At the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Big One for One Drop final table, David Einhorn doubled through Antonio Esfandiari (pictured) with aces versus queens after all of the money went in pre-flop to form a 16.5 million-chip pot. The flop came 5-9-8 with two spades, and the ten of clubs on the turn kept Einhorn ahead. The final card was a three and Einhorn doubled up.Einhorn's cheering section stood and applauded, while their hero took a big swig of liquid from a black water bottle. Olivier livb112 Busquet, who was providing commentary on ESPN2 on a 15-minute delay, told viewers that Einhorn, a hedge fund manager, knows how to "manage risk," which could give him a leg up in today's final table. A top prize of $18 million is up for grabs.
Meanwhile, Esfandiari, who was the grim reaper for seven players eliminated on Day 2 of the One Drop, remained the chip leader despite the hit. Esfandiari held about 26% of the chips in play, according to an ESPN2 graphic, while Sam Trickett had 25%. Esfandiari's father is in attendance and is seated directly behind his son.
Busquet reminded viewers that Einhorn has vowed to donate all of his winnings to charity. In addition, the hedge fund manager has received coaching in recent weeks from Mike timex McDonald (pictured). At one point, after Einhorn min-raised on Esfandiari, Busquet noted that McDonald's influence could have been at work given online poker players' proficiency to min-raise. McDonald also coached 2011 WSOP Main Event champion Pius Heinz and is currently coaching Brandon Adams.Then, Guy Laliberté check-raised all-in on a flop of 7-6-5 with two hearts in a hand against Esfandiari. According to coverage on WSOP.com, "Laliberté stared straight at Esfandiari while he tanked. At one point, Esfandiari tried to chat up Laliberté, but he didn't seem to respond. Laliberté then reached and put on a blue clown nose as a joke. The two got a laugh and then Esfandiari folded." You have to love blue clown nose references.
Laliberté held J-8 of clubs for a draw, while Esfandiari had 10-6 for a pair. Busquet put Laliberté on 7-6 and Esfandiari on a big pair. Busquet admitted, "I completely misread that hand."
The stacks at the time of writing were as follows:
1. Antonio Esfandiari - 39,425,000
2. Sam Trickett - 35,850,000
3. Guy Laliberté - 19,750,000
4. David Einhorn - 13,850,000
5. Phil Hellmuth - 10,525,000
6. Brian tsarrast Rast - 10,275,000
7. Richard Yong - 7,575,000
8. Bobby Baldwin - 6,600,000
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