Sammy Youssef is down to just 3,000 in chips after losing a huge pot to Christopher Chau.
It appeared that all the money went into the middle on a flop that read 
. Not surprising really, given that Youssef had tabled 
against the 
- set over set!
The turn and river blanked out 
, and Chau is now up to more than 35,000 in chips.
Sean Rafael is now among the chip leaders after taking a big pot off Roberto Romanello.
We just caught the tail end, but the board read 
, and there was about 15,000 in the pot. Rafael made a bet of about that much, committing nearly his full stack, and Romanello was in the tank when we walked up. He finally splashed in the call for about a third of his own stack, and we'd never get to see his calling cards. Rafael tabled 
for jacks full of kings, and that pot has moved him up into second place with 49,000 chips.
The action in the $5,300 Pot Limit Omaha event has been few and far between, but we've just seen Richard Ashby chip up to 23,500 after winning another pot from an opponent.
We caught the action as Ashby fired out a bet of 200 on a flop that read 
; the opponent called and then opened for 600 on the turn of the 
after Ashby checked.
Ashby check-called and then both players checked after the dealer produced the 
on the river. Ashby showed 
for a small flush and that was enough to take it down.
Level: 4
Blinds: 150/300
Ante: 0
There was about 2,400 in the pot when we walked up to the turn of a board showing 
. Andy Bloch checked, and Tony Bloom made a bet of 2,100. Bloch check-raised to 8,000 straight, and the dealer asked him to put out a black (T100) chip as well. Huh? "Wait, why would I need to put out a black chip?" Bloch asked. There was more confusion from the dealer, and Bloch continued, "I made it 8,000. That's a legal raise. If I put out a black chip, that changes the amount of the bet." The dealer still wasn't understanding, so Bloch just went ahead and made change for one of the T500 chips he'd put into the pot, getting a bit frustrated with the delay. We're not quite sure what the problem was either, but that eventually satisfied the dealer and sent the action back to Bloom. He tanked for a minute or so, triple-checked his hole cards, bit his lip, and mucked.
On the next hand, we again caught up on the turn as the board read 
. Bloch was heads-up with Graeme Putt this time, and he bet 5,000 into a pot of 6,500. Putt tanked and folded as well, and Bloch's turn aggression sees him chipping up over 50,000 after those two consecutive hands.
We caught the action on a board that read 
; Joe Hachem and another player checked to Grant Trask who fired out a bet from the button.
Hachem tank-called and the other players folded before Trask showed down the absolute super-mega-hyper-turbo-uber-aw esome-nuts: 
. Hachem smiled and sent his hand into the muck.
According to our sources, it's much easier to hit a royal flush in this game. Still, there's no denying the fact that it's always nice to see one. Even better if you're the one holding it. However, bear in mind that you may never get maximum value out of such a hand. Which is kinda sucky.
Carlos Mortensen got himself all in after the turn on a board that showed 
. Robert Williamson III instantly called, and the cards were on their backs:
Mortensen: 
Williamson III: 
Both men were working with the same ten-high straight, but Williamson's two pair had him drawing live to the full house as well. The river was an anti-climactic 
, though, and the two men took their money back plus a bit from the blinds.
Erica Schoenberg has moved up to 15,500 in chips after taking a pot off fellow Full Tilt Red Pro Eli Elezra.
The action folded around Elezra who potted it from the cutoff; Schoenberg then repotted from the small blind and Elezra called before both players checked the flop and turn of 
.
Incredibly, another came down on the river and it was enough to see Schoenberg fire out 2,200. That was also enough for Elezra to fold his hand. Elezra is down to 12,500.
Careful readers will notice a new name in those updated chip counts.
Joe Hachem has joined our event as the players return from break. Roughly, we count 52 entries, but the exact total should be announced shortly.
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