Harvey's Lake Tahoe - Live Updates

Michael Binger continued to push Ty Stewart around until he got him right where he wanted and the title was his.

Ty raised it $40k pre-flop and Binger called. The flop came 9♦ 8♣ 4♥ and Stewart bet right out, making it $60k. 

Binger raised it up to $180k and Stewart pushed. The call from Binger came in just seconds and he slammed Q♥ 9♥ on the felt. It was ahead of Stewart's A♥ 8♥.

Needing to dodge an ace and an eight for the win, Binger did just that when the T♦ turn and Q♠ river fell.

The crowd went bananas as Binger secured his first major tournament win, the $181,379 first-place prize, a free pass to the 2009 WSOP and the glory of a PL.com winner interview.

Ty Stewart grabs $112,685 for second, and WSOPC Tahoe is over.

Stay tuned for a recap of the entire final table, and make sure to check back with PL.com in a few days to see what 2008 WSOPC Tahoe champ Michael Binger had to say about the big win. 

Having fought back to where the match started, Michael Binger has now taken the lead from Ty Stewart.

Binger limped the button and Ty made a standard raise. Binger reraised it up $100k more and after Stewart called, the 7♥ 5♦ 3♠ flop came down. Both players checked.

The turn was the J♣ and Stewart bet a whopping $250k. Binger made the big call and the K♦ river was revealed.

They checked it down and Ty's ace-high couldn't beat Binger's Q7 pair of sevens. With that, Binger takes the lead, on $1.25 million to Stewart's $680k.

After calling a $48k button raise from Ty Stewart, Michael Binger checked the 5♥ 4♦ 3♦ flop.

But when Ty bet another $50k, Binger pulled out the big guns, raising all-in for $446k more.

Stewart paused for thought, mucked and now Binger is up close to $700 and back in it.

Stewart has $1.2 million.

In lieu of a break the players have run off to go to the bathroom real quick with 3 minutes left in Level 21.

Michael Binger has chipped his way back into this thing on $450k now, leaving Ty Stewart with about $1.5 million and some tougher decisions to make as we move forward into Level 22!

Ty Stewart is steamrolling Michael Binger, pushing him off pots, catching cards and taking a stranglehold on this match.

In one pot with four clubs on the board Stewart managed to push Binger off with 2-8o and no clubs.

Then he got paid off with top two pair holding A-Q a moment ago.

At this point Stewart has about $1.7 million to Michael Binger's$200k and is practically being fitted for the Tahoe crown as we speak.

In the first big hand of heads-up Michael Binger picked off a Ty Stewart bluff to pull back to even in chips.

Binger turned a set, and flat-called turn and river bets from Stewart holding air.

But then the biggest pot of heads-up so far played out on the felt. It started with a Stewart raise to $26k from the button. Binger reraised to $86,000 and Stewart called.

The flop came Q♠ J♦ T♠ and Binger check-called a $90k Stewart bet. Then he check-called a $200k bet on the 3♥ turn before the 7♦ river came down.

Once again, Binger checked, but when Ty Stewart shoved all-in, he went deep into the tank.

With his tournament life on the line, Binger laid it down and Stewart took control again, on $1.5 million to Binger's $500k.

The first dozen or so hands of heads-up have been devoid of major confrontations.

As a result, things remain just about where they were when they got rolling, although a quick calculation shows Ty Stewart has increased his edge over Michael Binger ever so slightly.

Now the blinds are up and into Level 21, the pressure is beginning to mount.

Facing a $30k raise from Michael Binger, a suddenly short-stacked Jake Solis shoved in for his last $95k.

Ty Stewart made the call and Binger came along for the ride.

Binger and Stewart checked down the A♣ Q♠ 9♣ T♣ 5♠ board the whole way and in the end, Binger's K♣ Q♥ beat Stewart's 7♣ 7♥ and Solis' 8♥ 8♣.

Binger collects the pot while Jake collects $77,464 for third and we head into the mano-a-mano portion of the tournament.

Going into heads-up following a planned money presentation here in Tahoe, Ty Stewart will have $1.1 million to Michael Binger's $825,000.

Ty Stewart is back over the $1.1 million mark again after getting paid off by Michael Binger in a decent-sized pot where he made two pair.

Other than that, things have tightened up considerably three-handed, as neither Binger nor Jake Solis wants to exit third.

Michael Binger just inched a little closer to Ty Stewart, pushing him off a big pot with a $150k river bet on a J♥ J♦ 9♣ 6♦ K♥ board.

Binger showed nothing but pocket fives after a Stewart fold and he's on $670k now. Jake Solis is on around $310k and Stewart remains in the lead on $970,000.

In the meantime, the blinds are up and we're into Level 20.

After calling a Jake Solis $25k pre-flop raise, Ty Stewart must have chuckled inside a little when the K♠ K♥ 5♠ flop fell.

After all, he's been running like God and this time he held K♣ Q♥. Jake bet around $60k and Stewart shipped it in.

