Chris Klodnicki raised to 50,000 from the button, then Richard Allen reraised to 125,000 from the big blind and Klodnicki called.
Both players checked the 
flop. The turn was the 
, and when Allen pushed out a bet of 150,000, Klodnicki folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,900,000 | -207,000 |
|
1,770,000 | 168,000 |
Level: 24
Blinds: 12,000/24,000
Ante: 3,000
The players are on a 15-minute break.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,107,000 | |
|
1,982,000 | |
|
|
1,602,000 | 2,000 |
In the last hand of Level 23, Chris Klodnicki raised to 40,000 from the button and only Edward Pham called from the small blind.
The flop came monotone — 
— and Pham led with a bet of 50,000. Klodnicki made it 120,000, then Pham paused before announcing he was all in, and Klodnicki called in relatively short order.
Pham: 
Klodnicki: 
No hearts anywhere, but two pair for Pham and top set for Klodnicki! After Pham's repeated success with pocket aces earlier, it was Klodnicki's turn to make them work for him.
The turn was the 
and river the 
, and Klodnicki carries a lead into the break with all three players fairly close in chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,107,000 | 1,087,000 |
|
|
1,982,000 | -1,018,000 |
Chris Klodnicki minimum-raised to 40,000 from the button, and both of his opponents called from the blinds.
The flop came 
, Edward Pham checked from the small blind, then Richard Allen also checked from the big blind. Klodnicki bet 50,000 and watched as his opponents both woke up with raises. First Pham raised to 140,000, then Allen reraised to 375,000, and Klodnicki let his hand go.
Pham thought for a few moments, looking over Allen's reraise, then folded as well.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
3,000,000 | -100,000 |
|
|
1,600,000 | 230,000 |
|
|
1,020,000 | -120,000 |
We're continuing to watch lots of hands being ended with a single raise preflop. A variation occurred just now, however, when Richard Allen opened for 50,000 from the button, then Chris Klodnicki set out a tall column of gray (5,000) chips to reraise to 135,000.
Edward Pham folded his big blind, then Allen took about 15 seconds before setting out a column of chips himself, however his were red (25,000). The four-bet was to 500,000, and Klodnicki didn't waste too much time tossing his hand.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,370,000 | 170,000 |
|
|
1,140,000 | -160,000 |
The last 15 minutes have seen lots of raise-and-take hands and small pots, with Edward Pham having increased his advantage over Chris Klodnicki and Richard Allen by a few more chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
3,100,000 | 390,000 |
|
|
1,300,000 | -80,000 |
|
|
1,200,000 | -220,000 |
Richard Allen raised to 50,000 from the small blind, Chris Klodnicki raised to 125,000 from the big blind, and Allen called. Both checked the 
flop and 
turn. The river brought the 
and another check from Allen. Klodnicki bet 100,000, and Allen thought about a half-minute before calling.
Klodnicki showed 
for king-high, then Allen tabled his 
— also king-high, but with a better kicker. Klodnicki stood and leaned over the table and with a perplexed look studied Allen's hand for a moment before the chips were swept Allen's way.
That hand nudges Allen in front of Klodnicki at the moment, while Edward Pham sits across the table with a stack about twice that of both of his opponents.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,420,000 | 220,000 |
|
|
1,380,000 | -300,000 |
Edward Pham raised to 42,000 from the button and Chris Klodnicki three-bet to 110,000 from the big blind. Pham called the reraise, and the pair saw the flop come 
.
Klodnicki led for 85,000, and after considering a few moments Pham folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,710,000 | -190,000 |
|
|
1,680,000 | 100,000 |
With those two quick eliminations here at the start of Level 23 of the Sands Bethlehem DeepStack Extravaganza $500,000 Guaranteed Main Event, the remaining three players are all especially deep-stacked.
At the start of three-handed play, third-place Richard Allen has a stack worth about 60 big blinds, Chris Klodnicki has just under 80 big blinds, and leader Edward Pham has about 145 big blinds.
