Back from Break
The break is over. Players have returned to their seats and cards are back in the air.
The break is over. Players have returned to their seats and cards are back in the air.
Before the break, an entertaining table came together at one end of the Amazon room. Bracelet winner Larry Wright, of McQueeney, Texas, recently joined a table with Mark "P0ker H0" Kroon and Joe "XYZ" Aronesty. The good-humored trash talk began immediately, with Kroon talking about how quickly he planned on busting out Wright. Aronesty, meanwhile, often calmly leans back from the table, reading a copy of How to Win No-Limit Hold'Em Tournaments.
The book might be working, as Aronesty recently scored a bustout. The player under-the-gun pushed the rest of his chips forward, and Aronesty was the only caller. He turned over . His opponent held , and the board ran out .
On the very next hand, Kroon raised to 5,300 pre-flop, and Aronesty in the small blind was the only caller. Both players checked the flop, and then Kroon bet 5,400 on the turn. Aronesty folded and Kroon raked in the pot.
Given its position in the room, this table is unlikely to be broken today, and it will be interesting to watch these players over the next several hours.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Mark Kroon |
70,000
-4,000
|
-4,000 |
Joseph Aronesty |
70,000
4,000
|
4,000 |
Larry Wright |
65,000
-24,000
|
-24,000 |
|
Entering the second day of play with an overwhelming chip lead, as one of only two seniors with more than 100,000 after Day 1, Alexander Kunichoff has already claimed another 100,000 in short order.
We watched Kunichoff causally call Douglas Baughman's all in shove of 13,000 from the small blind, revealing and hoping his run good would continue.
Baughman held the , and although he was ahead, Kunichoff's live cards put him at risk of elimination.
The flop of kept Baughman out in front with top pair, but Kunichoff had picked up a open-ended straight draw, and the completed his hand.
"I got it," said Kunichoff, standing after the turn put him in the lead. "Practice makes perfect."
The river came , changing nothing, and the native of Houston, Texas notched yet another knockout as he rolls through this Seniors Championship.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Alexander Kunichoff |
205,000
39,000
|
39,000 |
Douglas Baughman | Busted |
"Captain" Tom Franklin may have busted the tournament, but these players are still focused on the prize:
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
George Wright |
117,000
-2,700
|
-2,700 |
Dan Heimiller |
92,000
34,000
|
34,000 |
|
||
Young Ji |
79,000
27,200
|
27,200 |
|
||
Robert Varkonyi |
53,000
20,000
|
20,000 |
|
||
Hoyt Corkins |
34,000
-14,100
|
-14,100 |
|
||
Tom Franklin | Busted | |
|
We arrived at the table on the flop with the board showing to see Daryl and another player get all their chips in the middle. Katz turned over , and his opponent showed . Both players had flopped top two pair, and it looked like it would be a split pot. The turn and river, however, came , , giving Katz a flush and knocking his opponent out of the tournament.
After the hand, Katz was up to 120,000. He lost a few chips on the next hand trying to knock out a short stack, and now sits with 108,000.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Daryl Katz |
108,000
61,900
|
61,900 |
Marcel Sabag, who was nearly eliminated on the third hand of day one, has had a fairly short stack all day but is still surviving. According to Sabag, he recently doubled up with pocket deuces when he flopped a set against pocket fives.
He currently sits with 25,000 and is looking to add to his stack.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Marcel Sabag |
25,000
9,000
|
9,000 |
While Day 2 has not seen Young Ji as ebullient as he was yesterday, the excitable tournament veteran has still been involved in the action.
A pair have hands Ji recently played illustrate the roller coaster of emotions that defines the game of poker.
First, Ji played a heads-up pot with the board reading , having his bets called on the flop and fourth street. On the river, Ji led out for 4,500, and his opponent looked him up, but mucked when Ji confidently rolled over the for two pair.
Just moments after that win, Ji looked down to behold the prettiest sight in poker: in the hole. With two limpers in the pot, Ji raised his button to 7,500, and both Stephen Lutz and the other player came along.
On the flop, the first player checked to Lutz, who immediately moved all in. Delighted at the turn of events, Ji snap-shoved over the top, trying to isolate the at risk Lutz. That's when things became a little more interesting.
The third player in the pot also pushed his stack forward, and suddenly Ji's pocket rockets looked like a hand that had been cracked.
Showdown:
Ji:
Lutz:
Unknown Player:
Although it had appeared that one of the all-in players must have hit the flop hard, both revealed merely a single pair, and Ji was pleasantly surprised to see his aces out in front.
Turn:
River:
It was all a con for Ji, who was poised on the precipice of huge double elimination, only to see the rug pulled out from under him with a jack on the turn. With this loss, Ji will have to rebound in a hurry if he hopes to make his second consecutive deep run here at the World Series of Poker. Lutz, meanwhile, managed to triple up from way behind, and with this win he moved well above the average chip stack.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Stephen Lutz |
72,000
43,200
|
43,200 |
Young Ji |
38,000
-41,000
|
-41,000 |
|
James Miller is rapidly adding chips to his stack, and other players at the table are giving him a lot of credit. In a recent hand, Miller raised to 4,500 from late position, the button called, and then the small blind three-bet to 11,000. Miller called, the button folded, and the players saw the flop heads-up. The dealer spread , and the small blind checked. Miller bet 10,000 and his opponent folded face up, apparently putting Miller on an ace.
After the hand, Miller sits comfortably with 226,000 in chips.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
James Miller |
226,000
100,700
|
100,700 |
We came up as Young Ji was facing an all in bet from Dave Gomersall with the board already dealt. Ji got out of his chair to count his chips and to asses the situation. He eventually made the call with only to see the of Gomersall.
He had a mini meltdown but his opponent came over to shake his hand and he did so with a smile on his face, congratulating his opponent on his hand. Ji is visibly disappointed but he is putting up a good show. "It's great to be here. It's a good day."
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
David Gomersall |
123,000
87,600
|
87,600 |
Young Ji |
23,000
-15,000
|
-15,000 |
|
In most tournaments, players wouldn't be caught dead reading a poker book at the table for fear they would be viewed as a novice. That doesn't seem to be the case in this tournament. There have been several books spotted at the table but the best may be "How to Win No-Limit Hold'em Tournaments" by Don Vines and Tom McEvoy. It just so happens to be open to Chapter 4: Key Concepts of Tournament Poker. Good luck, sir. You may want to read a bit faster.