Turks & Caicos Poker Classic - Live Updates

Rhynie Campbell limps-in and Erik Cajelais raises $100,000. Campbell moves all-in and Cajelais calls, but he won't like what he sees as Campbell turns up T♥ T♦ to his own Q♥ 9♣. The gallery of drunken middle-aged women who comprise the Rhynie Campbell Fan Club cheer wildly as we await the flop, but they're silenced when the dealer turns over Q♣ 9♠ 3♠.

The turn card, however is the K♥ and Campbell picks up a gut-shot straight draw. The river card is the T♠ and just as he's been doing all day, Campbell hits another come-from-behind card, this time the biggest in his poker career as it clinches the first-ever WPT Turks & Caicos Poker Classic!

Campbell is the father of poker on the Turks & Caicos and was the single most important driving force in bringing this tournament to the island. It's only fitting, then, that he walk away with the $411,675 and first-ever WPT bracelet awarded on the island of Providenciales.

Congratulations to Rhynie and to runner-up Erik Cajelais, who will take home $225,000 in a losing cause. Stay tuned for more analysis and our exclusive interview with the champion!

The blinds have gone up and the action is still fast and furious. Just after the start of the new level, Erik Cajelais raises to $69,000 and Rhynie Campbell makes the call. The flop comes A♥ 5♥ 4♣ and Campbell checks to Cajelais, who bets $75,000. Campbell moves all-in and Cajelais folds.

Strength from Campbell

Erik Cajelais raises to $65,000 and Rhynie Campbell announces all-in. Cajelais squirms in his seat and counts his stacks of chips before giving the matter a couple minutes' worth of thought. As the pundits in the audience claim he's bound to call, Cajelais folds his hand and gives the pot to Campbell.

Bluff from Campbell

Cajelais makes it $55,000 and Rhynie Campbell makes the call. The flop comes J♠ 9♥ 8♥ and both players check. The turn card is the T♦ and Campbell bets $60,000. Cajelais lays it down and Campbell shows 6-4 as he rakes the pot.

Cajelais Doubles

Erik Cajelais limps-in and Rhynie Campbell moves all-in over the top. Cajelais makes the call for his last $425,000 and shows A♣ 8♠ to Campbell's J♣ T♣. The audience stands and prepares to cheer their boy home, and the flop comes A♥ J♦ 5♦ giving both players a pair. The turn card is the 6♣, changing nothing, and the audience calls for a jack or a ten. The river card is the 4♥ and Cajelais doubles as the gallery applauds Campbell's effort even in a losing cause.

We're now on a quick break for the money presentation before heads-up play begins. Here are the chip counts to tide you over until play begins anew:

Rhynie Campbell: $2,041,000

Erik Cajelais: $719,000

Campbell raises to $60k; Sass moves all-in. Campbell calls and Sass shows pocket fours to Campbell's T♦ 7♥. The flop comes A♣ Q♥ J♦ and Campbell picks up a gut-shot draw. The turn card is the K♠ and Campbell hits his straight, leaving Sass drawing to a ten for a chip. The river card is the 3♦ and Alan Sass has been eliminated in third place. The Shipitholla Balla (who probably played the best of all players at the final table) earns $125,000 for his time.

Before the break (and the previously published chip counts), Rhynie Campbell opens for $55,000 and Erik Cajelais announces all-in. Campbell makes the call for his last $360,000 and shows A♦ T♦ to Cajelais' K♥ J♥. The flop comes 9♣ 8♦ 5♦ to give Campbell the diamond flush draw and take away plenty of Cajelais' outs. The turn is the 5♥ leaving Cajelais with four outs to eliminate Campbell. The river card is the Q♣ and Campbell doubles through Cajelais to stay alive.

The blinds and antes are on the rise. Or they were an hour ago, when we first tried to publish this post. Incidentally, PokerListings.com would like to apologize on behalf of the The Players Club and the organizers of the Turks & Caicos Poker Classic for the quality of the coverage you're receiving.

