Hand #66: David Benyamine raised to 80,000 in the cutoff, Don Nguyen called in the small blind, and George Danzer called in the big blind. The flop fell , Nguyen led out for 150,000, and Danzer raised to 425,000. Benyamine folded. Nguyen re-raised to 800,000, Danzer pushed back, making it 1.2 million to go, and Nguyen responded by making it 1.6 million. Danzer moved all in for 2.25 million, and Nguyen snap-called.
Danzer:
Nguyen:
Both players held trips, but Danzer kicker had him ahead. The on the turn changed nothing, and Danzer was one card away from a massive double up until the spiked on the river.
The German rail let out a collective exhale of disappointment as their friend was eliminated in fifth place. Danzer will receive $388,523 for his efforts.
The remaining four players are now on a 20-minute break. Full counts will be posted shortly.
Ly maintained the lead and bet out, which both his opponents called. Ly then bet fifth, Benyamine raised and Danzer three-bet. Ly called off the rest of his stack, Benyamine four-bet and Danzer called to create a side pot.
Danzer then called bets on both sixth and seventh and then tabled a ten-high flush. Unfortunately for him, Benyamine showed the for an ace-high flush. Ly then showed the for two pair and exited the tournament in sixth place for $309,830.
Hand #33: Action folded to Don Nguyen on the button and he raised to 80,000. Mike Wattel, who was in the small blind, responded by moving all in for approximately 550,000 and Nguyen called after the big blind had folded.
Wattel:
Nguyen:
It was a bad spot for Wattel as he shared an ace with Nguyen, but his kicker was inferior. According to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, Wattel had a 23.62% chance of winning the hand, Nguyen a 70.69% chance and a 5.69% chance of a tie.
Aside from giving Wattel a gutshot straight draw to a king, the flop wasn't particularly helpful. Wattel had a 16.97% chance of catching a king while Nguyen, who paired his queen, became an 81.92% favorite. The turn saw Wattel's chances drop even further to a mere 6.82%, and then the river official flatlined it.
Wattel exited to a nice round of applause and made his way to the payout desk in seventh place to collect $251,602, his largest WSOP cash to date.
Hand #30: David Benyamine raised to 95,000 from under the gun, George Danzer called on the button, and Minh Ly called in the small blind. The flop fell , Ly led out for 150,000, and only Benyamine called. The turn was the , Ly fired out another 250,000, and Benyamine called.
The completed the board, Ly bet 550,000, and Benyamine called. Ly showed for two piar, but Benyamine had a better two pair with .
2012 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Greg Merson joins the PokerNews Podcast to talk about the controversial tweet he released on Tuesday regarding private public cash games at Aria, and respond to criticism regarding the language of the tweet. Merson also discusses Macau, the potential return of online poker to New Jersey, and his friend Tony "End Boss" Gregg's win in the $111,111 One Drop High Roller.
Hand #4: 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event champ Jonathan Duhamel opened for 65,000 under the gun and received calls from George Danzer and Matthew Ashton, who were in the hijack and big blind respectively.
When the flop fell , Ashton checked, as did Duhamel, and Danzer bet 130,000. Ashton folded and then Duhamel check-raised the pot to 600,000. Danzer pushed back with a three-bet and Duhamel called off his remaining chips.
Danzer:
Duhamel:
Danzer was ahead with two pair, but Duhamel had an over pair with an open-ended straight draw. The turn gave Duhamel a pair of queens, but he needed help on the river to stay alive. The dealer burned one last time and put out the .
Duhamel rapped the table, shook hands with the remaining players and then took his leave in eighth place, good for $207,630.
Very few players who've made a bigger impression at the 2013 World Series of Poker than Liverpool's Matthew Ashton. The single 25-year-old Brit hasn't won a bracelet yet, but today marks his fourth final table of the summer!
Ashton actually made the final table of the 2011 WSOP $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship where he finished sixth for $101,813. It was a nice score, but one easily written off as luck. Fast forward to May of this year when he won the €5,000 8 Game Event at the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo for $57,171 and then followed that up by taking third in the 2013 WSOP Event #5 $2,500 Omaha/Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo a few weeks later. Suddenly Ashton, who took home $86,437 for the latter score, wasn't looking like a one-hit wonder.
