Live updates from Day 4, levels 21 and 22 of the $25,000 High Roller brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Howard Swains, Brad Willis.
Click refresh to see the latest updates below. Click through to the chip count page for the chip counts, updated regularly throughout the day.
Previous coverage: Day 1 wrap | Day 2 wrap | Day 3 wrap
Blinds:
Level 22: 12,000-24,000 (2,000 ante)
4.12pm: Level done
That was the last action of the level and we’ve smoothly moved into level 23.
4.10pm: Hamilton squeezes
William Reynolds started this one off, raising to 56,000 from the cut off. Michiel Brummelhuis called from the button. Will Molson folded his small blind, but Lisa Hamilton found the squeeze play in the big blind and made it 206,000 to go. No thanks, said Reynolds, and folded. Brummelhuis took longer, but did the very same thing.
4:02pm: From outside the curtain
The High Roller final table is the last thing that will be televised here from the 2010 PCA. It currently is playing out surrounded by a giant black curtain. There are a couple of small side events finishing up outside, and a few straggling cash games. This is just about the end of this year’s PCA. Meanwhile, a few players have set up some sort of odd game remeniscent of the fabled Lime Tossing done at the WSOP and around the world. This version involves a red five dollar chip and some unused chairs. Anything for action.
3:53pm: Reinkemeier out in sixth, earning $108,045
Tobias Reinkemeier’s miserable day is done. After losing all those chips to Will Molson, he couldn’t play his aggressive three-betting game with such precision and he was forced to shove pre-flop. His timing was off. After William Reynolds raised to 56,000 from mid position, Reinkemeier shoved for about 450,000. Reynolds snap-called and showed K♥ K♦ . Reinkemeier had 8♥ 8♣ . Although we know not to expect anything to hold until the very last card is revealed, this time it did. The flop came J♦ 4♣ 7♥ , the turn was A♣ and the river was Q♥ . Reinkemeier was sent out and Reynolds has more than a million.
3:45pm: From the blinds
On a flop of J♣ J♥ 2♥ William Reynolds and Michiel Brummelhuis engaged in a battle of the blinds. Renolds made it 46,000 from the small which Brummelhuis called for a A♣ turn. Reynolds now made it 102,000 which Brummelhuis called again for a 8♥ river card. Check this time from Reynolds before Brummelhuis moved all in for roughly 300,000. Reynolds folded, showing A♦ 2♦ . Brummelhuis took the chips showing K♠4♣ .
3:27pm: A battle of Wills
William Reynolds and Will Molson see a flop of 4♥ Q♥ A♥ . Both check for a Q♦ turn. Reynolds made it 104,000 which Molson called. On the K♦ river Reynolds made it another 232,000 to play. Molson removed his sunglasses and rubbed his head. He folded, reluctantly, showing A♣ 10♥ .
3:28pm: Molson from the button
Will Molson opened for 58,000 on the button which Lisa Hamilton called from the big blind. “Just the call?” asked Molson before the saw a K♣ 4â™ 4♦ flop. They each checked the flop for a 10â™ turn. Hamilton bet 55,000, enough to force Molson to fold.
3:16pm: Hamilton all-in
William Reynolds opened for 57,000 from under the gun. The action reached short stack Lisa Hamilton on the small blind who moved all-in for around 220,000 more. Reynolds thought about it, opted to fold.
3:10pm: Back in action
We’re in action and playing higher now. We’ll be at 12,000-24,000 (2,000 ante) for the next hour.
Level 21: 10,000-20,000 (2,000 ante)
2.45pm: Reynolds raises Reinkemeier; on break
On the last hand of the level, William Reynolds raised to 46,000 from the cut off and Tobias Reinkemeier called from the big blind. The flop was 9♥ J♥ 8♦ and they both checked. But there was some trapping going on it seemed, because when the 9♦ turned, Reinkemeier bet 65,000 and Reynolds raised to 160,000 total. Reinkemeier flicked them into the muck, and allowed everyone to drift off on a 20-minute break. Action resumes at 3.05pm.
2:38pm: Help Haiti
Despite the silliness we’re spouting here, we can’t help but take a moment to think of the suffering going on not too far from here in Haiti. As you no doubt have heard, thousands upon thousands are feared dead there after a massive earthquake a couple of days ago. PokerStars and its players are reaching out to help. If you’d like to learn more about how you can help aid the suffering in Haiti, please see PokerStars sets up Haiti earthquake appeal.