Beyond the ludicrous $1 million guarantee, the organizers have otherwise proven their ineptitude in running a major tournament by holding the final table in a sweltering building with no air conditioning (A+) and in providing little to no Internet access for WPT staff and the assembled media.

PokerListings.com updates are taking on average about 45 minutes per upload, but we doubt you'll have better luck elsewhere so don't even bother looking.

We're on a break now with 30 minutes left in the current level and with the chip counts as follows:

Rhynie Campbell: $1,806,000

Erik Cajelais: $735,000

Alan Sass: $219,000

Erik Cajelais opens for $45,000 and Chris Smith moves all-in over the top for $434,000. Cajelais makes the call with A♦ Q♥ while Smith is exposed as a fraud with K♥ 6♥. The flop comes J♥ 4♣ 2♥ giving Smith the heart flush draw. The turn is the 3♦, giving Smith even more outs with the straight draw. The river card is the J♣ and somehow Cajelais dodges all of Smith's outs, winning the pot and sending Smith home in fourth place for a $75,000 payday.

Alan Sass, Erik Cajelais and Rhynie Campbell see a flop come 5♠ 4♠ 3♠ with no raisers pre-flop. Campbell bets out $24,000 and is called by both opponents. The turn is the A♦ and Campbell bets $100,000. Sass makes the call and Cajelais moves all-in.

Campbell folds A-3 face up while Sass makes the call for his last $401,000. He shows A♠ 8♠ while Cajelais has T♥ 2♠ and is drawing for the straight flush and the straight flush only to eliminate Sass. The river card is the 6♦, not the six Cajelais is looking for, and Sass doubles-up.

Erik Cajelais, Rhynie Campbell and Chris Smith all limp-in before Trever Hebert pushes all-in. Cajelais raises to $200,000 over the top to isolate and his rivals get out of the way. Hebert turns up K♥ 5♥ and is in bad shape compared to Cajelais' A♣ K♦.

The flop comes Q♠ 9♥ 8♠ and Cajelais maintains his advantage. The turn card is the J♥ and Hebert picks up the heart-flush draw. The river card is the T♠ and Trevor Hebert has been eliminated in fifth place. He'll earn $50,000 for his efforts this week.

The break is over and the cards are back in the air. Here are your current chip counts:

Seat 2	Erik Cajelais	$1,160,000
Seat 3	Rhynie Campbell	$480,000
Seat 4	Chris Smith	$552,000
Seat 5	Trevor Hebert	$98,000
Seat 6	Alan Sass	$470,000

There is 40 minutes left in the current level.

We're on another quick tape change break. The action will be back in about 10-15 minutes.

Trevor Hebert moves all-in for his last $78,000 from the small blind and Alan Sass makes the call in the big blind, showing A♠ J♥ to Hebert's K♠ T♦. The flop comes Q♦ 9♠ 7♠ giving Hebert the gut-shot straight draw. The turn card is the T♠ and Hebert pairs his ten but Sass picks up a flush and straight draw. The river card is the J♣ and Hebert makes the king-high straight to double through Alan Sass and stay alive yet again.

With little to report from the last half-hour besides some slow and rather timid play, the blinds are on their way up for another 90 minutes of disaster. Stay tuned for more updates as the action unfolds.

Erik Cajelais raises to $41,000 and Rhynie Campbell comes over the top all-in for another $140,000. Cajelais ruminates for a few minutes before making the call as the pro-Campbell crowd tenses in anticipation. Campbell turns up a pocket pair of kings while Cajelais is behind with A♦ 3♠. The flop comes Q♠ 6♣ 3♦ and Cajelais flops a pair of treys. The turn is the 8♥ and the river the J♠ and Campbell's crowd is on its feet again as he doubles through Cajelais once more.

Trevor Hebert open-shoves all-in for $77,000 and Rhynie Campbell makes the call, showing A♣ 3♣ to Hebert's A♠ K♦. The flop comes A♣ 7♥ 4♥. The turn card is the T♠ and the river the 4♦, and Hebert doubles-up again to stay alive.

We've returned from another tape change break and the cards are back in the air.

 

The blinds are up and the action continues from the dining room of La Mer at Club Med Turkoise.

