[user80015]
Another to be awarded today
Welcome back to the Rio for the Final Table of Event 48 - $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha Hi/Lo 8-or-better.
762 players took to the felt to battle it out, but after two days of poker, only nine remain. Brandon Cantu is leading the charge with his second final table of the series and a whooping 1,025,000 in chips.
The seasoned veteran of Lee Watkinson sits well placed with 412,000, as does Frenchman Jacqmin Mathieu and his 552,000-chip stack.
With play set to begin at 2:00pm local time, make sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for all the live coverage of every chopped pot, counterfeited low and scoop!
[user75032]
We're already almost ten minutes into play and have yet to see a river. Even turn cards are hard to come by. We did find one after Ted Weinstock opened to 30,000 from middle position and was called by small blind Tommy Vedes. Both players checked a flop. On the turn, Vedes led out for 54,000 and got a fold out of Weinstock.
[user75032]
William McMahan - 9th Place
Well, we finally found our first river card. Tommy Vedes opened with another raise, this time to 36,000. McMahan reraised pot from the small blind, another 84,000 on top. Vedes responded by sliding several stacks of chips out, another reraise was enough to set McMahan all in. McMahan called and the cards were on their backs.
McMahan:
Vedes:
McMahan had to like his chances -- but only until the flop came down . With no low draw in his hand, McMahan needed to catch a miracle turn or river. Instead the turn and river sent him home early.
[user75032]
Ronnie Hofman - 8th Place
We had two short stacks to start the day. Both are now eliminated. Ronnie Hofman opened for pot from early position and was called by Lee Watkinson. The rest of Hoffman's chips were in on a flop of , with Watkinson quickly calling. Hofman, like McMahan before him, had a high-only hand: . Watkinson turned over , good for two pair on the flop. The turn overcoated one of Watkinson's pairs, but the on the river did not improve Hofman to the winner.
Hofman leaves the final table in 8th place, collectng $25,618. Watkinson is now on about 425,000 chips.
[user75032]
We had a brief pause for today's gold bracelet ceremony, during which the players heard the national anthems of England and Iran to honor gold bracelet winners from those countries. Now cards are back in the air.
[user75032]
Mathieu Jacqmin, Steve Jelinek and Aaron Sias all paid 35,000 chips preflop to take a flop of . It was Mathieu who moved first at the pot after the flop by betting pot, 111,000. His bet produced two folds and earned him the win.
[user75032]
Sometimes big pots develop very quickly in this game. Before we even realized that Steve Jelinek was even involved in the hand, all of his chips were in the middle against Brandon Cantu.
Cantu:
Steve Jelinek:
There was no low to be found anywhere on a board of , which was very bad news for Cantu. He completely whiffed, allowing Jelinek to take the pot with two pair, aces and nines.
The victory improved Jelinek's count to 426,000 while simultaneously knocking Cantu back below millon for the first time in a while.
![[user22113]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
flop. On the 
turn, Vedes led out for 54,000 and got a fold out of Weinstock.
. With no low draw in his hand, McMahan needed to catch a miracle turn or river. Instead the turn 
and river 
sent him home early.
, with Watkinson quickly calling. Hofman, like McMahan before him, had a high-only hand: 
. Watkinson turned over 
, good for two pair on the flop. The 
turn overcoated one of Watkinson's pairs, but the 
on the river did not improve Hofman to the winner.
. It was Mathieu who moved first at the pot after the flop by betting pot, 111,000. His bet produced two folds and earned him the win.
, which was very bad news for Cantu. He completely whiffed, allowing Jelinek to take the pot with two pair, aces and nines.
