Stud Games: 10,000 Ante, 15,000 Bring-In, 50,000 Completion, 50,000-10,0000 Limits
Pot-Limit & No-Limit: 25,000/35,000 Ante, 10,000-25,000 Blinds
A marathon money bubble finally ended close to 3 a.m. local time as 17 players ensured themselves a payday and a shot at the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy after Day 3 of the $50,000 Poker Players Championship.
It took 69 hands of hand-for-hand lasting nearly four hours until Chris Klodnicki was eliminated on the bubble by Andrew Yeh’s turned flush to bring the long night to a close. A week ago, Yeh came tantalizingly close to capturing his second WSOP bracelet when he had Brian Rast down to a single bet in the $10,000 Razz Championship, only for Rast to mount a miraculous comeback. Yeh will get another shot as he ended up as the massive chip leader with 7,935,000.
Albert Daher, the Lebanese high roller who can usually be found playing the biggest cash games around the world, is in second with 5,150,000. He and Yeh will look to add their name to the trophy for the first time, but right behind them is someone whose name is engraved not once, but three times. Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi bagged up 3,565,000 and is in third place going for his unprecedented fourth title in this event.
Day 3 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds | Big Bets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew Yeh | United States | 7,935,000 | 317 | 79 |
| 2 | Albert Daher | Lebanon | 5,150,000 | 206 | 52 |
| 3 | Michael Mizrachi | United States | 3,565,000 | 143 | 36 |
| 4 | Ben Lamb | United States | 2,325,000 | 93 | 23 |
| 5 | Esther Taylor | United States | 2,010,000 | 80 | 20 |
| 6 | Christian Roberts | Venezuela | 1,745,000 | 70 | 17 |
| 7 | Marco Johnson | United States | 1,605,000 | 64 | 16 |
| 8 | Mike Matusow | United States | 1,545,000 | 62 | 15 |
| 9 | Erick Lindgren | United States | 1,500,000 | 60 | 15 |
| 10 | Justin Liberto | United States | 895,000 | 36 | 9 |
Ben Lamb (2,325,000) and Esther Taylor (2,010,000), not only the last woman remaining but the only one to even enter the event, round out the top five. Just one woman in the nearly 20-year history of this prestigious event has managed to make the final table, Melissa Burr in 2014; Taylor has a chance at becoming the second tomorrow.
Other players to survive the day included Christian Roberts (1,745,000), Marco Johnson (1,605,000), Mike Matusow (1,545,000), and Erick Lindgren (1,500,000). Further down the leaderboard are Justin Liberto (895,000), Bryn Kenney (890,000), Joao Vieira (775,000), Christopher Vitch (750,000), 2013 champion Matthew Ashton (285,000), and Ben Yu (95,000).
The day began with 35 players remaining out of 107 entries, and past champions Mike Gorodinsky and Phil Hui were among the first bustouts. All eyes were on Daniel Negreanu as he sought to defend the title he memorably won last year, but Phil Hellmuth snatched the crown away when he picked up queens in a Pot-Limit Omaha hand and Negreanu couldn’t improve on his way to the rail.
Hellmuth busted three spots off the money in a hand of Razz against Vitch. Last year’s runner-up Bryce Yockey, Dan Smith, Jeremy Ausmus, and Chris Brewer were also among the players to fall short of the money. Benny Glaser, enjoying an incredible WSOP so far with three bracelets, fell to Yeh’s turned flush on the soft bubble and the remaining 18 players settled in for the grueling war of attrition.
Klodnicki was the last to leave with nothing. The remaining 17 players are all guaranteed $100,000, with a spot at the seven-handed final table worth $175,096. The eventual champion takes home $1,331,322, the trophy, the WSOP gold bracelet, and, just as importantly, the prestige that comes with winning the toughest poker tournament on the calendar.
The action picks up tomorrow at 3 p.m. local time with 42 minutes remaining in Level 18. No-Limit and Pot-Limit blinds will be 10,000/25,000, while limits will be 50,000/100,000.
The road to the final table begins in earnest tomorrow, and PokerNews will be back following all the action and providing live updates.
