In the last hand before the break, Masa Kagawa limped from the small blind and Andrew Robl checked his option from the big. Kagawa then led out for 15,000 on the 
flop, Robl called, and the 
turned. This time Kagawa checked and then folded when Robl bet 30,000.
Just seven players remained in the prestigious 2013 Aussie Millions $100k Challenge at the start of the day. Check out the final table preview with Lynn Gilmartin while you wait.
Masa Kagawa opened for 20,000 from the button only to have Andrew Robl three-bet the pot (74,000) from the small blind. The big blind folded, Kagawa four-bet, and Robl called off his remaining 23,000.
Robl: 
Kagawa: 
Robl got it in good and was looking to dodge both an ace and diamonds, which is exactly what he did when the board ran out a dry 
. Ship the double to Robl.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
810,000 | -95,000 |
|
200,000 | 103,000 |
From under the gun, Igor Kurganov raised to 20,000. Action folded to Dan Shak in the big blind, and he made the call to see the 
flop. Shak checked, and Kurganov bet 25,000. Shak called.
The 
was added to the board on fourth street, and Shak checked. Kurganov opted to check behind and give a free river card — the 
. Shak checked, and Kurganov took a minute before firing 50,000. Shak pulled out some chips — more than 50,000 — and check-raised to 125,000. After another minute of thought, Kurganov folded.
Shak showed the 
for a turned set of eights, but made sure to comment, "I should probably stop showing you," to Kurganov.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
690,000 | -85,000 |
|
485,000 | 129,000 |
![[user101598]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
The PokerNews crew is down under at Crown Casino for the 2013 Aussie Millions. On this episode they talk about the NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship, the $100,000 Challenge, and more. They are then joined by Nate Silver, the creator of the FiveThirtyEight blog and author of The Signal and the Noise, to talk about his trip to Melbourne, his poker skills, and the Main Event.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
905,000 | -95,000 |
|
|
775,000 | 12,000 |
|
|
356,000 | 11,000 |
|
|
135,000 | -30,000 |
Andrew Robl opened for 20,000 from the button and Igor Kurganov defended from the big blind. The latter check-called a bet of 15,000 on the 
flop, and then both players checked the turn. When the 
peeled off on the river, Kurganov took the opportunity to slide out a big bet of 60,000, and Robl made the call after thinking about it for a few moments.
Kurganov then tabled 
for a rivered full house, and it was good as Robl sent his hand to the muck.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
763,000 | 118,000 |
|
|
165,000 | -95,000 |
PartyPoker and PokerNews have a fantastic relationship with each other, which is why we can bring you an exclusive bonus offer of $50 absolutely free, no deposit required, for all new players.
It is extremely easy to get your hands on this free $50 bankroll, all that is required are a few simple steps:
Once you have received the confirmation email $20 will be placed into your PartyPoker account. You must earn at least 40 PartyPoints before they will be able to withdraw the free $20. If you do not earn 40 PartyPoints within 60 days the initial $20, or whatever remains of it, will be forfeited. PartyPoints are earned at a rate of two (2) PartyPoints per $1 in rake or tournament fees so earning 40 of them within a 60 day timeframe is quite an easy task.
Once you have earned 40 PartyPoints a further $30 will be deposited into your account bringing the total free cash amount to $50. Please be aware that this $30 is in the form of a release restricted bonus and you must then generate another 160 points before the bonus is released as cash into your account. This must be done within 120 days otherwise the $30 will be forfeited.
Just catching the end of this hand, Dan Shak had fired 50,000 on the final board of 
. Igor Kurganov put in a raise to 160,000, and Shak snap-called.
Kurganov tabled the 
for a diamond flush, and Shak was a little confused. Shak showed that he had the and claimed that he thought he had the 
for the higher flush. A little upset at his mistake, Shak shook his head and sent the chips over to Kurganov.
On the rail, Vanessa Selbst, Tobias Reinkemeier and Philipp Gruissem were discussing an earlier hand involving Shak where might have misread his hand as well. It happened when Shak made a straight against Kurganov and the Russian folded trip tens. Shak showed the after the hand, and Kurganov asked Shak if he had queen-jack, to which Shak responded, "Yeah, queen-jack of hearts."
The good thing for Shak is that the mistake didn't cost him his tournament life. He's still plenty alive with 345,000 in chips and in the money earning AU$237,000. This cash also marks the third cash in a six-figure buy-in event at the Aussie Millions for Shak.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
715,000 | 328,000 |
|
|
345,000 | -195,000 |
Niklas "ragen70" Heinecker entered the money bubble as an extreme short stack, and everyone knew it wouldn't be long before he had to make a move.
It happened when he opened for 40,000 under the gun and was met with a three-bet to 70,000 by Masa Kagawa in the small blind. After the big blind folded, Heinecker opted to just call the additional 30,000 and leave himself 24,000 behind. Kagawa proceeded to bet the 
and Heinecker committed his remaining chips while saying, "That's good enough for me."
Masa: 
Heinecker: 
Neither player had hit the flop directly, though Heinecker picked up an open-ended straight draw. According to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, Heinecker had a 34.54% chance of survival on the flop, but that dropped to 22.73% when the useless 
turned. Heinecker was on his feet as the dealer burned one last time and put out the . The German online star missed and took his leave in fifth place after shaking hands with the remaining four player, who're each guaranteed at least $237,000.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,000,000 | 100,000 |
|
|
540,000 | -60,000 |
|
|
387,000 | -8,000 |
|
|
185,000 | -65,000 |
|
Busted |
