Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha
Dia 3 Iniciado
2013 World Series of Poker
Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha
Dias: 3
Event Info
Resultado Final
Event Info
Informações sobre o nível
2013 World Series of Poker
Buy-in
$1,500
Prize Pool
$1,378,350
Entradas
1,021
Nível
26
Blinds
15,000 / 30,000
Ante
0
Schwartz & Blumenthal Headline Event #22: $1,500 PLO Final Table
It took just over 18 levels of play for 1,021 players to reduce themselves down to the final nine in the 2013 World Series of Poker's Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha. To put that in perspective, most tournaments play ten levels each on the first two days and still don't make a final table. That's a testament to the fast-pace nature and big-pot reputation of PLO, perhaps poker's most popular game behind Texas hold'em.
On Thursday, one man stood out from the rest in Noah Schwartz, who pulled out to a monster chip lead with 28 player left. It began when he won a monster pot against Christopher Brammer, and then eliminated the Brit, along with Tue Phan, a short time later. That gave Schwartz over 20% of the chips in play, and he maintained a significant chip lead all the way to the final table.
He'll begin today with 1.162 million, which is over 300,000 more than his next closest competitor. Needless to say, Schwartz is today's favorite to take down the gold bracelet and accompanying $279,175 first-place prize, especially if he can play and run as well as he did on Day 2.
While he may hold the chip lead, Schwartz won't have an easy time capturing his first bracelet. That's because the final table is composed of some pretty stiff competition like Eddie Blumenthal, who is at his fifth WSOP final table including a seventh-place finish in Event #15 $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. one week ago, and Josh Pollock, who went deep in Event #6 $1,500 "Millionaire Maker" No-Limit Hold'em when he finished in 113th place for $7,278. Blumenthal and Pollock begin the final table third and fourth in chips respectively.
The final table will play out at 13:00 PST, which is a couple hours from now. Of course we'll have timely updates from Event #22 $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha then, but before then we'll also post final table bios on the remaining nine players, so stay tuned for those.
While you wait, be sure to check out Lynn Gilmartin's June 14 update:
Seat 9: Eddie Blumenthal -- 565,000
Born September 9, 1985, Nicholas Blumenthal, who goes by Eddie, is no stranger to the World Series of Poker. The professional poker player from Stoughton, Wisconsin notched his first cash back at the 2009 WSOP when he took 123rd in Event #32 $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em for $3,908, but it wasn't until two years later that he really made his presence known in the poker world.
That's because Blumenthal managed four cashes and two final tables at the 2011 WSOP. That included a fourth-place finish in Event #4 $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em for $255,028 and second to Geffrey Klein in Event #10 $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em / Six Handed for $334,756, his largest score to date.
The 2013 WSOP is shaping up to be just as successful for the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse graduate as he has already locked up his third cash of the summer. His other two came from a 440th-place finish in Event #6 $1,500 "Millionaire Maker" No-Limit Hold'em for $3,510 and seventh in last week's Event #15 $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. for $28,778. If Blumenthal, who starts the day third in chips, can place seventh or better, he'll earn himself his biggest payout of the summer thus far.
Seat 8: Josh Pollock -- 525,000
Josh Pollock has been coming to the World Series of Poker since 2007, which is when he notched his first cash by placing 49th in Event #12 $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em / Six Handed for $4,188. Since then, Pollock has added six more cashes to his WSOP résumé, with his best result being a 303rd-place finish in the 2011 WSOP Main Event for $35,492. This event marks Pollock's second cash of the summer after he previously finished 113th in Event #6 $1,500 "Millionaire Maker" No-Limit Hold'em for $7,278.
This may be the 29 year old's first final table here at the WSOP, but that's not to say he's inexperienced playing against top professionals for a lot of money. Back in August 2011, Pollock had his biggest career score when he made the final table of the World Poker Tour Legends of Poker $3,500 Main Event, which included the likes of Will "The Thrill" Failla and WSOP bracelet winners Ken Aldridge and Owais Ahmed. Pollock finished fourth in that event for $128,500.
If Pollock, who begins the day fourth in chips, can finish in either first or second here today, he will enjoy an even larger payday and quite possibly his first WSOP gold bracelet.
Seat 7: Eric Shanks -- 446,000
Unlike many of the other finalist, 27-year-old Eric Shanks is not a professional poker player. He is actually an options trader from Santa Monica, California, though he originally hails from Syracuse, New York. Despite not making poker his full-time profession, Shanks is far from an inexperienced amateur. On the contrary, he he's been cashing at the World Series of Poker for the past five years.
The first of his three cashes came back in 2008 when he took 15th in Event #3 $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em for $9,732. Three years later, he took 27th for $21,933 in Event #36 $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em. Then, a little over a week ago, he got his third cash after finishing 47th in Event #12 $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em for $2,795. Needless to say, Shanks will notch the biggest cash of his career here today as long as he isn't the first person eliminated from the final table. Chances are that won't happen as he begins the final table fifth in chips.
Seat 6: James Park -- 325,000
Very little is known about 24-year-old James Park other than the fact that he's from Birmingham, England and got his start playing poker by playing online. He'll obviously be getting some live experience here today!
Seat 5: Michael "KT" Parks -- 361,000
Like the other Park at the table, little is known about Michael Parks, who told PokerNews on Day 1 that he prefers to go by KT Park. The 47-year-old consultant was born in South Korea but now resides in Los Angeles, California. Today marls his first-ever WSOP cash. He begins the day sixth in chips.
Seat 4: David Greene -- 163,000
David Greene of Germantown, Maryland begins the day on the short stack with 163,000. While Greene no doubt enjoys the challenge and thrill of competition, poker isn't his primary game. That happens to be golf. With that said, the gold professional learned to play poker from members at his local country club.
He's put those lessons to good use as today he'll notch the largest score of his young poker career--his only other cash came from the 2012 WSOP Event #8 $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better when he placed 25th for $7,989.
Seat 3: Brandon Crawford -- 249,000
Brandon Crawford has had an up-and-down experience in Event #22: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha. On Day 1, he ran and played better than everyone as he finished chip leader among the final 117. Crawford, who hails from Los Angeles, California and works in digital marketing, used that chip advantage to make it to the final table, albeit as the second shortest stack. That means he faces an uphill battle if he hopes to capture his first gold bracelet.
Even so, we happen to know Crawford is friends with Justin "Boosted J" Smith, who stopped by the tournament area to wish his friend well late on Day 2. If Crawford can get some advice from his experienced friend, he might just be able to make a run at the title.
Today marks Crawford's third, and largest, cash at the World Series of Poker. He also has one WSOP Circuit score for $32,990, which came from a sixth-place finish in the 2012 $1,600 Main Event at the Bicycle Casino. While that score was nice, his largest actually came in the 2011 L.A. Poker Classic $10,000 Championship Event when he finished 16th for $50,340. That career score could change today though if he can manage to finish fifth or better.
Seat 2: Shawn Silber -- 808,000
Thanks to a late-night charge on Day 2, local Shawn Silber begins the day second in chips. He gathered those chips in large part by eliminating some tough players like Pakinai Lisawad, Levon Khachatryan and David Johnson.
Today will mark Silber's largest career cash, with his previous best being a 217th-place finish in the 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event for $10,000. You read that right, the 2004 WSOP. That means Silber has been playing for at least the better part of a decade. Toss in a fifth-place finish in the 2007/2008 WSOP Circuit Caesars Palace Las Vegas Event #10 $550 Pot-Limit Omaha for $3,667, and Silber has the experience to come out of relative obscurity to win the WSOP gold bracelet.