Live updates from Day 2, level 12 of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Howard Swains, Brad Willis, and Simon Young.
Click refresh to see the latest updates below. Click through to the chip count page for selected notable chip counts, updated regularly throughout the day.
Previous coverage: Day 1A wrap | Day 1B wrap | Level 9 | Level 10 Level 11
Blinds: 1,200-2,400-200
7.25pm: Break time
That’s break time. Back in 15 minutes for the last 75-minute level of the day.
There’s a board of 7♥ 9â™ 5♦ 2♥ , about 100k in the middle, two players heads up and a shed load of people surrounding the table, all getting in the tournament official’s way.
“I need some space people,” he said, “Go and sweat another table for a while and come back later.”
It’s a ridiculous thing to say because Josh Bergman had bet 20,000 and Tristan Wade has been in the tank for five minutes. No one is going anywhere.
“It would be a sick bluff,” said Wade, folding. “I think you got aces.”
Bergman looked at his cards and, with some gentle and relentless encouragement from friends on the rail, showed his K♠5♥ .
“Just a pair?” asked Vanessa Rousso. Yep.
7.20pm: Praz Bansi wins monster hand, takes chip lead
Brit Praz Bansi has dispensed with Team PokerStars Pro JC Alvarado in a hand that takes him up to 720,000… and to the chip lead.
It all kicked off on the Q♥ 6♣ J♣ flop, when Bansi bet 7,000. Alvarado fired back with 21,000, Bansi made it 45,000, Alvarado increased it to 90,000, and Bansi called.
On the 4♣ turn, Alvarado checked, Bansi moved all-in (covering Alvarado), who called for his last 150,000. On their backs, and Alvarado got the bad news:
Alvarado: Q♦ Qâ™
Bansi: 10♣ 7♣
Bansi’s flush had got him in the lead, and he needed to fade a paired board on the river, which he did when it fell 3♦ .
As Bansi stacked his new chips, which took a fair amount of time, he told me: “This could be my first EPT cash,” he joked. “And it’s not actually in Europe, which is no surprise as I never cash at home. Always in America.”
7.15pm: Oh-brestad
Annette Obrestad is clinging on. It never looks like she’s clinging on, more that she’s in complete control. There’s no sign of any threat to her tournament survival, even a big stack up against her is at a disadvantage.
At least that’s the theory.
She opened for 5,300 in middle position getting a call in Quinn Do on the button. On the flop of 9♣ Q♥ 6♦ both checked for a 8♥ turn. Obrestad checked again leaving it to Do to bet 10,500, an instant pass for Obrestad now down to 30,500.
7:05pm: Justin Bonomo: Now with more danger!
Justin Bonomo is pretty much always dangerous at the table, but give him a healthy stack of chips, and it’s katie-bar-the-door. Moments ago, we stopped by his table just as he moved all-in on a board of 2♦ Kâ™ 10♦ 7♦ for 118,000. That was a bit above the 80,000 already in the pot. His opponent said, “I have a really big hand here.” And he wasn’t lying. Meanwhile, the man chattered, and kept mumbling, ‘set of tens, set of tens.” Finally, with a pronouncement that spoke of Seinfeld’s Kramer exiting The Contest, the man said, “I call!”
And Bonomo turned over…a set of tens. It was A♣ and….wait for it…A♦ for the man who called. Bonomo faded the diamond and remaining aces on the river and doubled up.
Telling you folks…danger.
7pm: Marshall’s law
Debra Marshall, the PokerStars qualifier who is loving her time here at the PCA, especially as she is now sharing the same table as Phil Ivey, has just doubled up to more than 40,000.
She faced a pre-flop bet of 7,000 and pushed all in for 22,800. She had A♦ J♣ and was up against A♠5♠, but the board ran a safe J♠6♦ 4♥ 10♠Q♦ .
Go, Debra!
6.55pm: In dyer need
On a board reading A♣ A♦ A♥ 7♠8♥ and around 75,000 in the middle Greg Dyer bet 50,000 in early position, rested his head on the table, into a kind of prayer position, and waited for a reply. Giving that reply was Johnny Lodden whose stack today underwent miracle growth from 12,400 to more than 200,000. Eventually Lodden called, turning over J♦ J♥ . But Dyer has him beat with Q♣ Q♥ , taking him to around 300,000.
