SCOOP: ElkY reigns supreme in Event #35-H
($25,500 heads-up NLHE)

post from PokerStars Poker Blog on 22 May 2011 10:03:58 PM. © PokerStars Poker Blog

For six years now, we've been watching ElkY win things. It's a recurring phenomena that rears up every few months and tends to come in streaks. Was it really nineteen months ago that he won two WCOOP bracelets inside of a few days? Was it really two weeks ago that he shipped back-to-back high roller events at the EPT Grand Final? Honestly, we should have been more prepared. The way he's been running, a big score in the SCOOP from ElkY was practically a given.

At this point, what hasn't he won in poker? A World Poker Tour event? Been there, drank the champagne. The PCA Main Event? Done that, somehow got the trophy through customs. An EPT High Roller Event? He won three of them. A WCOOP bracelet? Try two in one year. However, until Sunday evening, the man absolutely no one calls Bertrand Grospellier had yet to ship a SCOOP event. Well, cross that one off the list. In typical ElkY fashion, it was a big one, the French Team PokerStars Pro taking down Event #35-High, $25,500 heads-up NLHE.

Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, 2011 SCOOP $25k heads-up champion

This was the steepest buy-in, the smallest field, and the only SCOOP event this year to have an overlay. Nine players entered the $250,000 guaranteed event, resulting in a $25,000 overlay. Four spots were paid with the champion earning $112,500. Action was spread out over two days, with the first two rounds taking place on Saturday and the "final four" matches playing out on Sunday evening.

Round One

With nine players in the field, seven received first-round byes leaving ChrisFun123 to take on K_0_S_T_Y_A. It only took four levels of play for ChrisFun123 to whittle down his opponent. The deciding hand was a classic coinflip, K_0_S_T_Y_A four-bet shoving for 6,190 with pocket sevens and ChrisFun123 making the call with [Ah][Jc]. An ace flopped and K_0_S_T_Y_A was out, taking us to the round of eight.

Quarter-final

Jonathan "Iftarii" Jaffe was the first to punch his ticket to the final four after making quick work of Kanu7. Ifrarii claimed half his opponent's stack on the eighth hand of the match, a bit of a cooler where both players flopped top pair, Iftarii's [Kh][Qc] outkicking Kanu7's [Kc][Jc]. Fifteen minutes later Kanu7 five-bet shoved preflop with pocket eights, but Iftarii called with [Ah][Qh] and flopped an ace, sending Kanu7 to the rail.

ElkY and Berndsen12 played small-pot poker for the better part of two levels, ElkY inching out to a 12,000 to 8,000 lead before one hand decided the match. On a flop of [Kc][Jc][6d], ElkY led out for 456, Berndsen12 raised to 1,187, ElkY three-bet to 2,345 and Berndsen12 shoved for 7,497. ElkY made the call, turning over a set of kings while Berndsen12 was looking for a club that didn't pair the board with [Ac][7c]. ElkY's set held, the turn and river falling the [Ad] and the [9h] to eliminate Berndsen12.

Everyone's favorite Swede Viktor "Isildur1" Blom--the king of swing, the sultan of spew, the overbet overlord-- made an appearance in this event, but could not get past Also11. Although Isildur1 quickly had him on the ropes when his [Qs][8d] turned two pair against pocket aces, Also11 picked the bullets up again a short time later and got pair off when he flopped top set. Down to 4,300 in chips, Isildur1 three-bet shoved a [Qd][Td][8c][Jh] board and Also11 made the call with [As][Kd] for the nut straight. Isildur1 was drawing dead with [Jc][9h] and finished in sixth place while Also11 advanced to the semi-final.

In the final match to finish on Day 1, Sussie Smith defeated ChrisFun123, the last of his chips going in preflop with [As][9s]. Sussie Smith called with [Ac][Qc] and made the nut flush on the river, setting the final four.

Semi-final

ElkY vs. Sussie Smith: Considering the starting stack sizes (10,000) and the structure (20 minute blinds starting at 25/50),ElkY's defeat of Sussie Smith was incredibly swift, taking only a bit more than 45 minutes. The Frenchman quickly leapt out to a 3 to 1 chip lead, but Sussie Smith reclaimed those lost chips in a hand where they both rivered trip fours, ElkY's with an inferior kicker. ElkY went back on the grind and pulled back out to a small lead when a fateful turn card led Sussie Smith to commit the rest of his chips:

Iftarii vs. Also11: This match was relatively even until Iftarii took a 3 to 1 chip lead during the second level of play. Iftarii called an opening min-raise to 60 from the big blind, then checked the [8h][5c][4h] flop over to Also11, who bet 120. Iftarii called and the [Kh] came on the turn. Iftarii checked again, Also11 bet 300, Iftarii raised to 720, and Also11 camed back over the top for 1,140. Iftarii flat-called and they went to the river, which fell the [6d]. This time, Iftarii led out for 850. Also11 looked him up, but could not beat his [Ks][6c] for the rivered two pair.

