PokerPages.com Poker News - NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship

The blinds are up to 40K/80K. Would someone just throw a coin on the table and let them flip it for this first match? It's pretty much the same thing at these blind levels.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:26 PM

Paul moved all-in and Chad called with his 290K. Paul shows Q

versus Chad's J

. The flop comes 7

. The K

changes nothing. Neither does the 9

river. Chad doubles up again, this time to 580K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:22 PM

Paul Wasicka now has a 2-1 chip lead.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:17 PM

Unless my eyes just deceived me, Paul Wasicka limped, Chad Brown raised, and Paul pushed all-in. After thinking a minute or two, Chad folded the A

face-up. Could that be possible? Did he pick up a tell or something?

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:15 PM

Blind levels are up to 30K/60K now.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:13 PM

Now Chad moved all-in and Paul called. Chad said, "You got me" and turned over 7

. Paul showed A

. Remember who is the luckiest man in the world, though? The flop came 5

, giving Chad Brown trips. The 2

turn gave Paul a flush draw, though. But the T

river doubled Brown's 320K back up to his original starting stack of 640K. We are dead even again.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:09 PM

Sorry about that last bit, folks. It has been a long four days and your dedicated reporter is getting a little punchy.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:08 PM

Quit hitting the refresh button every five seconds. That's really starting to annoy me. Yes, I'm talking to YOU!

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:05 PM

Chad moves all-in and Paul passes.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:01 PM

The chip count is now 820K for Wasicka and 460K for Brown.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:00 PM

Chad called the big blind and Paul checked. The flop came 3

. Paul checked, Chad bet 30K, Paul raised all-in, and Chad called. Paul showed Q

for two overcards and a gutshot. Chad showed (

for top pair and a flush draw. The turn of 5

paired Chad again, leaving just three outs for Paul. The 4

river means Chad doubles up.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:57 PM

We are now at 20K/40K blinds. That means Chad has dropped below that critical ten blind level. Look for action soon.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:55 PM

Paul Wasicka now has a 915K to 330K advantage.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:54 PM

On a A

flop, Chad checked, Paul bet 100K and Chad called. On the 9

turn, Chad checked, Paul bet 200K, and Chad contemplated for several minutes before flicking his cards to the dealer.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:50 PM

With 180K in the pot preflop, Wasicka checked the K

flop. Chad bet 110K and Wasicka made the call. On the 2

turn, Paul led out with a 100K bet and Chad folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:47 PM

Wasicka bet 30K on a flop of 3

and Chad called. Both players checked the turn of 2

and river of 3

. Chad showed a queen and Paul mucked.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:44 PM

Chad Brown just took down a big pot when he bet 110K on the turn with the board reading 9

and Wasicka folded. With that hand, Chad Brown has assumed the lead again.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:42 PM

How long would you guess the line is outside to get in to the viewing area for this final table? 50? 100? You would be right if you guessed ... zero. In fact, nearly half of the available seats in here are empty. I'm left to wonder if that would have been the case had Shannon Elizabeth been playing in this final.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:39 PM

Blinds are now 15K/30K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:36 PM

Wasicka now has a 770K to 510K lead in the first match.




	Wasicka and Brown at the final table

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:33 PM

Paul raised to 25K preflop and Chad called. The flop came 3

. Chad bet 40K and Paul called. Both of them checked the 4

turn. On the 3

river, Chad bet 50K and Paul called. Chad said, "Good call" again and showed his jack high. Paul showed a four and won the pot.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:27 PM

In a raised pot, Chad Brown fired 50K on a 3

flop. Paul folded. That pretty much deadlocks them chipwise.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:24 PM

On the next hand, we will be at 10K/20K blinds.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:20 PM

On a board of K

, Paul Wasicka bet 40K on the river into an 80K pot. Chad called. Paul showed a queen for a straight and Chad mucked.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:18 PM

Unlike most of the previous matches, our two finalists are chatting with each other between hands and even during hands. Both are smiling a lot and seem to be enjoying themselves.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:15 PM

