WPT $25,000 Final: Day 5 - At A Glance

[snoopy1239]

Although there was departing action on the other table, the following confrontation between Guy Lalliberte, who has slipped under the radar somewhat today, and early pace setter Kirk Morrison probably comprised of more chips being shoved into the centre.

With the board reading , Guy bet 400,000, Kirk made it 900,000 and Guy moved all-in for 2,100,000.

Big pot, huh?

Anyhow, Kirk folded, but I was desperately praying for Guy to show a bluff, but it never appeared, the French-Canadian swiftly mucking his cards.

[Djinn]

David Levi is OUT in 13th place

He lost most of them (and there weren't all that many to start with) in a strange hand directly before, of which I caught the absolute tail end - a board of - he'd flipped over his thinking the other two players in the hand had checked to him, but that may not have been the case...in any event that pot didn't go to Levi and he was left with 60k to autoallin on the following hand:

Tim Phan raised preflop (+100K) successfully getting rid of big blind Wahlroos despite his chip mountain, and his took on all-in Levi's . 
Flop: 
Turn:    (at this point it seems to be traditional for the TD to tell the all in guy what his outs are, like he's not totally fixated on this already)
River: 

We're down to two tables of six...

[Djinn]

Jimmy Tran plays a pot out of position against Thomas Wahlroos, with bad consequences for his stack...
Big Blind Jimmy check-called Thomas' 200k bet on a flop.  The turn brought the , Jimmy checked again, and Thomas bet 400k (it doesn't look like so much when 100k is a stack of four chips rather than ten.  Obviously.)  Call once more.
River:    Check a third time - Thomas bets a third time - 600k.  A long pause before Jimmy Tran calls - paying off Wahlroos' with his two pair, Queens and Eights.

[snoopy1239]

Can Hua is OUT in vomit inducing circumstances.

All-in pre-on a Flop of .

Tim Phan =

Can Hua =

Turn =

River =

[Djinn]

Eleven players remaining, and the WPT TDs are guilty of my favourite tournament whinge-worthy decision - the uneven hand-for-hand.  If I were a short stack on the Five-handed table right now I would be screaming bloody murder.  A lady with a camera informed me that actually it slowed down the action, but in what context?  It still gives a disadvantage to a short stack on the small table where the now 30k/60k blinds come round faster, and an advantage to big stacks in general to play short handed - which they will only get until ten players remain.  The  other reason given for the hand-for-hand (not official, the TD looked busy) was that "When there's a big money jump, they go hand for hand.  There's a $30,000 jump in prize 11th to 10th."  Perhaps an anti-stalling device?  Would that happen in this tournament?  Hard to say.
I was then perhaps guilty of asking the dumbest question of the week, "So do they keep doing it after the eleventh player is eliminated? (The money jumps just get larger)"
"No.. because then they're on one table."
Of course they are.  I need another energy drink.

[snoopy1239]

Grant Lang is OUT.

Grant Lang =

Tim Phan -

Board =

Down to ten, and therefore our final table.

[Djinn]

Final table seats and counts:

1) Kirk Morrison -- 1,700,000
2) Jimmy Tran -- 1,287,000
3) Thomas Wahlroos -- 7,186,000
4) Guy Laliberte -- 3,400,000
5) Carlos Mortensen -- 3,394,000
6) Mike Wattel -- 1,434,000
7) Scott Fischman -- 1,265,000
Paul Lee -- 8,994,000
9) Tommy Vu -- 1,083,000
10) Thien Phan -- 2,350,000

[Djinn]

Scott Fischman is certainly playing his million shorter stack (now that sounds odd) well - the pace of the action has slowed somewhat, he's taken one set of 30k/60k blinds down preflop as has Paul Lee, then he played this one against Jimmy Tran:

Jimmy raised under the gun to 170k, raised preflop by an in-position Fischman to 500k.  A consideration period later, call.
Flop:  Jimmy checked and Scott moved in, for what must have been around 800k.  Pass from Jimmy who showed A-Q.

Fischman nearer two million than one now.

[snoopy1239]

Carlos Mortensen raises to 200k under-the-gun, Thomas Wahlroos and Guy Laliberte call in the blinds.

Flop =

Wahlroos checks, Laliberte checks and Carlos bets 500k.

Wahlroos moves all-in, Laliberte folds and Carlos calls.

Carlos Mortensen =

Thomas Wahlroos =

Turn =

River =

Carlos picks up the biggest pot of the night for a stack of 6 million plus whilst Wahlroos drops down to 3.7.

[Djinn]

More action - first off a double limp from Jimmy Tran and Thomas Wahlroos is seen off by an all-in shove for just under a million from Mike Wattel - both blinds and both limpers successfully pushed off.

Then, next hand, after neighbour Mike's already passed, Scott Fischman limps.  One seat along Paul Lee instantly picks up one 500k stack of pink chips and plonks them neatly over the betting line.  Then Jimmy Tran moves in over the top of that, probably just about doubling the bet... Instacall.
Jimmy shows:
Paul shows:  . 

There's a bit of a sharp intake of breath from the audience - so much action in so little time - and the popular Tran is the one looking in a good spot to double up...
But the flop: 
Turn and river:  ......
                                ....So Jimmy Tran is the 10th place finisher, winning $185,645

[Djinn]

Carlos Mortensen just won a tidy pot off Paul Lee - Lee raised to 200k preflop, called by Carlos (whose chip towers are more serious now that they're on the final table (and he had to deconstruct the Gaudiesque turret for the redraw).
Flop:    Check from Carlos, Check from Paul, who incidentally acts very quickly every time I see him in a hand.  No five-minute dwells for the chip leader - he's acting as soon as the person before him has tapped the table or moved in a bet.
Turn:    Carlos checks, Paul puts in 400k.  A slow and deliberate call from Carlos (who always acts fairly slowly and deliberately).
River:    Carlos checks, Paul says, "A million" a millisecond later, and Carlos says, "Raise.  All in."  It's another 2-and-a-bit million, and Paul Lee gives it up after, for a change, a fair-sized dwell.

[snoopy1239]

Kirk Morrison -- 2,200,000
Thomas Wahlroos -- 3,380,000
Guy Laliberte -- 3,440,000
Carlos Mortensen -- 6,715,000
Mike Wattel -- 1,220,000
Scott Fischman -- 2,410,000
Paul Lee -- 9,100,000
Tommy Vu -- 705,000
Tim Phan -- 1,575,000

[Djinn]

Triple through for Mike Wattel...

Mike raised preflop to 240k, Thomas Wahlroos called, and so did Carlos (he's in quite a few hands, I've noticed).
Flop:    Carlos checked, and perhaps predictably, Mike moved in for 809k.  Less predictably, he was called first by Thomas, and then after a think Carlos too.
Turn:    The side-potters checked
River:  check-check again.  Mike Wattel showed , good enough against the Tens of Thomas, and, I've been reliably informed, the flashed of Carlos...

[snoopy1239]

Tommy Vu is OUT in 9th

After moving all-in for around 600k, Tommy shook his head (probably a mistake) to the Mortensen question "Do you have Ace King", which I think provoked a call from The Spaniard in the big blind.

Mortensen =

Vu =

Board =

[Djinn]

Weird hand News Now:

Paul Lee made it 250k to go; Big blind Thomas Wahlroos raised to 600k.  That's 600k total, not 600k more... anyway, call.
Flop:    Thomas bets out 800k, fast.  Paul Lee raises to 1,200,000, fast-ish.  Thomas passes, but not fast at all.  He thinks for about five minutes before eventually passing.  What the hell was going on there?