Iftarii caught a lightning bolt on the river in the final hand of the match after calling Also11's four-bet shove for 3,065. Iftarii had a temporary lead with pocket sixes against Also11's [Qh][8d], but the [Ac][Kd][Qs] flop left him drawing to only two outs. The turn was the [7d] but the [6h] fell from the heavens on the river, making Iftarii a set and eliminating Also11 in third place. We had our final two.

The final: ElkY vs. Iftarii

ElkY and Iftarii, high-stakes veterans both, were extremely relaxed as their match got underway, discussing among other topics, their mutual background in heads-up SNGs, the Vancouver Canucks (ElkY has tickets to Tuesday night's game), StarCraft2 and Iftarii's recent move to Montreal. Their first major confrontation came midway through the first level, ElkY opening for 100 and Iftarii making the call. Iftari check-called another 100 on the [Ah][Ac][8c] flop, then led for 250 when the [As] came on the turn. ElkY smooth-called, and the [Jd] hit the river. Iftarii bet 600, ElkY raised to 1,678, and Iftarii three-bet to 2,800, prompting the following chat.

"Probably gonna make the sickest fold of my life, lol" ElkY wrote.

He made the fold, claiming he had pocket kings.

Iftarii started clawing his way back, getting some nice value when he rivered a king-high flush in a 9,700 pot to take a 3 to 1 chip lead. However, he bluffed much of those chips off when he fired at the river on a [8s][7d][2d][9c][Td] board with only ace-high. ElkY called him with a jack-high straight and moved back up to 7,000 in chips. Things looked bleak for ElkY when he three-bet shoved on a [9d][7d][2s] flop with [Kd][Td] for overs and a flush draw, Iftarii looking him up with [Ad][4d]. An ace or a diamond would have ended the match right there and given Iftarii his second SCOOP bracelet of the series, but the [Kc] turned making ElkY top pair. The river blanked with the [3c] and ElkY doubled to 14,426, leaving Iftarii on 5,574.

Iftarii evened the score again when he turned jacks up and got two streets of value out of ElkY. However, only a few hands later, ElkY made trips on the turn with [As][5s] on a [5c][3d][Js][5d] board. He checked and Iftarii checked behind, the river falling the [Tc]. ElkY checked again, Iftarii bet 1,320, ElkY raised to 3,480 and Iftarii called to see he was beat. ElkY seized the momentum and continued to chip up, whitting Iftarii down to only 3,174 before he made a misstep. With the blinds up to 80/160, Iftarii opened for 320 and ElkY three-bet shoved for 16,826. Iftarii snap-called with pocket aces, which held up against ElkY's [Ks][9s].

The match would not make it out of Level 4, all the marbles going in again before the flop only five minutes later. Iftarii led off the betting with a raise to 320, ElkY three-bet to 800, Iftarii four-bet to 1,350 and ElkY shoved for 14,091 total. Iftarii called, his [7s][7c] up against [Ac][Jh]. Today belonged to ElkY, however, the board running out [As][9s][9c][4d][Ts] to seal his SCOOP win.

Congratulations to the inimitable "ElkY" on another incredible tournament victory. He earned $112,500 for his efforts, while Jonathan "Iftarii" Jaffe banked $62,500 for his runner-up finish.

So, ElkY, next stop WSOP bracelet?

SCOOP Event #35-High ($25,500 heads-up NLHE) results
1. Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier (U.K.) $112,500
2. Jonathan "Iftarii" Jaffe (Canada) $62,500
3. Also11 (Germany) $37,500
4. Sussie Smith (Sweden) $37,500

PokerStars.tv's hit web show "Inside SCOOP" airs at a special time tomorrow, 23:00 GMT/18:00 EST. Nick Wealthall is back behind the desk with Joe Stapleton for the final two episodes-- don't miss it!