With 80K in the pot, on a board of 4

, Paul checked, Chad bet 40K, Paul called. Chad said, "good call". Paul showed a jack and Chad mucked. Paul has taken the chip lead with that hand.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:12 PM

With 50K in the pot, Paul Wasicka bet 25K on the 8

flop. Chad folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:10 PM

Blinds have just reached the second level: 5K/10K. Chad Brown has a slight lead in this first match.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 09:03 PM

Not much action yet at this first blind level. A lot of little pots and a lot of bet/folds.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:55 PM

And we are underway. Remember that this final is best two out of three. Players start with 640K in chips and initial blinds are 3K/6K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:52 PM

Paul Wasicka has had a heck of a year. After finishing 2nd in the WSOP Main Event in August ($6.1 million), he won a ton of money on High Stakes Poker, finished fourth earlier in the week at the L.A Poker Classic (for $455K) and now is guaranteed $250K tonight and can make it $500K if he takes it down. Not bad, Paul.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:40 PM

Just to remind everyone, Chad Brown's first match of this tournament (on Friday) had him pitted against Yosh Nakano. On a 9-9-2 flop, they got all-in against each other with virtually every chip on the table in the pot. Yosh had KK and Chad had K2. The turn was a brick and Chad Brown was down to two outs to avoid elimination. Chad spiked a deuce on the river to win the hand and then the match. Because of that, and of course this, I have dubbed him the luckiest man alive.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:34 PM

We're edging a little closer, but it's still going to be 15 minutes or so.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:19 PM

We're still nowhere near to starting. They haven't even called the players in yet.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 08:06 PM

Shannon Elizabeth looked heartbroken after her defeat. With her relentlessly aggressive play, she had earned every bit of the chip lead she possessed before that first all-in with Paul Wasicka. Though Paul had the technically better hand preflop with pocket tens against her AQ suited, after the flop Shannon had an 87.7% chance to win the pot and on the turn she had an 84.1% chance to win (calculations courtesy of Poker Stove). That ace on the river broke her spirit and you could tell that she had lost her momentum and some of her confidence. Nevertheless, she has impressed the poker world with her performance.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:47 PM

They have announced that the final will start in 20 minutes, so I figure we should get underway in about 40 minutes or so.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:45 PM

And here we go. Paul went all-in and Shannon shrugged and made the call. Paul shows A

and Shannon has 6

. The flop was a decisive A

. Shannon needs running fives, running sixes, or running jack-ten to chop. The turn comes ... 5

. She has two outs! And the river is ... J

. Shannon couldn't recover from the beat she took earlier and she is out. Paul Wasicka advances to take on Chad Brown in the final.

Shannon Elizabeth earns $125,000.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:40 PM

Blinds are at 20K/40K. Shannon is down to 110K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:39 PM

Paul is all-in and Shannon folded. Paul gets a walk. Paul raises all-in again and Shannon folds. Paul shows pocket fives. We're just waiting for the inevitable all-in hand.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:34 PM

Paul gets a walk. Shannon gets a walk.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:31 PM

Shannon moved all-in again on the button and Paul folded. For those of you who have read Harrington's books, Paul's M is about 12 and Shannon's is about 5.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:29 PM

Shannon raised all-in preflop and Paul folded. With just seven big blinds, all-in is the only realistic move she has at this point.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:27 PM

Paul 424K, Shannon 216K. This has now become the longest match of the entire tournament, having just hit the two-hour mark.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:25 PM

Blinds are now getting steep. We just reached the 15K/30K level.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:18 PM

Paul Wasicka just won another showdown and now leads 436K to 204K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:12 PM

Paul Wasicka now leads 380K to 260K.




