2017 Poker Masters

Event #1 $50,000 No-Limit Hold'em
Day: 1
Event Info

2017 Poker Masters

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
ak
Prize
$918,000
Event Info
Buy-in
$50,000
Prize Pool
$2,550,000
Entries
51
Level Info
Level
28
Blinds
60,000 / 120,000
Ante
120,000

Brutal River Card Sends Cary Katz to Rail in Ugly Fashion

Level 14 : 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante
Cary Katz
Cary Katz

In a leftover hand from last level, which just aired on the PokerGO live stream, Cary Katz got his last 81,000 all in preflop and was at risk against Ben Lamb.

Lamb: {a-Hearts}{j-Hearts}
Katz: {k-Diamonds}{k-Clubs}

The {4-Diamonds}{4-Hearts}{4-Clubs} flop gave Katz a full house, and the {5-Hearts} turn meant all he needed to do was dodge an ace and the case four on the river to double. That proved easier said than done though as the {4-Spades} spiked to give Lamb quad fours with an ace kicker.

Player Chips Progress
Ben Lamb us
Ben Lamb
389,000
269,000
269,000
$25K Fantasy
WSOP 2X Winner
Cary Katz us
Cary Katz
Busted
$25K Fantasy

Tags: Ben LambCary Katz

Daniel Negreanu Kicks Brandon Adams to the Curb

Level 15 : 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Daniel Negreanu vs. Brandon Adams
Daniel Negreanu vs. Brandon Adams

On another hand from Level 14, which just aired on PokerGO, Brandon Adams got his stack of 99,000 all in preflop and was primed to double through Daniel Negreanu.

Negreanu: {a-Diamonds}{6-Spades}
Adams: {a-Clubs}{9-Clubs}

Both players paired their ace on the {a-Hearts}{4-Clubs}{10-Diamonds} flop, but of course Adams' kicker had him out in front. That all changed when the dealer burned and turned the {6-Hearts} to give Negreanu two pair. The {k-Clubs} river failed to help Adams and he was eliminated from the tournament.

Player Chips Progress
Daniel Negreanu ca
Daniel Negreanu
1,000,000
100,000
100,000
Brandon Adams us
Brandon Adams
Busted
StakeKings

Tags: Brandon AdamsDaniel Negreanu

Phil Hellmuth Falls to Ben Lamb

Level 16 : 7,000/14,000, 14,000 ante
Phil Hellmuth
Phil Hellmuth

On the PokerGO live stream, Phil Hellmuth moved all in from the cutoff for his last 115,000. Ben Lamb was in the small blind and called to put his friend at risk.

Hellmuth: {a-Diamonds}{q-Clubs}
Lamb: {k-Spades}{k-Clubs}

Hellmuth's best chance of surviving was to catch an ace, but that didn't happen as the board ran out an ace-less {2-Clubs}{7-Clubs}{9-Clubs}{j-Hearts}{3-Clubs}.

Player Chips Progress
Phil Hellmuth us
Phil Hellmuth
Busted
WSOP Main Event Champion
$25K Fantasy
WSOP 17X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
StakeKings

Tags: Ben LambPhil Hellmuth

Ben Lamb Eliminated By Daniel Negreanu

Level 17 : 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Ben Lamb
Ben Lamb

Ben Lamb moved all in for his last 141,000 from middle position and Daniel Negreanu isolated by three-betting to 300,000 from the button. Both blinds folded and Lamb discovered the bad news.

Lamb: {a-Hearts}{8-Spades}
Negreanu: {a-Diamonds}{k-Spades}

The board ran out {4-Spades}{5-Clubs}{k-Hearts}{a-Spades}{q-Spades} and that was all she wrote for Lamb, who exited in 10th place. That means the final nine players will combine down to a single table, though the official final table won't be reached until just seven remain.

Player Chips Progress
Daniel Negreanu ca
Daniel Negreanu
958,000
128,000
128,000
Ben Lamb us
Ben Lamb
Busted
$25K Fantasy
WSOP 2X Winner

Tags: Daniel NegreanuBen Lamb

Sean Winter Bubbles Poker Masters Event #1

Level 20 : 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Bubble boy Sean Winter
Bubble boy Sean Winter

It took awhile, but the money bubble has finally burst!

