2025 World Series of Poker
Will Kassouf raised to 155,000 in the cutoff and Hieu Le three-bet the button to 450,000. That action happened when the level was still underway, but the subsequent call had already ushered into the break. On the 6♥5♣3♣ flop, Kassouf checked and Le bet 350,000 with around 2,850,000 behind.
That sent Kassouf into a long tank with several spectators trying to watch from closer nearby while everyone else was already on break. Kassouf kept murmuring and mentioned "I can't call, it is either raise or fold .... if you don't say anything, I will raise."
Some nine minutes into the break, Kassouf tapped the table and folded while a stoic Le raked in the pot having said no word during the hand at all. The table was then moved to the feature table.
Mounir Tajiou raised from the small blind and Seungmook Jung called in the big blind.
They went to a flop of 10♦4♠5♥, where Tajiou bet, Jung raised, Tajiou shoved, and Jung called off his stack of 525,000.
Mounir Tajiou: J♥3♠
Seungmook Jung: 6♥5♦
Jung had flopped a pair and was way ahead of Tajiou, who had a total bluff. Jung improved to a straight draw on the 7♠ turn, and his pair held up when the 9♠ hit the river, which earned him the double-up.
The remaining 162 players have been sent on their first 20-minute break of the day.
While they take their break, take a look at some of the highlights from Level 25.
Holding A♦10♣, Murilo Milhomem raised to 125,000 from the hijack with Stephen Hesse calling from the small blind with 7♣5♣, and Paul Gibbons defending his big blind holding A♥3♠.
The three players saw the flop come down 9♣J♣5♥. Following two checks, Milhomem bet 180,000. Hesse called, but Gibbons folded.
The 9♥ turn checked through for the 6♣ to fall on the river. Hesse bet 285,000, which was enough to get Milhomem to fold.
Donnie Peters has told many Main Event stories in his long career as a poker journalist, but his own just hit an unhappy conclusion.
Mitchell Hynam had opened to 120,000 under the gun before Peters three-bet to 360,000 in middle position. Hynam came back with a four-bet to 900,000 and Peters moved all in for 2,125,000. Hynam took a minute before calling.
Donnie Peters: K♠K♦
Mitchell Hynam: A♠Q♥
Peters was ahead with his kings and poised for the double up until the flop brought A♥J♠8♦, giving Hynam top pair. The rest of the board ran out 9♥4♣ and Peters was sent to the rail.
Jameson Painter raised to 120,000 with K♠Q♣ from the hijack and Chad Power three-bet J♠J♦ in the cutoff to 360,000. When it got back to Painter, he called.
The flop came 10♥10♣3♦, where Painter checked and Power threw out 360,000. That was enough to win the pot as Painter folded.
Shortly after, David Swift made it 130,000 on the button with A♠4♣ and Mounir Tajiou called with A♣10♥ in the big blind.
On the 2♠Q♦K♠ flop, Tajiou check-called a bet of 115,000 from Swift to see the 8♠ fall on the turn. Both checked to the 7♦ river, where Tajiou bet 400,000.
"Take it away, sir," said Swift to the dealer in reference to his cards, which meant Tajiou took the pot.
Noah Goldman raised to 125,000 and was called by Derek Sudell, Arsenii Karmatckii and Yuta Mutsuura, the latter two of which were in the blinds. They checked the 7♣4♠3♣ flop to the 5♦ turn on which Karmatckii had not made his decision yet when Mutsuura bet 100,000 out of turn.
Karmatckii then checked and the bet stood, as it folded back to the Russian. Karmatckii leaned over to see Mutsuura's stack and check-raised to 450,000 for his opponent to snap-fold.
In a blind versus blind battle, Romain Locquet bet 175,000 on a flop of Q♣J♠7♥ and Maksim Pisarenko called.
Locquet bet another 500,000 on the 9♣ turn, but this time Pisarenko raised to 2,475,000. Locquet went deep into the tank, taking several minutes to ponder the decision.
"Take your time. Big pot," Francis Anderson told. After more than five minutes, Locquet eventually stuck in his last 1,500,000 more and turned over Q♠10♦ for top pair and a straight draw, but Pisarenko already had the straight with 10♣8♣.
The 6♣ river improved Pisarenko to a flush and Locquet's Main Event run, which included memorably cracking Jared Bleznick's aces back on Day 1, came to an end.
Stefan Nemetz opened to 120,000 from under the gun with 10♥10♣ and picked up three callers along the way. Daniele Primerano with 5♠5♥, Michael Mizrachi in the small blind with 9♥8♣, and Gonzalo Jose in the big blind holding 6♦3♣.
The flop fell K♦9♣8♠ and the action checked around to the 3♥ on the turn. Jose was the first to take a stab at the pot with a bet of 150,000. Nemetz folded and Primerano raised to 840,000 with just a pair of fives. Mizrachi went into the tank for a couple of minutes before shoving all in for 2,315,000 with two pair. Jose quickly folded and Primerano's cards followed into the muck.