	All-in between Elizabeth and Wasicka

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:11 PM

Shannon raised to 60K from the button and Paul moved all-in. Shannon asked for a count, which was 135K more, then decided to call. Paul turned over pocket tens T

and Shannon flipped up A

. Not sure what she was thinking about all that time. The flop came Q

and the crowd cheered her paired queen. The turn of K

made things interesting, giving Paul more outs. A nine or ace would do it. And, of course, the river came A

, doubling Paul up and making this a match again. You gotta love this game.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:06 PM

Blinds have gone up to 10K/20K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:03 PM

Paul raised to 33K from the button, Shannon reraised to 123K and Paul folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 07:01 PM

Paul just won a showdown to increase his chip count to 214K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:58 PM

Same as the previous entry, but reverse the names.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:57 PM

Blinds are 8K/16K. Shannon limped from the button, Paul raised, Shannon folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:55 PM

Shannon limped on the button. Paul raised it up to 40K and Shannon went all-in. Paul folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:52 PM

With a decent pot and a board of T

, Paul Wasicka bet 30K on the river and Shannon folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:48 PM

Shannon 460K, Paul 180K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:47 PM

Blinds are still 5K/10K. The past few hands the players have taken turns raising from the button and not getting called.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:42 PM

Doyle Brunson is here because ... well, nobody knows why exactly. Where there's poker, there's Doyle.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:40 PM

Shannon Elizabeth maintains a big lead over Paul Wasicka. Right now, the margin is about 484K to 156K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:38 PM

Gavin Smith went all-in on the button and Chad called right away. Gavin showed 5

but Chad - the luckiest man alive - turns over the immortal nuts: A

. The flop comes J

. Gavin needs one of those two remaining fives, but receives no such miracle in the K

turn and 9

river. Gavin Smith is eliminated, earning $125,000, and Chad Brown is on his way to the final.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:31 PM

Shannon "The Poker Juggernaut" Elizabeth just took down another pot when Paul Wasicka folded to her 40K turn bet. Paul is getting whittled down severely. He will need to make a stand soon.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:28 PM

With a board of 7

, Shannon bet on the river and Paul folded again. She looks unstoppable right now.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:24 PM

Shannon keeps rolling. She now has 485K against Paul Wasicka's 155K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:23 PM

Gavin just won another hand with top pair to narrow his deficit to 223K against Chad Brown's 407K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:20 PM

Shannon Elizabeth just won another showdown when her trip eights was the better hand. She has now surged to a 432K to 208K lead. Blinds are at 5K/10K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:19 PM

Gavin Smith moved all-in preflop with his last 86K and Chad instantly called. Chad flipped over T

and Gavin could only muster 6

and was in big trouble. Even more trouble when the flop came T

, leaving him with just the gutshot draw to stay alive in this tournament. The A

on the turn changed nothing. But the crowd went bananas when Gavin spiked the 5

on the river to double up.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:14 PM

On a flop of 6

, Shannon bet 20K and Paul called. Both players checked the 3

turn. On the 9

river, Shannon bet 35K and Paul folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:10 PM

Shannon just took down another pot to take a small chip lead of 329K to 311K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:09 PM

Paul Wasicka raised to 15K preflop and Shannon called. The flop came 2

. Shannon checked, Paul bet 16K and Shannon called. The turn came 7

, making a possible flush. Shannon led out with a 25K bet and Paul folded. The crowd cheered.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:05 PM

Chad Brown has a 480K to 160K lead. Shannon Elizabeth has taken down several small pots to narrow the margin to 360K/280K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 06:01 PM

Gavin had a kicker problem again. On a board of 7

, they both had paired the nine on the board, but Chad's kicker was better again. Chad won a decent-sized pot.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:55 PM

Chad's margin over Gavin is 457K to 183K now.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:54 PM

On a flop of 5

, Gavin checked. Chad bet 11K. Gavin raised to 30K. Chad immediately reraised to 80K. Gavin folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:51 PM

Paul Wasicka has a 380K to 260K lead over Shannon Elizabeth.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:51 PM

On a board of 4

and a pot of over 100K, Gavin bets 55K on the river and Chad calls. Gavin shows a queen for trips but Chad shows Q-J for a better kicker and takes down a 220K pot.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:42 PM

On a board of T

, Chad Brown bet 10K and Gavin called. With the turn of A

, Chad bet another 10K and Gavin called. The river came 4

, Chad bet 15K and Gavin called. Gavin flipped over A

and Chad mucked.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:37 PM

As a reminder, players start with 320K in chips this round. Initial blinds are 1.5K/3K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:33 PM

We're underway and, as usual, there is very little action this early.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:28 PM

Shana Hiatt keeps flubbing the lead-in. We are waiting for her to nail it, so we can get the cards in the air.




