2013 World Series of Poker

Event #55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship
Day: 2
Event Info

2013 World Series of Poker

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
k10
Prize
$1,774,089
Event Info
Buy-in
$50,000
Prize Pool
$6,336,000
Entries
132
Level Info
Level
26
Blinds
0 / 0
Ante
0

Benyamine Leads 78 Advancing Players; Ivey, Hellmuth & Mizrachi Fall

Level 10
David Benyamine
David Benyamine

Day 2 of the 2013 World Series of Poker Event #55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship saw nine players late register to bring the total field up to 132 entrants—up 24 from the year prior—and create a prize pool of $6,336,000, of which $1,774,089 is reserved for the winner. After five more levels of play, the man best positioned out of the remaining 78 players is David Benyamine, who bagged up the chip lead with 729,000.

One man who is no longer in contention for the top prize is defending champ Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who was seeking his third Poker Players' Championship title. Mizrachi's demise came in Level 9 in a round of no-limit hold'em. Fifth street had been dealt, and with about 60,000 in the middle the board read {Q-Clubs}{Q-Hearts}{A-Hearts}{J-Clubs}{7-Clubs}. It appeared Cole South had checked and Mizrachi had fired a bet, as the latter had 35,000 sitting out in front of him with only about 25,000 left behind.

South paused for several seconds, then announced he was all in, his stack well exceeding that of Mizrachi. The Grinder sat up and leaned forward, beginning a couple of minutes' worth of consideration of what to do next.

"I got a pretty big hand," he said at one point, with South offering no response. Finally Mizrachi called, asking "full house?" as he did. South let his cards provide the response. He didn't have a full house, but his {A-Clubs}{K-Clubs} meant he'd made a club flush. Mizrachi slumped a little as he saw a hand that beat the one he was holding. He started to muck face down, then flipped his cards over and ahead where they landed in the middle of the table — {K-Diamonds}{10-Diamonds}. With that, the 2010 and 2012 Poker Players' Champion was out.

Others who hit the rail throughout the day were David "ODB" Baker, David "Bakes" Baker, Randy Ohel, Konstantin Puchkov, Phil Ivey, Mike Sexton, Gus Hansen, Phil Hellmuth, Phil Galfond, Daniel Negreanu and Mike Matusow.

While some big names fell, there are still plenty of notables left in the field including Jonathan Duhamel (666,100), Matthew Ashton (635,500), Troy Burkholder (623,000), Jean Gaspard (600,100), Brian Rast (489,500), Shaun Deeb (453,600), Justin Bonomo (343,600), Joe Hachem (326,000), Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier (325,000), Huck Seed (309,400), Erick Lindgren (276,000) and Doyle Brunson (265,000).

Brunson was down to just 40,000 at the start of Level 10, but by the end of it he'd increase that sixfold. That was thanks to doubles through Jennifer Harman and Cole South, with lady luck smiling on the ten-time bracelet winner on the latter double.

Day 3 will begin at at 2 p.m. PDT, and the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be on hand to bring you all the action and eliminations from another day of action here in Event #55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship.

Tags: David Benyamine

Brunson Hits Runner-Runner to Stay Alive

Level 10
Doyle Brunson on Day 1.
Doyle Brunson on Day 1.

No-Limit Hold'em

We caught the action on a {10-Clubs}{3-Diamonds}{9-Diamonds} flop with around 25,000 in the pot. Cole South had checked from the small blind and Doyle Brunson did the same from the big. Paul Volpe then bet 10,000 from middle position, South called and Brunson check-raised but to 70,500, leaving himself about 40,000 behind. Volpe quickly folded and then South moved all in. Brunson snap-called and discovered the bad news.

South: {3-Spades}{3-Clubs}
Brunson: {j-Spades}{j-Clubs}

South had flopped a set and was well out in front. Brunson was looking for a jack, but the {10-Spades} turn wasn't it. With that said, the ten-time bracelet winner could now catch a ten to counterfeit South. The dealer burned and put out the {10-Diamonds}. Brunson let a sly smile cross his face as the table reacted sharply.

"Look at the vultures hanging around," Jennifer Harman told Brunson in regards to the various players, most of who have side bets with the veteran, who were surrounding the table.

Player Chips Progress
Doyle Brunson us
Doyle Brunson
WSOP 10X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
250,000 155,000
Cole South us
Cole South
140,000 -110,000

Tags: Doyle BrunsonCole SouthPaul Volpe

Brunson Doubles Through Harman

Level 10
Doyle Brunson
Doyle Brunson

Stud-8

Doyle Brunson: {x-}{x-} / {a-Hearts}{8-Hearts}{2-Clubs}{k-Hearts} / {x-}
Jennifer Harman: {x-}{x-} / {4-Clubs}{a-Diamonds}{a-Spades}{k-Clubs} / {x-}
Ofir Mor: {x-}{x-} / {4-Hearts}{5-Clubs}{5-Spades} Fold

We picked up the action on fourth when Doyle Brunson bet and both Jennifer Harman and Ofir Mor called him.

