Eluded defeat!

We're an hour into the 33rd level of this tournament and the ten-handed final table of the Main Event continues at the 2008 World Series of Poker. Action has been slow and, with the exception of one brutal suckout, unremarkable over the last 60 minutes. We continue the game until one more player is eliminated.

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

Brutal Suckout Prolongs Play!

Peter Eastgate raises to $750,000 and Dean Hamrick makes it $2.1 million to play. Action folds around to Craig Marquis, who gives the matter some thought before moving all-in over the top for another $3.4 million. Eastgate lays it down but Hamrick is never scared and he makes the call, turning up a pocket pair of queens to Marquis' A Q.

It's complete and utter domination on Hamrick's part and after the flop comes J 7 3 Marquis is down to an ace or running cards to take the pot. The turn is the 4 and the river the 5, however, and Marquis hits those runners to make a flush and double through Hamrick. Bruuutal.

Cowboys For Phillips

Scott Montgomery raises to $700,000 and Dennis Phillips makes it $2.5 million to play. Action folds back to Montgomery and he lays it down. Phillips shows a pocket pair of kings as he takes the pot.

Pot for Phillips

A few hands later, Phillips limps in and sees Darus Suharto and David "Chino" Rheem join the party in the blinds. The flop comes Q 7 3 and action checks around. The turn is the 9 and Suharto checks to Rheem, who bets $300,000. Phillips raises to $900,000 and Suharto and Rheem both fold.

Rockets for Phillips!

Seven players limp-in to see a flop, with Scott Montgomery, Ivan Demidov and Dean Hamrick the only players not in the pot. The flop comes J 9 5 and action checks to Phillips, who bets $1 million. Marquis and Ylon Schwartz fold out but Suharto raises to $2.5 million.

Action folds around to Phillips, who makes it $7 million to go. Now we've got a pot brewing. Suharto hits the tank and won't come out, pondering the fiendish circumstance that has landed him in this mess. Ultimately he lays the hand down face-up, revealing A J. Phillips turns up another couple of aces as he takes down the pot.

Chip Counts!

Here are the current chip counts, courtesy of www.worldseriesofpoker.com:

Clap your hands say all-in!

We've reached the end of Level 32 with nothing further accomplished at the final table of the 2008 WSOP Main Event. Action has slowed to a crawl as we play ten-handed to determine the November Nine and with one elimination separating each player from four months of fame and untold fortune it's understandable that the survivors are somewhat reluctant to surrender.

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

Rockets For Schwartz!

On the first hand after the redraw, Craig Marquis raises to $525,000 in middle position and Ylon Schwartz re-ups to $1,625,000 on the button. Marquis makes it $4.5 million to go and Schwartz moves all-in over the top. After some thought, Marquis lays it down and Schwartz rakes the pot, turning up pocket aces as he does so.

Pot for Eastgate!

Peter Eastgate raises to $575,000 and Dennis Phillips makes the call. The flop comes Q J 4 and both players check. The turn is the 3 and both players check again. The river card is the 7 and Phillips bets out $800,000. Eastgate makes the call and turns up K J for second pair. Phillips has T 7 for middle pair and Eastgate takes the pot.

Schwartz All-In

Craig Marquis raises to $525,000 and Ylon Schwartz makes it $1,050,000 to play. Marquis flat-calls and the flop comes J 8 3. Marquis checks to Schwartz, who moves all-in, putting Marquis in the tank for a few minutes before he mucks. Schwartz takes the pot.

Chip Counts!

Here are the current chip counts, courtesy www.worldseriesofpoker.com:

PokerListings.com In Game: David "Chino" Rheem:

More than anyone else at the final table, David Chino Rheem has been there and done that. He is the most experienced player at the table but has run into some setbacks lately. Over the last hour he has dropped a couple of million chips but he doesn't seem fazed. He has a team of friends that is comprised of many of the most familiar names in the game that are here to support him win or lose. We caught up to Chino during the break to see how he is holding up.

What's the plan when you go back in there?

Hope somebody busts.

Other than that?

Other than that just play good hands.

Tell me about the last hand where you thought for awhile before letting it go. What did you have there?

I looked down and I had a good ace. I got repopped and I let it go. Pretty standard.

