WPT L.A. Poker Classic, Day 5 Recap

By BJ Nemeth

Here’s a look back at some of the highlights from Day 5 of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic as they played down from 18 players to the final six.

(Official seating and chip counts for the WPT Final Table are at the bottom of this photo recap.)

The hand pictured here — pocket aces losing to queen-jack suited — would be pivotal to the story of Day 5. This is just a teaser, as the details will be revealed later in this recap.

The Royal Flush Girls check out the action at the start of the day, as two-thirds of these final 18 players would miss out on the WPT Final Table.

Paul Klann (pictured above) started the day second in chips, but had a very strong first level, adding nearly a million to his stack to take a big lead. Day 5 was a steady one for Klann, who was never very far from the top of the leaderboard.

In a blind-vs.-blind situation, Paul Volpe (left) and Garrett Greer (right) bet back and forth over a board of [Kd7h2cAc8d]. Volpe check-folded the river, claiming he had seven-deuce (two pair).

Greer then smiled and turned over [7c2s] as he pulled in the pot.

Michael "Squeaky" Winnett (standing, right) was just as hyper and talkative on Day 5 as he had been on previous days, and can’t resist talking to anyone and everyone after moving all in preflop against Bruce Kramer (left). Kramer would eventually fold, giving Winnett the pot.

WPT Camera Operator Jon Gay set up a tall tripod to get an overhead shot on one of the final two tables.

Michael Winnett (right) three-bet all in with [As5d], but he ran into the dominating [AcJh] of Benjamin Zamani (left). Winnett turned a gutshot straight draw, but improved no further, and he was eliminated in 16th place, earning $49,630.

Michael "Squeaky" Winnett may not have been a favorite among his fellow players in this event, but he received heartfelt congratulations from the Royal Flush Girls after his elimination. (And yes, he was still carrying his cardboard tablet of "Seven Poker Commandments" and his homemade book, "The Poker Bible.")

With 15 players left and the board showing [8d5c4d3h], Naoya Kihara (left) check-raised all in. Paul Volpe (right) would fold, forfeiting the pot to Kihara.

Though Kihara won this pot, he would eventually be eliminated in ninth place, earning $96,780.

Alexander Venovski (right) was all in preflop with [JdJh], and a favorite against the [As3s] of Paul Volpe (left). But an ace on the flop was all it took to end Venovski’s tournament in 11th place, earning $70,970.

After Venovski’s elimination, the remaining 10 players combined to a single table. In seat order: (1) Bruce Kramer, (2) Garrett Greer, (3) Paul Klann, (4) Toby Lewis, (5) David Tuthill, (6) David Fong, (7) Jesse Yaginuma, (8) Naoya Kihara, (9) Danny Fuhs, and (10) Paul Volpe.

One of the key hands of the day was played between David Tuthill (center) and Danny Fuhs (foreground, right). With the board showing [10h9h5s10c8h] on the river, Fuhs moved all in, and Tuthill tanked for a long time, saying, "I really want to die right now," and "You guys might want to go on break."

For his part, Fuhs seemed completely comfortable, eating some soup from a side table while Tuthill was clearly conflicted. (Continued in the next photo.)

Eventually, somebody called the clock on David Tuthill (left), and about 10 seconds later, he called. Danny Fuhs (right) turned over [QcJc] to win the pot with a queen-high straight. Tuthill mucked as he was eliminated in eighth place, but since it was an all-in situation, the dealer revealed his cards to the table.

Tuthill had [AcAh].

Garrett Greer (pictured above) was the unfortunate person who busted on the TV bubble. Greer three-bet all in from the small blind with [AdKs], but he lost a race against Paul Volpe’s [9c9d]. Greer earned $161,300 for his seventh-place finish.

Winning the last hand of the night helped cement Paul Volpe (pictured above) as the chipleader, heading into the televised WPT Final Table with nearly 4.2 million in chips.

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

Seat 1.  Paul Klann  –  3,375,000  (67 bb)
Seat 2.  Toby Lewis  –  1,125,000  (22 bb)
Seat 3.  David Fong  –  2,295,000  (45 bb)
Seat 4.  Jesse Yaginuma  –  1,235,000  (24 bb)
Seat 5.  Danny Fuhs  –  3,280,000  (65 bb)
Seat 6.  Paul Volpe  –  4,195,000  (83 bb)

The televised WPT Final Table begins Thursday at 4:00 pm PT. Return to WPT.com for complete hand-for-hand coverage, along with updated chip counts after each hand.

You should also check out the WPT Live Stream, which provides all the action (including hole cards and expert commentary) on a 30-minute delay.