End of Day 2 chip counts and seating assignments going into the final day of play:

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

Pat Pezzin was the short stack and raised preflop leaving only 20k behind.  Chris Bjoin raised all in, and Pezzin quickly called for the rest of his chips.  Bjoin had him covered.  Pezzin showed A  6  5  8 , and Bjoin showed K K A 9.  The board came out T  7  8 4 J .  Pezzin ended up taking it down turning the straight for a double up. 

Bjoin lost most of his stack to Pezzin on that hand and within a few hands he found a spot to go all in preflop.  He was called by Ville Wahlbeck.

Bjoin: A 4 8 5
Wahlbeck: A A 5 Q

The board ran 8 8 K A J.  Wahlbeck was able to one out Bjoin to knock him out of the tournament on the bubble.

Play condensed to two tables with 18 players left.  Here is the line up:

Table 77

1. Toto Leonidas
2. Cameron McKinley
3. Annie Duke
4. Tom Koral
5. Jacobo Fernandez
6. Daniel Alaei
7. Ted Lawson
8. Greg Jamison
9. Daniel Negreanu

Table 76

1. Scott Clements
2. Ben Boyd
3. Pat Pezzin
4. John Rogers
5. Alex Kraavchenko
6. Sam Khouiss
7. John Monnette
8. Ville Wahlbeck
9. Yuegi Zhu

Right before the night ended. Pat Pezzin was able to eliminate John Rogers from the tournament with K K T 3.  The flop gave a pair of eights, and Pezzin was able to win with two pair kings and eights.  John Rogers is our 18th place finisher.

Play has recessed for the night, and tomorrow 17 players will return.  Usually players would come back at 2 p.m., but it has been decided that this tournament will start at 12 pm tomorrow because ESPN wants to broadcast it.  Of course players were not happy about this decision and protested, but the tournament director said he couldn’t do anything about it.  Players went away for the night grumbling about the lack of sleep they will get before a long day tomorrow.

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

On an 8  8  K  T  3  board, there had been back and forth betting between Daniel Alaei and Phil Ivey.  On the river Alaei turned over a flush, and Ivey mucked his cards.  He was critically low on chips with only 50k left in front of him.  

Ivey found a hand to take a stand with and raised preflop after Steve Zolotow limped in.  Scott Clements called, and Steve decided to fold his hand.  The flop came K  Q  A , Ivey had little choice but to go all in.  Clements called and showed Q Q A 3 against Ivey’s A 3 2 9.  The turn brought and A and the river was a J knocking Ivey from the tournament.

Greg Jamison was able to take a nice from from Scott Clements.  Jamison limped in early position.  Clements raised.  The big blind and Jamison called.  The flop was T  Q  6 .  Jamison bet, and Clements raised.  Jamison called, and it was heads up between them.  The turn was a 4 .  Jamison bet, and Clements called.  A J  came on the river to which both players checked.  Jamison showed A 3 J T and Clements showed A A 3 7.  Jamison was able to scoop Clements with two pair against aces.

Mack Lee lost a big pot against Annie Duke.  Lee went all the way with aces, and Duke was able to scoop the pot by the river.  Lee looking very frustrated and very low on chips is in desperate need of a double up.  As the blinds came back around to him, it was expected that he would push.  However, it seems he is going to let himself blind out at the chance that he might make the money.  With 21 players left, it doesn’t seem that probable. 

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

Players went on a 20 minute break, and then redrew seats for three tables.  Here is the new seating arrangement :

Table 76

Seat1: Phil Ivey
Seat2: Scott Clements
Seat 3: Daniel Alaei
Seat4: Toto Leonidas
Seat5: Jacobo Fernandez
Seat 6: Greg Jamison
Seat 7: Sam Khouiss
Seat 8: Bill Gazes
Seat 9: Steve Zolotow

Table 77

Seat 1: Ben Boyd
Seat 2: Ted Lawson
Seat 3: Chris Bjoin
Seat 4: Brain Haack
Seat 5: Annie Duke
Seat 6: John Hennigan
Seat 7: Mack Lee
Seat 8: Tom Koral
Seat 9: John Rogers

Table 82

Seat 1: Alex Kravchenko
Seat 2: John Monnette
Seat 3: Yuegi Zhu
Seat 4: Phil Hellmuth
Seat 5: Cameron McKinley
Seat 6: Ville Wahlbeck
Seat 7: Daniel Negreanu
Seat 8: Ralph Perry
Seat 9: Pat Pezzin

Play has slowed down a bit as players are getting closer to the money. 

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

Rob Hollink was all in preflop for his last remaining chips.  Only John Monette made the call showing A 3 J 5.  Hollink turned over A  4  Q  K .  The flop came J  J  7  3  Q , to knock Hollink out of the tournament. 

