2010 PCA Main Event Day 1a | 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure

Level: 4

Blinds: 150/300

Ante: 0

01-05-2010 16:38 UTC-4

Hot Starts

[user66118]

A number of notables are perched atop the leader board as the fourth levels gets going. Play has been surprisingly calm and measured so far, and we can't spot a stack bigger than 63,000. That stack belongs to the very dangerous Ludovic Lacay, and he'll be looking to parlay this quick start into a deep run over the next few days. Hot on his heels is Barry Greenstein with 55,000, and Shaun Deeb's count of 53,000 puts him in the mix as well, Deeb playing in what he says is his final tournament.

Despite his near-asleep posture, Dario Minieri has also come out of the gate strong (as usual), sitting now with 52,000. Filling out the over-50K club is Zach 'HustlerGrune' Gruneberg.

01-05-2010 16:39 UTC-4

Edler Moves in On River

donpeters

Bill Edler raised to 800 and the player to his left reraised to 2,500. Edler made the call. The flop came down {K-Clubs}

and Edler checked. His opponent fired 3,500 and Edler made the call, taking about a half of a minute to do so.

The turn brought the {5-Spades}

and Edler passed the action to his opponent once again. The player fired 7,000 this time and again, Edler called.

The river produced the {10-Spades}

and Edler immediately moved all in, sliding a big stack of chips in front of his cards. His opponent didn't look too happy at Edler's move and the river card. He tanked for a couple of minutes and then pushed his hand in. Edler scooped the pot and moved up to 53,000.

Tags: Bill Edler

01-05-2010 16:43 UTC-4

Madsen Four-bet Preflop

donpeters

A player opened with a raise to 800 before Jeff Madsen three-bet to 2,200. The button asked Madsen how much he had left. Madsen moved his two hands out of the way to give the player a visual of how many chips he had left. Then, the button four-bet to 5,200. The original raiser folded and then Madsen mucked as well.

Madsen's now on 33,825.

Tags: Jeff Madsen

01-05-2010 16:47 UTC-4

Ship it Away From Vivek

[user66118]

We joined a hand in progress on the flop as the dealer spread out {9-Diamonds}

on the board. Action was heads up and the first player checked. Vivek Rajkumar fired 1,400 at the pot, and his opponent didn't waste much time calling.

On the turn, the {5-Diamonds}

drew another check from the unknown player. Rajkumar gathered another 3,200 chips and slid them into the pot, and his opponent was right there to match it once again.

Fifth street brought the {A-Diamonds}

and another check. Rajkumar bet 10,000, and his opponent drew a big breath. He shook his head as if the river card had ruined his entire day, but he eventually made the call. Rajkumar tabled {5-Clubs}

for the set, but it was no good. His opponent turned over {3-Clubs}

for the surprise straight, plenty good enough to drag the pot and draw a curious look from Rajkumar. That loss slips him back to about 18,000.

Tags: Vivek Rajkumar

01-05-2010 16:50 UTC-4

Stammen Sent Off

[user66118]

Action before the flop isn't completely clear, but it looks as if there was a raise and a call before action came around to Keven Stammen. He looked down at {8-Diamonds}

and moved his last ~6,000 into the middle. Stammen would find one caller and the bad news that he would need to come from behind against {10-Spades}

to stay alive.

The dealer provided no help as the board ran down {3-Spades}

. That's all she wrote for "Stammdogg"; his day is done.

Tags: Keven Stammen

01-05-2010 17:08 UTC-4

Greg Raymer: Facial Hair Expert?

[user38449]

The topic of conversation over on Greg Raymer's table has shifted from poker to young men's facial hair, and Greg Raymer appears to be an expert on the subject.

During a conversation with Alex Keating and a few others at the table, Raymer explained that at the college he went to, freshmen were prohibited from shaving their facial hair until St. Patrick's Day, unless they were in the ROTC or a similar organization.

This wasn't a college-sponsored rule, of course. It was created by what Raymer referred to as the "St. Patrick's Day Committee," made up of representatives from fraternities and other on-campus groups. Freshmen who were caught with clean-shaven faces were apprehended and had their faces painted green (in honor of the holiday).

Tags: Greg Raymer