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SCOOP: Big_nat123's big raises too much for Event
#35-L field (NLHE Heads-up)

post from PokerStars Poker Blog on 22 May 2011 10:03:58 PM. © PokerStars Poker Blog

The preamble before the big finish, the first set of roman candles before the grand finale of fireworks light up the evening sky. Event #25-L NLHE Heads-up matches carried the largest buy-ins across the board during the SCOOP 2011 series. Even the low buy-in was set at $270 carrying a hefty $150,000.00 guaranteed prize pool. As with many of the tournaments during the series this year, the guarantee was left in the rear view mirror as 1,010 players piled in yesterday to bring the purse to $252,500.00 as 128 places paid out (or four wins in a row) and tonight's champion would take away $50,500.00 of that. It is doubtful that anyone wanted to play a 24 hour (or longer) tournament so play was stopped last night after Gigacide busted and returned today for the round of 64.

Day Two begins!

Round of 64:

DrPill1, runner up in Event #28-L would make short work of his first opponent of the day. DrPill1 would defeat paul0s in just 23 minutes after reeling off wins in seven out of the last eight hands. zivziv, who was fresh off a final table in last night's Event #34-H would take a little under a hour to show mr_marrekie the door becoming one of 32 players to claim at least $1,767.50 for making it to the round of 32.

P0P goes the round

Ninety minutes after returning to the felt for day two just MrP0P and jackellwood were left to open the door for the round of 32 on table two. With the blinds moved up to 150/300 jackellwood made a min-raise from the button holding a 10,850 to 9,150 chip lead. MrP0P came back with a raise to 1,200 and jackellwood shoved holding pocket queens [Qd][Qc] to start the race against MrP0P's big slick. The flop [7h] [Tc] [7s] was clean for the queens, the turn [Ah] and river [Ks] gave MrP0P the higher two pair and the 18,300 chip pot. Three hands later MrP0P would claim the rest of the chips starting the next level.

Players receiving $1,010.00: v1cious, XTheDecanoX, muckipedia, majskolv, Reno1989, Scott "BigRiskky" Clements, Hariseldo723, LiLonen, Sghango, zyxel888, paul0s, dirtyplay25, 00oasis00, srNrooo, PAAD72, PuglieseA, 40and7, huiiiiiiiiii, IxLUVx$$$$$$, DeFrag3, RJRJ, __2cb__, mr_marrekie, tollefishy, Sjos de Nos, Barakiel27, P-i-t.DqDoG, StigR, PanamaRespec, JeffreyRZ, MagicMan111, jackellwood

Round of 32

Stakes moving up with a little more than a thousand dollar difference for making it to the sweet sixteen. zivziv continued to dominate quickly, only needing 20 minutes in this round partly thanks to nailing a rivered nut flush against 1BigAceHole's rivered top two. Another player of note in the round of 32 was -DrawingDad- who notched together two SCOOP victories already this series in Event #9-M and Event #21-L got off to a slow start against Amoroso5 down 18,138 chips to 1,862 early on in the match. DrPill1 would take a little more than an hour to claim his seat in the next round. Holding a 15,500 to 4,500 chip lead and blinds at 100/200 DrPill1 would catch a little luck as both players shoved preflop with Revjot holding [Jd][Ah] to DrPill1's [As][Tc]. However, the board would spike a ten on the turn [5c] [8h] [8d] [Td] [5d] handing DrPill1 the match sending Revjot out in 19th place. -DrawingDad- continued to collect more Player of the Series points as one of the final matches to complete. With the blinds at 100/200 he managed to mount a comeback taking an 11,890 to 8,110 lead in his match. After a standard min-raise from the button by -DrawingDad-, Amoroso5 re-raised to 1,250 total as both showed some excitement about the [4s] [Ts] [7d] flop. After trading raises post-flop Amoroso5 would turn over [7s][As] for a pair and the nut flush draw, going up against -DrawingDad-'s top pair [Th][9h]. -DrawingDad-'s quest for a three-peat would continue on, dodging all outs on the [Jd] turn and [8c] river, scoring a seat to the next round after zumbii's [9c][7c] failed to get past the pocket jacks [Jd][Jc] of Bushman to start up the round of 16.

Players earning $1,767.50: schNITzzzel (runner up in Event #9-M http://www.pokerstarsblog.com/scoop/2011/-drawingdad--not-drawing-dead--german-wi-081253.html ), BBlackkk, OMGlmBlack (no relation to BBlackkk), 1BigAceHole, nzaczac06, Jim1983Pim, a.kerdy, Nos172, Karelkorm, NessXG, mrG01R4NG, foster18, pololralph, Revjot, Amoroso5, zumbii.

