Welcome back to SKYCITY Auckland Casino for Day 2 of the 2012 PokerStars.net Australia New Zealand Poker Tour Auckland Main Event!
Seventy-six players have merged together from the first three flights as the sole survivors still within a chance of capturing their maiden ANZPT Auckland title. Xiaodong Xia (180,600) sits atop the leaderboard holding an overwhelming advantage over the remaining players that include Monica Eastick (137,000), Angie Fitzgerald (113,500), Charles Caris (108,900), Marc Wittkopf (108,600), Patrick Lui (105,700) and Jie Gao (104,500).
With plenty of short stacks and room to maneuver due to such a fantastic structure, every one of the seventy-six left will be jostling to sneak into one of the top twenty-four paying spots before making a run at the final table where a NZ$107,640 first prize is on offer.
Play is set to begin in roughly an hours time at 12:15p.m NZST with plans to play down to the final table. PokerNews will again be on the floor providing all the live coverage - so stick around and enjoy the 2012 PokerStars.net ANZPT Auckland Main Event live from the floor of the SKYCITY Auckland Casino!
We arrived at the table to see a player open to 3,000 before Ashley Warner on the button, moved all in for his remaining 20,000 in chips. His opponent snap-called and the players tabled their cards.
Warner:
Opponent:
Both players had the same cards, and saw the flop fall . Warner’s opponent had back-door flush outs, but the hand was chopped when the turn came the .
“Boooooo,” laughed Warner’s opponent.
“Boo-‘urns,” replied Warner, as the river came the . "I wanted to go to the bar."
Warner will have to wait a little longer, as he sits on 22,000 in chips.
Action started with Jamie Mulligan opening to 2,700, and finding a call from both players in the blinds. The flop came out , and the blinds checked. Mulligan continued with a bet of 3,600, which only the big blind called. Both players checked the on the turn, to see the fall on the river. The player in the big blind instantly bet out 5,000 which Mulligan snap-called.
Mulligan was not happy when his opponent tabled for trip kings.
“I haven’t had aces the whole tournament,” said Mulligan, as he opened mucked .
From late-position, Cole Swannack opened the pot, with a bet of 2,400. A short-stack in the big blind made the call to see the flop come . Swannack’s opponent went into the tank for a minute, before finally announcing all-in, and committing his last 12,900 into the middle. Swannack made the call, and the cards were shown.
Opponent:
Swannack:
Swannack was behind, but could catch any diamond or four to win the pot. The turn and river didn’t help, as it fell the and to see him drop to 50,000 in chips.
Two of the biggest stacks in the room, Angie Fitzgerald and Marc Wittkopf, just battled it out over on table 4. It was recalled to us that all the money eventually went in on the river, with Fitzgerald showing pocket three’s for flopped quads. Wittkopf could only look in shock, after turning a full-house, holding pocket sixes.
“He just kept feeding the pot throughout the hand, and I went along,” Fitzgerald said. She now sits as the chip leader early on in proceedings, with 215,000 in chips.
Joe Allis has been eliminated from the tournament, after starting the day with a sizeable chip stack. We found out that on a 2-5-Q flop, Allis went into the tank, after his opponent moved all in. He eventually made the call with pocket jack, but was behind to his opponent’s flopped set of fives. He was left with only 6,000 in chips, and lost the remainder shortly after.
. Warner’s opponent had back-door flush outs, but the hand was chopped when the turn came the 
.
. "I wanted to go to the bar."
, and the blinds checked. Mulligan continued with a bet of 3,600, which only the big blind called. Both players checked the 
on the turn, to see the 
fall on the river. The player in the big blind instantly bet out 5,000 which Mulligan snap-called.
for trip kings.
.
. Swannack’s opponent went into the tank for a minute, before finally announcing all-in, and committing his last 12,900 into the middle. Swannack made the call, and the cards were shown.
and 
to see him drop to 50,000 in chips.