Harman paired aces on fifth and promptly bet, which elicited a fold from Mor and a call from Brunson. The ten-time bracelet winner then called a bet on sixth and called off his last 1,100 on seventh.

Harman tabled the {6-Spades}{6-Clubs}{j-Clubs} for aces and sixes, but it was no good as Brunson, who is playing his first event of the summer, tabled the {q-Hearts}{7-Hearts}{8-Spades} for a flush. Ship the double to Texas Dolly.

Player Chips Progress
Jennifer Harman us
Jennifer Harman
WSOP 2X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
95,000 -165,000
Doyle Brunson us
Doyle Brunson
WSOP 10X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
80,000 40,000
Ofir Mor us
Ofir Mor
50,000 -110,000

Tags: Doyle BrunsonOfir MorJennifer Harman

Matusow & Negreanu Ousted

Level 10
Mike Matusow
Mike Matusow

Razz

Mike Matusow: {a-}{2-} / {2-}{k-}{k-}{9-} {x-}
Mike Gorodinsky: {4-}{7-} / {5-}{a-}{3-}{3-} / {8-}

A short-stacked Mike Matusow, who won his fourth bracelet earlier this series, completed all in for 3,300 only to have Mike Gorodinsky, who also won a bracelet this year, raise to 8,300. That drove out the rest of the players and the cards were turned up.

"I'm drawing completely dead," Matusow said aloud after fifth street was put out. Indeed he was. Sixth and seventh were run out for good measure as Matusow said goodbye and exited the tournament area.

Meanwhile, we also noticed that Daniel Negreanu is no longer with us, though his elimination came back in Level 9.

Daniel NegreanuLost all my chips to Brian Rast in two NLH pots. Needed to fade an Ace Ten or diamond with one to come. Ace on river I'm toast.
Player Chips Progress
Mike Gorodinsky us
Mike Gorodinsky
WSOP 3X Winner
170,000 10,000
Mike Matusow us
Mike Matusow
WSOP 4X Winner
Busted
Daniel Negreanu ca
Daniel Negreanu
Busted

Tags: Mike MatusowMike GorodinskyDaniel Negreanu

No Third Poker Players' Championship This Year for Mizrachi

Level 9
Michael Mizrachi
Michael Mizrachi

No-Limit Hold'em

We just came on a big hand involving 2010 and 2012 $50K Poker Players' Champion Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi and Cole South.

Fifth street had been dealt, and with about 60,000 in the middle the board read {Q-Clubs}{Q-Hearts}{A-Hearts}{J-Clubs}{7-Clubs}. It appeared South had checked and Mizrachi had fired a bet, as the latter had 35,000 sitting out in front of him with only about 25,000 left behind.

South paused for several seconds, then announced he was all in, his stack well exceeding that of Mizrachi. The Grinder sat up and leaned forward, beginning a couple of minutes' worth of consideration of what to do next.

"I got a pretty big hand," he said at one point, with South offering no response. Finally Mizrachi called, asking "full house?" as he did.

South let his cards provide the response. He didn't have a full house, but his {A-Clubs}{K-Clubs} meant he'd made a club flush. Mizrachi slumped a little as he saw a hand that beat the one he was holding. He started to muck face down, then flipped his cards over and ahead where they landed in the middle of the table — {K-Diamonds}{10-Diamonds}.

Mizrachi got up, wished everyone luck, and departed.

Player Chips Progress
Cole South us
Cole South
275,000 40,000
Michael Mizrachi us
Michael Mizrachi
WSOP 5X Winner
Busted

Tags: Cole SouthMichael Mizrachi

Ivey Eliminated

Level 8
Phil Ivey
Phil Ivey

Razz

Phil Ivey started the Day 2 of Event #55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship with a short stack of 31,800, and on the very first hand lost nearly all of it in a razz hand in which he started with {A-}{2-}{3-} and could not win.

The nine-time bracelet winner persevered, however, battling through nearly three levels this afternoon. But after losing an Omaha-8 hand to Alexander Kostritsyn found himself back down to less than the stack with which he'd started the day.

Soon after the game turned to razz, and as Day 2 began with an unfortunate razz hand for Ivey, so, too, did it end that way after Erick Lindgren took the last of his chips.

Player Chips Progress
Phil Ivey us
Phil Ivey
WSOP 10X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
Busted

Tags: Erick LindgrenPhil Ivey

"Trying to Get Out of My Misery"

Level 8
Mike Sexton
Mike Sexton

Omaha-8

Poker Hall of Famer Mike Sexton raised to 6,000 from middle position only to have David Chiu three-bet to 9,000 from the hijack. The rest of the players folded, Sexton called and it was heads-up action to the {5-Spades}{3-Hearts}{3-Clubs} flop. Sexton proceeded to check-call a bet and then did the same on the {a-Spades} turn and {2-Clubs} river, though he was visibly hesitant to do so on the latter cards.