Round of 16

Once again -DrawingDad- would dig himself a hole in the early goings of the match, but this time did not have the ladder to climb back out. A little over a half hour into the game with the blinds at 50/100 -DrawingDad- sitting on just 2,918 chips to BetrThanPhil's 17,082 the two-time SCOOP champion would take matters preflop after a several raises to get his small stack in the middle holding big slick [As][Kh]. No racing this time for a double-up as -DrawingDad- would need a small miracle to topple BetrThanPhil's aces [Ah][Ac]. Not even a sweat would appear on the [8s] [Th] [4c] [Td] [3c] board and -DrawingDad- was drawing dead by the turn, out in 14th place ($2,775.00). Tunnelvisie would give DrPill1 his final prescription in 12th place, and zivziv was short on chips against MrP0P and could not fade a small flush draw ending the chance for another final table appearance in 11th place.

Just 53 minutes into this round we would be down to Bushman and DemonBilly battling for the last quarterfinal seat and fairly steep $5K difference between 8th and 9th. Despite being on the small stack for the majority of the higher blind levels, Bushman would push DemonBilly for another 20 minutes as the blinds moved up to 100/200. Holding pocket fours [4s][4h] Bushman would call a shove by DemonBilly only to see it would not be a race. Wired sevens [7c][7d] for DemonBilly and no help on the [3c] [Qh] [3h] [6h] [As] board ended the round of 16 with Bushman's elimination in ninth place.

Players receiving $2,777.50: thë_®ö©K, Waaaghbozz, -DrawingDad-, xJohny02x, DrPill1, zivziv, ocnits, Bushman

Quarterfinals

Big_nat123 vs. BetrThanPhil

This match would only last 14 minutes as BetrThanPhil got behind early on and stayed there as the blinds stood at 50/100 and BetrThanPhil holding just 1,030 chips to Big_nat123's 18,970 chips when the final hand went down. BetrThanPhil managed to find pocket tens [Ts][Th] at the right time but Big_nat123's [Kc][8s] managed to connect with the [Ac] [As] [Kd] [7c] [7s] board just enough to eliminate BetrThanPhil (Ivey, Helmuth, Collins?) in eighth place.

spice5 vs. goodkicker1

The rest of the matches would not go so quickly into the night as spice5 and goodkicker1 would make it to the 80/160 blind level before spice5 got lured into a trap. Watch below for the results:

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After a preflop min-raise and call both players would check out the [7s] [8c] [5c] flop. goodkicker1 checked as spice5 bet 450. goodkicker1 wasn't going anywhere and dropped in another 830 chips making it 1,280 to go. Back to spice5 who held top pair top kicker [8d] [Ad], shoved for 6,950 as goodkicker1 covered and snap called with queens [Qs][Qh]. The queen on the turn [Qd] put this one out-of-reach as spice5 took home seventh place cash ($7,827.50).

Tunnelvisie vs. MrP0P

MrP0P was not pleased in the chat box at the conclusion of this one. This hand would take place almost the same time that spice5 was racking up for the day and moving on to another tournament as the blinds stood at 80/160 and MrP0P needed a double up quickly. Down to his last 2,665 chips he would limp in from the button and snap called the shove by Tunnelvisie holding pocket jacks [Jc][Jh]. Tunnelvisie turned over deuces [2c][2s] as the flop would contain the source of MrP0P's ire showing a two between a nine and a four [9d] [2h] [4d]. And as you read, the re-suck did not hit the [3d] turn nor [6c] river and MrP0P fizzed out in sixth place.

DemonBilly vs. john_baird_1

The longest match of the quarterfinals finishing nearly 40 minutes after Tunnelvisie wrapped up his match. With blinds all the way up to 200/400 and DemonBilly held a slight 11,450 to 8,550 lead as the two finally decided to settle it preflop. [Ah][Ts] for john_baird_1 as DemonBilly held the dominating [Ac][Js]. Needing a ten to extend the match, john_baird_1 did not find the [3d] [7c] [6d] [4s] [Qd] board to his liking and ended the quarterfinal round finishing in fifth place.

