Fours hours of poker down, six to go here at Day 1b of the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event. Players are now taking their second 20-minute break of the day. After Level 3 will come the 90-minute dinner break.
We're starting to hear estimates of today's Day 1b field settling around the 2,100-player mark. Official numbers are still to come.
Earlier this summer Vanessa Selbst became the first woman to win an open event at the World Series of Poker since she did so herself in 2008. Selbst's second bracelet was around her wrist after she crushed the final table of Event 52: $2,500 10-Game Mix - Six-Handed.
We recently caught up with this two-time bracelet winner looking down at a board of . Her opponent checked to her with over 16,000 in the pot. Selbst fired out 10,900 and her opponent quickly called.
Selbst flipped up the for the nuts and her opponent mucked his hand. Selbst is now sitting on a stack of 69,000 and looks to continue crushing throughout the day.
Picking up the action after a flop, Chris DeMaci and an opponent got their chips into middle. DeMaci was the one all in for about 23,000 with , trailing the of his opponent.
DeMaci had plenty of outs, but none came as the turn and river ended his Main Event.
We just saw another preflop all-in situation involving two players holding pocket aces, with Deanna Dozier holding and her opponent . The board came , and the pair chopped up the pot.
"You looked so devastated," said Dozier to her opponent, referring to her calling his all-in. He responded by noting how she'd had him covered, and thus followed players passing back and forth stories of having their aces cracked.
Over in the Tan section we found Mike McDonalad competing in a hand. His oppoennt Dan Schacher raised it up to 725 from middle position and Mike McDonald made the call from the big blind. The dealer then exposed a flop prompting a bet of around 1,000 from McDonald. Schacher made the call and both players were allowed to see the turn.
The on the fourth street saw McDonald bet out 1,825. Schacher managed to make the call at the same time McDonald was placing the bet and we were off to the river. The landed on the river and both players, fearful of each other patted the felt for checks.
Schacher commented on how he thought he was ahead and flipped over for a pair of jacks with an ace kicker. McDonald mucked and Schacher claimed the pot.
A few tables away sits Scott Abrams who was also getting involved in a hand. The flop read and Abrams checked to the bettor, a player in later position and he bet out 2,350. Abrams was the only other player in the hand and made the call.
The on the turn brought with it checks from each player. It wasn't until Abrams checked on the river that his opponent bet out 1,875. Abrams made the call and his opponent said "I have nothing", and mucked. Abrams was forced to show his cards and exposed for a pair of tens.
A player in middle position limped in and was raised to 900 by Brandon Croft in the hijack seat. Directly behind *him* was Erik Seidel in the cutoff, who also came along for a three-way pot.
The flop came and both players checked to Seidel, who fired 2,000 into the middle. The original limper folded, but Croft then check-raised all in for 6,575 total. Seidel let out a long sigh and committed calling chips.
Seidel: for the nut flush draw.
Croft: for a pair of eights and an open-ender.
The turn and river bricked out for Seidel and Croft doubled up.