One week later, Ashton was back at a final table when he ultimately finished runner-up to Mike "The Mouth" Matusow in Event #13 $5,000 Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo for $164,700. One week after that, Ashton was back at it when he finished seventh in Event #23 $2,500 Seven Card Stud for $18,266.
Ashton begins this final table second in chips, and whether or not he's able to capture his first bracelet, his accomplishments this summer are truly remarkable.
Jonathan Duhamel really needs no introduction, but we'll give him one anyway. Born in Boucherville, Quebec, the Canadian native began taking the game seriously when he was only sixteen. “I started playing with the older brother of one of my friends and a few other friends, just like almost everyone,” Duhamel said. “I loved it from the start and I immediately realized that in this game, there were good players and very bad players too. The difference was evident.”
Duhamel attended college in pursuit of a finance career, but his plans soon changed. He discovered that he was making so much money playing online poker that he needed to take it more seriously. Against the advice of his family and friends, Duhamel took the plunge and pursued poker full time. Obviously that decision paid off when he made the November Nine at the 2010 World Series of Poker.
As you no doubt know, Duhamel went on to win that event for $8,944,310 and etched his name in poker history. At this year's WSOP, which has been called the "Year of the Canadians" as ten bracelets have been awarded to citizens of that country, Duhamel has cashed three times for $36,595 (including a tenth-place finish in Event #25 $5,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better).
“My greatest quality, I think, is my calm. I manage to never tilt," Duhamel has said in the past. "What I need the most to improve is to stop playing the sheriff and respect more players, especially the bad players who also have good hands sometimes.”
Today Duhamel hopes to become the 11th Canadian to capture a bracelet this summer, which would be his second piece of gold.
To be honest, little is known about our chip leader, Don Nguyen other than the fact that he hails from Chino Hills, California and has made his presence known here at the 2013 World Series of Poker.
Nguyen's first-ever WSOP cash came last year when he finished 24th in Event #34 $5,000 PLO Six Handed for $16,463. In June of this year, Nguyen finished 33rd in Event #8 $2,500 Eight-Game Mix for $4,784. Nothing too special, but then came Event #16 $10,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em five days later.
Nguyen impressed on his way to the final four, which is where he squared off against online legend Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky. All eyes were on Sulsky as the man who has consistently dominated the virtual felt was in the midst of a deep run in one of the most prestigious live tournaments around. Nguyen, however, made quick work of Sulsky, defeating him in just 41 short hands. On the final hand, Nguyen raised to 60,000 from the button, Sulsky three-bet to 145,000, Nguyen pushed out what looked like 800,000 in chips, and Sulsky moved all in for 935,000. Sulsky showed and was ahead of Nguyen's . However, after the board ran out , Nguyen was able to seize victory with his straight and secure his seat in the finals.
Nguyen was one player away from a WSOP bracelet, but he ultimately fell to Mark Radoja in the final match. Even so, Nguyen took home $204,648 for his runner-up finish in one of the summer's most prestigious tournament and established himself as a one to watch here at the WSOP.
No matter where Nguyen finishes today, and he's the best positioned to make a run at the title, he'll score the biggest cash of his young career.
![[user101598]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
, Nguyen led out for 150,000, and Danzer raised to 425,000. Benyamine folded. Nguyen re-raised to 800,000, Danzer pushed back, making it 1.2 million to go, and Nguyen responded by making it 1.6 million. Danzer moved all in for 2.25 million, and Nguyen snap-called.
on the turn changed nothing, and Danzer was one card away from a massive double up until the 
spiked on the river.
/ 
/ 
for an ace-high flush. Ly then showed the 
for two pair and exited the tournament in sixth place for $309,830.
flop wasn't particularly helpful. Wattel had a 16.97% chance of catching a king while Nguyen, who paired his queen, became an 81.92% favorite. The 
turn saw Wattel's chances drop even further to a mere 6.82%, and then the 
, Ly fired out another 250,000, and Benyamine called.
for number one.
turn gave Duhamel a pair of queens, but he needed help on the river to stay alive. The dealer burned one last time and put out the 
.
