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We came to the table on the turn, with the board showing 
. Action had folded to Dan Kelly in the cutoff, who also checked. The river was the 
, and both players checked again. Kelly's opponent showed 
, but Kelly just barely had him beat with 
.
A recent double up by Jay Nair revealed an interesting example of statistical probability defied. After getting his last 6,800 into the middle with 
against his opponent's 
, Nair survived five board cards to score the double. This win pushed his stack just over 21,000 chips, after he had recently fallen to 1,700, or less than two big blinds.
Nair's remarkable comeback is not yet complete, but as he counted his chips and received congratulations from his tablemates, a more remarkable turn of events become apparent. Detecting a familiar accent among the voices, Nair soon discovered that among the thousands of players to enter the "Millionaire Maker" tournament, he found himself sitting two seats away from a fellow native of Kerala, India.
Nithin Eapen was also born in the beautiful Indian tourist destination, and he regaled this reporter with tales of his homeland's reputation and allure. According to Eapen, residents of Kerala speak a language known as Malayalam, which "is the longest palindrome in the English language," and he the statistical probability of two players from Kerala meeting at the poker table during the WSOP is astronomical.
Nair and Eapen are both in good spirits and seem to be enjoying their shared experience, conversing often to exchange stories and neighborhood notes. If both players manage to make the final table of this event, we will be sure to check in on their extraordinary story.
Dan Kelly check his option in the big blind when the cutoff limped in. The flop came down 
. The cutoff bet 1200 and Kelly called. They both checked the turn of 
. THe river came the and this time Kelly bet 3,500. His opponent called and Kelly showed 
for a pair of sevens. Kelly is living large and boasts a stack of 130,000
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
130,000
60,000
|
60,000 |
There are now only 671 players remaining. This event pays 648 players, and the tournament staff is preparing for hand-for-hand play soon.
A late-position player raised to 2500 pre-flop, and Victor Ramdin 3-bet to 5,200. His opponent thought for a moment before calling. The flop fell 
. The original raiser pushed all-in, and Ramdin quickly releases. As the dealer shuffled for the next hand, Ramdin said he head two queens, with no spade.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
42,000
-4,200
|
-4,200 |
|
||
Level: 12
Blinds: 600/1,200
Ante: 200
The players are now on a 20 minute break. We officially have 729 players remaining, 648 of whom will be paid. Eliminations are still coming quick, and the money bubble will loom large in the next level.
We caught the action on the flop with Dan Kelly in the big blind, facing a bet of 3,100 from an opponent in the small blind. Kelly liked the lay of the land, and he decided to come along for the ride.
The turn brought the 
to the table and the small blind checked to Kelly, prompting the pro to fire out a 5,500 wager. His opponent responded in kind, checkraising to 13,400, and Kelly again flat called.
When the river card came the small blind led out for a bet of 21,000, and Kelly decided to make his stand, shoving all-in for a total of 50,300. His opponent snap-called and the cards were tabled.
Showdown:
Kelly: 
Opponent:
Kelly had flopped a monster with trip aces and a good kicker, but his opponent caught up on the turn, filling his full house with a miracle nine-ball. This see-saw battle shifted back in Kelly's direction, however, when the river gave him a bigger boat.
With the win, Kelly vaulted to the top of the leaderboards, and his stack of 140,000 chips is well above the average.
A flop of 
inspired a spirited round of betting that eventually saw three players declare themselves all-in. One of the players at risk for his tournament life was Aaron Scheff, an amateur playing in his first WSOP tournament.
Showdown:
White: 
Scheff: 
Opponent # 3:
White, who calls himself "Zar-Dog," had his opponent's crushed with middle set against identical top pair hands, and it would take the last Queen in the deck to arrive, along with an ace or three, for his set to be cracked.
No such luck arrived on the turn or river for Scheff and the other player, and both made their exits from the tournament floor.
Scheff stopped by to let us know how much he enjoyed his first WSOP event, noting that he made it to the last 700+ players in one of the biggest tournaments ever held. He also made sure to note that his experience was one of "extreme pain," either from the Rio's notoriously uncomfortable tourney chairs, or the fate of his final hand.
The first hand had Rupert Elder raise to 2,200 from early position. The button called the bet but the big blind wanted to raise it up. He made it 10,000 more to go. Elder not wanting the action to be over preflop made it another 11,000 to go for a total of 21,000. The button folded and the big blind thought before calling.
They saw a flop of 
. We thought there was going to be action but yet there was none as both players checked to the turn. On the turn of the 
The gentleman in seat 10 led out for 20,000. This put Elder in the tank.
After pondering Elder went all in for 40,000 total. This prompted Elder's opponent to fold and gave Elder a big pot.
Elder went right back to work leading out again preflop for 2,200. This time there were no re-raises and the button and small blind called.
The flop of led to Elder betting again for 4,100. Both his opponents called. The turn went check all around on the 
, and the river finished with the 
.
This time it was checked to the button who bet out 10,000. Elder was the only one to call and was disappointed to see his opponent flip up the 
for a rivered straight. Elder is sitting pretty with 95,000.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
95,000
2,000
|
2,000 |
