WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star, Day 3 Recap

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

By BJ Nemeth



Day 3 began with 20 players, which meant four 6-handed tables. It didn't take long for the first two bustouts, when the field combined to the final three tables pictured above.



This hand was probably generated the biggest roller coaster of emotions on Day 3. Steven Michaelis (center) was all in preflop with AK, a dominant favorite against the AQ of Moon Kim (right). But Kim flopped a queen to take the lead, and Michaelis was facing probably elimination.

But the turn card was a king, putting Michaelis back out in front, and he stood up and pumped his fists as you can see above. Michaelis was in great shape -- until another queen hit the river. Moon Kim won the pot, and Steven Michaelis was the first elimination of the day in 20th place.



If the previous photo represented the most emotional hand of the day, this one may have been the most impactful, at least in the early levels. On a board of J949J, WPT Champions Club member Taylor Von Kriegenbergh (left) check-called every street against Erik Cajelais (foreground, right) in a pot that grew to more than 1.2 million in chips.

Cajelais showed KJ to win the pot with a full house, jacks full of nines, and von Kriegenbergh could only flash the 9 for a smaller full house. This pot propelled Cajelais to the chip lead, and left von Kriegenbergh as the short stack, eliminated in 19th place just a few minutes later.



Shooting Star J.C. Tran (left) moved all in after a flop of 964, but even the prospect of a $5,000 bounty couldn't get a call from Danny Le (right). Le talked to Tran for about a minute, trying to coax some information, but he showed the K as he forfeited the pot.



Joe Serock (left) moved all in on the river with the board showing 99210K, and Mike McClain (right) tanked for a couple of minutes before calling. Serock would show A9 to win the pot and double up.



Shooting Star J.C. Tran (right) was all in preflop with A8 against the 44 of Mike McClain (left). Tran never improved, and McClain collected the $5,000 bounty and the autographed Shooting Star bounty t-shirt. Tran's elimination in 16th place left Jonathan Duhamel as the last remaining Shooting Star in the field.



Marko Trapani, Jr. (right) stares down Ubaid Habib (foreground, left) after moving all in preflop. Trapani entered the day with a short stack, and was treading water in dangerous territory for several hours. Habib would eventually fold, giving Trapani a few more chips to work with.



Shooting Star Jonathan Duahmel (center) shakes hands with Ubaid Habib after being eliminated in 13th place. Duhamel had been all in preflop with A6, dominated by the A10 of Habib.



Shooting Star Jonathan Duhamel signs his bounty t-shirt over to Ubaid Habib. This will be the first WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star final table without a Shooting Star.



This is the third bounty photo that Jonathan Duhamel (left) has appeared in, but up until now, he has been the hunter rather than the hunted. Earlier in the tournament, Duhamel collected the bounties on Elky Grospellier and Jason Mercier. This was the first and only bounty for Ubaid Habib (right), and he wore the t-shirt for the rest of the day.



With the board showing AK532 on the river, Amir Khaziri (right) moved all in against Joseph Elpayaa (left). Elpayaa tanked for several minutes before he called, and Khaziri won the pot with A5 -- two pair, aces and fives. Elpayaa mucked without showing.



Marko Trapani, Jr. (left) was all in preflop with QJ against Ubaid Habib's A10. Trapani never improved, and he was eliminated in 10th place, earning $41,600.



Ubaid Habib (right) watches as Marko Trapani, Jr. (left) receives a congratulatory hug from his brother Chris after busting in 10th place. It was an emotional moment for the two brothers, as their late father was the one who created this Shooting Star tournament. Last year, Chris finished 12th in this event, the first one held after their father's death in the summer of 2010.



The Trapani brothers (Chris and Marko, Jr.) talk to WPT Producer George Sylak (center left) after Marko's elimination in 10th place. They talked about their father, Marko Trapani, Sr., a co-owner of the Bay 101 Casino who was beloved by the players.



Ubaid Habib (background, center) watches from the rail while the dealer counts the stack of Moon Kim (right), who had just doubled up thru Amir Khaziri.



Erik Cajelais (left) eliminated Scott Baumstein in eighth place, and it was time for the final seven players to redraw for a single table. Cajelais was the chipleader at that point, in good spirits as he racked his chips alongside Joseph Elpayaa (right).



The final seven players, clockwise from the dealer: (1) Joseph Elpayaa, (2) Amir Khaziri, (3) Joe Serock, (4) Moon Kim, (5) Ubaid Habib, (6) Erik Cajelais, and (7) Andrew Badecker.



Moon Kim (foreground left) raised preflop, Erik Cajelais (center left) reraised, and Andrew Badecker (right) moved all in. Kim tanked for a while, saying he wished Cajelais hadn't raised behind him. Kim eventually folded, and Cajelais quickly folded AJ behind him. Kim said, "Oh, I should have called!" as Badecker took the pot.



In the 100th hand of seven-handed play, Amir Khaziri (left) was all in preflop with AK against the 99 of Moon Kim (standing, right). The board came 108466, and Kim won the pot with his pocket pair to eliminate Khaziri on the TV bubble.

Seventh place may have been the most painful position in the tournament. Not only did Khaziri miss the televised WPT Final Table, but the $64,000 he won, is only half of what sixth place is worth -- $128,200.



Seventh-place finisher Amir Khaziri (seated, top center) was still gathering his things as the other six players celebrated making the final table and began the process of verifying their chip counts and filling out their WPT bio sheets.



Here are the official chip counts for the televised WPT Final Table:

Seat 1.  Joseph Elpayaa  -  908,000  (95 BBs)
Seat 2.  Joe Serock  -  952,000  (98 BBs)
Seat 3.  Moon Kim  -  2,098,000  (105 BBs)
Seat 4.  Ubaid Habib  -  2,274,000  (114 BBs)
Seat 5.  Erik Cajelais  -  3,640,000  (182 BBs)
Seat 6.  Andrew Badecker  -  1,040,000  (52 BBs)

The televised WPT Final Table begins Friday at 4:00 pm PT, and the WPT Live Stream will begin on a 30-minute delay at 4:30 pm, with commentary by WPT Raw Deal Analyst Tony Dunst and Dan O'Brien. You can find the WPT Live Stream, along with our usual hand-for-hand updates, right here on WPT.com.

Floes Knows with Jess and BJ

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

On this episode of the Jess and BJ Show, Jessica Welman and BJ Nemeth know how to bet the Bookie's Over/Under on how many hands will be played at the final table, recap Day 3 of the Bay 101 Shooting Star, draft their final table fantasy teams, and answer the question, "What is your favorite Bo Jackson moment?"

ClubWPT Player of the Day - Erik Cajelais

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #100: Amir Khaziri Eliminated in Seventh Place ($64,000)

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Photo: Amir Khaziri (left) is all in preflop on the TV bubble against Moon Kim (standing, right).

Hand #100 - Moon Kim raises to 55,000 from under the gun and Ubaid Habib calls from middle position. Amir Khaziri is in the small blind and announces he is all-in for 457,000 total. Kim calls and Habib folds pocket deuces face up.

Kim holds 99 and Khaziri is racing with AK.

The 1084 flop keeps Kim out front and the 6 on the turn does nothing to change that. The river is the 6 and the nines hold to eliminate Khaziri in seventh place on the final table bubble. 

Moon Kim - 2,098,000 (105 BBs)
Amir Khaziri - eliminated in sixth place ($64,000)


The final six players are now bagging up their chips and receiving instructions about tomorrow's televised and livestreamed final table. 

Here is a look at the official chip counts and seat assignments for the final table:

Seat 1:  Joe Elpayaa  -  908,000  (95 BBs)
Seat 2:  Joe Serock  -  952,000  (98 BBs)
Seat 3:  Moon Kim  -  2,098,000  (105 BBs)
Seat 4:  Ubaid Habib  -  2,274,000  (114 BBs)
Seat 5:  Erik Cajelais  -  3,640,000  (182 BBs)
Seat 6:  Andrew Badecker  -  1,040,000  (52 BBs)

Hands #98-99: Final Seven Players

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #98 - Ubaid Habib raises to  50,000 and Joe Elpayaa calls from the big blind. The two players check the J65 flop and the turn brings the K and Elpayaa bets 67,000. Habib calls.  The river is the Q and both players check.

Habib shows K10 for a pair of kings to take the pot.

Hand #99 - Ubaid Habib raises to 50,000 from middle position and Erik Cajelais reraises to 130,000 behind him. Habib folds and Cajelais takes the pot.

Hands 94-97: Final Seven Players

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #94  -  Andrew Badecker raises from middle position to 40,000, and Moon Kim calls from the big blind. The flop comes 952, Kim checks, Badecker bets 50,000, and Kim calls. 

The turn card pairs the board with the 5, Kim checks, Badecker bets 137,000, and Kim folds. Andrew Badecker takes the pot.

Hand #95  -  Joe Serock raises from middle position to 45,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #96  -  Amir Khaziri raises from middle position to 43,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #97  -  Amir Khaziri raises from early position to 43,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hands #91-93: Ubaid Habib Takes a 900K Pot

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #91  -  Erik Cajelais min-raises from the button to 40,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #92  -  Ubaid Habib raises from middle position to 50,000, Andrew Badecker calls from the button, and Joseph Elpayaa reraises from the small blind to 169,000. Habib and Badecker both call. 

The flop comes AK3, Elpayaa bets 177,000, Habib calls, and Badecker folds. The turn card is the 8, Elpayaa checks, Habib bets 500,000, and Elpayaa folds. Habib shows AK (two pair, aces and kings) as he collects the pot worth 902,000.

Ubaid Habib  -  2,220,000  (111 BBs)
Joseph Elpayaa  -  1,100,000  (55 BBs)

Hand #93  -  Joseph Elpayaa raises from the button to 44,000, and Joe Serock calls from the big blind. Both players check to the turn on a board of 875K, Serock bets 75,000, and Elpayaa calls. 

The river card is the 10, and both players check. Serock shows A8 to win the pot with a pair of eights, and Elpayaa mucks.

Hands #84-90: Final Seven Players

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #84 - Amir Khaziri raises to 42,000 from under the gun, winning the blind and antes.

Hand #85 - Erik Cajelais raises to 40,000 from middle position, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #86 - Moon Kim raises to 60,000 from under the gun, Ubaid Habib calls behind him, and Joe Serock calls rom the big blind. The flop comes J73 and Serock bets 70,000. Both Kim and Habib fold and Serock takes the pot.

Hand #87 - Ubaid Habib raises to 50,000 from under the gun, Joe Serock calls from the small blind, and Moon Kim defends his big blind. The flop comes Q72 and Serock bets 55,000. Kim calls, then Habib raises, making it 150,000 to play. Both Serock and Kim fold and Habib takes the pot.

Hand #88 - Joe Elpayaa raises to 44,000 and Ubaid Habib reraises to 150,000 total from the big blind. Elpayaa calls and the two see a flop of 987. Habib checks and Elpayaa bets 177,000. Habib thinks a good 30 seconds before folding and Elpayaa takes the pot.

Hand #89 - Joe Serock raises to 45,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #90 - Ubaid Habib raises to 50,000, winning the blinds and antes.

Hand #83: Moon Kim Wishes He Had Called Badecker's All In

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

Hand #83  -  Moon Kim raises from the cutoff to 55,000, Erik Cajelais reraises from the small blind to 140,000, and Andrew Badecker moves all in for 988,000. 

Kim asks for an exact count, and thinks for a while. Kim points to Cajelais and says, "I wish you hadn't done that." Kim eventually folds, and Cajelais quickly folds behind him.

Kim says, "Oh, I should have called!" Cajelais reaches for his cards to reveal AJ. As for Badecker, he takes the pot without showing anything.

Andrew Badecker  -  1,224,000  (61 BBs)

Level 23 Begins

Level 23: 10,000-20,000, 3,000 ante

The final seven players are back in their seat after their latest fifteen-minute break. Blinds are now up to 10,000-20,000 ante 3,000. The field still needs to lose one more player before the televised final table is set.

Here is a look at updated chip counts from the break:

Seat 1. Joseph Elpayaa - 1,308,000 (65 BBs)
Seat 2. Amir Khaziri - 418,000 (21 BBs)
Seat 3. Joe Serock - 789,000 (39 BBs)
Sear 4. Moon Kim - 1,954,000 (98 BBs)
Seat 5. Ubaid Habib - 1,697,000 (85 BBs)
Seat 6. Erik Cajelais - 3,725,000 (186 BBs)
Seat 7. Andrew Badecker - 990,000 (50 BBs)