Main Event
Day 2 Completed
Main Event
Day 2 Completed
This past weekend, the World Series of Poker Circuit Choctaw Durant Main Event began with 1,140 entries over two starting flights making it the third largest on WSOP Circuit history. On Sunday, the 64 survivors from Day 1a and 99 from Day 1b were brought together under one roof for Day 2 action. The returning field of 163 was whittled down to just 15 players over the course of 11 levels with Jeff Fielder and his stack of 3.215 million leading the way.
Day 2 began with everyone intent on making the money by finishing in the top 117, but 46 players needed to fall to make that happen. Among those who left empty handed were Brett Schwertley, Michael Swimelar, Shawn Rice, Michael “Carwash” Schneider and Richard Lee, who you may recall earned $2,803,851 for his sixth-place finisher in the 2006 WSOP Main Event
Lee actually finished as the bubble boy. It happened when Drazen Ilich, who finished as the Day 1a chip leader, opened on the button and Lee three-bet about half of his stack from the small blind. Ilich moved all in with , Lee called holding , and the board ran out clean for Ilich to send Lee home in 118th place.
Once the bubble burst, the eliminations began to mount. Chris Conrad (116th-$2,804), Kevin “1SickDisease” Eyster (102nd-$3,044), Todd Breyfogle (87th-$3,608), Hien Nguyen (78th-$3,916) and Jody Rummel (65th-$4,258) were just a few of the players to fall during midday.
At the end of Level 22, with blinds at 5,000/10,000/1,000, Poker Hall of Famer T.J. Cloutier also hit the rail. Cloutier, who has six World Series of Poker bracelets and finished runner-up in the WSOP Main Event on two occasions (1985 & 2000) fell after Jim Carroll opened for 28,000 and Jeff Fielder flatted from the small blind with . Cloutier then three-bet to 128,000 from the big with , Carroll folded, and Fielder spent some time in the tank before moving all in. Cloutier called off and Fielder's nines held.
A few minutes later, after the clock had rolled over to Level 23 (6,000/12,000/2000), another six-time WSOP bracelet winner joined Cloutier on the rail. Layne Flack's demise came when he opened for 31,000 from early and received a call from Matt Kirby in the hijack. When action reached Mario "Pwnasaurus" Silvestri, of Ship It Holla Ballas fame, in the small blind, he quietly announced that he was all in for 193,000. Flack, who happened to have the exact same amount, snap-called while Kirby got out of the way.
Flack:
Silvestri:
It was a bad spot for Flack, and it got even worse when the flop delivered Silvestri a set. Flack needed running cards to stay alive, but the turn ended any hope of that happening. Flack was drawing dead headed to the river, which came down the , and was eliminated in 58th place.
Andy Philachack (56th-$4,668), Kou Vang (50th-$5,164), Silvestri (48th-$5,164), David Nicholson (34th-$6,532), Matt Lawrence (29th-$8,584), Rex Clinkscales (27th-$9,986), “Cowboy” John Land (26th-$9,986), Will Carrion 25th-$9,986), Jonathan Bakhshian (22nd-$11,748) and Mitch Schock (20th-$13,954) were just a few of the players who busted in the later levels of Day 2.
While many fell, a few notable managed to survive. Phil Ivey doppelganger Clifton Stewart; Minnesota’s Matt Kirby; lovely ladies Brenda Bassett and Krissi McFarland; and Lee Abramson, who was responsible for a slowroll controversy on Day 1b, are all among the players still in contention for the $312,080 first-place prize and seat in the Southern Comfort 100 Proof National Championship.
It's also worth noting that Ilich is the only player left in the Main Event who can win the Choctaw Casino Championship. If he finishes fourth or higher he would take the lead over current frontrunner Andrew Robinson, though Event #12 is yet to be determined.
Day 3 Seating Assignments and Chip Counts
Table | Seat | Player | Count |
---|---|---|---|
11 | 1 | Matt Kirby | 1,025,000 |
11 | 2 | --empty-- | -- |
11 | 3 | Reginald Roberts | 1,285,000 |
11 | 4 | Drazen Ilich | 1,700,000 |
11 | 5 | Clifton Stewart | 1,755,000 |
11 | 6 | Bryan Campanello | 2,180,000 |
11 | 7 | Brenda Bassett | 350,000 |
11 | 8 | Brant Hale | 1,290,000 |
11 | 9 | --empty-- | -- |
12 | 1 | Krissi McFarland | 1,095,000 |
12 | 2 | --empty-- | -- |
12 | 3 | Doug Ashmore | 1,280,000 |
12 | 4 | Dale Roesel | 2,800,000 |
12 | 5 | Kasra Khodayarkhani | 670,000 |
12 | 6 | Jon Wood | 775,000 |
12 | 7 | Lee Abramson | 1,295,000 |
12 | 8 | Jeff Fielder | 3,215,000 |
12 | 9 | Paul Phillips | 2,060,000 |
The third and final day of the Choctaw Durant Main Event will begin at 12:00 p.m. CST on Monday and the final 15 players will play down to a winner. The PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be on hand bringing you all the action as we look to crown the next WSOP Circuit Choctaw Durant Main Event champion.
