Aaron Mermelstein Survives the Seven Minute Tank

We just watched a hand that took nearly ten minutes to play out, and for the majority of that time Aaron Mermelstein was subjected to every poker player's most intense experience: awaiting an opponent's decision with his tournament life at stake.

The drama began when Mermelstein three-bet to 25,000 holding the button, after a player opened for 14,500 in the cutoff. The opponent flatted, and the dealer fanned a flop of across the felt.

The cutoff checked and Mermelstein quickly declared himself all in for his last 102,000, a bet which effectively forced the other player to commit the rest of his chips if he wished to call.

Facing a tough decision, the cutoff then proceeded to tank for upwards of seven minutes, talking himself through the hand in a protracted attempt to figure out where he stood.

"I'm not trying to fool you here," the player said to Mermelstein. "I really have a decision here."

With the clock counting down the minutes on a television screen directly behind him, Mermelstein stood tall under the pressure, staring straight ahead to thwart his opponent's attempt at reading his face.

Finally, after appearing ready to call and fold numerous times, the cutoff player tossed his cards away, but not before sliding the to its match on the flop, showing the table that he did indeed have a difficult choice to make.