2:37pm: Molson order a Kalik
There are no rules that require a man to drink a beer that shares his name. Plus, Kalik is a pretty darned good beer, so no reason to begrudge Will Molson for drinking a Kalik right now.
2:33pm: Calling it
Tobias Reinkemeier bet, Adolfo Vaeza moved all in and Reinkemeier called. As simple as that. Reinkemeier showed Qâ™ Q♦ to Vaeza’s J♣ 7♣ .
Vaeza began asking for stuff. “Eight, nine, ten,” he said the dealer, in that way that any desperate player does when the need help.
“Eight, nine, ten,” he said again. The flop came 8♣ 9♦ 5♣ . He’d just found a gutshot and a flush draw. Nothing from the 5♦ but the 6♣ on the river doubled up the Uruguayan.
Vaeza turned to the dealer. “I asked you for a ten!” he said.
2:29pm: Chip count update
Here are some rough estimates on the chip counts after that last hand.
Vaeza: 300,000
Reynolds: 500,000
Brummelhuis: 700,000
Molson: 1,300,000
Reinkemeier: 1,000,000
Hamilton: 400,000
2:25pm: Three bet, four bet, showdown
Michiel Brummelhuis raised to 47,000 from the button, Will Molson re-raised to 117,000 from the small blind, and Tobias Reinkemeier re-reaised all-in out of the big blind for 446,000 total. Brummelhuis got out of the way and left it to Molson to consider. He rubbed his hands together, took off his sunglasses, stared at his chips, laced his fingers, dropped his head to his hands, probably did some high-level math that we wouldn’t understand, and then called.
Here are the hands:
Molson: A♥ J♥
Reinkemeier: A♦ K♦
The board, 3♥ 3♦ 2♦ 6♦ 2♣ , gave the man from Germany the flush and the double-up.
2.16pm: No easy blind
Lisa Hamilton made it 51,000 from the button. Adolfo Vaeza announced all-in from the small blind and Hamilton passed.
2:09pm: From the blinds
William Reynolds opened for 51,000 with the action folded around to him in the small blind. Michiel Brummelhuis was in the big blind and called for a flop of 8♠A♣ 3♣ . Reynolds then made it another 55,000 to play before Brummelhuis passed.
1:58pm: Ohhhhhh!, OOOOOOHHHHHHH!
And here’s a hand that will definitely make the TV show.
Michiel Brummelhuis came in for a raise and Lisa Hamilton put him all in out of the big blind. Brummelhuis made the snap call with his aces. Hamilton only held pocket nines. The flop hit and “Ohhhhhhhhh!” there was the nine. With his tournament on the line, Brummelhuis needed one of the two remaining aces in the deck…and “OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHH!” there it was on the river.
Brummelhuis held 346,000 and doubled up.
Incidentally, if you have young children watching the EPT Live web cast, we’re sorry about the profanity.
1:55pm: Molson not light
It started off as a straightforward small blind v big blind hand. Will Molson completed in the small blind but Tobias Reinkemeier topped it up with another 40,000 to play. Molson called for a flop of J♣ 8♦ 10♦ . Molson checked before Reinkemeier bet 65,000. Molson paused. “Let’s make it 180,000 total,” he said, and pushed some chips in.
Reinkemeier then said he was all in. Molson called.
K♦ 9♦ for Reinkemeier, open ended straight draw, plus the flush draw, K♥ Q♥ for Molson, who was the at risk player, needing an ace or a nine. Both players shook hands.
Someone, probably more than one person actually, used the word sick, and we saw the turn.
The 10♥ changed nothing, except bring a chop possibility. But the A♠on the river gave Molson the straight, doubling him up.
1:48pm: Reynolds raising
Lisa Hamilton opened for 50,000 from the cut off. William Reynolds was in the small blind and raised to 106,000 total. “What you have left?” asked Hamilton. Something around 430,000 for Reynolds. Hamilton announced re-raised, getting an insta-fold in response.
1:47pm: Thief collared
Shortly after Matt Marafiotti’s departure, Lisa Hamilton discovered her bottle of Fiji water had disappeared. She asked around, but couldn’t figure out what happened. Well, scroll down to the photo a couple of posts back and you’ll see what happened.
Since then, two admirers have brought her replacements. We’re now going off to buy her a case of the stuff courtesy of the PokerStars Blog team.
