Championship Match Set; Play Resumes Monday at Noon
Day 4 of Event 6, the $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Mixed-Max, began with four players remaining from the starting field of 409. The plan was for the winner of the two semi-final matches to play in a championship match. How did the semi-final matches play out?
Joseph Cheong defeated Hugo Lemaire in what was a one-sided match from the start. Within 15 minutes of the start, Cheong cracked Lemaire's aces with pocket threes to take a solid chip lead. He never looked back from there and closed out the match in just less than three hours.
It was a different story for Aubin Cazals. His match with Warwick Mirzikinian lasted for nearly nine-and-a-half hours. Mirzikinian had control for much of the match and had Cazals all in and at risk twice, but Cazals would not settle for a third-place finish. He fought back valiantly and earned the victory.
What came next was much debate as to when the championship match would take place. In the end, it was agreed upon by all parties involved that the championship match will convene at 9:00 AM Monday morning. However, following Cheong's elimination in Event 9, the two players agreed to bump the start time to 12:00 PM. Following confirmation from the WSOP staff, it was settled.
Our very own Kristy Arnett caught up with Joseph Cheong to discuss the situation following his elimination from Event 9. Check out the video interview.
The blinds and antes will pick up at the 4,000/8,000/1,000 level and here is how they will stack up:
| Player | Chips |
|---|---|
| Joseph Cheong | 3,112,000 |
| vs. | |
| Aubin Cazals | 3,018,000 |
Be sure to join us at noon local time to see who will capture the coveted WSOP gold bracelet!
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flop. The 
turn changed nothing, leaving Mirzikinian down to just three outs to survive.
, spelling the end for Mirzikinian.
, well ahead of the 
was the window card, but when the entire flop was spread it read 
turn and 
river were no help to Cazals, securing the double up for Mirzikinian and nearly evening out the stacks.
, and Cazals led out for 35,000. Mirzikinian called.
- and Cazals checked. Mirzikinian fired 80,000, and Cazals called. The 
for sixes and deuces.
, and Lemaire led for 52,000. Cheong called.
turned, and Lemaire checked. Cheong tossed out 89,000, and Lemaire check-raised all in. Cheong snapped it off, and Lemaire was drawing dead.
, and Cheong led for 77,000. Lemaire tank-called.
completed the board, and Cheong tossed out 156,000. Lemaire tanked for nearly a minute, staring at both Cheong and the board, before he finally called.
.
