$20,000 Heads-up Championship Day 2 | 2009 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship

$20,000 Heads-up Championship

Day 2 Completed

03-08-2009 00:25 UTC-7

Day 2 Concludes; Quarterfinals Set

[user38449]

Two days of fast-paced heads-up action have come and gone and just eight players remain in the 2009 NBC Heads-Up Poker Championships. Here are a few headlines from today's action:

* Phil Hellmuth got revenge against Tom 'durrrr' Dwan, earning a spot in the quarterfinals

* Last-minute substitute David Oppenheim got past both Phil Laak and Kenny Tran to earn his spot in the quarters, meaning he now has a 1-in-8 shot to win it all. 24 hours before the cards were in the air on Friday, he wasn't even a twinkle in producer Mori Eskandani's eye.

* Huck Seed became the first and only player in NBC Heads-Up history to have cashed in all five seasons since the show's inception in 2005. Scott Fischman's streak of four straight was ended by David Williams in the Round of 32.

* Daniel Negreanu showed up for his match against Scotty Nguyen dressed as... Scotty Nguyen.

Play is scheduled to resume tomorrow afternoon at approximately 11:00 am. local time (which is actually 10:00 a.m. local time because tonight is Daylight Savings Time). Here's a look at tomorrow's quarterfinal match-ups:

{A-Hearts}

Hearts Final {A-Hearts}

David Williams v. Sammy Farha

{A-Diamonds}

Diamonds Final {A-Diamonds}

David Oppenheim v. Huck Seed

{A-Clubs}

Clubs Final {A-Clubs}

Vanessa Rousso v. Daniel Negreanu

{A-Spades}

Spades Final {A-Spades}

Bertrand 'ElkY' Grospellier v. Phil Hellmuth

A champion will be crowned tomorrow. Join us then for more live updates direct from the tournament floor here at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, NV.

Until then, good night and good luck!

Tags: Daniel Negreanu Scotty Nguyen

03-08-2009 00:08 UTC-7

Elky Ends the Maraton by Eliminating Juanda

[user75032]

Bertrand Grospellier and John Juanda played the longest match so far in this 2009 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. It ended with a victory by Grospellier. He had the chip lead when John Juanda opened all-in from the button before the flop. Grospellier called with {K-Clubs}

and had the lead against Juanda's {J-Hearts}

. Once the board ran out {2-Spades}

, Grospellier's victory was secure. He's into the quarterfinals tomorrow morning; Juanda leaves with $25,000 in prize money.

Tags: Bertrand Grospellier John Juanda

03-07-2009 23:54 UTC-7

Yes Way

[user75032]

"No way!" John Juanda said ruefully upon seeing Bertrand Grospellier's hand. Grospellier had limped the button, then called all in as the short stack after Juanda pushed. Juanda's dismay was because his {K-Diamonds}

was badly outmatched by Grospellier's {K-Hearts}

. Juanda didn't get any help from the board and has relinquished the chip lead to Grospellier.

Tags: Bertrand Grospellier John Juanda

03-07-2009 23:45 UTC-7

Wasicka Out-Turned and Eliminated

[user75032]

Limits are huge now, so even just taking the blinds a few times can swing the chip lead. That's what Vanessa Rousso did against Paul Wasicka. She took the chip lead and then finished Wasicka off a few hands later.

The two players made it to the turn of a {7-Clubs}

board. Wasicka opened the action for 7,000, then pushed all in after Rousso raised to 20,000. Rousso quickly called with two pair, {K-Diamonds}

; Wasicka's pair of kings, {K-Hearts}

, was behind. Wasicka's draw was not as thin as it seemed; any seven, eight, nine or ten would give him the double-up. The river, however, was the {J-Hearts}

to give Rousso the victory. She moves on to the quarterfinals.

Tags: Paul Wasicka Vanessa Rousso

03-07-2009 23:39 UTC-7

Rousso's Hope Renewed

[user38449]

Vanessa Rousso was down to 30,000 in chips when Paul Wasicka put her all in before the flop. Rousso made the call, revealing the {A-Diamonds}

and found herself up against Wasicka's {K-Diamonds}

. The board filled out {Q-Diamonds}

and Rousso's ace-high held up to win the pot, sending her back up over the 60,000 mark in chips.

Tags: Paul Wasicka Vanessa Rousso

03-07-2009 23:36 UTC-7

Juanda Can Only Shake His Head

[user75032]

John Juanda had Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier all in after a flop of {Q-Hearts}

. Grospellier was on a draw with {J-Diamonds}

against Juanda's top pair of aces, {A-Spades}

. The turn was a third heart, the {2-Hearts}

, which took away two of Grospellier's outs. Down to his final card, Grospellier filled his straight with a river {8-Diamonds}

. He has regained the chip lead against Juanda.

As the pot was pushed to ElkY, Juanda shook his head, perhaps thinking about how close he had been to the quarterfinals.

Tags: Bertrand Grospellier John Juanda

03-07-2009 23:26 UTC-7

Musical Tables

[user75032]

With the conclusion of the Dwan-Hellmuth match and the Negreanu-Nguyen match, we've had a few shifts. Vanessa Rousso and Paul Wasicka have been relocated to the main feature table; Bertrand Grospellier and John Juanda are now on the secondary feature table. Roussoe leads Wasicka 102,000 to 58,000. Juanda has a similar lead against Grospellier after doubling up, all in preflop, with {Q-Spades}

against ElkY's {A-Hearts}

by spiking a jack on the turn.

03-07-2009 23:26 UTC-7

The 'durrrr' Elimination Hand

[user38449]

We were able to snag the details of Tom Dwan's elimination hand from 'durrrr' himself. According to Dwan, Phil Hellmuth limped in from the button and Dwan checked. Both players checked the {A-Hearts}

flop, and the {9-Hearts}

fell on the turn.

Dwan then led out with a 4,700 bet and Hellmuth made the call. 5th Street delivered the {9-Diamonds}

and Dwan made it 12,400 to go, leaving himself roughly 23,000 behind. Phil then put Dwan all in and Dwan made the call with {K-Clubs}

. Hellmuth tabled {9-Spades}

, revealing a full house and the rest is history.

Tags: Phil Hellmuth Tom Dwan

03-07-2009 23:21 UTC-7

Scotty's Not Alive Anymore, Baby

[user75032]

Still on the short stack, Scotty Nguyen open-shoved his button. Daniel Negreanu called and showed {Q-Hearts}

; he was behind Nguyen's {K-Diamonds}

but improved in a huge way on a flop of {9-Diamonds}

. Daniel flopped the nuts, a king-high straight. Nguyen's top pair of kings, and continued existence in this tournament, was dead to running cards. He missed his first opportunity at a runner when the turn fell {4-Clubs}

. On the river {2-Clubs}

, Negreanu was on to tomorrow's quarterfinals.

Tags: Daniel Negreanu Scotty Nguyen