Without much thought, Solis obliged, putting his tournament life on the line with A♠ 7♠. 

Jake needed a spade and although the 10♦ turn was not one, the 2♠ river was.

Finally Ty Stewart's spell on the final table had been broken. He ran good enough to flop trips, but not to fade the spade and avoid doubling Solis back up close to $380k.

However, Stewart's still got close to $1 million in chips and remains in control.

The Ty Stewart run-good show continues here and Mike McClain just became its latest victim.

After Stewart and Michael Binger limped, McClain bumped it up to $44k total. Ty called and after Binger got out of the way, the flop came J♠ 10♦ 5♣.

McClain fired out a $50k bet and Stewart quickly called. McClain looked preplexed when the 7♦ turn fell and after a short time in the tank, he pushed all in.

Stewart instacalled felting 9♣ 8♣ for the straight and McClain's Q♣ Q♦ was drawing dead.

He goes out 4th cashing $53,777 and Ty Stewart's stack is now in the $1.2 million range with nobody even close.

Binger has around $500k and Jake Solis is around $300k.

Ty Stewart continues to dominate the final table here in Tahoe and in his latest assault on the final four he wasn't even forced to show down.

Stewart pushed Michael Binger off a $200k pot on the river, betting every street on a 5♥ 3♣ 2♣ Q♦ Q♥ board and now has well over $750k to Binger's $500,000.

After coming in short, Tay Nguyen did a nice job moving up the pay ladder before looking down at K♣ T♣ and throwing his stack in the middle.

Unfortunately for Nguyen, Mike McClain woke up with A♦ A♣ and made the call.

The flop came 9♣ 9♠ 8♣, giving Nguyen a flush draw, but the 8♥ turn and 7♦ river brought no clubs.

Nguyen leaves fifth cashing $40,653 and now just four players remain in the hunt for the Tahoe title.

We return to play at the WSOPC Tahoe final with the start of Level 19!

Ty Stewart is the leader on $650k and you can see the rest of the stacks under the Chip Counts tab above, which has been updated.

Things sure seem to be happeneing fast and we can't see any reason why they'd slow down.

We were about to take a break with the end of Level 18 here when disaster struck for Allen Kessler.

Ty Stewart shoved the button facing a raise and Allen Kessler looked down at A♠ A♦ in the small blind. He called all in for $150k and Ty Stewart had nothing but 7♠ 7♣.

The Q♦ J♣ 2♣ flop kept The Chainsaw safe, the K♦ turn didn't change things, but the nasty little 7♦ river did.

Stewart made a set and with his aces cracked, a dejected Kessler walked away from the table. He'll cash $31,370 for sixth and have a serious beat to whine about for the next little while.

The five remaining WSOPC Tahoe finalists are now taking a break with Ty Stewart in the lead.

Travis Erdman's third WSOPC final table in three years has come to a close.

Facing a Ty Stweart $18k raise, he looked down at K♣ K♠ and bumped it up to $45k. After a short time in the tank, Stewart made the call and the flop came 9♠ 5♠ 4♠.

Stewart checked, but check-raised all in when Erdman fired out $60k. Travis made the call for his tournmanet life and must have been shocked to see Ty's 6♠ 3♠. 

Erdman would need a spade to stay alive against Stewart's made flush, but the 10♥ turn and 4♦ river did not provide one, ending his hopes of a Tahoe title.

Erdman will add $24,968 and a seventh place finish to a fifth in 2006 and a ninth place finish last year.

In the meantime, Stewart has now luckboxed his way up close to chip leader Michael Binger.

Bill Bostick has just become our eighth place finisher after tangling with chip leader Michael Binger.

Bill called a small pre-flop raise from Binger and the 6♥ 3♥ 2♦ flop fell. Binger bet $100k, Bostick shipped for not much more and after the obvious call from Michael, the cards were shown.

It was the A♦ 5♦ single over and a gutter for Binger against Bostick's 7♥ 7♦. The turn brought Binger the A♥ and although Bostick had the redraw on the river for a flush, he missed.

The 3♣ came down and Bostick fell 8th cashing $18,566.

Binger's now got over $500k and is in control of this seven-handed final table.

We've reached the 18th level here in Tahoe and Michael Binger's lead remains safe for now.

Ty Stewart won the majority of the pots in the last 17 minutes of Level 17 to start the final and is on his way up.

The blinds are now going with him.

We'll never know what Scott Clements' final hand at WSOPC Tahoe was because he threw it in the muck when it was all over.

A short stacked Clements check-called bets on every street from Ty Stewart after Ty flopped broadway on him, including calling all in on the river.

He's done 9th cashing $13,444 and we're eight handed at the final now after just the first few hands.

MC Keith Sexton has finished up with the introductions and with a rather vivacious crowd applauding every step of the way here at Harvey's Tahoe, he's made the call to shuffle up and deal and we are underway.

There's a little less than 20 minutes left in Level 17 here at the WSOPC Tahoe final and the clock starts running now!