2009 PokerStars.com EPT Vilamoura

Vilamoura Championship Main Event
Day: 1b
Event Info

2009 PokerStars.com EPT Vilamoura

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
78
Prize
€404,793
Event Info
Buy-in
€5,000
Prize Pool
€1,561,700
Entries
322
Level Info
Level
28
Blinds
40,000 / 80,000
Ante
5,000

Rousso Misses

We admittedly missed the preflop betting action for this hand, but we walked up to Table 7 as the dealer was pulling a pile of chips into the center of the table. Vanessa Rousso was all in for less than 10,000, and Matthew Nieberg and Luca Pagano (who took Eastgate's old seat) were still live in the pot.

The dealer ran out the board: {6-Hearts} {Q-Diamonds} {10-Clubs} {Q-Hearts} {5-Diamonds}, with Pagano and Nieberg checking it down the whole way. After the last two checks, Nieberg announced, "Ace high." Rousso then tabled {A-Clubs} {J-Spades} for her own ace high, but it was no good either. Pagano showed up {9-Diamonds} {9-Clubs}, and his queens up earned him the pot and the knockout.

Rousso would ask and find out that her ace-jack was ahead of Nieberg's ace, but she couldn't overcome Pagano's pair. She stood behind her chair for just a moment to take one last look before heading off toward the exit. "God, I had so many outs too," she said, trailing off. "An ace, a jack, a king, a ten..."

Tags: Luca PaganoVanessa Rousso

Level: 6

Blinds: 200/400

Ante: 50

Assorted Chip Counts for Your Delectation

Rob Yong - 46,000
Simon Nowab - 30,000
Juan Maceiras - 6,000
Stuart Rutter - 40,000
John Eames - 29,500
Carter Phillips - 38,000
Johan van Til - 55,000
John O'Shea - spotted eating a sandwich at the rail, presumed bust
Andy Black - 40,000
Jonathan Aguiar - 28,000
Sami Kelopuro - 56,000
Olaf de Zeeuw - 6,000
Alexia Portal - 25,000
Julian Thew - 35,000
Jan Heitmann - not on 75,000 or busto as he promised, but rather back to his 30,000 starting stack
Richard Ashby - back from his nap, and on 26,500
Dominik Nitsche - 31,500
Henrique Pinho - 73,000
Juan Manuel Pastor - 50,000
Matthew Nieberg - 75,000

No More Mizzi, Maceiras

Andy Black was just moved to a seat that used to belong to Sorel Mizzi. Mizzi's ID card was in the seat, but he and his chips were both conspicuously absent. Down under 8,000 the last time we checked on him, it's probably safe to say that "Imper1um" has been relegated to the rail.

In related news, Team PokerStars Pro Spain Juan Maceiras has had a strikingly similar last few minutes. He too was down to just a few thousand, and he too has just been eliminated.

Tags: Imper1umSorel Mizzi

Boatman Gets His Feet Wet

Four players made it to the {5-Clubs} {3-Diamonds} {2-Diamonds} flop and it checked around to the gentleman on the button, who bet 2,000. Ross Boatman in the small blind made the call, looking oddly reluctant; everyone else folded and they went heads up to the turn.

Said turn came down the {Q-Clubs} and Boatman checked. This time his opponent bet 4,000, and after a short while, Boatman folded, again looking rather reluctant. Curious.

Boatman is floating on 26,500.

Tags: Ross Boatman

Italian Warfare

On a flop of {Q-Hearts} {3-Spades} {9-Clubs}, Luca Pagano led out into a three-way pot with a near-pot-sized bet of 1,500. The monkey in the middle folded, but his fellow-Italian, Marco Della Tommasina, made the quick call.

The turn brought the {6-Hearts} and a check from both players, and the {5-Hearts} completed the board. Pagano fired out 3,100, and Della Tommasina quickly called again. Pagano instantly mucked his cards, and the pot goes to his countryman.

Pagano is back down around 40,000 after that little slip.

Tags: Luca PaganoMarco Della Tommasina

LarsLuzak Wins

Sami Kelopuro raised to 1,100 under the gun and the gent to his immediate left called, as did the big blind.

All three players checked the {2-Clubs} {8-Clubs} {5-Hearts} flop and they saw a {Q-Hearts} turn. Kelopuro bet 2,300 and both his opponents folded.

Kelopuro seems to have been having rather a good time of late - he's up to 90,000.

Tags: Sami Kelopuro

Bansi Gets Antsy

Praz Bansi has been on a bit of a downswing. Up to 80,000 at the last break, he's now perched on a rather more modest, though still above-average, 58,000.

Most recently he seems to have raised under the gun and got one caller across the table to see a {4-Diamonds} {2-Clubs} {8-Clubs} flop. Bansi bet out 2,050; his opponent called, and they saw an {8-Hearts} turn which they both checked. Bansi checked the {K-Clubs} river, and proceeded to lay it down to a 4,600 bet from Mr. Across The Table.

Tags: Praz Bansi

Hold Everything

Six levels have come and gone, and it's time for the last 15-minute break of the day. We'll pay two more levels before calling it a night.