Is anybody giving you hard time out there?

Hopes somebody busts!

Nope. Not really. I think of all the times I got repopped they had a better hand so I just let it go.

What kind of deals do you think might come your way between now and the final table?

I got a couple of things lined up but there's nothing certain now. I'm not trying to think about it until I make it.

Do you think the four month thing will be to your advantage or disadvantage?

Well, we're never gonna know until after I make the final table, so we'll see. This is the first time they did the Main Event like this so we'll see what happens.

I'd rather play it out. If we gotta do it this way, we gotta do it this way.

Well, you've been there before, so you rather play it out tomorrow rather than give everyone else, who might be uncomfortable now, a chance to prepare?

Yeah, definitely because I'm playing good right now. Even though I make mistakes and I get out of line from time to time, I still know what I'm doing. I never give up and I'm playing good so, you know, I'd rather play it out now but if we have to take a break a break, we'll take a break.

Pure Bishop!

We're down to the final ten competitors in the Main Event of the 2008 World Series of Poker after another action-packed hour of play. Joe Bishop is your eleventh-place finisher and the surviving ten players have been consolidated onto one feature table. We'll play until one more player has been eliminated before suspending play until November for the thrilling conclusion. Stay tuned!

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

Suharto Doubles Through Bishop!

Joe Bishop raises to $700,000 on the button and Darus Suharto makes it another million to play in the big blind. Bishop flat-calls and the flop comes Q 6 5, prompting Suharto to bet out $2.5 milly. Bishop ships it all-in and Suharto tanks, mulling a call for his tournament life. Eventually the Torontonian makes the call, turning up K K for the overpair to Bishop's A Q for top top, as they say.

The turn is the 6 and the river the 2 and Suharto doubles to stay alive.

Kim Doubles Through Bishop!

on the next hand, Bishop makes it $600,000 from the cut-off and Kim ships it for another $1,350,000. Bishop makes the call with 8 7 while Kim is well ahead with pocket eights. The flop comes A T T to give Bishop chopping outs and after the turn is the 7 Bishop can hit a seven to bust Kim. The river, however, is the 2 and Kim doubles through Bishop, who is left crippled.

Bishop Eliminated, Can No Longer Double Anyone Up!

Pride of Perth, Ontario!

A few hands later, Bishop open-shoves for his last $2.4 million and David "Chino" Rheem makes the call in the big blind, holding pocket deuces to Bishop's A 3. The flop comes A 5 3 to give Bishop two pair and Rheem is drawing to a deuce or a four to regain the lead.

The turn is the Q but the river is the 4 to give Rheem the Wheel Straight and send Bishop to the rail in 11th place for a $591,869.

Big Pot for Montgomery

As Joe Bishop is being eliminated on the outer table, Dennis Phillips raises to $500,000 on the feature table. Scott Montgomery makes it $2.2 million to go and Phillips makes the call. The flop comes J T 6 and Phillips checks to Montgomery, who bets out $1.5 million. Phillips calls and the turn is the K.

Again Phillips checks and again Montgomery bets out, this time firing $2 million into the pot. The river is the 9 and Montgomery bets $4 million. Phillips tanks for six or seven minutes before finally making the call, but he mucks after Montgomery shows A T for the ace-high flush.

Final Table!

Here are the seating positions and chip counts for those at the ten-handed final table:

Post-Game Wrap: Joe Bishop!

The Cincinnati Poker Club was a group of forty guys that met once a month to play an $85 dollar tournament. Every month they would hand out some prize money but leave some aside to build up a $12,000 Main Event package.

The package went to the player who had built up the best score (determined by a ranking system) by the end of the year. That player's name is Joe Bishop. Bishop came out to the World Series without high expections but a lot of hope. PL.com spoke to him shortly after his elmination.

Tell me a little bit about your WSOP experience.

It was great. I played with uh... wow! I mean let's be serious, it's over the rainbow man! Hell at one point I was actually gonna write it down. Tex Barch, Patrik Antonius, Johnny Chan, Hoyt Corkins, I mean, I mean, freakin Kido! I mean, God! Get serious! There was more that I wish I wasn't forgetting but I am that I feel I'm insulting them somewhat. It's incredible. I mean in-freakin-credible.

