Only two more eliminations are needed before the 2017 World Series of Poker $10,000 no-limit hold’em main event champion is decided. Blumstein had lost first place to John Hesp, but won a monster hand against Hesp to regain the lead.
The tournament began July 8 with 7,221 entrants.
Piccioli was eliminated after going all in with an ace-seven off-suit pair and getting beat by a pair of kings from player Dan Ott, of Altoona, Pa.
Dan Ott and Benjamin Pollak will look to mount a comeback against the sizable leader on Saturday. After Friday night, the chip leader is still Scott Blumstein, who entered the final table with the chip lead and has put in a dominating performance.
“I’m thinking: ‘Who are these people wanting to get connected with me?’ It looks as though I’ve become an global poker celebrity in the span of 48 hours”.
Soon after Salas’s bustout, Saout doubled up again, that brought him up to 50,000,000 in chips. The was safe, but Ott drilled the on the river for the straight.
The first big highlight of Ott’s night came when Damian Salas called his raise of 3.4 million on Hand 102.
Ott also scored the second knockout of the night. Salas snap-called, and the cards were revealed.
“I can’t explain technically how I should play in this position”, he told Poker News. He was actually the unsung hero of the group last night, helping his tablemates advance in the money by eliminating Damian Salas in seventh place and Bryan Piccioli in sixth place. Both Blumstein and Pollak checked. ESPN’s audience knew this, but Saout didn’t; after checking and a Blumstein bet, Saout called and was pulled further into the trap.
There were two all-in moves in the first five hands, one from Antoine Saout and the other from Daniel Ott. Blumstein turned a well-disguised straight on a board of Jack-7-6-4 with 5-3 of spades as his hole cards, and forced Saout to a decision for all of his chips after a second Jack hit on the river.
Antoine Saout, who finished third in the 2009 Main Event, bowed out in fifth place. The 64-year-old father of four and grandfather to seven held the chip lead at one point during the first day of the final table, but his top two pair ran into the top set of Blumstein to see him fall to one of the short stacks. But he eliminated fan favorite John Hesp of England on the final hand late Friday and starts the final day with 45.85 million chips. Pollak folded from the big blind, and the flop came. Nobody else called and Hesp revealed the 97.
Mr Smalley said his boss has been taken aback by the interest in his story, which saw him inundated with invitations to parties from big names within the poker fraternity.
Play started with 56:01 remaining in Level 39, with blinds at 600,000/1,200,000 and a 200,000 ante.
Blumstein, a 25-year-old professional poker player from Morristown, New Jersey, will have more than 60 percent of the chips in play when action resumes at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Rio Convention Center with three players remaining.