JP Kelly has made it down to the final two tables of action in his title defense run here in London. If Kelly successfully defends his title, he'll be one of only a handful of players who have successfully captured the same World Series event in back-to-back years in the game of Texas Hold'em. Doing so would put Kelly among a rather elite list of names, just take a look at the following.
Doyle Brunson: $10,000 WSOP Main Event 1976, 1977
Stu Ungar: $10,000 WSOP Main Event 1980, 1981
Johnny Chan: $10,000 WSOP Main EVent 1987, 1988
Phil Hellmuth: $5,000 Limit Hold'em 1992, 1993
As you can see, that list isn't just your regular Joe Schmoes. Hellmuth was the last to complete the feat, but he did so in Limit Hold'em. The last person to do it in No-Limit Hold'em was Chan back in 1987 and 1988 when he won the Main Event in back-to-back years. Notice that everyone that's completed this feat in No-Limit Hold'em events has done so in the $10,000 Main Event.
Last year, Kelly beat a field of 608 entrants. This year's field is 582-players strong. That's an average field size of 595 players. Not something to bat an eye at at all.
Frenchman and occasional Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer lookalike Leonard Truche pushed all-in from the cutoff for 21,000 and JP Kelly made the call in the small blind.
Kelly:
Truche:
The flop pretty muched killed the hand dead, coming to give Kelly top pair and the nut flush draw. Truche merely laughed and began to get up after the turn, the river giving Kelly the nut flush which he didn't need.
Keith Hawkins pushed his short stack in the middle with but found Stephan Nitschke fairly happy to call in the big blind with , there was hope for Hawkins on the flop but it all bricked out on the turn and river.
Under the gun, JP Kelly opened the pot to 9,000, and Nicky Katz three-bet to 20,000 straight two seats over. Next door to him, Kaveh Payman promptly four-bet it to 38,000, sending it right back to Kelly. He'd throw away what he later said was pocket queens, and Katz tanked for several minutes before following suit and folding as well.
Katz claimed to have folded jacks and Payman claimed to have four-bet them with ace-king, but it looked like Kelly, in particular, wasn't believing the tale Payman was telling. In any event, it's 200,000 chips now for the winner of that pot, and doesn't matter what he had now.
It was passed over to Georges Tohme in the small blind and he moved all-in for around 40,000 or so. Kaveh Payman quickly called in the big blind with dominating Tohme's .
The board ran out with both making two pair but Payman's were the bigger and he increased his stack to 170,000. Tohme can at least be comforted by the fact that the bar is less than six feet from where he was playing.
Demis Hassabis just picked up a double at the hands of Stephen Broomfield in a preflop all in. Hassabis' was dominating Broomfield's , and things would only get better from there. The board of secured Hassabis' double up, drawing him even with Hassabis at about 60,000 apiece.
The table folded around to the blinds, and JP Kelly moved all in from the small. Big blind Xiang Tan had 45,500 chips left, and he squeezed out and made the call for his tournament life. Kelly flipped up , racing for the knockout.
And the knockout he would receive. The board ran , and Kelly flushes Tan right out the door. All Tan could do was shrug his shoulders and open his palms to the ceiling in disagreement with the poker gods. He's out in 17th place, and Kelly has chipped up to about 160,000 in the process of tallying that knockout.
Martin Hansen moved all in for 31,500 from middle position and Jeppe Bisgaard called from the small blind. Hansen held the powerhouse and Bisgaard the .
The board ran out and Hansen was sent to the rail in 18th place.
to give Kelly top pair and the nut flush draw. Truche merely laughed and began to get up after the 
turn, the 
river giving Kelly the nut flush which he didn't need.
but found Stephan Nitschke fairly happy to call in the big blind with 
, there was hope for Hawkins on the 
flop but it all bricked out on the 
turn and 
river.
.
with both making two pair but Payman's were the bigger and he increased his stack to 170,000. Tohme can at least be comforted by the fact that the bar is less than six feet from where he was playing.
was dominating Broomfield's 
secured Hassabis' double up, drawing him even with Hassabis at about 60,000 apiece.
and made the call for his tournament life. Kelly flipped up 
, and Kelly flushes Tan right out the door. All Tan could do was shrug his shoulders and open his palms to the ceiling in disagreement with the poker gods. He's out in 17th place, and Kelly has chipped up to about 160,000 in the process of tallying that knockout.
and Bisgaard the 
and Hansen was sent to the rail in 18th place.
