http://www.rgtonline.com/article/wsop-main-event-field-hits-the-money-104120?CategoryName=Poker News
y Vin Narayanan
LAS VEGAS -- For 693 players, Friday was a good day at the World Series of Poker Main Event. It was the day they began to win money.
Friday's Day 4 action began with 852 players remaining from an original field of 6,865. But the $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em tournament is only awarding money to players that finish 693rd or better, so 159 players were going home today without winning any cash.
With 695 players remaining, hand-for-hand action began in the Amazon Room at The Rio to determine which players would finish out of the money. In hand-for-hand play, each table is dealt a hand. And players have to wait until that hand is completed at every table in the tournament before receiving another hand. The goal of hand-for-hand action is to identify exactly which player in the field busts out, and in which order they bust out, so players can be paid (or not paid) correctly.
Players approach the money bubble in a variety of different ways.
Ilia Lekach said he wouldn't play any hand, including aces, while he waited for the money bubble to burst. (photo by Vin Narayanan)
Just before hand-for-hand action began, Ilia Lekach talked with Casino City about his strategy.
"I have 122,000," Lekach said. "Until I make the money, I'm not playing another hand."
As Lekach spoke, two small-stacks moved all-in against each other in an adjacent table. One player held ace-king. The other had pocket deuces -- and the deuces held up.
"Why would I play," Lekach said after watching the outcome of that hand. "I'm even folding aces."
While Lekach was successfully folding his way into the money, Daniel Negreanu took the opposite approach with his small stack. Negreanu pushed all in during the first hand of money-bubble play on a board reading Ac-7d-6s. Mario Silvestri called the bet holding Ah-10h. Negreanu had As-Qh and doubled up to around 160,000 when his aces with the better kicker held up.
Lekach and Negreanu both played their way into Day 5. Lekach ended the day with more than 100,000 in chips while Negreanu finished with 619,000.
Both hand-for-hand eliminations happened at the same table. On the second hand of money-bubble play, Dylan Linde moved all in for 110,000 from the small blind. Darus Suharto, who reached the Main Event final table in 2008, called from the big blind. Suharto had pocket tens. Linde had pocket eights and couldn't crack Suharto's hand. Linde finished in 695th -- two spots out of the money. Suharto ended the day with 425,000 in chips.
On the sixth-hand of money-bubble play, 2010 November-Niner and third-place finisher Joseph Cheong knocked Reza Kashani out of the tournament in 694th place. Kashani moved all in on a board reading Kh-Qc-9c. Cheong called with pocket queens, while Kashani had Ks-Js. A queen fell on the river giving Cheong quads and Kashani a trip to the rail one spot short of the money.
Kashani did win a free buy-in into next year's WSOP Main Event for being this year's "bubble boy." And Cheong ended the day with 862,000 in chips.
y Vin Narayanan
LAS VEGAS -- For 693 players, Friday was a good day at the World Series of Poker Main Event. It was the day they began to win money.
Friday's Day 4 action began with 852 players remaining from an original field of 6,865. But the $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em tournament is only awarding money to players that finish 693rd or better, so 159 players were going home today without winning any cash.
With 695 players remaining, hand-for-hand action began in the Amazon Room at The Rio to determine which players would finish out of the money. In hand-for-hand play, each table is dealt a hand. And players have to wait until that hand is completed at every table in the tournament before receiving another hand. The goal of hand-for-hand action is to identify exactly which player in the field busts out, and in which order they bust out, so players can be paid (or not paid) correctly.
Players approach the money bubble in a variety of different ways.
Just before hand-for-hand action began, Ilia Lekach talked with Casino City about his strategy.
"I have 122,000," Lekach said. "Until I make the money, I'm not playing another hand."
As Lekach spoke, two small-stacks moved all-in against each other in an adjacent table. One player held ace-king. The other had pocket deuces -- and the deuces held up.
"Why would I play," Lekach said after watching the outcome of that hand. "I'm even folding aces."
While Lekach was successfully folding his way into the money, Daniel Negreanu took the opposite approach with his small stack. Negreanu pushed all in during the first hand of money-bubble play on a board reading Ac-7d-6s. Mario Silvestri called the bet holding Ah-10h. Negreanu had As-Qh and doubled up to around 160,000 when his aces with the better kicker held up.
Lekach and Negreanu both played their way into Day 5. Lekach ended the day with more than 100,000 in chips while Negreanu finished with 619,000.
Both hand-for-hand eliminations happened at the same table. On the second hand of money-bubble play, Dylan Linde moved all in for 110,000 from the small blind. Darus Suharto, who reached the Main Event final table in 2008, called from the big blind. Suharto had pocket tens. Linde had pocket eights and couldn't crack Suharto's hand. Linde finished in 695th -- two spots out of the money. Suharto ended the day with 425,000 in chips.
On the sixth-hand of money-bubble play, 2010 November-Niner and third-place finisher Joseph Cheong knocked Reza Kashani out of the tournament in 694th place. Kashani moved all in on a board reading Kh-Qc-9c. Cheong called with pocket queens, while Kashani had Ks-Js. A queen fell on the river giving Cheong quads and Kashani a trip to the rail one spot short of the money.
Kashani did win a free buy-in into next year's WSOP Main Event for being this year's "bubble boy." And Cheong ended the day with 862,000 in chips.