Hebert Doubles

Rhynie Campbell raises to $32,000 and Trevor Hebert comes over the top all-in for another $74,000. The action folds back around and Campbell makes the call, showing A♠ 7♦ to Hebert's A♥ Q♠. The flop comes K♦ 8♠ 4♥, changing nothing, and the turn is the 5♦, giving Campbell a gut-shot straight draw. The river card is the T♦ and Hebert doubles through Campbell to stay alive.

Action from Smith

Chris Smith raises to $30,000 on the button. Trevor adds $60,000 to the wager from the small blind. The action folds around and Smith makes the call. The flop comes T♦ 8♣ 4♠ and Hebert checks. Smith moves all-in and Hebert lays it down.

We're on a quick TV break and the action will resume in about 15 minutes.

On a flop of Q♦ J♣ 3♠ Rhynie Campbell moves all-in and Erik Cajelais is quick to call, showing Q♥ J♠ to Campbell's T♦ 9♥. The turn card is the 6♥ and Campbell needs an eight or a king to double-up. The river card is the 8♥ and the roof nearly blows off the WPT soundstage as the viewing audience goes absolutely nuts thanks to their hometown boy's staving off elimination yet again.

On a completely unrelated note, Rhynie Campbell owns The Players Club and is one of the chief organizers of this event, meaning he supplied the dealers to the final table. Just sayin'...

Here's the action from the last hour or so of play:

Bullets for Rhynie

Rhynie Campbell raises to $20,000 out of the small blind and Chris Smith makes the call. The flop comes 8-7-3 with two spades and Campbell bets out $25,000. Smith flat-calls and the turn is the J♠. Campbell bets $60,000 and Smith folds. Campbell shows a pair of aces as he takes down the pot.

The Cold War

Alan Sass opens for $27,000 and Erik Cajelais ups it to $75,000. Action folds back around and Sass re-raises another $100,000. Cajelais gives the matter some thought before announcing another re-raise of his own. He adds $180,000 to the wager and it's Sass's turn to mull things over. After a few minutes of thought, he lays it down and Cajelais takes a substantial pot.

Smith Doubles

Rhynie Campbell raises to $11,000 and Chris Smith makes the call. The flop comes J♥ 9♠ 8♥ and Campbell checks to Smith, who bets out. Campbell raises $46,000 and Smith moves over the top all-in for $256,000. Campbell beats him to the middle with K♦ J♦ while Smith has J♠ 8♦ for two pair. The turn card is the 5♠, changing nothing and Campbell needs a five, nine or a king to win the pot and eliminate Smith. The river card is the 6♣ and Smith doubles through Campbell, taking a huge chunk out of the Tru Playa in the process.

 

We're back from break and the cards are in the air once again. Here are the updated chip counts as the action resumes:

Seat 2	Erik Cajelais	$797,000
Seat 3	Rhynie Campbell	$265,000
Seat 4	Chris Smith	$327,000
Seat 5	Trevor Hebert	$266,000
Seat 6	Alan Sass	$1,100,000

This actually happened 50 minutes ago, but due to the magic of the Internet we were not able to upload it until now. Our sincerest apologies on behalf of the World Poker Tour and the Turks & Caicos Poker Classic.

 

We're taking a quick 10-minute tape change break and the action will resume momentarily.

Alan Sass and Nam Le see a flop come T♣ T♠ 9♦. Sass checks to Le, who bets $15,000. Sass calls and the turn is the 8♣. Both players check and the river card is a five. Sass thinks for a moment before announcing all-in and Le looks agonized. After a moment of pause he lays down the hand and Sass takes it.

A few orbits later, Sass opens for $27,000 and Le comes over the top all-in from the button. Rhynie Campbell asks for a count in the big blind and he comes over the top all-in after hearing Le's all-in is $56,000. Sass gets out of the way and Le turns up K♦ Q♥ to Campbell's A♥ K♠.

