2010 World Series of Poker
Three-Betathon
This crowd may be made up of players from the 'ol' school', but it's the Internet generation's trend of applying preflop pressure which has taken hold of today's final table.
At the moment, most hands are being taken down preflop, usually with a three-bet. On the last hand, Negreanu raised to 4,400 before folding to a reraise of 11,500 from Jennifer Harman, and the hand before that, Joe Hachem raise-folded 5,500 to Johnny Chan's 16,000 three-bet.
Hachem Chips Up
Johnny Chan opened to 5,000 in early position, and Jen Harman called from the cutoff. It folded to Joe Hachem in the big blind, who paused a minute before making it 20,000 to go. Chan flatted the three-bet, and Harman folded, dropping under 50,000.
The flop fell . Hachem bet out 28,500, and Chan couldn't call it. Scooping this one, Hachem moved up to 140,000. Chan slid to 130,000, giving Hachem the second spot in the counts.
Small Pot for Chan
Huck Seed raised to 6,000 from middle position and Johnny Chan made the call from the big blind. On the flop, Chan led for 9,000 and, following a brief pause, Seed laid it down.
Negreanu Keeps It Small
Jen Harman raised to 4,500, and Joe Hachem and the big blind, Daniel Negreanu, both called. Negreanu and Harman checked the flop, and Hachem bet 9,000 in position. Negreanu made the call, while Harman let her hand go. The on the turn made things interesting, but neither player bet it. It went check, check again after the river paired the board. Negreanu turned up for tens and eights, and Hachem was forced to muck. With this one, Negreanu is around 195,000. Hachem slid back a bit to 125,000.
Mighty Joe
With Joe Hachem raising it up preflop, Barry Greenstein defended his big blind leading to a flop of . Both players checked. On the turn, Greenstein check-called a bet of 4,800, but then folded to a bet of 9,200 on the river.
The action is about as slow as a snail in treacle at the moment, but I sense it'll pick up soon.
Greenstein C-Bets a Winner
Barry Greenstein raised on the button to 5,000, and Jen Harman defended her big blind. She checked the flop, and when Barry bet 7,000, Harman let him have it.
Cloutier Making His Presence Felt
Twice in a row TJ Cloutier has made Daniel Negreanu fold to a three-bet. On both occasions, Negreanu raised to 4,440, only for Cloutier to reraise, first, all in for 44,100, then to 19,400. On the second hand Cloutier kindly revealed pocket aces.
Level: 12
Blinds: 1,200/2,400
Ante: 300
Seidel Sidelined
With just nine big blinds, Erik Seidel opted to move all in from middle position for a total of 18,700. Unfortunately for the eight-time bracelet winner, Jennifer Harman was sitting pretty with the American Airlines in the big blind, , and called quicker than a jet-propelled whippet. Seidel meekly flipped onto the felt.
The flop was rather clinical, but Seidel had miracle outs to a royal flush draw. So, when the turn came the , the crowd naturally gasped in unison and sharpened their fangs in preparation for blood. "I'm rooting for the ," confessed Duke. She wasn't alone.
But, alas, the river came a close-but-no-cigar , and the potential for a YouTube clip for the ages was left in tatters. Still, Seidel gave us a moment of excitement in what has been an admittedly uneventful start, before ultimately finishing in a disappointing tenth place.