$1,650 Main Event
Day 2 Completed
2020 Heartland Poker Tour Ameristar East Chicago
$1,650 Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
2020 Heartland Poker Tour Ameristar East Chicago
Buy-in
$1,650
Entries
520
Level
31
Blinds
80,000 / 160,000
Ante
160,000
Entries
520
Players Left
9
Bethyo Leads, Raymer Lurking After Day 2 of HPT Ameristar East Chicago
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
From a starting field of 520 entries, just 89 returned for Day 2 action at the HPT Ameristar East Chicago $1,650 Main Event. After just over eight levels of play, it was Evan Bethyo bagging up the chip lead for the final table, and he'll be bringing back 3,355,000 for Monday's Day 3, good for more than 110 big blinds.
Bethyo spent the day running over opponent after opponent, including knocking out Daniel Marshall in 12th, and with nearly a million chips more than his nearest competitor, he'll look to keep riding the momentum in search of his first HPT title.
Sitting in second place is a man with many accolades, both in HPT and World Series of Poker lore, as 2005 WSOP Main Event champ and 2012 HPT Player of the Year Greg Raymer bagged up 2,275,000 for tomorrow. Raymer spent the day steadily chipping up, winning a big pot off of Bohdan Slyvinskyi, who bagged the third biggest stack with 2,010,000, late in the day to cement his status as a fellow big stack.
Marc Yofon (1,950,000), Matt Schurter (1,615,000), former HPT Soaring Eagle champ David Gutfreund (1,520,000), Tim Barany (1,375,000), and Dale Hackney (1,125,000) all sit in a fairly tight group behind the leaders, while Benjamin Craig (315,000) will have some work to do as he returns for Day 3 with just ten-and-a-half big blinds.
Final Table Seat Draw
| Table | Seat | Name | Hometown | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final | 1 | Greg Raymer | Raleigh, North Carolina | 2,275,000 |
| Final | 2 | Marc Yofon | Rolling Meadows, Illinois | 1,950,000 |
| Final | 3 | Dale Hackney | Durand, Michigan | 1,125,000 |
| Final | 4 | David Gutfreund | Las Vegas, Nevada | 1,520,000 |
| Final | 5 | Tim Barany | Chicago, Illinois | 1,375,000 |
| Final | 6 | Bohdan Slyvinskyi | Chicago, Illinois | 2,010,000 |
| Final | 7 | Evan Bethyo | Vernon Hills, Illinois | 3,355,000 |
| Final | 8 | Matt Schurter | Crystal Lake, Illinois | 1,615,000 |
| Final | 9 | Benjamin Craig | Chicago, Illinois | 315,000 |
Day 2 Action
Of the 89 players who returned for Day 2 action, just 54 left with a cash. Some of those unfortunate enough to bust before the money included Sam Vizza, Craig Trost, Michael VanderWoude, and bubble boy Greg Baird, who lost a flip to David Kenniston to become the last player leaving empty-handed.
Players that were able to secure a slice of the prize pool include the aforementioned Kenniston (11th - $12,074), Kevin Maahs (16th - $6,931), Brent Ballentine (21st - $5,292), Ravi Raghavan (25th - $5,292), Alex Ziskin (34th - $4,323), former HPT Player of the Year Aaron Johnson (39th - $3,503), and former HPT Ameristar East Chicago champs Gary Herstein (41st - $3,503) and Nick Davidson (48th - $3,205).
The final table of ten played for twenty minutes before the official final table bubble boy hit the rail. Brian Brunner jammed his last 250,000 with pocket sixes, but Hackney made the call in the big blind with ace-nine suited, and paired his ace to send the final nine home for the evening.
Day 3 will kick off tomorrow at Noon local time, and the final table will be taped and televised for future use. The final table will also be streamed at the HPT's Twitch channel on a delay, and the PokerNews blog will sync up with the stream during tomorrow's play. Be sure to tune in to see who will walk away with the $171,411 top prize, the $3,500 Championship Package, and the trophy here at Ameristar East Chicago!
End-of-Day 2 Chip Counts
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
3,355,000 | -345,000 |
|
2,275,000 | -25,000 |
|
2,010,000 | |
|
1,950,000 | -75,000 |
|
1,615,000 | 55,000 |
|
1,520,000 | 75,000 |
|
1,375,000 | -25,000 |
|
1,125,000 | 250,000 |
|
315,000 | 75,000 |
Play Ends For The Day
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
The final nine players are bagging and tagging for the evening, and filling out biography sheets before tomorrow's televised final table. Stay tuned later for updated chip counts and a full recap of the day's action.
Brian Brunner Eliminated in 10th Place ($12,074)
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Brian Brunner jammed for 250,000 from early position, and Dale Hackney called in the big blind.
Brian Brunner: 
Dale Hackney: 
Hackney spiked an ace on the 
flop, and Brunner was left searching for a six after the 
turn to keep his Day 3 dream alive. The 
river was a brick, and the entire table and room clapped and congratulated Brunner on his deep run.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |
Bethyo Pads His Lead
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Evan Bethyo raised to 70,000 from the cutoff, and Greg Raymer called in the big blind.
Raymer check-called bets of 50,000 and 75,000 on the 
flop and 
turn, and Raymer checked the 
river. Bethyo bet 150,000 and Raymer folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
3,700,000 | 445,000 |
|
|
2,300,000 | -215,000 |
Barany's Timely Kings Earn a Dub
Level 24
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Evan Bethyo raised to 65,000 from under the gun, and Benjamin Craig three-bet shoved for 865,000 in middle position. Tim Barany called off his last 625,000 in the small blind, and Bethyo folded.
Tim Barany: 
Benjamin Craig: 
Barany's kings held on an 
board for the double.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,400,000 | 660,000 |
|
|
240,000 | -625,000 |
Level: 24
Blinds: 15,000/30,000
Ante: 30,000
Break Time
Level 23
: 15,000/25,000, 25,000 ante
The final ten players are on a ten-minute break. When they return, one more player needs to be eliminated before play comes to a close for the evening.
Unofficial Final Table Seat Draw
Level 23
: 15,000/25,000, 25,000 ante
| Table | Seat | Name | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | Greg Raymer | 2,515,000 |
| 7 | 2 | Marc Yofon | 2,025,000 |
| 7 | 3 | Dale Hackney | 875,000 |
| 7 | 4 | David Gutfreund | 1,445,000 |
| 7 | 5 | Brian Brunner | 250,000 |
| 7 | 6 | Tim Barany | 740,000 |
| 7 | 7 | Bohdan Slyvinskyi | 2,010,000 |
| 7 | 8 | Evan Bethyo | 3,255,000 |
| 7 | 9 | Matt Schurter | 1,560,000 |
| 7 | 10 | Benjamin Craig | 865,000 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
3,255,000 | -745,000 |
|
|
2,515,000 | -335,000 |
|
|
2,025,000 | 725,000 |
|
|
2,010,000 | 310,000 |
|
|
1,560,000 | -40,000 |
|
|
1,445,000 | 45,000 |
|
|
875,000 | 105,000 |
|
|
865,000 | -55,000 |
|
|
740,000 | -60,000 |
|
|
250,000 | 15,000 |