Live Tournament Updates
David Oppenheim vs. Steve Billirakis
Level 1: 100-200, ante
About 15 minutes into their match, David Oppenheim and Steve Billirakis are still nearly even in chips
David Oppenheim - 21,500
Steve Billirakis - 18,500
07:04 PM, 02/20/09
David Oppenheim vs. Steve Billirakis
Level 1: 100-200, ante
David Oppenheim and Steve Billirakis have just sat down to play their heads-up match. The loser of this match will finish in the 5th-6th range, earning $50,000, while the winner is guaranteed 4th or higher, worth at least $75,000.
David Oppenheim - 20,000
Steve Billirakis - 20,000
The starting blinds are 100-200, with 30-minute levels.
06:48 PM, 02/20/09
Steve Billirakis Eliminates Steve Sung ($35,000)
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With the blinds at 400-800, Steve Billirakis bets 1,900, Steve Sung raises to 5,200, and Billirakis thinks for nearly a minute before he moves all in for 20,600.
Sung counts out his own stack, realizing that he is covered by 1,200 in chips. Sung takes a deep breath and calls with A
Q
. Billirakis shows 77.
With their entire match essentially hanging on a race situation, the two Steves reached across the table and shook hands in a gesture of good luck.
The board came 54493
, and Billirakis wins the hand -- and the match -- with his pocket sevens.
Steve Sung is eliminated in the 7th-8th range, earning $35,000. Here's a look at Sung's path through the tournament:
Match #1: Sung beat Mike Leah
Match #2: Sung beat David "The Dragon" Pham
Match #3: Sung beat Tom Dobrilovic
Match #4: Sung lost to Ryan Hughes
Match #5: Sung beat John Phan
Match #6: Sung beat Scott Seiver
Match #7: Sung beat Racener
Match #8: Sung lost to Steve Billirakis
Speaking of Steve Billirakis, he advances to the next round, where he will face David Oppenheim in an elimination match. The winner of that match will face Vivek Rajkumar, and the winner of that match will face James Mackey. Whoever survives all that will face Chris Moore, but they will need to beat him twice to win the tournament.
As soon as David Oppenheim returns to the tournament room, the next match will be underway.
06:21 PM, 02/20/09
Sung Evens Up Against Billirkais
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With the blinds still at 300-600, Steve Billirakis raises to 1,500, and Steve Sung calls. Both players check to the river on a board of 9
84AA, Sung checks, Billirakis bets 1,800, and Sung calls.
Billirakis shows J10 for a missed open-ended straight draw, and Sung wins the pot with K8 for two pair, aces and eights.
That pot takes the players back to even chip stacks as the blinds increase to 400-800.
Steve Sung - 20,000
Steve Billirakis - 20,000
06:03 PM, 02/20/09
Steve Billirakis Doubles Through Steve Sung
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With the blinds at 300-600, Steve Billirakis (13,200) raises to 1,400, and Steve Sung (26,800) calls. The flop comes 1054, Sung bets 1,800, and Billirakis thinks for about a minute before he moves all in for exactly 10,000.
Steve Sung snap calls with AA, and Billirakis shows 32 for an open-ended straight draw. Billirakis needs to improve to stay alive.
The turn is the 6, and Billirakis clinches the hand with a six-high straight. (The meaningless river card is the 4.) With this hand, Steve Billirakis doubles back into the chip lead.
Steve Billirakis - 26,400
Steve Sung - 13,600
05:55 PM, 02/20/09
Steve Sung vs. Steve Billirakis: 13,000 Pot
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With the blinds at 300-600, Steve Billirakis raises to 1,300, and Steve Sung calls. The flop comes J92, and both players check. The turn card is the 7, Sung checks, Billirakis bets 1,600, and Sung calls.
The river card is the 3, Sung checks, Billirakis bets 3,800, and Sung tanks for several minutes before he calls.
Billirakis shows KQ for king high (missed gutshot straight draw), but Sung shows A3 to win the pot with a pair of threes. The pot is worth 13,000, and it's enough to give Steve Sung the lead.
Steve Sung - 23,000
Steve Billirakis - 17,000
05:44 PM, 02/20/09
Billirakis vs. Sung: Not Much Chip Movement
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With the blinds at 200-400, Billirakis (26,000) raises to 1,000, Steve Sung (14,000) reraises to 3,000, and Billirakis folds. Steve Sung takes the pot.
No, there hasn't been a lot of action in this matchup, but these two Steves are battling each other very methodically.
Steve Billirakis - 25,000
Steve Sung - 15,000
05:26 PM, 02/20/09
Six Players Left
Level 1: 100-200, ante
With only one match in progress at a time now, don't forget about the players that are still alive but waiting for their next match. A look at our "Chip Counts" page will show you the remaining players -- those in the Winner's Bracket are in blue, while those in the Loser's Bracket are in red. (Ignore the numbers in the chip counts.)
Steve Billirakis - 27,000
Steve Sung - 13,000
Winner of this match plays David Oppenheim. Winner of that match plays Vivek Rajkumar. Winner of that match plays James Mackey. Winner of that match players Chris Moore in the finals.
05:09 PM, 02/20/09
Steve Sung vs. Steve Billirakis
Level 1: 100-200, ante
Since the Winner's Bracket is complete, as well as the top half of the Loser's Bracket (where Vivek Rajkumar waits), there will only be one heads-up match going on at a time for the rest of the tournament.
The current match is Steve Sung v. Steve Billirakis, and it's a great one. The winner is guaranteed at least $50,000 for reaching the top six, while the loser will finish in the 7th-8th range ($35,000).
Billirakis had a lead of roughly 29,000 to 11,000 when this hand went down.
Sung raises to 700, Billirakis reraises to 1,800, and Sung calls. The flop comes A87, Billirakis bets 1,300, and Sung calls. The turn card is the 6, and both players check. The river card is the 10, Billirakis bets 1,900, and Sung calls (leaving himself about 5,000 behind).
Billirakis shows Q-Q, but Sung wins the pot with A3 (pair of aces). Here are the updated approximate chip counts:
Steve Billirakis - 24,000
Steve Sung - 16,000
05:03 PM, 02/20/09
Winner's Bracket Finals: Chris Moore Defeats James Mackey
Level 1: 100-200, ante
Chris Moore had taken a big lead against James Mackey, when Mackey was shortstacked and all in preflop with Q8 against Moore's A8.
The board came 106549, and Chris Moore won the pot -- and the match -- with his ace kicker.
With that, Chris Moore becomes the champion of the Winner's Bracket, guaranteeing himself at least second place ($190,000), and he'll have two chances to beat the sole survivor from the Loser's Bracket.
James Mackey moves to the finals of the Loser's Bracket, where he will wait to play the winner among Vivek Rajkumar, David Oppenheim, Steve Billirakis, and Steve Sung.
04:47 PM, 02/20/09