It happened when Sean Winter got his stack of nearly 600,000 all in preflop against Matt Hyman.

Hyman: {q-Spades}{q-Hearts}
Winter: {a-Clubs}{k-Hearts}

It was a classic flip, and while Winter pulled ahead on the {5-Diamonds}{a-Spades}{2-Diamonds} flop, his lead was only temporary as the {q-Diamonds} turn gave Hyman a set. The {q-Clubs} river improved Hyman to quads, and Winter was eliminated as the bubble boy.

With that, Matt Hyman is the new chip leader.

Player Chips Progress
Matt Hyman us
Matt Hyman
1,540,000
670,000
670,000
Sean Winter us
Sean Winter
Busted
$25K Fantasy

Tags: Sean WinterMatt Hyman

Daniel Negreanu Eliminated in 8th Place ($102,000)

Level 20 : 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu

Nick Schulman moved all in for 495,000 from the cutoff only to have Daniel Negreanu shove over the top from the small blind for 505,000.

Schulman: {k-Clubs}{j-Clubs}
Negreanu: {j-Spades}{j-Diamonds}

Negreanu was well out in front, but the board ran out {2-Hearts}{10-Diamonds}{8-Diamonds}{q-Diamonds}{9-Spades} to give Schulman a runner-runner straight.

Negreanu was left with 10,000 after the hand, and he turned that into 70,000 after his ace-king overcame the pocket tens of Dominik Nitsche. Unfortunately for Negreanu, one hand after that he got it in with tens only to run into the pocket jacks of Koray Aldemir.

Player Chips Progress
Nick Schulman us
Nick Schulman
1,050,000
480,000
480,000
$25K Fantasy
WSOP 5X Winner
WPT 2X Winner
Daniel Negreanu ca
Daniel Negreanu
Busted

Tags: Nick SchulmanDaniel Negreanu

Schulman, Mateos Reach Final Table of Poker Masters Event #1; Negreanu Bubbles

Level 20 : 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Nick Schulman
Nick Schulman

The inaugural Poker Masters kicked off at the ARIA on Wednesday with the first of four $50,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournaments. Event #1 attracted 51 entries, but after a long day at the tables, only seven remained with Matt Hyman leading the way.

Others who survived the night and are guaranteed $127,500 in prize money are Nick Schulman, Adrian Mateos, and a whole contingent of German players including Dominik Nitsche, Stefan Schillhabel, Koray Aldemir, and Steffen Sontheimer.

Whoever wins Event #1 will not only walk away with a $918,000 first-place prize, but will take the early lead in the Poker Masters, which will see the player with the best results (highest total earnings) throughout all five tournaments – remember the finale is a $100,000 freezeout – will be deemed champion and be awarded The Poker Masters Purple Jacket™.

Of course, not everyone could make the final table. Among those to try and fall were Fedor Holz, who is being tailed by a documentary film crew; former Super High Roller Bowl champs Brian Rast and Rainer Kempe; Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel; and Cary Katz, who busted in particularly ugly fashion when his full house was counterfeited by quads on the board.

Another player to bust was Sean Winter, who left empty handed in ninth place as bubble boy. Winter got his stack in with ace-king against the pocket queens of Hyman. The ace-high flop looked good for Winter, but the turn and river came queen-queen to give Hyman quads and the chip lead.

Before the night was out, Daniel Negreanu bowed out in eighth place for $102,000. It was a good start for “Kid Poker,” who bet on himself to become the Poker Masters’ first-ever winner. He offered a bet of $50,000 that he would win against any one player, and right now he stands to collect $1 million from the field if he does in fact win the overall Poker Masters title.

On Thursday, the Event #1 final table will be live streamed on PokerGO on a 30-minute delay. Our coverage, which will commence at 12:30 p.m. local time, will adhere to the stream so as not to spoil anything for fans.

Also on Thursday, Event #2: $50,000 NLHE will get underway at 2 p.m. The PokerNews Live Reporting Team will also be providing complete coverage from that tournament, so be sure to join us then.

Tags: Adrian MateosKoray AldemirMatt HymanNick SchulmanSteffen Sontheimer