barking too.

Why the big commotion? Well. Gavin Smith, as good a player as he may be, has still never won a World Series of Poker bracelet, and this is his first chance of 2007. But nerves aside, he still managed to down a few beers while playing before the dinner break. Every 10 minutes or so, the announcer would frantically call for cocktail service.

But the big question is: Who is this Michael Spegal? This is Michael Spegal!

"Who are you rooting for?" asked a fellow poker writer, while he checked odds online.

"Gavin," I said.

"Seriously? You can't root for him, he's the favorite! You'll never make any money!"

I didn't want to tell the guy that placing bets on bets is, to me, a sign of a degenerate gambler. No offense to you degenerate gamblers out there.

Mike and Gavin's final table is but a small part of today's action-packed Amazon Room. In total, six tournaments are in play and big names have filled the room like bubbles in a bathtub. Phil Hellmuth sauntered in over an hour late to the $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo Eight-or-Better event, and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson joined the fun after being eliminated in fourth place in the $2,500 Omaha/Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo event.

The tournament overflowed into the tent, and on a windy Las Vegas day like today, it can get kinda scary. The tables creak, the rods groan, and the lights swing. It's like a haunted house of poker. And oh did it ever smell delightful - a mix of about 50 tables of different body odors, beer, and artificial cooling mist. Yum.

Okay it wasn't that bad. The Rio nicely pumped up the air-con inside the main room so that the hoodie and sweat-suit wearing players wouldn't sweat too much in a bluff. Unfortunately for us reporters in our stylish but definitely-not-thermal black PokerListings.com dress shirts, we've learned that we must dress in layers for the next six weeks.

The sun has gone down on the tournament now, and it's up to PokerListings.com to pick up the caffeine and show you what's up. Make sure you stay tuned for the next eight hours as we see the showdown of two - yes, TWO - final tables, and go place your bet if you haven't done so already.