Kasra Khodayarkhani opened for a raise in the cutoff, Jon Wood called on the button, and the dealer fanned . Khodayarkhani checked, Wood fired 100,000, and Khodayarkhani called.
The turn was the , Khodayarkhani checked again, and Wood instantly moved all in for around 500,000.
"Ace good?" Khodayarkhani asked Wood, who didn't answer.
Khodayarkhani sat quietly for more than a minute, studying the board and Wood. Finally, he made the call.
Khodayarkhani:
Wood:
"Good chance of a chop," Dale Roesel said.
The river was the , and the two players chopped the pot.
"That's the worst hand I've played all tournament," Khodayarkhani said, shaking his head.
"The key is to get lucky when you play bad," Roesel joked.
The entire table burst into laughter, even Wood.
Dale Roesel opened to 65,000 from under the gun, Lee Abramson called in the cutoff, and Jeff Fielder three-bet to 145,000 on the button. Roesel four-bet to 290,000, and not knowing that there was a fourth bet made, Abramson put out 145,000. When we was told that there was a fourth bet, he was given the option to call the remaining 145,000 or forfeit what he had dropped. He opted to fold, forfeiting the extra chips, and Fielder tank-called.
The flop fell , and Roesel led out for 205,000. Fielder quickly folded.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Jeff Fielder |
2,650,000
-100,000
|
-100,000 |
Dale Roesel |
2,400,000
925,000
|
925,000 |
Will Nguyen was all in and at risk preflop with . Doug Ashmore had him crushed with , and the aces held, eliminating Nguyen in 16th place.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Doug Ashmore |
1,225,000
235,000
|
235,000 |
Will Nguyen | Busted |
Drazen Ilich opened for 60,000 and received a call from Bryan Campanello in the hijack. Brant Hale then moved all in for 500,000 more from the button, Ilich folded, and Campanello, who was sipping on a beer, made the call.
Hale:
Campanello:
The flop paired Campanello's queen, but he needed more help if he was to eliminate Hale. The turn wasn't what he needed, and neither was the river.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Bryan Campanello |
1,850,000
-500,000
|
-500,000 |
|
||
Brant Hale |
1,200,000
640,000
|
640,000 |
In a battle of the blinds, Jeff Fielder and Paul Phillips took a flop of . Fielder check-called a 95,000-chip bet from Philiips, and the turn brought the .
Fielder checked, Phillips fired 140,000, and Fielder called.
The completed the board, and Fielder checked a third and final time. Phillips slid forward 300,000 in green T25,000 chips, and Fielder shrugged before tossing forward three pink T100,000 chips. Phillips flipped over for a flush, and Fielder mucked.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Jeff Fielder |
2,750,000
-700,000
|
-700,000 |
Paul Phillips |
2,485,000
1,280,000
|
1,280,000 |
Bryan Campanello opened to 60,000 in late position, Dan Blakeman called in the big blind, and the flop fell . Blakeman checked, Campanello fired 75,000, and Blakeman check-raised all in for 500,000. Campanello called.
Campanello:
Blakeman:
Niether the turn () nor the river () was a spade, and Blakeman was eliminated. Campanello now has over two million chips.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Bryan Campanello |
2,350,000
550,000
|
550,000 |
|
||
Dan Blakeman | Busted |
After raise-folding on the button, Fred Perez three-bet shoved over an open from Dan Blakeman. Blakeman called.
Perez:
Blakeman:
The flop () and the turn () missed Blakeman, but the spiked on the river to give him a pair of queens.
Perez was eliminated in 18th place, and will earn $16,758.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Blakeman |
760,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
Fred Perez | Busted |
Table | Seat | Player |
---|---|---|
11 | 1 | Matt Kirby |
11 | 2 | Fred Perez |
11 | 3 | Reginald Roberts |
11 | 4 | Drazen Ilich |
11 | 5 | Clifton Stewart |
11 | 6 | Bryan Campanello |
11 | 7 | Brenda Bassett |
11 | 8 | Brant Hale |
11 | 9 | Dan Blakeman |
12 | 1 | Krissi McFarland |
12 | 2 | Will Nguyen |
12 | 3 | Doug Ashmore |
12 | 4 | Dale Roesel |
12 | 5 | Kasra Khodayarkhani |
12 | 6 | Jon Wood |
12 | 7 | Lee Abramson |
12 | 8 | Jeff Fielder |
12 | 9 | Paul Phillips |