	The feature table

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:15 PM

The players are now seated and NBC is going through some of their commentary. With luck, we could be rolling in a few more minutes.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 05:09 PM

As per usual, NBC doesn't really mean 5:00pm when they say it. We are at least 15 minutes away from starting.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:44 PM

That sets the final four. It will be Shannon Elizabeth vs. Paul Wasicka and Gavin Smith vs. Chad Brown. Those matches are slated to start at 5:00pm PST.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:42 PM

Gavin moved in and Andy called. Gavin had a monster A

against Andy's A

. The flop came 8

. The 8

turn made things a bit more interesting. A nine would give Andy the pot and an ace, eight, or five would result in a split pot. But the 6

ended Andy Bloch's run. Gavin Smith advances.

Andy Bloch earns $75,000.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:38 PM

Now Gavin moved in and Andy called. Gavin had the Q

and Andy had K

. Gavin nailed two pair on the A

flop. The turn and river were J

and Gavin doubles up to regain the lead.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:36 PM

Andy moved all-in on the button and Gavin, with the chip lead, called. Andy showed K

against Gavin's K

. The board came 5

and Andy doubles up and takes the lead back.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:32 PM

Blinds just went up to a whopping 8K/16K. Now we should start seeing some all-ins preflop.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:27 PM

On a board of 5

Andy Bloch bet 15K on the river and Gavin Called. Andy showed 9

and Gavin rapped the table and mucked.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:22 PM

Gavin Smith has a 195K to 125K lead over Andy Bloch. Blinds are now at 5K/10K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:20 PM

And just when I say that ... Kristy Gazes bet 25K on the flop of K

and Chad Brown raised to 50K. Gazes moved all-in and Brown called without hesitation. Kristy furled her brow and told the crowd that Chad had the best hand. She was right. Kristy showed K

for top pair, weak kicker. Chad turned over K

for top two pair. Kristy needed runner-runner help but was dead when the 3

came on the turn. Chad Brown (aka luckiest man alive) advances to the semis.

Kristy Gazes earns $75,000.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:15 PM

Kristy Gazes is down to 107K. Andy Bloch is down to 114K. Both of them are down about 2-1 and will need to start thinking in terms of all-in.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:10 PM

Blinds are at 3K/6K, just about 3% of the chips in play.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:07 PM

If Kristy Gazes manages to come back and win this match, there will still be hope for an all-female final tonight, as Shannon Elizabeth will be playing in the other semi-final.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:05 PM

After winning a series of small- and medium-sized pots, Chad Brown now enjoys a sizeable chip lead over Kristy Gazes.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 03:00 PM

Andy Bloch raised to 9K, Gavin Smith moved all-in, and Andy has made the call with the last of his 70K. Gavin turned over A

against Andy's T

. The dream flop for Andy comes 2

. Then, just to spike the ball in the end zone, Andy catches the T

on the turn. His quads, ahem, hold up to win the pot and double him up.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:52 PM

Somehow, Andy Bloch has managed to find and wear a shirt that is uglier than his time-worn cowboy hat. It is some kind of paisley / hippie combo. Judge for yourself from the photo in the gallery.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:47 PM

On a board of 6

, Kristy Gazes bet 6K, Chad Brown raised, and Kristy went all-in. Chad folded and Kristy took down a nice pot.

Meanwhile, Gavin Smith just took down a 66K pot to increase his lead to 235K vs 85K.