Ted Lawson has been taking an extraordinarily long time to make a decision any time it comes to him.  A few of the players have made comments to him, and he just ignores them and continues to take his time.  It came to a point where players were getting visably upset that every time it came to him he would let the clock run down.  On a A  T  9  board, Lawson was facing a bet from Ben Boyd, and was taking a long time studying his cards and then turning to study Boyd.  Both Annie Duke and Daniel Negreanu were looking frustrated at Lawson.  Finally, Negreanu told Lawson to make a decision; it is limit after all.  Lawson blew up on Negreanu and yelled, “Shut up!”  Negreanu immediately said, “Ok, fine.  Clock!”  Lawson rebutted, “Now, sit down and shut up!”  The floor came over to count down Lawson’s sixty seconds, and Lawson eventually folded his hand. 

In a small blind vs. big blind situation, the flop came out T  8  3 .  Daniel Alaei, who was in the small blind, made a bet.  John Rogers reraised, and Alaei made the call. The turn came a T .  Alaei check raised Roger’s bet, and Roger called.  The river was an 8 , and Alaei bet.  Rogers looked down at his cards as if he might fold, but made the call anyways.  Rogers showed A  5 4  T .  Alaei mucked. 

Ben Boyd raised preflop, and both Chau Giang who was in the small blind and Yueqi Zhu called.  The flop came J  6  3 .  Everyone checked.  The turn brought the 7 .  Giang bet, Zhu raised, Boyd got out of the way, and Giang called for all his chips. 

Giang showed: 2  2  3  5
Zhu showed: A  2  7  9

The river was a Q , giving Zhu a pair of sevens and the nut low.  Giang was unable to survive as Zhu scooped the pot. 

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

On an 8  8  Q  board, Daniel Negreanu raises on the button.  Michel Abecassis reraises, and leaves himself only 3k behind.  Ted Lawson, who was also in the hand, folded his hand.  Negreanu says, “I’ll just put you all in.”  It was a quick all in call from Abecassis.

Negreanu: A  K  J  8
Abecassis: 3  3  7  2

Negreanu had trip eights, and Abecassis had a back door low draw and a heart draw.  The turn and river came a 9  T  to knock Abecassis out. 

Players are now down to four tables with 36 players left.

Bill Gazes raises, and it folds around to Chris Bjorin who calls from the big blind.  The flop comes J  8  Q .  Bjorin bets, and Gazes calls.  The 8  comes on the turn, and Gazes calls a bet from Bjorin.  The river brings the T .  Both players check.  Bjorin tables 8  9  A  5 , and Gazes folds.

On a 5  K  8  A  board, John Rogers fires a bet into Steve Zolotow who calls.  An A  comes on the river, and Rogers checks.  Zolotow bets.  Rogers, who was holding A 8 4 3 surrenders his hand giving it to Zolotow. 

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

The hour started out with 42 players and five tables left.

The blinds are started to get high, players are being knocked out one by one, and the crowds are growing along the rail.  The star attraction seems to be Daniel Negreanu, as many spectators are asking him to sign magazines and hats.  Negreanu, always the nice guy, obliges by running over to the rail in between hands to take pictures and sign autographs.

Jeff Madsen wasn’t able to hold up against Michel Abecassis and Daniel Negreanu.  The flop came 2  8  7 .  Abecassis bet and Madsen raised.  Both Abecassis and Negreanu called.  The turn came a 4 .  Abecassis bet, Madsen raised, and Negreanu reraised.  Abecassis and Madsen called.  The river was a Q .  Both players checked to Negreanu who bet.  Abecassis called, and Madsen called all in. 

Abecassis: A  3  A  T
Madsen: A  6  2  2
Negreanu: A  3  4  4

Abecassis took the low with A  3  while Negreanu took the high turning a set of fours.

With Annie Duke in the cutoff and Phil Ivey on the button, the flop came 8  Q  T .  Duke put out a bet, and Ivey called.  The J  came on the turn.  Both players checked.  The 3 came on the river.  Both players checked again.  Ivey turned over A 2 9 7 to win with a straight.  Duke mucked her cards.

The blue chips are being colored up, and players are now on a 20 minute break.

(Jackie Witt Reporting)

Barry Greenstein has been eliminated.  He was in a hand against John Hennigan and Sam Khouiss.  The flop came out A  9  4 .  Greenstein bet and was called by both players.  The 8  came on the turn.  Greenstein moved all in for his last 5,300.  Khouiss called, and Hennigan raised.  Khouiss called Hennigan’s raised, and the 8  came on the river.  Both players checked.  Hennigan showed the winning hand of A  9  2  3  to scoop the pot. 

Daniel Alaei raised from under the gun, Steve Zolotow called, the small blind called, and the big blind folded.  The flop came 5  3  8 .  The small blind bet, Alaei called, and Zolotow raised.  The small blind called the raised, and Alaei got out of the way.  The Ts came on the turn.  Zolotow bet again to which the small blind called.  The 5  came on the river.  Both players checked.  They ended up splitting the pot.

