Evan Benton opened to 175,000 and Ruiko Mamiya shoved all in for 1,145,000 from middle position. Scott Stewart was in the small blind and he shoved over 3,500,000, which got Benton to fold.
Ruiko Mamiya: K♥K♠
Scott Stewart: A♠K♦
Mamiya was out in front and maintained her lead throughout the hand as the runout of 8♠9♠5♠4♣2♥ saw her double up late on Day 2.
Action folded around to Christopher Collier in the small blind who shoved all in for 715,000. Balakrishna Patur made the call from the big blind, putting Collier at risk.
Christopher Collier: A♠6♠
Balakrishna Patur: K♦3♦
The flop came 10♥6♣7♦, with Collier still out in the lead. Patur picked up a straight draw on the 4♥ turn, but the 2♣ was a blank.
Collier took down the pot with a pair of sixes and doubled up.
A controversial hand took place deep on Day 2 of Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker No-Limit Hold'em involving Men “The Master” Nguyen that saw a player allege that he was shorted several million chips, and busting before the matter could be resolved.
The Gladiator attracted over 20,000 entries — the biggest of the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP) so far — with 14 players bagging at the end of Monday's play.
One of the players who will not be winning that six-figure payday or the bracelet is Brian Smith, who was involved in one of the most controversial hands of the summer.
Out of the 2,317 entrants recorded for Event #28: $1,500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em of the World Series of Poker, 215 players returned on Day 2 at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. After ten 60-minute levels, only 22 players remained, all still in contention for a WSOP bracelet.
Among these 22 players, Spain's Andres Gonzalez emerged as the chip leader with 7,015,000. He not only has the biggest stack but also a significant lead over Nicolas Vayssieres, who is second in chips with 4,495,000. "I lost every hand at the beginning of the day, but things went very well at the end," the Frenchman said while bagging his chips. Balakrishna Patur holds third place with 4,455,000.
End of Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Andres Gonzalez
Spain
7,015,000
70
2
Nicolas Vayssieres
France
4,495,000
45
3
Balakrishna Patur
United States
4,455,000
45
4
Evan Benton
United States
4,285,000
43
5
Mukul Pahuja
United States
3,970,000
40
6
Fahredin Mustafov
Bulgaria
3,600,000
36
7
Haiyang Yang
China
2,790,000
28
8
Nick Maimone
United States
2,665,000
27
9
Scott Stewart
United States
2,455,000
25
10
Ruiko Mamiya
Japan
2,425,000
24
On one hand, Francisco Benitez (215th, $3,154), Fausto Tantillo (184th, $3,377), Ronnie Bardah (164th, $3,377), Michael Moncek (133rd, $3,661), Michael Noori (119th, $4,018), Kathy Liebert (86th, $5,018) and John Riordan (34th, $12,918) were all in the race on Day 2, but they have all been eliminated.
On the other hand, there is no reason to be mad at all after Day 2 for Evan Benton (4,285,000), Mukul Pahuja (3,970,000), and Fahredin Mustafov (3,600,000) as they all qualified for Day 3. The same goes for Nick Maimone (2,655,000), who is the only remaining player who has already won a WSOP bracelet.
In the rest of the field, Scott Stewart (2,455,000) and Ruiko Mamiya (2,425,000) are followed by Alex Massman (2,225,000), George Tomescu (2,150,000), and Ebony Kenney, who bagged 1,990,000. Finally, Nicholas Verderamo will return on Day 3 with the shortest stack of all (725,000).
Ebony Kenney
The remaining players will return at 12 p.m. local time for Day 3, with blinds beginning at Level 28 (50,000/100,000/100,000). Play will continue in 60-minute levels until a WSOP bracelet is placed around the winner's wrist.
Stay tuned for all the excitement as the PokerNews Live Reporting team covers Day 3, along with our comprehensive summer-long coverage of the 2024 WSOP at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas!