Chiu then tabled the {a-Diamonds}{3-Diamonds}{6-Spades}{k-Diamonds} for a full house and a live six, and Sexton showed the {6-Diamonds}{2-Spades}{a-Clubs}{k-Spades} for the same low. With that, Sexton was quartered.

In the very next hand, Lamar Wilkinson opened for 6,000 under the gun and Sexton immediately three-bet to 9,000. "Trying to get out of my misery," he explained.

Allen Bari then called from the hijack, Wilkinson put in the additional 3,000 and three players saw a flop of {3-Clubs}{7-Hearts}{q-Clubs}. Wilkinson checked, Sexton bet 3,000 and both Bari and Wilkinson called. When the {J-Hearts} turned, Wilkinson led out for 6,000 and Sexton raised all in for 9,300 total. Bari called, as did Wilkinson and the {5-Diamonds} completed the board on the river.

Wilkinson checked and then folded when Bari bet 6,000. "Nut low," Bari said and tabled the {2-Hearts}{6-Clubs}{a-Clubs}{8-Spades}. Sexton then showed the {3-Spades}{j-Spades}{a-Spades}{a-Diamonds} for two pair and the high.

"I'm glad to get half of it," Sexton said.

Meanwhile, it appears Sebastian Ruthenberg has been eliminated from the tournament.

Player Chips Progress
David Chiu us
David Chiu
WSOP 5X Winner
290,000 30,000
Allen Bari us
Allen Bari
WSOP 1X Winner
120,000 15,000
Mike Sexton us
Mike Sexton
WSOP 1X Winner
Poker Hall of Famer
34,000 3,000
Sebastian Ruthenberg de
Sebastian Ruthenberg
Busted

PokerNews Podcast Episode #167: Chad Destroys

Level 7
Anthony Gregg, Greg Merson, and friends and family
Anthony Gregg, Greg Merson, and friends and family

The crew is back to talk about the exciting conclusions of the $111,111 One Drop High Roller and the $25,000 Six Max. They also examine a few crazy hands in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship, discuss online poker in New Jersey, and review bracelet wins from Barney Boatman, Marco Johnson, and Jesse Martin.

You can subscribe to the PokerNews Podcast on iTunes here.

Tags: PokerNews Podcast

Take Control of Tournament Updates with the New My Stack App

Level 7
The new PokerNews My Stack App
The new PokerNews My Stack App

Attention players and fans, if you frequent the PokerNews Live Reporting blog, then you've probably noticed a new tab here at the 2013 World Series of Poker. If you haven't yet, or you're new to our live coverage, then let us be the first to introduce you to the Player Updates tab powered by the PokerNews My Stack app.

You can download the app for iPhone or Android now to get started. Then, create a new PokerNews account or update your current one to start updating your status immediately. Your followers can see all the live action that you're involved in.

Be forewarned, however, any abuse of the app will result in account suspension or termination.

We look forward to your updates throughout the 2013 WSOP in Las Vegas!

Tags: MyStack

Day 2 of the Poker Players' Championship Awaits

Jonathan Duhamel, start-of-day 2 chip leader
Jonathan Duhamel, start-of-day 2 chip leader

Welcome to the second day of Event #55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship, the event that always brings out poker's elite to compete for one of the most coveted bracelets on the WSOP schedule.

Nearly all of the 123 players who entered the event yesterday made it through the first five 100-minute levels to return today, although some in much better shape than others. Jonathan Duhamel returns as the only player with more than 400,000 chips to begin Day 2, a large chunk of that earned in a pot-limit Omaha hand at the expense of Vanessa Selbst yesterday who ultimately became one of the few first-day casualties along with Ralph Perry, Matt Glantz, Johnny Chan, David Williams, and Josh Arieh.

Jared Bleznick, Jason Mercier, Justin Smith, and 2011 Poker Players' Championship winner Brian Rast are also returning to stacks of more than 300,000, with those four joining Duhamel as the only players to have more than doubled their starting stacks of 150k yesterday.

Meanwhile the shortest stacks to begin Day 2 belong to Alexander Kostritsyn, Mike Sexton, Cary Katz, Phil Ivey, Marco Johnson, and David "ODB" Baker, all of whom will return to less than 50,000.

Baker fell all of the way down to just 4,000 chips before play concluded last night, which will represent exactly one big bet in the limit games to start play today. But he returns with the same hopes of all the other survivors to make the most of what he has left.

David BakerDisaster last level lost couple massive pots and few others Sorry to report I will be coming back with 4k...folded last 6 hands not quitting
David BakerThe cards have been so mean this summer, but I will make a run! I won't quit on this summer. I work too hard and care too much.

Play resumes at 2 p.m. PDT, with the plan once again being for players to play five more 100-minute levels. Late registration extends to the beginning play today as well, meaning we will likely see a few more additions to the field before the first hands of the day are dealt.

Come back to PokerNews then for continuing coverage of Event 55: The $50,000 Poker Players' Championship. Meanwhile, here's Kristy Arnett with Steve Sung, who last night won another tournament with an especially tough field, Event 52: $25,000 No-Limit Hold'em (Six-Handed).

Tags: Jonathan Duhamel