Chen Finds a Miracle to Crack Paunescu's Aces
Level 29
: Blinds 50,000/125,000, 125,000 ante
Nicolae Paunescu raised to 250,000 from the hijack and Zhen Chen shoved for 1,905,000 out of the small blind. After the big blind folded Paunescu snap-called.
Zhen Chen: A♣10♦ 
Nicolae Paunescu: A♥A♠
Chen was in the worst possible shape he could be against the aces of Paunescu and would need to use his 'one-time' to survive this one.
The 10♣5♥3♣ flop gave Chen some hope with a pair of tens. The dealer dropped the miracle 10♥ on the turn to put Chen firmly in the lead with trips. There was no one outer on the river for Paunescu as the Q♣ fell, and Chen stayed alive in the tournament.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
4,100,000
1,700,000
|
1,700,000 |
|
2,900,000
1,700,000
|
1,700,000 |