Players receiving $7,827.50: BetrThanPhil, spice5, MrP0P, and john_baird_1

Semifinals

Tunnelvisie vs. goodkicker1

Neck and neck for the first 75 minutes of the match as the players went to the hourly break just a few chips deviated from their starting stacks. They would play for another 45 minutes before the hand below went down during the 125/250 blind level:

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After an all-club flop of [3c] [6c] [Jc] and the minimum in the middle, goodkicker1 would check as Tunnelvisie bet 225. goodkicker1 check-raised to 1,000 as Tunnelvisie took a few seconds from the time bank for shoving for 8,150 all-in. Holding the flopped flush [5c][2c] goodkicker1 made the call. Tunnelvisie flopped a decent top pair with a re-draw to a higher flush [8c][Js], and a jack [Jh] made things even more interesting (or scary if you are rooting for goodkicker1). But, the river bricked [As] as the remaining 16,800 chips on the table settled into goodkicker1's stack and Tunnelvisie finished in third place ($15,150.00).

DemonBilly vs. Big_nat123

Big_nat123 would take the lead early on in this one, adding to it by winning nine straight hands and expanding the lead 12,000 to 8,000 with blinds still at the starting 25/50. Another string of 10 wins in a row for Big_nat123 during the 30/60 blind level increased the lead to 14,677 to 5,323. Towards the end of the 30/60 round DemonBilly finally scored a double up with a fortunate river card. With the board showing [7s][5d][4d][Qd] and 1,810 in the pot DemonBilly would get the rest of his 3,303 chips in the middle as Big_nat123 called holding a flopped set of fours [4s][4c]. [Jd] on the river and DemonBilly's pocket tens [Tc][Td] found a four card flush to claim the 8,416 chip pot.

But Big_nat123 was too much, pounding away with aggression and backed DemonBilly into a corner. With the blinds at 50/100 and DemonBilly now holding just 2,796 chips he would call the button min-raise to see a [Js] [Qs] [Jc] flop. DemonBilly checked as Big_nat123 followed through with a 225 chip bet that was quickly check-raise to 700 total. A call and Big_nat123 now faced a 900 chip bet after the [2d] dropped on the turn. Big_nat123's turned pair of deuces [2s][6d] was good enough to set DemonBilly all-in as the short stack did not have much of a choice holding just 996 chips left. DemonBilly made the call and was in decent shape to catch a decent river card holding [Kh] [Ts]. Any ace, king, queen, ten, or nine would extend the match but the [3c] ended DemonBilly's tournament in fourth place ($15,150.00).

Finals

Big_nat123 vs. goodkicker1

This is the way all deal discussions should go:

Big_nat123: Split the winnings and play for $5K?
goodkicker1: Sure
Big_nat123: I agree
goodkicker1: I agree

Fin.

$35,375.00 to both our player with $5,000.00 and the SCOOP championship watch for the winner.

Sorry, I don't believe you: Part One

Equally fast was the heads up play. As our final two took just 15 minutes to award the SCOOP championship watch and extra $5,000.00 from the chop deal. As with previous matches, Big_nat123's aggression was just too much for goodkicker1. Down to 3,838 chips in the first blind level 25/50 scored a much needed double making a huge call on the river. With the board showing [Qs] [4d] [3h] [Qc] [8c] after both players checked the flop, and Big_nat123 check-called a 800 chip bet on the turn, goodkicker1 checked the river as Big_nat123 set him all-in for the remaining 2,338 chips. Holding just fourth pair [3s][As] goodkicker1's read was correct as Big_nat123 flipped up [9s][Js] for the bluff.

Sorry, I don't believe you: Part Two "The Redemption"

Nine hands later watch the final hand of the SCOOP 2011 Event #35-L play out:

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A standard min-raise from the button by Big_nat123 got called as the players looked to the coordinated [Jd] [8d] [7h] flop. goodkicker1 checked as Big_nat123 c-bet to 125 and goodkicker1 made the call. [7c] on the turn same check and bet 300, but this time goodkicker1 check-raised to 950 as Big_nat123 made the call. [Qs] on the river and goodkicker1 checked again as Big_nat123 continued to fire away with a 1,362 chip bet. Holding plenty of ammo left (7,176 chips) goodkicker1 would shove all-in holding a busted straight draw [9h][6d]. Great play, but Big_nat123 looked right through it, making the call with a pair of jacks [Jh][9s] to claim all of goodkicker1's chips, the extra $5K from the chop, and the SCOOP championship watch for winning Event #35-L!

Be sure to watch for our Main Event updates via The Daily SCOOP recap post or Inside SCOOP webshow.