1:46pm: All in, call, sweat, chop
Will Molson made it his customary 47,000 from early position and William Reynolds moved all in for about 380,000. Molson snap called and they exposed their near-identical hands. Molson: A♦ Qâ™ Reynolds: A♣ Q♥ It was almost very, very cruel for Reynolds as the flop came all spades: 5â™ Jâ™ 2â™ . That meant he had to fade another one on turn and river — and did so successfully. They chopped it up.
1:45pm: Molson and Vaeza
Will Molson opened for 47,000 and was called by Adolfo Vaeza for a flop of Q♣ J♠7♦ . Vaeza bet 55,000 which Molson called, then 100,000 on the 5♥ turn card which Molson called, then another 100,000 on the 3♠river. Molson then moved all-in, steering his chips into the middle like a kid pushing a toy car. 415,000 in total. Vaeza took his time deciding but eventually folded.
1:32pm: Matt Marafioti eliminated in seventh place earning $87,465
The action was folded to Matt Marafioti who made it 45,000. William Reynolds moved all-in and Marafioti called showing 7â™ 7♣ to Reynold’s A♥ Kâ™ .
“It’s the only hand I’ve had the entire day,” said Marafioti as they waited for the board. 9♣ 4♣ 10♥ , then the killer A♦ and the final 6â™ .
1.15pm: Vaeza v Molson
Adolfo Vaeza limps from early position for the two hands in a row. On the first occasion, he attracts both blinds — Tobias Reinkemeier and Lisa Hamilton — to an all-heart flop and then bets out when it’s checked to him. He wins. The second time isn’t quite so successful: Will Molson, on the button, bumps it up to 67,000 and Vaeza folds.
The same two tangle on the next hand. Molson raised to 47,000 from the cut-off and Vaeza calls from the big blind. They both check the J♥ K♦ 3♣ flop, but a bet from Molson on the J♣ turn takes it down.
1:14pm: Your final table
Here’s what these folks look like.
1:05pm: Small skirmish in the blinds
Folded to Will Molson in the small blind, he opted to complete Tobias Reinkemeier’s big. The German player checked his option and they saw a flop of 5♥ K♣ 6â™ . Molson checked, Reinkemeier bet 25,000, and Molson gave it up.
1:02pm: “I don’t want to see it!”
Michiel Brummelhuis just got a walk in the big blind and went to muck his cards. His opponents encouraged him to look at what he held. “I don’t want to see it!” he exclaimed. “It will tilt me if I had a big hand.” He turned over the cards anyway to see a pocket pair of fours. It didn’t tilt him, but we got the impression Brummelhuis would’ve liked a chance to play the pair.
1:01pm: Three to the flop
Three players saw a flop of 3â™ 9♦ 6â™ , paying the 41,000 that Will Molson asked them for when he’d raised pre-flop. Tobias Reinkemeier and Adolfo Vaeza had called and it was Vaeza betting, making it 50,000 to play. Molson passed but Reinkemeier fired back, making it 175,000 total, enough to take the lot.
12:52pm: Dmitry Stelmak eliminated in eighth place earning $66,885
The first all-in and the first elimination of the day. Short stack Dmitry Stelmak open shoved with K♥ 10♥ for a little less than 150,000 and was called by Tobias Reinkemeier showing A♥ 10♣ .
The flop came A♦ 10♦ 9♦ giving everyone a little something, but on the K♣ Stelmak was left with just two outs. Neither came, a J♦ sending Stelmak to the rail.
12:45pm: First blood to the lady
Lisa Hamilton takes the first pot of the final, making it 50,000 from under the gun and getting no takers.
12:42pm: Now we’re playing
The final table players are now looking at their first cards. After unanimous consent from the players (and the sign-off from the tournament director, the table will now play 10,000-20,000 level for two hours before moving on to Level 22. The decision was made to offset the 4+ hours it took to get from nine players down to eight last night.
12:37pm: New specs
If you were following our reporting yesterday, you know that Michiel Brummelhuis broke his trademark sunglasses. Today he’s shown up with a new pair that we, quite frankly, feel look much better on his face. We’ll see if it does anything to his game.
12:20pm: Final table about to begin
After the ordinary TV set-up work, the final table is ready to begin. We have a table full of people set up and ready to report. Probably a few more minutes and we’ll be underway.