“Were you praying for all-in?” asked Lodden.
6:50pm: Team PokerStars Pro roundup
We just made a walk of the 40 or so tables remaining in the field and have compiled what we believe the be a comprehensive list of Team Pros left in the field (but don’t hold it against us if we missed one or two, because some of them happen to have the power of invisibility).
Johnny Lodden–250,000
Dario Minieri–195,000
John Duthie–185,000
J.C. Alvarado–180,000
Matthias De Meulder–170,000
Steve Paul-Ambrose–115,000
Dennis Phillips–110,000
Pier Paolo Fabretti–100,000
Fatima de Melo–85,000
Barry Greenstein–60,000
Daniel Negreanu–56,000
Vicky Coren–55,000
Luis Medina–50,000
Vanessa Rousso–45,000
6.45pm: That was better than pitching
Baseball legend and Team PokerStars SportStar Orel Hershiser found a timely double up that he claimed “was better than pitching”. On a 5♦ A♥ 3♥ flop he faced a 6,500 bet but re-popped to 30,000. His opponent moved all in – call! A♦ Q♥ for Hershiser, A♣ 8â™ for seat 8. The 10♥ turn and 9♥ river improved his hand to a straight, and Hershiser moves up to 125,000.
6.40pm: Neagreanu on his challenge
Daniel Negreanu is amusing his table by explaining the rules of his PokerStars $10 Challenge, in which he is attempting to turn, er, $10 into $100,000. I won’t extend my finger muscles here by repeating everything about what the challenge entails – you can read all about that here – but what is interesting is what he had to say today. He’s up to nearly $200 and is on the 10c-25c six max no limit tables.
“One thing that really surprised me is the skill jump as you move up even the micro stakes. It is amazing that I noticed a real difference in play even from the 2c-5c games to the 5c-10c games. Now at the level I am at there are some people who play really well – and it will only get harder from here.
“I’m playing quite safe poker, almost min raising a lot of the time because I don’t want to risk too much. Of course, once I get up to the higher levels, say $2-$4 I’m really going to have to think carefully about how I play.”
6.35pm: Rousso reeling
There had been action, 75,000 worth, all piled into the middle of the table. Vanessa Rousso had bet 10,000 of her 40k stack on a board showing J♥ Kâ™ 6â™ A♣ 7♥ . Marc Etienne Mclaughlin was in the hand with her, on the button to Rousso’s cut off. “All-in,” said Mclaughlin now making Rousso uncomfortable, what with close to 300k in reserve.
Rousso talked through things to herself, said “sick” a few times and talked some more. Mclaughlin said nothing, waiting for Rousso to fold. She did, tapping the table, left with a little more than 30,000. Mclaughlin up to nearly 450,000.
6.25pm: It was brief
Anibal Tacla only came to our attention late yesterday, when he was seen bagging up a day 1b chip leader-sized stack. And now he’s out. Details of his demise are as scarce as they were of his rise yesterday, but suffice to say the Brazilian has bust.
6.25pm: Angel’s halo slips
Angel Guillen is out, losing with a boat – queens over aces – to quad queens. The Team Pro from Mexico flat called a pre-flop raise with his pocket aces, and the flop came Q-Q-2. He then called bets of 5,600 on the flop; a bet of 16,000 when a 7 turned and then it was all in, all out on the Q river. Guillen falls.
6.20pm: Big stacks
There are two Brits near to the top of this leaderboard, Praz Bansi (360,000) and Wayne Bentley (420,000). The American contingent is best represented by Eric Froelich (370,000).
6.15pm: Penultimate level
This conversation just took place in PokerStars Blog HQ.
Blogger one: “We’ve got this level and one after it, right?”
Blogger two: “No, we’ve got one more level.”
Blogger one: “This level is it?”
Blogger two: “No, this level and then one after it.”
Blogger one: “That’s what I said.”
Blogger two: “Oh.”
With that out the way, allow me to explain that there are two levels left today. This one, level 13, which we have just started. And then the next one, level 14, which is coming up after that.
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