	Chad Brown and Kristy Gazes

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:41 PM

Chad bet 12K on the river with the board reading K-Q-T-3-A with three diamonds. Kristy called but her straight lost to Chad's diamond flush.

Gavin Smith now has a 205K to 115K lead over Andy Bloch.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:36 PM

Quad sixes came on the board and Chad Brown won a small pot with his ace.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:32 PM

Gavin Smith has a 177K to 143K lead over Andy Bloch.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:29 PM

Kristy Gazes has a 175K to 145K lead over Chad Brown.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:25 PM

We are nearing the end of the first blind level at the Gavin Smith / Andy Bloch table, and this is probably the longest Gavin has gone in any of his matches without moving all-in at least once.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:12 PM

And we're off to the races (pun intended) ...

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:08 PM

We're close to getting underway for the next two matches. Chad Brown and Kristy Gazes are at the feature table this time.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 02:06 PM

Some corrections to the buy-in and payout info I posted earlier. The correct numbers are:

Champion - $500K
Runner-up - $250K
3rd,4th - $125K (not $175K)
5th-8th - $75K
9th-16th - $25K

The original buy-in was $20K (not $25K), for a total prize pool of $1.5 million (NBC has kicked in a $220K overlay to entice the participants).

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:29 PM

Paul Wasicka and Shannon Elizabeth have advanced to the final four and will play each other this afternoon. Next up are the Andy Bloch / Gavin Smith and Kristy Gazes / Chad Brown matches.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:27 PM

Nam Le moved in and Paul called. Le showed 9

and Paul turned over A

. Paul looked confident, but he must not have been paying attention to the last four times the better hand lost. The flop came 3

, pairing Paul's queen and reducing Le's chances to remote status. The T

turn sealed the deal. The better hand finally held up and Wasicka has vanquished Nam Le after a two-hour match.

Nam Le earns $75,000

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:24 PM

Paul's all-in again and Le called. Paul showed K

and Le shows A

. The flop came K

pairing Paul's king. The 9

turn and J

river didn't help Nam. Paul now has a massive chip lead.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:21 PM

Nam Le has 164K and Paul Wasicka has 156K, so we're pretty much where we started nearly two hours ago.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:19 PM

Paul moved in again and Nam called. Let's see who has the worse hand and thus the best chance. Paul shows A

and Nam shows A

. The board comes K

and it's a chop pot.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:17 PM

At this blind level, it is highly unlikely we will see any calling or moderate raising. This is pretty much an all-in or fold game now.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:14 PM

And here we go again. Paul moved in before the flop and Nam called. Paul displayed the A

and Nam showed A

. The flop of J

and the turn of Q

made a chop likely. But the 2

on the river gave the whole pot to Wasicka, who doubles up and takes the lead again. So far, the better hand has not held up once at this table.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:10 PM

Meanwhile, back at the ranch ... Paul Wasicka, on the first hand of the 10K/20K level, and with the chip lead, moved all-in on the button and Nam Le called. Paul showed A

against Nam Le's K

. The flop of 4

paired Le's five and gave him the lead. On the K

turn, Nam made two pair and Wasicka was drawing dead. Nam Le doubles up and takes a 188K to 132K lead.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 01:04 PM

Shannon called the big blind and Humberto moved in again. Shannon vacillated for a long, long time before deciding to call. Humberto turned over K

but Shannon had him dominated with K

. The flop came A

, not helping Humberto. The 2

turn was a brick. The A

river couldn't rescue Humberto so he and the shark are headed home. Shannon Elizabeth continues her impressive run and is the first to make it to the final four.

