The crew is back for another episode of the PokerNews Podcast from the 45th annual World Series of Poker. Jason Somerville talks about his 18th-place finish in the $1,000 buy-in pot-limit Omaha event, and the crew discusses the Jason Mo vs. Vanessa Selbst heads-up match along with Darren Elias' affinity for North Faces and the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Bryan Campanello topped a field of 301 players to win this event (or at least it's $2,500 buy-in counterpart) last year for his first WSOP gold bracelet. He also became the youngest player to ever win the razz title. Campanello, who was fresh off winning the WSOP Circuit Harrah's New Orleans Main Event for $175,459 and cashing in the National Championship, managed to make Day 2 in his title defense, albeit as a short stack.
Unfortunately Campanello was unable to spin it up and was recently eliminated by Alex Dovzhenko. We missed the hand, but from what we were told, Campanello got it in on fifth street with a draw to a six. He missed and that was the end of his title defense.
Ali Eslami is known as a cash game player, but today he was hoping to show off his razz skills. Unfortunately after 80 minutes the curtain has closed on his Day 2.
Eslami got his extreme short stack all in on third and was up against Rebecca Kerl and Hoyt Corkins. Kerl ended up tossing out a bet on fourth, and Corkins folded.
Corkins: (x-x) / fold
Kerl: / /
Eslami: / /
Kerl made a 7-5-3-2-A low, which bested Eslami's J-10-7-6-3. Unfortunately there will be no chip and a chair story for Eslami here in Event #7: $1,500 Seven-Card Razz.
Meanwhile, Australian pro Gary Benson and Las Vegas grinder Blair Rodman have both been eliminated from the tournament in unknown action.
A crowd was gathering around Table 352, and when we made our way over we discovered that Bryan "The Icon" Micon was all in against 1996 WSOP Main Event champ Huck Seed. We're not sure when the chips went in, but it appeared to be on either fourth or fifth street.
The cards were a bit jumbled from the dealer, but here is how it looked as near as we could reconstruct.
Seed: / /
Micon: / /
Micon showed his seventh street immediately, which did not improve his 7-6-5-4-3 low. Seed was drawing live to any three, four and seven, and he sweated the card. When he saw that it was a three-across diamond, he know it was either the seven or eight as the was already exposed. That meant he had a 50/50 shot of eliminating Micon.
"Do you want insurance on the money," Seed offered before looking at the card. Micon, who was up out of his seat with his backpack slung over his shoulder, politely declined and said he didn't need the money that bad.
Seed then lifted the last card high and look at the same time as everyone else... the . Seed hit the right card to make a 7-6-5-2-A low and send Micon home as the bubble boy.
Phil Hellmuth Jr. is the most decorated player in World Series of Poker history with 13 gold bracelets and $12,273,964 in tournament winnings from 100 cashes (he holds the record for most cashes). Well, that was before today. By making the money in Event #7: $1,500 Seven-Card Razz, Hellmuth has secured his 101st cash. What's more, he has some chips and has a legitimate shot at capturing a razz title for the second time in three years.
"I’m not done winning no-limit hold’em events, but it just feels like I have such a huge edge in the mixed games," Hellmuth previously told PokerNews. "It just seems like so many people are playing them poorly that I just have to get down there a bunch more times. I wouldn’t be surprised if I won a stud eight-or-better. I wouldn’t be surprised if I won two or three razz bracelets. Pot-limit Omaha is a game I’ve worked hard on, and I’ve been down there a lot, but I just haven’t busted through. So I can do it. Omaha eight-or-better I already have a second, and I think I’m going to win one, but I need a little more practice with that game, and I need a little more practice with seven-card stud."
If you recall, Hellmuth navigated a field of 309 players to win the 2012 WSOP Event #18 $2,005 Razz for $182,793 and his then 12th bracelet. That fall he would go on to win No. 13 in the 2012 WSOP Europe Main Event, a victory that earned him €1,022,376.