In-freakin-credible!

A guy sits there and plays $1/$3 Hold'em for the most maybe $2/$5 or $5/$10 if I go on a good run, which doesn't happen very much, to be sittin there lookin' to my right over the course of like two days, and I look to my right and there's Hoyt! God! Get serious! I mean really! Day three I think it was I get moved and I got Hoyt on my right and Johnny Chan on my left. I mean, get serious!

You seem pretty happy about your result.

I mean, what kind of a moron is going to sit here and cry? Awww well I only won $600,000 I really suck. I mean obviously I suck because you saw how I could burn through freakin $12,000,000 in chips but I think I made a read with him on jacks or tens and he was just a little bit better.

You were saying to your friend that Chino owned you?

Chino did own me. I'm going to get Chino's name tatooed on my ass now. Yeah, that's what I'm gonna do.

What're you going to do with the money that you won?

I've got to give 25% to the poker club. I work in lumber material sales for builders and the industry isn't exactly settin' on fire lately so, you know, it'll be a nice little bump. Get rid of some debt we got. I don't know, we'll see.

It was nice to see someone so happy about their result rather than looking like they need to be put on suicide watch. Joe Bishop made himself and a group of 40 people a little bit richer while making many more proud of him. Know what we mean?

Ivan the Great!

We're midway through the 32nd level of the 2008 Main Event and the tournament progresses onward with no players eliminated in the last hour of action. Blinds are still quite small relative to the average stack and this is probably the biggest final table bubble of the year, so don't expect this extravaganza to end any time soon.

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

Kim Loses Big Pot

Kelly Kim raises to $360,000 and David "Chino" Rheem makes the call. The flop comes 6 5 2 and Kim bets out $500,000. Rheem raises to $1,300,000 and Kim smooth-calls. The turn is the 4 and Kim check-calls Rheem's $1,300,000 wager. The river is the 6 and Kim again check-calls, this time to the tune of $1,200,000. Rheem turns up 8 7 for the eight-high straight and Kim mucks.

Rheem Defends!

Action folds around to Craig Marquis, who raises to $425,000 from the small blind. Rheem is in the big blind and he moves all-in for $16 million, putting Marquis to a decision for his tournament life. Marquis tanks for a few minutes, clearly unhappy with the way things have panned out, but ultimately lays the hand down. Rheem takes the pot.

Make 'im scream!

Demidov Doubles!

Ivan Demidov raises to $650,000 and Rheem re-ups to $2,000,000. Demidov goes into the tank before moving all-in over the top for about $9.5 million total and Rheem makes the call, showing T T to Demidov's 9 9. It's a brutal situation for Demidov but the T 8 6 flop improves his odds slightly, ironically while giving Rheem top set.

The turn is the 4 and Demidov makes his flush, leaving Rheem needing to hit quads or pair the board to bust his rival. The river is the 5 and Demidov doubles up.

Chip Counts!

Here are the current chip counts, courtesy of www.worldseriesofpoker.com:

PokerListings.com In-Game: Kelly Kim!

Kelly Kim had just lost one of the biggest hands of his entire tournament. It was a good time for a break and, luckily for him, he had one. PL.com tracked him down to see how he was doing.

Kimbo slicing!

That was a tough hand before the break. Tell me a little bit about it.

"He just had the nut straight and I had a three for a smaller straight. After he lost the last hand, his range is pretty big. He could have like A-7 with the ace of clubs to try to get me to fold and represent it [the straight]. The only reasonably play I could've done maybe is to move in on the end on a bluff knowing he'd fold a straight but I'm not that sick I guess."

What's the plan when you get back in there?

"Well this changes the whole dynamic. I was really happy about chipping up at the end. I was up to almost eight when that happened and he took back like almost three of it. Maybe more than that.

"You know - I mean, I'm a fighter. Anything can happen, it's poker. I didn't come this far to give up. At this point I'm running pretty short. I need get lucky I guess. If I manage to get some hands at the right time, which is key, you gotta have hands against other hands, you can't have hands and get a walk. Obviously I'm a little bit nervous because I'm running low. I'm very much the shortest the stack, but there so much to play for."

