After eight tough levels of Pot Limit Omaha today, over half the field disappeared in a cloud of chips and four-card aggression. Three rebuy lammers worth 4k each augmented the 3,000 starting stacks, but right from the start there was plenty of action as this tough field attacked itself, players like Tom Dwan, Marty Smyth and Annette Obrestad busting in the earlier segments while Samuel Stein rose to the top of the pile around half way through the day and stayed there until the chips were bagged for the night. 112,600 is the stack to measure against tomorrow when players return to play down to a final table - up challenging the lead, however, are Karl Mahrenholz and Jeff Madsen, among others. Please see the Chip Counts tab for full counts of all remaining players.
The best of the traditionally more experienced European Omaha practitioners like Michel Abecassis, Rory Matthews, John Kabbaj, Willie Tann and Jeff Kimber will tomorrow face off against the American vanguard and the young players looking to add some WSOPE jewellery to their wrists this week. Phil Laak, too, bounced straight from his first event bracelet win into this £5k event - and is still there at the end of play!
Live reporting recommences tomorrow at 3pm local time from the Empire Casino, Leicester Square, London, England.
Phil Laak has been playing for nearly 15 hours so far today. Okay, so he had a little break to pick up a gold bracelet or something but he still chugging along. He's just knocked out a short-stacked opponent to move to 25,000 which is still a short stack in itself.
Laak had and was ahead of his opponent's . The board kept it that way too.
Or at least drag your tiny stack up towards the light of Day Two! Christopher Chau just dodged an assault course of potential disasters to more than triple up at the eleventh hour here at the Empire Casino, like so:
Chad Brown raised preflop to 2,100 called by John Kabbaj, Toby Lewis and two others. One of these was big blind Christopher Chau who, when he bet out on the flop, could only do so to the tune of 800! His opponents seemed slightly surprised at this, and while Chad folded, Kabbaj made the call. Over to Lewis, who raised to 4,400, effectively isolating the all in player with his less than stellar . Chau's only improved as the turn and river came and it looks like the second day beckons.
A coin was flipped or a card drawn or a little wheel of fortune spun - however they decide how many hands will be played when they stop the clock at 15 minutes, the number that has been chosen this time is seven.
That means that we should be done for the night in around 15 minutes.
Two players who nearly made it through the day but fell just short are Any Bloch and Jens Kyllonen. Bloch fell to Joe Serock and Kyllonen fell to Rory Matthews. Both victors have stack in the mid-fifties.
In a word - he's out. The last of his chips found a preflop caller in Jeff Madsen who had an almost identical hand - with one crucial difference:
Ivey:
Madsen:
The board delivering meant that that Ace was crucial (Omaha, remember) and Ivey headed off as the level ticks towards its conclusion. Madsen now at 85k and happy, though.
Erik Seidel has been eliminated by Sam Stein after an action flop. The flop was and Seidel had a very pretty but it was no match for Stein's and a full-house. The turn and river blanked to keep Stein with the winning hand.
And from his tone you kind of believe it - a nut flush had come in for Greenstein who held vs. Steve Jelinek's - the board was being whisked out of the way by the dealer as I ran over, but the guess from the level of apology being offered for what was clearly some kind of outdraw was a was involved earlier on.
Either way a last half-level major upset for Jelinek who's down to 11,200, while Greenstein gets a boost to 54,000.
![[user81850]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
and was ahead of his opponent's 
. The 
board kept it that way too.
flop, could only do so to the tune of 800! His opponents seemed slightly surprised at this, and while Chad folded, Kabbaj made the call. Over to Lewis, who raised to 4,400, effectively isolating the all in player with his less than stellar 
. Chau's 
only improved as the turn and river came 
meant that that Ace was crucial (Omaha, remember) and Ivey headed off as the level ticks towards its conclusion. Madsen now at 85k and happy, though.
and Seidel had a very pretty 
