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Here are some various chip counts from around the room.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
30,000 | 10,000 |
|
|
27,000 | 7,000 |
|
19,000 | -1,000 |
|
19,000 | -1,000 |
|
17,500 | -2,500 |
|
16,000 | -4,000 |
|
|
15,000 | -5,000 |
|
15,000 | -5,000 |
Eric Ladny has had a strong first two-and-a-half levels thus far. Just now he opened another pot with a raise to 400 from the cutoff and got one caller on the button.
The flop came 
, and Ladny continued with a bet of 550 which his opponent called. The turn was the 
, prompting a check from Ladny. The button pushed out a bet of 1,200, and Ladny called.
The river was another deuce -- the 
-- and Ladny quickly tapped the table again to check. His opponent didn't hesitate either, this time betting 2,200. Ladny thought for a moment, and when he announced he was calling his opponent immediately nodded, acknowledging he was beat.
"Show me a winner," Ladny's opponent said, holding his cards face down over the felt. Ladny obliged, turning over 
, and his opponent mucked.
Ladny is up over 40,000 now, better than twice his starting stack.
When we reached the table, the board read 
and Scott Carpenter was all in. His opponent was standing up and mulling the decision over.
"I know I'm supposed to fold," he professed. "But am I good enough to fold?"
The player tanked for a little longer, muttering an obscenity here and there, before finally calling and tabling the 
. Carpenter rolled over 
for a straight flush and his opponent high-tailed towards the exit.
The river was a meaningless 
and the pot was shipped to Carpenter.
"I've never had a straight flush in my life," he gushed as he stacked his newfound chips.
Level: 3
Blinds: 75/150
Ante: 0
Two days ago, Gregory Fishberg shipped a $1,000 preliminary event here at Caesars for $46,657. It was his second WSOP-C final table appearance - the first coming a year ago - and he sits in third place on this stop's tournament points leaderboard.
We caught up with him moments ago with the board reading 
. An opponent checked to Fishberg who checked behind and mucked when his opponent rolled over 
for the nut-flush. Fishberg avoided the trap, and is just below starting stack.
Still getting to know players in today's field, which now has ballooned to more than 400 during late registration. Just happened on a hand between a couple we don't yet know that was interesting enough to share nonetheless.
Four had gone to the flop, and just two remained by the river at which point the board showed a tantalizing 
. The player in early position rapidly fired a confident-looking bet of more than half the pot, and his opponent considered for a few moments before folding his hand face up -- 
. The winner showed one of his cards while scooping the chips, the 
.
"Sick hand, dude," was the main comment. "I think he had it," said the river-folder, perhaps more to himself than to anyone else.
We have at least a couple of poker authors in the field today -- both good writers and good players.
Matt Matros is here. His book The Making of a Poker Player combines both autobiography and strategy advice.
So is David Apostolico, whose titles include Compete, Play, Win: Finding Your Competitive Self, Tournament Poker and the Art of War, and Machiavellian Poker Strategy, the latter an interesting application of The Prince to poker.
When we reached his table, Allen Bari was faced with a 4,500-chip bet - which was about two thirds of the pot. Bari tanked momentarily before reaching for chips and raising to over 10,000. His opponent immediately moved all in and Bari called.
Bari's opponent rolled over 
for a rivered full house and Bari looked disgusted. He flashed 
to us for a lesser full house, mucked his hand and darted out the exit.
Level: 2
Blinds: 50/100
Ante: 0
As the first level came to a close, a player under the gun opened for a raise and the table folded around to Michael "The Hugginator" Hug in the big blind who made the call.
The flop came 
. Hug checked, his opponent continued for 150, and Hug called. The turn brought the and after some thought Hug checked again. His opponent bet 300 this time, and Hug quickly called.
The river brought the , inspiring a 1,100 bet from Hug. His opponent instantly relinquished his hand, conceding the pot to the Hugginator.