Kim rejoined his circle of friends that were trying to give him a boost before returning to the felt.

Spurred!

We've reached the end of the 31st level of play in the 2008 Main Event and only eleven players remain in the hunt for that $9,119,517 first prize. Players are on a twenty-minute break and will need to eliminate two more players upon their return to close out the proceedings for the summer.

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

The Marquis De Sade!

Kelly Kim raises to $450,000 and Darus Suharto makes the call before Craig Marquis pops it to $1.3 million. Kim tanks for a few minutes before laying down the hand and Suharto has to pause for a bit of rumination himself. He eventually lays it down behind, showing A-Q as he does so. Marquis rakes the pot and turns up a suited 7-3 as he does so.

Phillips Takes A Bigun

Scott Montgomery raises to $420,000 and is called by Peter Eastgate and Chris Klodnicki in late position before Dennis Phillips makes it $1.3 million from the big blind. Montgomery and Klodnicki fold out but Eastgate is game to play and makes the call.

The flop comes 8 4 2 and Phillips bets out $1.3 million. Eastgate flats and the turn is the T. Phillips now moves all-in and Eastgate heads for the tank to get a serious think on. Dude tanks for so long that Phillips is forced to call the clock, but the result of all that rumination is a fold and a big pot for Phillips.

Phillips Takes Another Bigun

Ylon Schwartz opens for $500,000 and is called by both Phillips and Montgomery, the latter in the small blind. The flop comes 9 5 2 and action checks to Schwartz, who bets out a cool million. Both players call and the turn is the A. Action checks around and the river is the 8, prompting checks from both Montgomery and Schwartz.

The scene!

Phillips bets $1.2 million and is called by both opponents, who quickly muck when their rival turns up a pocket pair of kings. Phillips takes another nice pot.

Klodnicki Hops! (12th)

Phillips limps in before Montgomery makes it $600,000 to go. Chris Klodnicki makes the call in the big blind and Phillips folds out. The flop comes A Q Q and Klodnicki checks to Montgomery, who bets out a million. Klodnicki moves all-in over the top and Montgomery makes a quick call, turning up Q J for trips while Klodnicki is on the draw with J T.

Montgomery is about a 3:2 favorite to take the pot but Klodnicki does have outs, including the Royal Flush draw. The turn, however, is the J and the Canadian makes a boat, leaving Klodnicki needing to hit the K to stay alive. The river card is the 4, giving the pot to Montgomery and busting Klodnicki in 12th place for a $591,869 score.

Chip Counts!

Here are the current chip counts, courtesy of www.worldseriesofpoker.com:

Post-Game Recap: Chris Klodnicki!

A little disappointed! 

Despite being one of the more unfamiliar faces in the field, Chris Klodnicki has been a very successful player online for quite some time now. He hasn't done badly in live events either. This year he posted three cashes at the World Series, including getting heads up with Barry Greenstein in the Razz event, a small cash in one of the $1,500 Donkaments, and now, the biggest cash of his career, the Main Event.

PL.com asked him how he felt after busting out and the reply was pretty standard.

"A little disappointed. I feel good about my overall performance," he said

We asked him how he felt about the World Series in general. He was in good spirits about the whole thing.

"I feel great about it. I made one final table. I almost final table the main event and I only played eleven events. Feel pretty good about it overall."

The next, and last question, was a little tougher. This year is a little different than most other years in that making a final table can mean so much more than actually making the money. Was that thought weighing in your mind during the day?

"[Big sigh] Oh I know. I could've played a little more conservatively, maybe to make the final table. I always have the mentality to play to win. I don't really pass up - if I have a small winning situation I'll take it if I think I'm still ahead. That's what I've been doing with all my tournaments, so I didn't change my plan for this."

With that, Klodnicki went off to the payout line to get his check.

Just couldn't pull it off!

We're down to the final twelve players in the Main Event after the first hour of play in Level 31. The atmosphere in the Amazon Room is strangely calm despite the fact that nine out of twelve lives will be changed before the end of the night.

The rail is a veritable all-star team of big poker names, with Andy Bloch, Hasan Habib, Michael Mizrachi, Nam Le, Steve Sung, J.C. Tran and a plethora of other names crowding out the family and friends contingent to watch the field play down to the final nine.

