Thomas Trending Upwards
After three hands in a row in which preflop raises claimed the blinds and antes — two by Jeremy Ausmus, one by Russell Thomas — Thomas was raising again to 450,000 from early position and getting a caller this time in Jacob Balsiger in the big blind.
The flop came 

. Balsiger checked, Thomas bet 500,000, and Balsiger called. The turn then brought the
and checks from both players.
The river was the
. Balsiger checked once more, and this time Thomas fired 1.3 million. Balsiger thought a full minute, then looked back at his cards and pushed them away.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
21,600,000
1,100,000
|
1,100,000 |
|
|
19,500,000
1,200,000
|
1,200,000 |