Jim Thomas Only Had Two of These Left When the Bubble Broke
Coming into Day 2 with a stack of only 6,100, Jim Thomas knew it would be a tight squeeze if he hoped to make the money. Just 45 minutes into the first level of play, Thomas hadn't seen a card higher than a , and with no chance to double, his stack had slipped to just 1,100, or less than a single big blind.
With the button being passed around the table slowly but surely, Thomas knew his last two chips would be forced into the middle in just three hands, and he was prepared to meet his fate holding a random hand.
That's when he heard the tournament director's voice boom over the microphone, announcing that dealers must stop and stand at the completion of the hand. After five minutes that must have felt like an eternity, during which Thomas assumed a few more hands would have to be dealt, a second announcement was made.
"Congratulations players, you have all made the money!"
With that, Thomas retook his seat secure in the knowledge that yesterday's grueling 11-level grind had paid off, and with his second cash in his fourth Seniors Championship, Thomas is now batting an impressive .500 in these massive field, shallow stack events.
Alexander Kunichoff has continued the aggressive play that made him the chip leader at the end of day 1. We arrived at the table on as the flop was dealt during a recent hand against David Anderson. With the board reading , Kunichoff bet 5,000, and Anderson raised to 14,000. After Kunichoff called, both players checked the on the turn, and then Kunichoff bet 10,000 when the fell on the river. Anderson thought for a moment, then pushed forward chips for a call. Kunichoff turned over , but Anderson had him beat with .
Even after taking a hit during the hand, Kunichoff sits with 166,000.
T.J. Cloutier Has Bit the Dust Here at the Seniors Championship
Just a few minutes after the announcement was made that the Seniors Championship bubble had been broken, T.J. Cloutier went broke as well.
We missed the action ourselves, but upon noticing the living legend's seat conspicuously empty, we inquired as to Cloutier's whereabouts.
"It was me, I'm the bad guy," said Alan Weiland, informing us that it was he who did the deed. "I open-shoved with , T.J. called me with , and an came on the flop."
After eliminating a six-time bracelet winner, and cashing at the WSOP, Weiland definitely has a few stories to tell when he returns home.
Dan Heimiller has spent most of the event so far under the radar. With a field size this large, it was hard to find all the notables among the endless rows of poker tables. It wasn't until late last night that we found Heimiller in our field.
Heimiller is coming off an unofficial final table finishing tenth in Event 15: $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. With 48 cashes in multiple disciplines and field sizes, Heimiller is positioned to make a deep run here and is currently sitting with an above average stack.
Although Jonathan Battaglia Had Trouble Navigating These Halls, He Found His Way Into the Money Here at the Seniors Championship
Jonathan Battaglia likely spent the night restlessly dreaming about today's Seniors Championship, tossing and turning as he contemplated his strategy for this decisive second day of play. Holding a slightly above average stack of 36,700 entering play, Battaglia knew he would have room to maneuver as the payouts approached, but any big confrontations could easily leave him busted before the bubble broke. With a full night to sleep on it, Battaglia woke up refreshed and ready to take his seat here in the Amazon Room, with a shot at a gold WSOP bracelet within grasp... he just couldn't find that seat.
Apparently Battaglia got lost on his way to the Amazon Room, following bad directions for nearly an hour while the Seniors Championship progressed without him. In his absence, his unstacked pile of chips was blinded off, orbit after orbit, with players busting all around his empty seat.
Eventually, Battaglia stumbled upon the right entrance to the right room, finally making his way to Table #441 in the Purple section with just ten minutes or so remaining in the first level. When he started to stack his chips, still a bit flustered after his unexpected excursion into the wilds of the Rio, Battaglia heard his tablemates talking excitedly among themselves.
With realization slowly spreading across his face, Battaglia wondered aloud, "we're in the money?"
Having been outside of the room when the bubble bursting announcement was made, Battaglia had no idea that he had already cashed before looking at a single hand. Although he took an unorthodox route to securing his piece of the prizepool, Battaglia accomplished something nearly 4,000 other seniors did not, and all he had to do was get lost.
Things were a little too quiet over at Young Ji's table so we decided to check in and see what was happening. Ji said "today is a different day." He went on to explain the only other time he woke up to play before noon was yesterday. He promised to be back to normal and more energized a little later in the afternoon "after his body gets over the shock". We are looking forward to an entertaining show. It should also be entertaining on the felt as Dan Heimiller was just moved to his table.
Eliminations have been fast and furious. Over 100 people have already busted out since the money bubble, as shorter stacks are aggressively getting involved in hands trying to chip up.
In a recent hand, a player with 9,900 remaining shoved all in preflop. James Miller, who started the day second in chips, tanked for about a minute before folding, but then Roy Roy Shimada called from the big blind and turned over . The all-in player held , and the board ran out . Shimada scored a bustout, and the number of players left continued to drop.
![[user253757]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
, and with no chance to double, his stack had slipped to just 1,100, or less than a single big blind.
, Kunichoff bet 5,000, and Anderson raised to 14,000. After Kunichoff called, both players checked the 
on the turn, and then Kunichoff bet 10,000 when the 
fell on the river. Anderson thought for a moment, then pushed forward chips for a call. Kunichoff turned over 
, but Anderson had him beat with 
.
, T.J. called me with 
. Shimada scored a bustout, and the number of players left continued to drop.