Here's how the last hour played out in the Amazon Room:

Andersen Annihilated! (14th)

Gert Andersen moves all-in for his last $3.2 million over the top of Ylon Schwartz's $500,000 opening raise. Action folds back around to Schwartz, who makes the call with A K while Andersen is behind with A J. The flop comes Q T 2 and Andersen needs a king to stay alive. The turn is the 8 and Andersen adds a nine to his list of outs, but the river is the 5 and dude misses his outs. He's eliminated in 14th place and takes $463,201 for his time.

High-Tension!

Kelly Kim raises to $430,000 and Darus Suharto re-raises to $1,130,000. Action folds around to Ivan Demidov, who makes it $2,800,000 to go and Kim lays it down. Suharto tanks for a few minutes as the tension builds, but ultimately lays down the hand and Demidov takes it.

Chip leader!

Sliwinksi Slinks Off! (13th)

Dennis Phillips raises to $460,000 and Nicholas Sliwinski defends in the big blind. The flop comes 9 7 3 and Sliwinski bets $500,000. Phillips flat-calls and the turn is the 6. Sliwinksi fires out $1,200,000 and Phillips again makes the call. The river is the 9 and Sliwinski ships it for the remainder of his stack.

Phillips beats him to the pot with K Q for the second nut flush and Sliwinksi turns up 6 5 for a measly pair of sixes. He's eliminated in 13th place and earns a cool $463,201 for his time.

Chip Counts!

Here are the current chip counts, courtesy www.worldseriesofpoker.com:

Post-Game Wrap: Nicholas Sliwinksi!

Nicolas Sliwinski moved to Vegas three weeks ago with the plan of becoming a dealer. Before he even had a chance to go to dealer school he decided he would play some poker. He spent a few days playing in cash games, won a bit of money, and decided he would take a shot at some of the $330 super satellites for a main event seat. Out of nowhere he took down the first two satellites he entered. Choosing to be cautious with his money, he decided to sell the two seats for a cool $20,000. Bitten by the satellite bug, he decided to play another satellite. He didn't win that one, or the next one, but he did win the third. This time he decided not to sell the seat and play in the main event.

After seven grueling days of poker and hanging on for dear life, Sliwinski finally found himself in a comfortable chip position. Unfortunately, he said, he went with his read and was completely wrong. Sliwinski said that he felt his opponent had some sort of a pair with the ace of hearts and he thought that he could push him off of his hand.

The board was paired and his opponent held just the second nut flush, but there was no making him fold. He called and Sliwinski was eliminated.

Has a half a million dollars!

In a bit of a haze, Nicolas was understandably not too thrilled with talking about what had just transpired. He reiterated the fact that he had made a bad and read and there was nothing he could do about it.

When asked what the future would bring he replied, “I just need to go to sleep for like a day and then wake up and realize that I have half a million dollars."

He's going to be smart with his money, “I’m going to take about $50,000 and set it aside for like a bankroll. I'll play some more satellites for the big events but I'm not going to just jump in there and blow it all on big tournaments."

He doesn't know if he's going to dealer school. He doesn't know what he'll be doing tomorrow (besides sleeping), or a week from now. What he does know is that he'll be playing more poker and we might be seeing more of this kid.

Let's get it on!

The dinner break is over and we're back in action on Day 7 of the Main Event of the 2008 World Series of Poker. Only 14 players remain in the play down to the November Nine and the action will continue until we've reduced the field to that final table.

Cards are back in the air on the final two tables and the game is afoot once more from the Amazon Room. Stick with PokerListings.com for the thrilling almost-conclusion to the summer classic!

Here are the chip counts for the final fourteen players:

Wookin pa nub!

The players have headed off on a 90-minute dinner break, but not before the less-than heavy action of the past hour. Things have tightened considerably outside of one big hand where David "Chino" Rheem doubled up and another that sent Owen Crowe packing.

Rheem Reams Bishop

It wasn't too long ago that David "Chino" Rheem was touch and go to stay alive here in the Main Event, but he has since doubled through Joe Bishop and is now among the top ten.

