Down to just a bowl of rice, Manig Loeser moved all in from the button for what I believe was 23,700 and Phil Laak made the call in the small blind.
Laak:
Loeser:
The flop was disastrous for the Laak, but the adrenalin was soon pumping again as the arrived on the turn. A blank river, and Laak punched the air before him, thus proving how much winning this tournament means to him.
"What was your confidence level on that flop?" I asked.
"Zero percent," he replied instantly. "If you're pessimistic, then you're always going to be stoked, right?"
Laak now on 233,000, whilst Loeser is on the rail.
Andrew Pantling was the preflop raiser under the gun, but we joined the action too late to see the amount. Either way, he was heads up with big blind Vincent Dalet as we watched a flop of . Dalet checked and let Pantling make a continuation bet of 12,500 before sneaking in a raise to 32,500. Not to be outdone, Pantling came right back with another raise, 57,500 straight. The chips hadn't even sunken into the felt and Dalet's cards were already in the muck, that misstep costing him about a quarter of his stack.
Vincent Dalet raised from the button, and the ensuing action with small blind Ilan Rouah left both men with all of their chips piled in the middle, stacks too similar for us to eyeball confidently. Without further ado, let's see the cards:
Dalet:
Rouah:
The flop was a good one if your name is Ilan Rouah. The dealer spread , and one of the Frenchmen let out a beastly roar and a big fist pump as he'd flopped the lead in a big way. The other Frenchman sat quietly by as the dealer turned the and rivered the , both useless to his pocket jacks.
Rouah has stormed back into contention here after a full level of slip-sliding down the score sheet (like an eel or something). He's right at 200,000 now, while Dalet is left with just a puny 24,000 with which to try and mount a comeback.
More drama than a Lost finale here at the Empire as Vincent Dalet tastes both joy and dismay in the space of a few minutes.
It was a tale of two hands in the end, both involving Phil Laak. On the first, Dalet came over the top of Laak's button raise from the small blind with before surviving a board versus to double through to 60,000.
A few hands later, Dalet was in the small blind once again, and with Andrew Pantling opening for 9,000 and Laak making the call, opted to move all in, this time for 42,700 more.
Pantling quickly made the fold, but the action halted on Laak who began assessing the pot. In the end, he decided it was worth the gamble, and made the call with . Dalet tabled .
But poker's a cruel game, and despite being in dominating shape, the Poker Gods slapped Dalet across the face with a wet kipper by delivering a board onto the felt.
And on that note, players have been whittled down to just one table, with the next elimination taking home that unwanted title: final table bubble.
Despite his fame and fortune, we sometimes forget that Phil Laak has yet to get his mitts on a bracelet, and judging from his response throughout this tournament, its evident that he's perhaps more determined than anyone to wear bracelet gold.
His closest call came in 2005, when he famously finished second to Johnny Chan who was marking his tenth bracelet win. It was a day of mixed feelings for the Unabomber as partner Jennifer Tilly triumphed in the Ladies' event on the very same day.
Laak is sometimes regarded as a personality before a player, but his antics merely disguise a sharp poker mind. I doubt he feels any need to prove himself, but to those who know him for his press-ups and table-chatter, victory here would certainly make its mark.
Chris Bjorin opened the pot with a raise from the cutoff seat, and Phil Laak called in position. John Tabatabai called from the small blind as well, and it was three-handed to the flop.
The dealer spread , and the first two players checked to Laak. A bet of 18,000 came from The Unabomber, and that was enough to earn himself two folds and the pot. Laak flashed .
"Look at that. Top pair, top kicker. Or whatever. If I didn't bet it, I'd have to quit poker. I don't wanna do that, so I bet. Gotta defend against quitting the game."
By virtue of his bet, Phil Laak will indeed continue to play poker as his primary source of employment.
With all eyes on Willie Tann, it was actually John Tabatabai who felt the splash of the bubble, the young British pro unable to make his second WSOPE final to date.
The assassin was Chris Bjorin, as silent as always, and kick-starting the action with a raise of 11,500 from under the gun. Andrew Pantling made the call, only for Tabatabai to make it 30,000 straight one seat along.
Back round to Bjorin who announced all-in. Pantling folded, but Tabatbai made the call.
Tabatabai:
Bjorin:
Eye-brows were raised on the flop, but it was a merely a tease, as the turn and river came and to send Tabatabai home.
Tabatabai had played a steady game, but when he needed Lady Luck, she was absent without leave.
![[user4144]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
flop was disastrous for the Laak, but the adrenalin was soon pumping again as the 
arrived on the turn. A blank 
river, and Laak punched the air before him, thus proving how much winning this tournament means to him.
. Dalet checked and let Pantling make a continuation bet of 12,500 before sneaking in a raise to 32,500. Not to be outdone, Pantling came right back with another raise, 57,500 straight. The chips hadn't even sunken into the felt and Dalet's cards were already in the muck, that misstep costing him about a quarter of his stack.
, and one of the Frenchmen let out a beastly roar and a big fist pump as he'd flopped the lead in a big way. The other Frenchman sat quietly by as the dealer turned the 
and rivered the 
, both useless to his pocket jacks.
before surviving a 
board versus 
to double through to 60,000.
. Dalet tabled 
board onto the felt.
, and the first two players checked to Laak. A bet of 18,000 came from The Unabomber, and that was enough to earn himself two folds and the pot. Laak flashed 
.
flop, but it was a merely a tease, as the turn and river came