With limited media access to the new feature tables, PokerNews will provide updates where possible, alongside the results of the match-ups and the updated bracket as players are eliminated. Some matches will be streamed by the World Series of Poker, and our updates will follow the same delay as the live stream.
Franck Makaci completed from the button and Brock Wilson checked his option leading them to the flop.
The dealer peeled 10♥4♠J♥ which both players checked. The turn 4♣ fell and Wilson bet the minimum. Makaci hung on to see the last card.
The A♠ river dropped and as Wilson was still picking his chips, Makaci mucked his hand eager to get to the next.
Alan Keating signed up for his first 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) event on Saturday, but he apparently won too much money this week on The Lodge live stream to care enough to show up and play.
The cash game specialist doesn't play many tournaments, although he does appear in a couple of WSOP events each year. He paid $25,000 to enter Day 1b of Event #7: $25,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em Championship, and didn't even compete.
Biao Ding raised the button to 4,000 and Owen Messere three-bet from the big blind to 11,000. Ding called.
Messere bet 5,500 once he saw the 2♠A♥7♥ flop and Ding called.
Messere checked on the J♦ turn, and Ding bet 11,000. Messere took a few moments before making the call.
A board-pairing J♣ completed the board, resulting in a final check from Messere. Ding then put Messere all in for his remaining 60,000 or so, and Messere quickly called.
Ding tabled a full house with J♠7♠ to win the match, while Messere showed A♦K♠.
Level: 5
Blinds: 800/1,600
Ante: 0
Chenxiang Miao, in the big blind, bet 10,000 into a 22,000 pot and a J♣7♥6♣ flop. Florian Pesce hung on to see the turn.
The dealer peeled a 9♥ turn, and after action passed to him, Pesce bet 14,500, which immediately prompted Miao to go all-in for 170,000. Pesce thought deeply about his next move, knowing that Miao covered him and he could risk his tournament life.
He made the call, leading them to a showdown.
Florian Pesce: J♠9♠ 
Chenxiang Miao: 9♦4♦
Upon seeing Pesce's two pair, Miao groaned in frustration and picked up chips to match Pesce's stack as the dealer completed the board with a 6♦ river.
Phil Ivey bumped it up to 2,700 on the button and Aram Oganyan defended the big blind.
Oganyan check-called Ivey's continuation-bet of 3,500 on the 7♦4♥J♠ flop.
Both checked the 6♥ turn and the 5♥ arrived on the river. Oganyan check-called when Ivey bet 9,000, and Oganyan tabled J♣9♠ for a pair of jacks to win the pot.
Brock Wilson raised the button to 3,000 and Franck Makaci called from the big blind.
Both checked to the river on the 5♠A♦2♠K♣Q♦ board. Makaci checked for the last time and Wilson bet 4,000. Makaci called, and then mucked when he saw Wilson's K♠9♣ for a pair of kings.
Level: 4
Blinds: 600/1,200
Ante: 0
Play was ongoing with 17,000 in the pot beside a 6♣K♥4♦9♥ board. Action was on Ryuta Nakai in the big blind, who fired 20,000. His opponent, Josh Reichard, called to see the last card.
The river dropped 4♠ which got both players to check. Nakai showed 8♦7♠ while Reichard won the pot with Q♥2♥.
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