Corey Thompson — winner of this same event a year ago — just walked away from his table after being eliminated, so we asked his former tablemates what had happened.
According to them, he went all in for about 4,000 but David Champion had flopped a royal flush with ace-king suited, knocking Thompson out of the tournament. The cards of Thompson weren't shown, but apparently he had said he another ace-king and got up and walked off.
Ari Engel raised to 425 from early position and John Courtney called from the big blind. Courtney checked the flop and Engel continued for 425. Courtney then check-raised to 1,500. Engel moved all in and Courtney called.
John Courtney:
Ari Engel:
Courtney had flopped a set while Engel had top pair. The turn was the and the river the , and Courtney improved to a full house to earn the double.
Bernard Lee raised to 400 from the cutoff and the player on the button three-bet to 1,100. Lee called and the flop came . Both players checked.
The turn was the and Lee moved all in. His opponent quickly called and showed, having flopped the nut straight. Lee showed for a flush draw and gut shot.
The river was the , giving Lee a flush and eliminating his opponent.
The player under the gun raised to 250 and was called by Jesse Yaginuma in the big blind. The flop came . The under-the-gun player bet 300 and Yaginuma called. They then checked both the turn and river.
Yaginuma showed for a pair of twos, but his opponent showed for a pair of turned fives and won the pot.
Two-time bracelet winner Barry Shulman limped in from under the gun, and the player in the hijack did as well. The player in the cutoff then decided to raise to 550, and both Shulman and the hijack called.
The flop came . Shulman and the player in the hijack checked. The player in the cutoff bet 800, and Shulman shoved all in. Both of his opponents folded.