Kasra Khodayarkhani opened to 105,000 from early position, and Tripp Kirk three-bet shoved for 600,000 from the big blind. Khodayarkhani quickly called.
Khodayarkhani:
Kirk:
Kirk's large rail started calling for a jack, but the flop produced nothing but a backdoor straight draw. The on the turn kept that straight draw alive, and now any queen or seven would keep Kirk alive.
The river was paint, but the didn't do it for Kirk, and he was eliminated in seventh place.
Joseph Hebert opened to 100,000 in the hijack seat, Ben Mintz three-bet jammed for 680,000 in the small blind, and Hebert made the call.
Hebert:
Mintz:
Mintz was in good shape to double, until the dealer fanned , giving Hebert a set of threes. Mintz now needed a six or running straight cards to survive, and the on the turn left him with just two outs.
It was not to be as the completed the board, and the NOLA native was eliminated in 8th place. Gracious as ever, he extended his hand to Hebert and wished the rest of the table good luck.
"I was lucky enough to get it in good," he said with a smile after the hand. "I take our beats like a man."
In the first hand back from the break, action folded to Bhatia in the small blind and he opted to limp. Daniel Weinman exercised his option in the big with a raise to 175,000, and then snap-called when Bhatia moved all in for 1 million.
Bhatia:
Weinman:
It was a race, and according to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, Bhatia had a 50.33% chance of winning the hand while Weinman wasn't far behind at 49.12%. The flop ultimately determined the hand when it came down to pair Weinman's king, making him an 86.67% favorite. The turn further increased that to 95.45%, which meant Bhatia needed a three on the river to stay alive.
The dealer burned one last time and put out the , sending Bhatia to the rail in ninth place for $21,591.
It happened when Kasra Khodayarkhani opened for 65,000 under the gun only to have Wunstel three-bet to 110,000 from middle position. The rest of the players got out of the way, Khodayarkhani four-bet to 250,000 and Wunstel made the call, bringing about a flop of .
Khodayarkhani slowed down with a check, but then woke up with a check-raise to 255,000 after Wunstel had bet 110,000. After a call was made and the dealer burned and turned the , Khodayarkhani moved all in for 540,000 and Wunstel called off for 445,000 with the . Unfortunately for him, he was drawing dead to Khodayarkhani's . The meaningless was run out on the river for good measure and then Wustel exited the stage in tenth place for $17,351.
It's tough to go deep in a tournament and then take a horrendous beat to end it, which is exactly what just happened to Robert Cheung.
It began when Joe Hebert opened for 65,000 under the gun and Cheung called from the cutoff. Pavan Bhatia then three-bet to 185,000 from the big blind, both his opponents called and it was three-way action to the flop.
Bhatia wasted little time in leading out for 135,000, Hebert folded and Cheung waited a solid minute before moving all in for 385,000 more. Bhatia thought for an equally long time before calling and discovered his was dominated by Cheung's . The only way Bhatia could eliminated Cheung was to catch a ten, and while he didn't do it on the turn, he did when the spiked on the river.
The table and railbirds reacted sharply as Bhatia hit one of his two outs while Cheung was left shaking his head. Despite the beat, Cheung shook hands with his opponents before making his way to the payout desk to collect $17,351.
Welcome to the third and final day of the 2012-13 World Series if Poker Circuit Harrah's New Orleans Main Event, where one of the 11 remaining players will be crowned champion and earn $228,600, a gold ring, and a seat into the Southern Comfort 100 Proof World Series of Poker National Championship.
Leading the way is Atlanta's own Daniel Weinman. Weinman was the only player to bag over two million chips, and will enter today with 2,560,000. He finished runner-up in the Harrah's Cherokee Main Event, earning $154,722, and can add a second six-figure score to his poker résumé with a third-place finish or better today.
The closest players behind Weinman are Joseph Hebert, Corrie Wunstel, and Rogen Chhabra. Those three players all bagged over 1.6 million chips, but non of those three players has ever cashed for more than $24,984.
In terms of points, no player can lock up a National Championship seat without taking the top spot. However, if Tripp Kirk finds a way to win, he will open up an extra spot in the points standings because he has already locked up a seat with 142.5 points.
The cards will be in the air in roughly 40 minutes, so be sure to stay tuned for all of your up-to-the-minute updates here on PokerNews.
![[user101598]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
, Khodayarkhani checked, and Chhabra tossed out 325,000 in blue T25,000 chips.
flop produced nothing but a backdoor straight draw. The 
on the turn kept that straight draw alive, and now any queen or seven would keep Kirk alive.
didn't do it for Kirk, and he was eliminated in seventh place.
on the turn left him with just two outs.
to pair Weinman's king, making him an 86.67% favorite. The 
, sending Bhatia to the rail in ninth place for $21,591.
, Khodayarkhani moved all in for 540,000 and Wunstel called off for 445,000 with the 
. Unfortunately for him, he was drawing dead to Khodayarkhani's 
flop.
. The only way Bhatia could eliminated Cheung was to catch a ten, and while he didn't do it on the 