SCOOP 2011 Event #35-L NLHE Heads-up Matches results (05-22-11)
(* denotes part of two-way deal leaving $5,000 to the winner)
1. Big_nat123 (Canada) *$40,375.00
2. goodkicker1 (Germany) *$35,375.00
3. Tunnelvisie (Netherlands) $15,150.00
4. DemonBilly (Belarus) $15,150.00
5. john_baird_1 (United Kingdom) $7,827.50
6. MrP0P (Canada) $7,827.50
7. spice5 (United Kingdom) $7,827.50
8. BetrThanPhil (Canada) $7,827.50

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UKIPT Cork: Sam Razavi wins UKIPT Cork and 71,000

post from PokerStars Poker Blog on 22 May 2011 08:03:38 PM. © PokerStars Poker Blog

Sam Ravazi has won UKIPT Cork and ?71,000 defeating David O'Connor heads up in a tough two-hour bout. Ravazi fought back from a two-to-one deficit to beat O'Connor, who was playing his first major live tournament. While both players deserved to be in the final two, UKIPT Cork will be remembered most for a moment deep into the final table when there were just three players left.

Sam Razavi with trophy (and tiny Irish hat)

"David is going to need running cards to avoid elimination," are words that Martin Mulsow will be trying to forget for some time. Five million chips sat in the middle of the table as the tournament official announced the state of play; David O'Connor, all-in and at risk, with [ad][kd] and Martin Muslow, looking to cement a major chip lead, with [ah][ac] on a [6c][9h][js] flop. Sam Razavi watched on from the side lines, waiting to see who he would face heads up for the UKIPT Cork title; the indomitable Irishman or the maniacal German. It looked for all the world that it would be Muslow, O'Connor just 1.92% to pull off the suckout of the Century. Then the [kh] hit the turn.

David O'Connor

"David is going to need a king and only a king," the official pointed out as the cameras cut from face to face to board. The room, now deathly silent, waited for the river card. Just two outs for O'Connor. The [ks] hit the deck and O'Connor's rail, which included UKIPT champs Nick Abou Risk, Max Silver and David Vamplew, erupted. Mulsow, smile wiped from his face, stood hands on hips, battered and bewildered. A round of beers and chasers already ordered, a victory toast too soon. Of course, we'd had to lose a lot of players by that point so let's wind things back a bit.

Martin Mulsow

Before the final table proper began we had to lose three players, having finished Day 2 late with 11 left. The three that didn't make that final hurdle were Marc Gaudlitz, fan favourite Phil Baker and Vincent O'Connor. After a short break - TV shenanigans as per usual - the final eight sat down to play through to the ?71,000 UKIPT title.

Seat one: Allen McCauley, Ireland, 1,522,000
Seat two: Peter Burnett, United Kingdom, 477,000
Seat three: Martin Mulsow, Germany, PokerStars player, 1,878,000
Seat four: Adam Jaguscik, Poland, 886,000
Seat five: David O'Connnor, Ireland, 629,000
Seat six: Sam Razavi, United Kingdom, 2,013,000
Seat seven: Jamie Flynn, Ireland, PokerStars qualifier, 504,000
Seat eight: Chris Dowling, Ireland 822,000

The final eight

Peter Burnett was the first to go jamming [as][5d] into the pocket nines of Chris Dowling but that stack top up didn't help the Irishman to go much further, he bust out with pocket tens to Razavi's jacks just an hour later in seventh

With two players gone Adam Jaguscik, who had been ground down by O'Connor and Razavi on his left, found a hand with [kh][qh] and got it in. Unfortunately for the Pole, Flynn held pocket queens. That left five with Razavi still a long way out in front, O'Connor and Flynn catching.

Peter Burnett: first out

Chris Dowling made his second UKIPT final table this season

Online player Adam Jaguscik, now likely to play more live

Allen MacCauley was next to fall after shoving a short stack in with rags and getting looked up by Mulsow with [ad][2d]. No outdraw and he was despatched in fifth place, but looked thrilled to bank ?14,800. The gregarious German had started the day second in chips with and was suddenly back in the running.

Allen MacCauley followed shortly after in sixth

Coming back from the dinner break to start the fifth level of the day we were left with four players; just one big blind separating O'Connor and Rezavi who sat ahead of Flynn and Mulsow, but it was the German that was to break ranks. Razavi opened the button for 100,000, Flynn called in the small blind, Mulsow three-bet to 331,000 from the big and, Razavi safely out the way, Flynn shoved for 1,400,000.