The big hand began when Bishop raised to $450,000 under the gun and Rheem protected his big blind. Chino checked the 8 5 2 flop and Bishop fired out a sizeable $900,000 bet. Rheem almost beat him to the pot moving in for $3.7 million and made the call.

Bishop was ahead with 6 6 against Rheem's K 9 and when the 3 turned he remained there. But when the K came down on the river the crowd outside the ropes on the secondary table roared as Chino had doubled. Now up to $12.4 million Rheem and his supporter's are feeling pretty good about his chances.

Crowe Eaten (15th)

After a long period of relative inactivity we have an elimination! Owen Crowe is the unlucky individual headed to the exit but the good news is that he will be taking $463,201 for his 15th place finish.

The hand began with an under the gun raise to $330,000 from Ivan Demidov. David Rheem and Joe Bishop both called but Crowe shipped all-in for $1.84 million.

Ivan made the call and tabled A Q which was racing Crowe's 9 9. The board ran J J T Q 2 and Demidov's turned straight was more than enough to end Crowe's Main Event.

Count Chipula

Here's the chip counts at the break according to the people over at WorldSeriesOfPoker.com:

Chino Rheem: still in the hunt.

It's a funny thing about poker tournaments - the blinds keep going up and people keep feeling the need to stay ahead of them. That leads to action and bustouts and, eventually, a winner. Seems we've got a case of just that going on here at the Rio today.

Michelle Mutilated! (17th)

Dennis Phillips opened the pot under the gun for $500,000, drawing calls from Peter Eastgate in late position and Tiffany Michelle in the big blind. The flop came down A 10 9 and things got interesting.

As expected, Michelle checked to the raiser and Phillips led out for $1,000,000. Eastgate flat-called and Michelle was put to the decision. The frustrated scowl on her face screamed that she was unhappy with the action in front of her, and the longer she thought the more it looked like she might be ready to make a move. Eventually she did make that move, shoving for the rest of her stack.

Bummer, Tiff.

Phillips was then put to the decision, and even though he put on a good show it was obvious that he was beaten. He eventually mucked, and Eastgate couldn’t have made the call any faster once the decision reached him. He turned up A A for the flopped top set, while Michelle had A J.

Michelle needed running straight cards for the chop if she were to survive, but the board failed to cooperate, instead bringing the 5 and the 6 to end the video hostess’ run in this Main Event in 17th place. The crowd exploded in applause for her efforts as she packed up her belongings and headed for the exit.

“It was tough day,” Michelle said to the media following her exit. “I got beat down.”

Rheem Rebounds

David “Chino” Rheem has been in a tough spot since losing to quads earlier in the day. A few minutes ago Joe Bishop had him put to a decision, and while Rheem took his time making the decision with his big blind hand. Meanwhile, some of the railbirds started carrying on quite loudly and drunkenly, calling for him to shove or fold or buy them a beer or whatever it is that drunken railbirds like to scream. Eventually this made Rheem unhappy - and quite fairly so.

“Yo kid,” Rheem said toward the rail. “I know you’re drinking and having fun, but you can cut that shit out.” The security guards on the rail then escorted the offending drunkards away, and Rheem eventually lay his hand down.

Not too long afterward, Rheem did get the rest of his stack all-in with A Q against Chris Klodnicki’s pocket sixes; he caught a queen on the flop and it held up to double him back to $3,400,000.

Kim Killing It

Kelly Kim has ridden a wave of aggressive play to a stack in the $10 million range on the outer table. A few raise and take its from Kim eventually led to a short battle with Owen Crowe a few hands ago.

Crowe started the pot making it $320,000 to see a flop before Kim repopped making it $1 million. Crowe was forced to give up and was left with just $3.85 million while Kim is now on $9.7 million.

Scherer Shot Down (16th)


It's a 16th place finish for Scherer.

Anthony Scherer was just eliminated in 16th Place and will cash $334,534 after running A 8 into the Peter Eastgate machine.

This time Eastgate woke up with kings and after making it $335,000 to go, he called when Scherer shoved. No help for Scherer on the board and his Main Event is done.

The Chip Counts of Destiny

Here are the top 10 current chip counts as reported by WorldSeriesOfPoker.com: