Live Tournament Updates
Gold Rush
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Jamie Gold has busted out of the tournament early here in day one.
Sorted In: Jamie Gold, Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V05:26 PM, 02/24/07
Level Two
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Blinds are now T50-T100. There are currently 790 players remaining in the tournament.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V05:21 PM, 02/24/07
Gold Specifics
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Just got some more information on the Jamie Gold elimination. Bracelet-winner Anthony Reategui was the one who took Gold out, with his pocket eights spiking a set on the A-8-3 flop. Gold controlled the betting until Reategui check-raised the turn, and when the river gave Jamie a third three, they got all-in. Reategui now has T61,000 heading into the break and may be our chip leader. Sitting with Joe Sebok and Bill Edler, who just won the $10,000 Heads-Up Challenge in California last week, he'll start to throw his stack around in an attempt to build it a little more.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V05:14 PM, 02/24/07
15 Minute Break for 790 players
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Players at the LAPC are on thier first 15 minute break of the tournament. The tournament directer just announced our offical count for the event, an amazing 790 players.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V05:08 PM, 02/24/07
Higher Flopped Flush Cripples Mortensen
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
After a flop of 10
65 The Matador, Carlos Mortensen, gets all his chips in the pot against his opponent.
Carlos shows 94 for the flush but his opponent has him drawing dead to runner-runner straight flush after he shows KQ
The turn and river do not include the 7 or the8 and Mortensen is crippled, left with only T300.
05:05 PM, 02/24/07
Gold Riding the Downward Spiral
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Jamie Gold's rough reign as champion continues to spiral downwards. Gold's lawsuit with Crispin Leyser over their World Series split was settled out of court two weeks ago, with the consensus being that the settlement wasn't a favorable one for Jamie. That chapter in Gold's life is over, leaving him with some poker to play, but every TV appearance confirms the suggestion that his was a fluke victory. Gold's appearances on High Stakes Poker and Poker After Dark left the pundits howling at an apparent lack of understanding of the game's finer points. His live tournament record hasn't been much better, with early burnouts accompanied by his massive collapse on day two of Borgata. Here, Gold was seated with Joe Sebok, but before we could even catch of glimpse of the two doing battle, Gold was gone, eliminated unceremoniously as if he was looking for an out. At least the quick elimination relieves him of the awkwardness of a confrontation with Leyser, who is here investing some of his hard-earned money in a buy-in. In five months, we'll have a new world champion. Maybe then, Gold's life can return to some semblance of normalsy, until then, unless he finds a way to earn this community's respect, he's going to be its whipping boy.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V05:05 PM, 02/24/07
Draft!
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Tony Berns is absent today, attending a wedding, but that didn't stop Ryan Lucchesi, Tom Bostic and I from fantasy drafting. The rules are simple: Pick five guys each in a snake-style draft (1-2-3-3-2-1-1-2-3-3-2-1-1-2-3). At the end of the day, the team with the most chip wins. Here's how the teams turned out: Tom (team 1) John Hennigan Erick Lindgren Gabriel Thaler John Racener Vanessa Rousso Gary (Team 2) Grinder Daniel Negreanu Gavin Smith Dave Williams Barry Greenstein Ryan (Team 3) Dan Harrington JC Tran Chip Jett Chip Reese John Gale
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V04:55 PM, 02/24/07
The Big Stories
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
Before we get too far into this thing, I think a review of our major storylines might be in order. Here’s a look at the short list of stories we’ll be watching unfold throughout the week: Hennigan – John Hennigan, coming off the biggest victory of his life, is back looking for more. Hennigan took home a cool $1.6 million three weeks ago at the Borgata, storming a strong final table like there was no doubts about the outcome. Now, Hennigan can follow one of two paths; suffer the lethargy that often comes with the sating of competitive spirit the big win often inspires; or let the confidence of the big win propel him to further success. Goehring – The champion here a year ago, Alan Goehring is here looking to defend the title. Goehring is considered one of the best tournament players in the world, his record only hindered by a lack of interest in events with a buy-in under $10K. Allan is sharing his first table with Player of the Year hopeful Joe Pelton two seats to his left. Look for some confrontations there. Parade of Champions –The LAPC isn’t for the feint of heart. This event has been won in each of its four previous incarnations by huge stars. The first year, it was Gus Hansen. Next, it was Antonio Esfandiari. Ten, the Grinder was our champ before Goehring took this thing a year ago. Adding your name to a list like that one puts you in exclusive company. Snubs – Later this week, the NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championships will be taping in Vegas. As per usual, the event’s sixty-four player bracket left tongues wagging about who did or didn’t get included in the event. Some of the biggest snubs, including David Sklansky, John Phan and Kathy Leibert are here, looking to prove their omissions were mistakes and trying to turn vengeance into cash. The Home Field Advantage – While Las Vegas is the gambling capitol of the world, Los Angeles may have it beat as pure poker goes. Remember, poker’s been legal here for a long time, giving birth to massive poker-only card rooms like Hollywood Park, The Bike and of course, Commerce. This place normally runs over three-hundred tables, with names like Johnny Chan, John Phan and Liz Lieu calling it their home base. We’ll keep an eye on home the home-casino heroes are doing throughout the event. The Oscars – Want your star-studded affairs? This thing is nothing compared to the parties LA is going to see this week. We’ll be watching as a few celeb-type players do their best to survive the sharks on the eve of their biggest night. Remember, the celebrity invitational starts on March 3rd, so there’s a lot of glitter around.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V04:51 PM, 02/24/07
Opponent Sniffs out Ng's Bluff
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
In a three way pot the flop comes 5
3
2. It is checked around to Evelyn Ng on the button. She bets out and is called by a player in middle position. The turn is a 8
. The middle position player checks and Ng fires out a bet of T2,500. Her opponent thinks for a while before finally calling.
The river is a 2. Once again the middle position player checks. Ng gives up and checks it down. Her opponent shows 5-4 offsuit with only a pair of fives and Ng sheepishly mucks her cards.
04:43 PM, 02/24/07
Multiple Playing Areas
Level 5: 200,000-400,000, 50,000 ante
There are so many players in the LA Poker Classic that the tournament is being played in three separate areas. The first is the ballroom on the second floor. The second is a tent in the lobby outside the ballroom, and the third area is downstairs in the decadent main poker room.
Sorted In: Tournaments, Commerce Casino, L.A. Poker Classic, Season V04:12 PM, 02/24/07