Here at the 2014 WSOP, Hellmuth is celebrating the 25th anniversary of his Main Event win, but did you know his very first cash actually came a year before that when he placed fifth in the 1988 WSOP Event #6 $1,500 Limit 7-Card Stud Hi-Lo for $15,450. What a long and arduous road it's been since then.
Phil Hellmuth has been cheerful most of the day, but that just changed after a big hand against Brandon Cantu. Interestingly these two have razz history as Cantu finished third in this event back in 2012, which is when Hellmuth won his first non-hold'em bracelet.
We picked up the action on fifth street when Hellmuth bet and Cantu called. The latter then took the lead on sixth, fired out 6,000, and Hellmuth called. Cantu bet another 6,000 on seventh and Hellmuth mumbled to himself before making the call.
"Your seven is good," Hellmuth said.
"I don't know, I have to look," Cantu replied, meaning he needed to hit the last card to make a seven. During this time Hellmuth tabled his eight-six low.
Hellmuth: / /
Cantu: / /
Cantu flipped over his last card to reveal a deuce, which gave him the best hand. Hellmuth then launched into an epic tirade.
"He's trying to bluff off his chips. I let you steal, and steal, and steal," the Poker Brat said. "I mean are you even trying to win, Brandon? What are you doing?"
Hellmuth seemed to take the beat personally and continued to voice his frustration into the next hand despite a warning from the dealer. Hellmuth then got up out of his chair, wandered the tournament area, and eventually made his way over to Huck Seed to see if he had a sympathetic ear.
"They've got me talking to myself, Huck," Hellmuth said. Seed did not respond.
Jason Corlew has been stuck in reverse since the three-table redraw, and he is now running on empty.
A raising way resulted in Corlew getting his last 10,500 all in right out of the gate against Greg Pappas and Brock Parker. The two built a side pot when Pappas bet fourth and Parker called. When Parker took the lead on fifth, it was his turn to bet and Pappas called. Parker bet again on sixth, and it got Pappas to folded his hand.
Pappas: / fold
Parker: / /
Corlew: / /
Parker made a 6-5-4-3-A low on sixth, which had Corlew drawing dead. Corlew will take home $3,659 for his 20th-place finish.
Rebecca Kerl was the short stack coming back from the dinner break, so it wasn't surprising to see the last woman in the field fall in 17th place. Here demise came over the course of two hands.
In the first, Kerl called a bet on fourth from Scott Adaska. She did the same on fifth and then bet out 8,000 when she took the lead on sixth. Adaska called and then both players checked seventh.
Adaska: / /
Kerl: (x-x) / /
Adaska tabled his 8-5-3-2-A low and it was good as Kerl mucked. That left her with just 11,500, and a short time later she got it all in from the get go against Phil Hellmuth.
Kerl: / /
Hellmuth: / /
Kerl ended with a 7-6-5-4-3 low, but it was no good as Hellmuth had made a 6-5-4-2-A low.
"Good game," some players offered Kerl.
"Thank you, I had a blast," she said before making her way to the payout desk in 16th place.
"I didn't put you on A-4-5 in that spot," 1996 WSOP champ Huck Seed said as his final words.
He was saying them to David Bach, who eliminated the two-time razz champ. We missed the hand, but from what we were told Seed started with A-3-8 and Bach A-4-5.
Bach ended up making a nine low by sixth, while Seed drew high cards and paired to be left drawing dead headed into the river. Seed will take home $6,852 for his 12th-place finish.
Frank Henderson, who won a WSOP gold bracelet back in 1989, had been nursing a short stack for quite some time before he finally found a hand he liked.
He completed with a and Brandon Cantu called with a . Phil Hellmuth, who won his first gold bracelet the same year Henderson won his, then raised to 10,000 with a of his own. Henderson made it 15,000 to go, Cantu folded, and Hellmuth made it 20,000 knowing Henderson only had 4,000 back. It went in and Hellmuth called.
Hellmuth: / /
Henderson: / /
Henderson wanted to see Hellmuth's last card first, and the "Poker Brat" followed etiquette and showed a to make a 7-5-4-2-A low. It was a dagger through Henderson's heart as it left him drawing dead and rendered his useless.