The island crowd is on its feet in the viewing area as they await the board and the flop comes 7♦ 6♥ 5♦. The turn is the K♦, giving Campbell a pair but Le the diamond draw. The river card is the 4♣, however, and Le misses his outs. Campbell takes the pot and Le heads to the rail in sixth place, the first elimination at this final table and the recipient of a $30,000 payday.

Alan Sass opens for $29,000 and Erik Cajelais and Rhynie Campbell both make the call. The flop comes J♣ 9♠ 8♥ and action checks to Sass, who bets $47,000. Cajelais raises to $160,000 and Campbell folds. Sass moves all-in for $303,000 and Cajelais makes the call. Sass has K♠ K♦ while Cajelais has J♥ 9♥ for two pair. Sass will need some help to survive. The turn card is the 4♦ and Sass needs a four, eight or king on the river. Fifth street is the 8♠ and the Shipitholla Balla rivers a better two pair to stay alive and double through Erik Cajelais.

Here is the action from the first hour of play. We'll try to get the action up quicker but we're at the mercy of the Internet gods here, and so far, well, they hate us.

Aggression from Le Chip-Leader

Erik Cajelais and Trevor Hebert see a flop come A-6-3. Hebert bets $27,000 and Cajelais raises to $77,000. Hebert gives the matter some thought before laying the hand down and Cajelais takes the pot.

Pot for Le

Trevor Hebert raises to $16,000 on the button and Nam Le makes the call in the big blind. The flop comes A♣ 6♠ 4♦ and Le checks to Hebert, who bets $24,000. Le makes the call and the turn is the 3♦. Both players check and the river is the 2♦. Le bets $60,000 and Hebert is forced to lay it down. Le takes the pot.

Straight for Cajelais

Erik Cajelais and Rhynie see a flop come 10-5-3 with two clubs. Cajelais checks to Campbell, who bets 30k. Cajelais calls and the turn is a deuce. Both players check and the river is a king. Cajelais bets out 100k and Campbell makes the call. Cajelais turns up 6-4 for the six high straight and takes down the pot.

Campbell Doubles

Rhynie Campbell raises to $17,000 pre-flop and Nam Le calls out of the big blind. The flop comes 10c-9h-2s and Le checks to Campbell, who moves all-in for $60,000. After a few moments' thought, Le makes the call and turns up T♥ 4♠ for top pair while Campbell has J♥ 8♥ for the open-ended straight draw. The turn card is the Q♥ and Campbell makes his straight, and after the river card is the K♥ Campbell has doubled through Nam Le, sending the
hometown crowd into wild applause as he rakes the pot.

Smith Shoves

Trevor Hebert, Nam Le, Erik Cajelais and Chris Smith see a flop come J♥ 8♦ 5♦ in an unraised pot. Chris moves all-in and the action folds around. Smith takes down the pot.

By the way, the blinds and antes just went up to $5,000/$10,000 with a $1,000 ante.

The premier of the Turks & Caicos, the honorable Dr. Michael Misick, has breathed the immortal words and this tournament has life once again. Shuffle up and deal!

Actually, this happened 60 minutes ago, but thanks to the abhorrent Internet situation in the media area we've been unable to get this update up any quicker. WPT officials have told us they're working on a fix but in the meantime, please bear with us.

Here are the seating positions and chip counts as we await the call to action. Play was set to begin at 10 a.m. (EDT) but we've run into a few delays. Action should commence shortly.

Seat 1	Nam Le	$232,000
Seat 2	Erik Cajelais	$1,086,000
Seat 3	Rhnyie Campbell	$275,000
Seat 4	Chris Smith	$301,000
Seat 5	Trevor Hebert	$400,000
Seat 6	Alan Sass	$466,000

 

Welcome to the final table of the World Poker Tour's Turks & Caicos Poker Classic, coming at you from the dining room of La Mer restaurant at the beautiful (if a bit rainy, today) Club Med Turkoise on the island of Providenciales. One hundred and thirty-seven hopefuls paid the $7,500 entry fee to buy into this tournament five days ago and their number has been reduced to the final six. By the end of the day we'll have crowned a winner. Tune into PokerListings.com for all-inclusive and comprehensive coverage of the final table throughout the day.