Racing handicappers often look for what’s called a “key race” when studying the form, a race in which several of the front finishers go on to greater success. Well table four yesterday could be described as a “key table”. It featured Shaun Deeb, Andrew Malott and Carter Phillips, three internet earth movers now making headway into the real world. Deeb cashed five times at the World Series this year while Malott reached his first final table, finishing fifth in a $1,500 event for $147,131. Phillips on the other hand broke onto the scene in Vena del Mar this year, going deep in the LAPT event.
Fast forward to Kyiv where Deeb excelled yesterday, Phillips did too for a time, as did Malott. While they went their own way today (Malott to table ten, Deeb to table 26, Phillips home, kind of ruining my analogy) the pattern remains the same – these guys like to own their table.
Shaun Deeb
Malott particularly cuts an imposing jib. Unlike the happy-go-lucky figure Deeb appears as, Malott sports a thick black beard and, when you can see it behind wrap around mirrored shades, a long angular face. He dresses in sports clothes. Yesterday he was Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns, today he’s Dennis Eckersley in a retro Indians shirt. You sense that if each table had to elect a leader, Malott would win based on a jovial nature, instinctive glad handing and an inbuilt need to talk his way through the day, even when its met with Russian silence.
Andrew Malott, yesterday… as a Phoenix Sun
Malott made it 3,500 from mid position which Pavel Anfinoguenov in seat four raised to 10,600 from the button. “How much you start the hand with?” asked Malott leaning forward. Anfinoguenov said nothing, possibly not understanding, but sat with a stack of yellows capable of putting off all but the warrior brave. “Okaaay” said Malott, in the same way you’d say it to a kid whose story you didn’t believe, and called for a flop of 3♥ Q♣ A♥ . Then he checked. Anfinoguenov laid out 11,000 and Malott folded before the last of the bet hit the baize, showing his pocket jacks. “Nice hand” said Malott with a touch of swagger. “He had ace-king…” he tells the others, “He let me know too, pre-flop. I appreciate you telling me…”
Anfinoguenov said nothing, perhaps not even realising Malott was talking to him, and let his new chips do the talking instead. But it wasn’t long before the American was in action again, the next hand in fact, making it 3,500 and getting a caller from the button player Konstantin Turchenko in seat five. They saw the flop: 9♥ K♣ 10♣ and Malott mades it 8,100 to Turchenko . the Russian announced “all-in”, shoving his chips forward, causing Malott to shuffle in his chair briefly before asking “how much?”
But he’d already called before the dealer had finished counting, showing his Q♦ K♥ to Turchenko’s 9♣ 8♣ . There are outs everywhere, it’s roulette but not for the Russian; 10♦ on the turn, 6♦ on the river. Malott allows himself a quiet celebration before shaking Turchenko’s hand, then offering his fist for an east meets west manly pound between victor and vanquisher Turchenko looked back at the table for a second, and then headed for the door.
“Thanks dealer” says Malott before adding a sincere “well done.” He takes his cap and sunglasses off and runs his hands through his hair a few times. Someone says it’s a good call, another agrees but says you still have to win it. “Yeah” says Malott, “that’s the hard part.” Then he puts his cap back on, like a lineman returning to the huddle, and waits for the next hand. That’s 150,000 in front of him now.
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ELIMINATION OF THE LEVEL
Ivan Demidov is out. He filled in the details, saying that the elimination hand was fairly standard: he was short-stacked and shoved with threes in the big blind, running into pocket jacks. The hand that did the damage came earlier, when he called a cut-off’s raise in the big blind with K♥ J♥ . The flop came king high, with one heart, and he check-raised a single opponent, who had a stack of close to 20,000. The opponent had aces. “This hand I think I played bad,” Demidov said. “The elimination was standard.”
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STATISTIC OF THE LEVEL
There are 128 players remaining at the start of level 10.
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VIDEO BLOG OF THE LEVEL
Watch EPT Kyiv S6: Eren Sergil FPP Qualifier on PokerStars.tv
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NEIL STODDART PHOTO OF THE LEVEL
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