Zolotow: A 3 J 3
Small Blind: A 2 4 6

Todd Brunson raised preflop and was called by Brent Carter and Sam Khouiss.  The board came out 5  2  5  T .  On the turn Brunson and Carter had all their chips in the middle and Khouiss was trying to get the best of it. 

Brunson: A  J  T  4
Carter: A  K  8  3
Khouiss: A  J  T  5

The river came a K , giving Bruson and Carter no chance at a low.  Khouiss was able to knock out two players in one fell swoop, and chipped up to over 235k. 

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

The players returned from their break.

There has not been too much action.

Barry Greenstein was able to scoop a pot with a set of 3's.

Stay tuned to see who will make the final table and if Daniel Negreanu can keep his hot streak going.

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

Daniel Negreanu from under the gun position raises and Matt Glantz calls, so does another unknown player and Alex Kravchenko.

On a flop of K 6  5 , Kravchenko bets. Daniel raises. Glantz and the other player call. Kravchenko puts in the second raise, Daniel puts in the 3rd raise and all 3 players call. The turn was a J . Kravchenko checks, Daniel goes all in for his last 1,500, the other three players call. The river is a 9 . Everyone checks. It seems as if everyone missed their draws. Daniel shows A K T 2 for a pair of Kings and rakes in the pot. He jumps on his chair from excitement as he could not believe that he won the hand.

There are 66 players left.

The players are now on a 1 hour dinner break.

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

There are 79 players left. The blinds are 1,500-3,000 with limits of 3,000-6,000.

Tables are combining. Their is one really stacked table containing Matt Glantz, Phil Hellmuth,John Hennigan, Barry Greenstein and Daniel Negreanu.

On a board of 3 5  Q 2 , Ville Wahlbeck bets and an unknown player raises. Wahlbeck 3 bet the action and the unknown player put in the cap. Walbeck called. The river was a 5 . Both players check.

Wahlbeck shows A  4 6  T  and takes three-quarters of the pot with a 6 high straight and the unknown player gets a quarter showing A  4  3  2  for the same low.

Reigning champion David Benyamine has been eliminated from the tournament. He was all in and had turned a set of fives. However, the other player in the hand had the nut low and high on a rainbow board of A235Q with Ax 4x X X in his hand.  Erick Lindgren was also eliminated.

Daniel Negreanu scooped a pot. He had the nut flush and second nut low.

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

Daniel Negreanu put a bad beat on Linda Johnson to knock her out of the tournament.

Preflop Linda Johnson raised and Daniel called. On the flop of T  7  3 , Daniel bet, Linda raised, and Daniel called. The turn brought a 7 . Daniel once again bets, Linda raised again and Daniel Raised to put Linda all in. Linda called. She showed A A 5 2 for Aces and Sevens. Daniel turned over A  T 6 5  for Tens and Sevens. The river was an unlucky card for Linda. Daniel hit one of his few outs to scoop the pot and eliminate her from the tournament. The river was a T .

Allen Kessler knocked out Sammy Farha when Farha was all in on the river on a board of 4 4 7 8 T. Farha showed Q 8 5 2 for a  87542 low and two pair eights and fours. However, it was not good news for him when Allen Kessler turned over A 2 3 4 for a set of 4's and the nut low.

Hellmuth was seen winning a few hands this hour. He bet on a board of J  T  9  Q  and both Chino Rheem and Matt Glantz fold their cards into the muck.

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

There is not too much action going on at the moment.

There are 105 players left and the blinds are now 1,000-2,000 with limits of 2,000-4,000

There have been alot of all ins surviving due to the fact they are chopping the pot. 

Daniel Negreanu is still in the field. He is taking time in between hands to sign hats and magazines for fans.

Players that remain are : Phil Ivey, Annie Duke, David Benyamine, Mike Sexton and Barry Greenstein just to name a few.

(Amanda Rosenfeld reporting)

The 129 players returned to the Brazilia room to find out that they have been moved to the Amazon room to play. The tournament director announced that they will play to the final table or 3:00 a.m. whichever comes first. This has become standard on day 2's of the World Series.

The blinds are 800-1500 and the limits are 1,500-3,000.

Mike Matusow busted Bill Edler when Matusow made a full house on the river on a board of Q  J 6  J T . Matusow turned over K  9  T J  for the boat.

Freddy Deeb exited the tournament area while saying he was eliminated when he missed his nut flush draw and nut low draw.

As play began, the players took a break to stand for the national anthem during the bracelet ceremony.

Tables are combining. Phil Ivey is now sitting near Annie Duke. Daniel Negreanu, Michael Binger and Scott Clements are at a table together.

Doyle Brunson was eliminated from the tournament.