On Tuesday night, coverage of the World Series of Poker Main Event appeared on ESPN for the final time before next week's Octo-Nine finale in Las Vegas. The action began on Day 7 where we left off last week with 14 players remaining. Jacob Balsiger held down the chip lead at 22.9 million and two women were still standing, comprising 14% of the field.WSOP Octo-Niner and HogWild Poker pro Jeremy Ausmus is fielding questions from the PocketFives community this week in The Well. Ask Ausmus anything you want.
Jesse Sylvia (pictured), sporting a patch for 888 Poker, 3bet all-in pre-flop with K-Q and wound up in a race against Rob Salaburu, who held pocket jacks. Sylvia spiked a king on the flop to double up, stacking 40% of Salaburu's chips in the process. The boisterous crowd rooted Sylvia on throughout the night.
Sylvia wasn't done there, as he bet 4.3 million into a pot of 10 million with pocket eights on a board of K-8-4-K-10 with three diamonds for a boat. Balsiger mucked A-10, making Sylvia the new chip leader in the 2012 WSOP Main Event with 23 million. ESPN poker commentator Norman Chad astutely pointed out, "Jesse should pick up the check tonight at dinner."
Meanwhile, Hungary poker pro Andras Koroknai 5bet all-in before the flop with Ac-Ks and Canada's Marc Ladouceur called with As-Kc. The players expected a chopped pot until three clubs hit on the flop and one more came on the turn, giving Koroknai a double up and crippling Ladouceur, who lost two-thirds of his stack. ESPN poker commentator Lon McEachern reacted by saying, "What an amazing and stunning turn of events."
Danny Wong exited in 14th place at the hands of Greg Merson to end ESPN's first one-hour episode, prompting Michael Esposito to ask Merson what his name was.
To begin the second episode, Norway's Elisabeth Hille (pictured) doubled up France's Gaelle Baumann in a race with Q-9 of diamonds against pocket fours. Hille, who had Q-9 suited, insta-called for one-quarter of her stack after Baumann 3bet all-in pre-flop and watched as Baumann turned a straight.Ladouceur, who was chip leader to start Day 7 of the Main Event, fell by the wayside in 13th place after his trip sevens fell to Merson's full house. Ladouceur took 63rd in the 2011 Main Event.
Salaburu continued to be an oddball. In a hand in which Hille lost 40% of her stack after calling a bet of 1.2 million from Koroknai with 10-high and watching as her gutshot missed on the river, Salaburu chimed in, "Nice hand, Hungary!" He added, "Do it for Hungary" in a later hand. There were no "huevos rancheros" dropped, as Salaburu was mostly subdued on Day 7.
In a massive pot involving the two chip leaders at the secondary feature table, Steve Gee (pictured) bet 1.5 million with Q-4 of diamonds on a board of 7-3-K with two diamonds. Sylvia, who hit middle set, raised to 3.4 million and Scott Abrams, who held K-J of diamonds for top pair and a king-high flush draw, re-raised to 7 million. Gee got out of the way and Sylvia pushed, prompting a call all-in from Abrams, who started the hand with 90 big blinds.The pot was worth a staggering 44 million and ended with running clubs, sending Abrams out in 12th place and giving Sylvia one-quarter of the chips in play. The hand would virtually assure Sylvia a 2012 WSOP Main Event October Nine birth.
Hille 3bet all-in pre-flop for her last 11 big blinds with A-Q and Koroknai looked her up with pocket sevens. No help was in store for the Norwegian, who busted in 11th place to leave Baumann as the lone remaining female in the field. Hille told ESPN's Kara Scott, "The support is overwhelming – my friends and family back home and all of the people here who supported me as well. It was flattering and very nice."
The final 10 players consolidated into one table and the action came to an end after Baumann (pictured), fresh off doubling up with kings against J-9, open-shoved for her last 17 big blinds with A-9 and ran into Koroknai's A-J. Koroknai's hand held up and he sent the second straight female to the rail. Just like that, this year's Octo-Nine was set.Baumann told Scott, "I'm very proud to have gone so far. I'm disappointed right now, but I can still be proud of what I've done."
On Monday, you can catch the action from the Rio in Las Vegas on a 15-minute delay beginning at 8:00pm ET on ESPN2. On Tuesday, the finale begins at 9:00pm ET on ESPN.
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