Mulsow leant back in his chair, sucked air deep into his chest and, as if his life depended on it, said: "I have to call." Flynn showed pocket threes and Mulsow [as][ts]. It was another big call from the German, not the first, and he was rewarded with a ten on the flop. That pot pushed Mulsow a million ahead with 3,603,000 and Flynn out of the tournament with a credible fourth place finish and ?18,500.

19-year old Jamie Flynn played a calm and collected game

Then that moment. It's the situation that you dream of aces versus ace-king for a dominating heads up chip lead, just not the nightmare runner-runner that took place. Mulsow took it like a man and he deserves every single euro he won for it. If you see him at another tournament, buy the man a beer. He did the game a credit.

Martin Mulsow: buy this man, one of those

Mulsow was eliminated shortly after, shoving a dominated ace into his nemesis O'Connor. In the seconds leading up to his exit interview UKIPT host Nick Wealthall turned to me and said: "What do I say to this guy? That's not meant to happen." Indeed. It's not. The toughest of beats at the very worst of times. Afterwards Wealthall said he couldn't believe how well he'd taken it: "I'd like to say I'd take it that well, but I can't. He's a bigger man than me."

Mulsow with trademark grin earlier at the final table

That set up a heads up between O'Connor, carrying a two-to-one chip lead, and Razavi. Both players known for grinding heads up cash games, Ravazi's reputation more than a little intimidating. It was never going to be a short lived affair, unless another cooler such as the one between O'Connor and Mulsow manifested itself. Two hours later it took the classic top-pair versus big draw hand to all but settle the bout, [jh][9h] for O'Connor and [tc][8c] for Razavi on a [2c][5h][9c] flop. The flip landed for Razavi and rocketed the showman into the lead. The obligatory Michael Jackson celebration performed to his cheering section, UKIPT champ Jamie Burland so enthused he broke part of the rail itself.

Heads up

It didn't take long for the final blow [ad][7c] holding against O'Connor's [kc][6c] and Razavi stood hands aloft bellowing, Prince of Pop impressions forgotten in the moment of victory. Any of the final three would have been worthy victors but ever since Razavi stretched out with the chip lead yesterday evening there was a feeling that this was his tournament to lose. Apart from an ill-fated attempt at the moonwalk, he really didn't put a foot wrong. Sam Ravazi is the UKIPT Cork champion.

Razavi overcome by the moment

To catch up with all the day's action click on the links below. For all 81 payouts click here.

Level 22 & 23
Level 24 & 25
Level 26, 27 & 28
Final table profiles

All of wonderful images used in this UKIPT Cork coverage are copyright of Neil Stoddart. He knows people. You know, people. So please be kind enough to credit him.

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-081725.html

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UKIPT Cork: Day 3, level 26, 27 & 28 updates,
blinds (30,000-60,000)

post from PokerStars Poker Blog on 22 May 2011 08:03:38 PM. © PokerStars Poker Blog

12.05am: Wrap of the days play to come
Whilst the TV crew are already dismantling the TV set we're not quite done yet here on the PokerStars blog, we're feverishly working on a wrap of the day's play which will be winging it's way to you shortly. -- NW

11.50pm: Sam Razavi wins UKIPT Cork (?71,000)
From the small blind David O'Connor moved all-in for around 1m and Sam Razavi made a quick call. On their backs:

O'Connor: [Kc][6c]
Razavi: [Ad][7c]

The flop was [7h][8c][8s] which further strengthened Razavi's position, the [10d] gave O'Connor a straight draw to go with his overcard, but the [2h] was a blank and Razavi threw his arms in the air in celebration at winning the tournament. O'Connor meanwhile has the consolation of a ?41,200 prize in his first ever live tournament. -- NW

Razavi and co celebrate his win

11.40pm: Sam Razavi doubles through David O'Connor
Sam Razavi is now a monster chip leader after winning an 8m pot. From the small blind Dave O'Connor raised to 135,000 and Razavi called. The flop was [2c][5h][9c] and Razavi check-called a bet of 185,000. The [Js] hit the turn and Razavi check-raised to 1.4m after O'Connor had bet 290,000, O'Connor then moved all-in and Razavi called.

