Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha
Day 3 Started
2011 World Series of Poker
Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2011 World Series of Poker
Buy-in
$1,500
Prize Pool
$1,445,850
Entries
1,071
Level
27
Blinds
30,000 / 60,000
Ante
0
Final Table Of Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Set To Begin
![[user197301]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
The final day of Event #22 at the WSOP, the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha tournament, has arrived and just nine players are left to compete for the gold bracelet and nearly $300,000 in prize money at stake. After a grueling two days of competition, 1,017 runners have been whittled down to the final table and each player remaining can practically feel the coveted hardware around their wrists.
Juha Vilkki of Finland is seeking to complete an impressive wire-to-wire victory, after vaulting to the top of the chip counts during both Day 1 and Day 2 of the tournament. The creative online regular will enter the final table arena with a dominant lead, holding twice as many chips as any other player with his 1,235,000 stack.
While Vilkki has been the star of the show thus far, he will face stiff competition from the likes of Rafe Kibrit (667,000), Cody Munger (652,000), Stephen Wolfe (523,000) and Elie Payan (545,000). Each of these players proved their mettle throughout the first two days of play and all will be looking to bring Vilkki back down to Earth.
The man who may pose the biggest threat to Juha Vilkki may just be Jeff Sarwer (480,000), a former chess prodigy who has excelled at competitive gameplay since he was a young child. Sarwer and Vilkki shared a table for much of Day 2 and seemed to have developed a grudging respect for each others' style of play. These two players define the mental acuity and nuanced play necessary to excel at Pot-Limit Omaha and we expect neither man to back down with the gold bracelet at stake.
Final Table Seat Draw
| Seat | Player | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elie Payan | 545,000 |
| 2 | Stephen Wolfe | 523,000 |
| 3 | Cody Munger | 652,000 |
| 4 | Jeff Sarwer | 480,000 |
| 5 | Roland Israelashvili | 310,000 |
| 6 | David Sands | 250,000 |
| 7 | Emil Patel | 147,000 |
| 8 | Juha Vilkki | 1,235,000 |
| 9 | Rafe Kibrit | 667,000 |
Check in with PokerNews beginning at 2:30 PST to follow all of the final table action, as a new champion will be crowned here at the 2011 World Series of Poker. Also, be sure to check out the June 15th update from the lovely Lynn Gilmartin.
Level: 20
Blinds: 6,000/12,000
Ante: 0
Shuffle Up And Deal!
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
The cards are in the air and the final table of Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha is officially underway.
Final Table Begins Play, Elie Payan Nowhere To Be Found
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
With the tournament director introducing the audience to our final table members, one player is conspicuously absent from the proceedings. Elie Payan (545,000) has not arrived to the final table arena as of yet and play has resumed without him. Perhaps Payan is taking a page out of Phil Hellmuth's book and is planning to take his seat fashionably late, but something tells us that this is not the case.
We will be sure to keep you updated on Payan's absence throughout the day, and will let you know if and when the Frenchman makes his first appearance at this final table.
River Card Saves Patel
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
Through the first handful of hands at the final table of Event #22, there was barely any action. Three walks occurred and other than that, a simple preflop raise from one of the players took down the blinds. That all changed soon enough though.
Emil Patel raised from middle position to 24,000. Action folded to Stephen Wolfe on the button and he made the call. Cody Munger also called from the small blind and then Jeff Sarwer folded out of the big blind, leaving three players in to see the flop.
The flop came down paired and with a few draws present with the 
. Munger was first to act and he checked to Patel, the preflop raiser. Patel bet 84,000. Wolfe raised to 240,000 and Munger folded. Patel called and was all in for 117,000 total. Hands please.
Patel: 
Wolfe: 
The turn was the 
and kept Wolfe in front with trip eights. Patel was able to find luck on the river card when the 
came in and gave him a straight to win the hand. Patel doubled to 318,000. Wolfe was knocked back to 382,000.
Payan Arrives
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
Finally, Elie Payan has arrived at the final table and taken his seat. He missed a little over one orbit.
Sarwer Steamed By Patel's Catch
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
Fresh off of his recent double-up, Emil Patel raised to 24,000 before the flop and picked up Jeff Sarwer and Roland Israelashvili. The flop fell 
and all three players checked
The turn came and Sarwer led out for a bet of 32,000. This forced Israelashvili to muck but Patel was persistent and made the call. The 
was the river card and the action was checked around.
Sarwer announced "two-pair" but was discouraged to see Patel flip up his 
for a rivered straight. The chess master began to needle Patel for his perceived luck throughout the tournament, saying "nice river... nice catch, once again." Sarwer was spotted shaking his head a full two minutes after the beat while Patel simply stacked his new chips in silence.
Payan Plays Catch Up After Late Arrival
Level 20
: 6,000/12,000, 0 ante
In one of his first hands since recently taking his seat, Elie Payan fired a bet of 22,000 into the middle after the flop fell 
. This forced his opponents to muck and after the four-way limped pot, Payan reacquired any chips he may have lost due to his failure to show up on time.
Straight Flush for Patel
Picking up the action on the flop, Emil Patel bet 16,000 before Juha Vilkki put in a raise to 46,000. Patel made the call and the turn brought the . Patel checked fourth street and Vilkki bet 75,000. Patel made the call.
The river was the 
and Patel led for 200,000. Vilkki made the call and was shown the absolute nuts by Patel, who tabled the 
for a straight flush. Vilkka mucked.
Straight flushes have been a common occurrence for Patel throughout this tournament, as he made two yesterday, including a royal flush on the river to crack his opponent's full house.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,010,000 | -225,000 |
|
700,000 | 382,000 |