Humberto Brenes earns $75,000

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:58 PM

Humberto just moved all-in preflop and Shannon folded. Blinds are now at 8K/16K at their table too.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:57 PM

Shannon and Humberto are back and have resumed play. Shannon enjoys a 230K to 90K advantage.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:56 PM

Nam Le just moved in again. Wasicka asked for a count, which was 57K, and made the call. Le showed J

against Wasicka's K

. The flop came an unbelievable Q

, giving Nam Le a straight. The turn of Q

and the river of 3

didn't help Paul and Nam Le has doubled through.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:51 PM

Nam Le just moved all-in with the button but Wasicka folded.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:50 PM

The blinds at the Wasicka/Le table just went up to 8K/16K. With Nam's short stack, he is going to need to pick a hand and go with it soon.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:50 PM

The feature table of Elizabeth and Brenes just went on a 5-minute break.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:48 PM

Paul Wasicka just called Nam Le's 25K river bluff to win a big pot. Paul now has 248K to Nam's 72K.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:46 PM

By winning a showdown, Shannon Elizabeth now has a 215K to 105K lead over Humberto.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:42 PM

Wasicka has a 169K to 151K lead over Nam. Elizabeth has a 180K to 140K lead over Brenes.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:35 PM

Shannon now has a 195K to 125K lead over Humberto.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:34 PM

We just had our first all-in. On a flop of A

, Nam Le bet, Paul Wasicka raised, Nam re-raised, and Wasicka went all-in. After about two minutes, Le folded. Paul Wasicka just assumed the chip lead with that pot.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:29 PM

Tuan Le is in the audience, rooting on his buddy/protege Nam Le. Clonie Gowen and Antonio Esfandiari are here, sweating Shannon Elizabeth.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:27 PM

Shannon Elizabeth had won several small pots and, in the process, taken a slight chip lead, 165K to 155K over Humberto Brenes.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:25 PM

Nearly a full hour into these two matches and there have been no all-ins declared by any of the players yet.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:21 PM

Blinds are at 3K/6K for both tables now. Nam Le has a 2-1 chip lead and Humberto has maintained a modest lead in his match.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:18 PM

All four of the players are quiet and barely moving. They are obviously concentrating on their matches and tuning out the audience, the announcer, and other distractions. Even Humberto is unusually subdued. Maybe it's the $100K extra to be won from this match which has settled him down.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:09 PM

Nam Le just took a nice pot from Paul Wasicka when his 18K river bet went uncalled. Nam Le now has a 202K to 118K lead.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 12:04 PM

Humberto Brenes has a 173K to 147K lead over Shannon Elizabeth.




	The NBC Heads-Up Tournament Room

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:55 AM

Shannon Elizabeth has a small lead on Humberto Brenes. Paul Wasicka and Nam Le are virtually deadlocked.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:43 AM

The losers of these matches will take home 75K each. The complete payout schedule is as follows:

Champion - $500K
Runner-up - $250K
3rd,4th - $175K
5th-8th - $75K
9th-16th - $25K

The original buy-in was $25K, for a total prize pool of $1.6 million.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:39 AM

For two hands in a row, Humberto Brenes and Shannon Elizabeth checked it down every street, keeping the pot the size of two big blinds. At this early level, they are just feeling each other out and not committing too many chips.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:34 AM

Somebody from the audience wanted to know whether the combined ages of Paul Wasicka and Nam Le was over or under 50. Both players just smiled.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:31 AM

We are underway and the players have just received their first hands. Players start with 160K in chips with first-round blinds at 800/1600.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:20 AM

NBC has returned to their normal operating efficiency. Now everyone is sitting around doing nothing wondering why everyone is sitting around doing nothing.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 11:08 AM

Things are coming together much more quickly than anticipated. NBC is having a rare burst of efficiency. Must be the coffee. We are just a few minutes from rolling.

Sunday, 04th of March 2007 10:56 AM

The audience is filing in and NBC is preparing the set. We should get underway within 30 minutes or so. The first two matches (played concurrently) will be Shannon Elizabeth vs. Humberto Brenes and Paul Wasicka vs. Nam Le.

After successful careers in the financial and high-tech industries, Michael Cheser became obsessed with poker in early 2006. Defying all probabilities, he managed to cash in the 2006 WSOP Main Event. When not tournament reporting for PokerPages, Michael can be seen haunting the $1/$2 no-limit tables in Las Vegas, applying his unique strategy of playing only AA.

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