O'Connor: [10c][8c] for the flush and straight combo draw
Razavi: [Jh][9h] for top two pair

The river was the [Ks] and Razavi's cheering section went wild. After that hand O'Connor was down to 700,000 but he took the next three hands and is now up to about 1m. -- NW

11.34pm: Razavi 3 - 3 O'Connor
Since returning from the break the first six pots have been shared three apiece. The most interesting hand saw Sam Razavi make it 135,000, Dave O'Connor three-bet to 350,000, Razavi 4-bet to 800,000 and O'Connor 5-bet jam. Although Ravazi thought about it, he eventually let it go. -- NW

11.30pm: Players back in their seats with almost even stacks
The players are back in their seats, current stacks are 4.5m to Sam Razavi and 4.35m to David O'Connor. -- NW

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 30,000-60,000

11.15pm: Razavi continues to show the bluffs
Sam Razavi has shown David O'Connor that he has bluffed him in big pots on at least thee occasions. In the latest example O'Connor made it 110,00 to play and Razavi 3-bet to 325,000, call from O'Connor. On the flop of [7h][Jd][Qh] Razavi c-bet for 350,000 and O'Connor folded, Razavi showed [8][2] as he collected the pot.

The players are now on a 15 minute break, chip counts will be done during the intermission. -- NW

11.05pm: Small pot to O'Connor
David O'Connor just closed the gap slightly by taking down a pot of around 500,000 when he showed down [7][J] on a board of [3d][7c][Qd][Qs][6d]. This is still closer than close. You sense a massive cooler is the only way these two will get there stacks in the middle in the foreseeable future. -- NW

David O'Connor

10.55pm: Razavi takes the lead
They're trading pots, but Sam Razavi is winning the chunkier ones, he took down a 1.1m pot by betting 400,000 on the river of a [8s][9c][qd][4c][7h] board and getting a fold. The next hand David O'Connor showed down [Qh][6h] on a [2s][Qc][Kh][10h][Kd] to take a pot 450,000, Razavi has a lead of perhaps 650,000 but that's small beer at this stage of the tournament. Expect the swings to continue.-- NW

10.50pm: Stacks back to even
Pre-flop Sam Razavi made it 125,000 to play, Dave O'Connor 3-bet to 300,000 and Razavi made the call. The flop was [10d][10h][8h] and O'Connor c-bet 360,000, call from Razavi.
The turn was the [Jd] and O'Connor made it 580,000 to go and again Razavi made the call. The [5s] fell on the river and O'Connor slowed down, checking the action to Razavi who moved all-in. It was time to tank for O'Connor and tank he did, but after a few minutes thinking time he folded, Razavi showed [Ah][9d]. After that pot the stacks are pretty much dead even. -- NW

10.45pm: Small flush for Razavi
From the button Sam Razavi made it 125,000 to play and Dave O'Connor called from the big blind and they took a flop of [3d][10d][Qd], check from O'Connor, bet of 150,000 from Razavi, call from O'Connor. The turn was the [5s] check-call of 250,000 from O'Connor. On the [8d] river both players checked and Razavi showed the [2d] to win the pot. -- NW

10.40pm: Small pot poker
There's not been any big pots or showdowns recently. Perhaps the biggest piece of news though is the bar is shutting at 11pm, queue the rush. -- NW

10.35pm: On the rail
Both players have some pretty good poker players railing them. Dave O'Connor has got UKIPT champion Max Silver in his corner and Sam Razavi haa got UKIPT champion Jamie Burland is his. Also in the Razavi corner is his brother Eb who told me. "Sam looks comfortable, one double up for him and it's all over." -- NW

10.25pm: Razavi grinds some back
After dropping as low as perhaps 2m in chips, Sam Razavi has upticked to about 3.2m, Dave O'Connor still in the lead though with about 5.5m. -- NW

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 25,000-50,000

10.15pm: Mr 3-bet
Sam Razavi is definitely being the more aggressive of the two players pre-flop in htis heads-up battle. The Brit is peppering O'Connor's button raises with liberal 3-bet's. -- NW

Razavi is re-raising liberally

10.05pm: First big pot goes to O'Connor
The head-ups play began with a few gentle jabs but the first haymaker landed was by David O'Connor. He raised to 90,000 on the button and Sam Ravazi raised to 205,000 from the big blind, call from O'Connor. The flop was [A][Q][J] and Ravazi led for 165,000 and O'Connor called. The turn was the [2d] and Razavi bet 375,000, call from O'Connor. The river was the [4d] and both players checked and O'Connor showed [A][10] to win the pot. -- NW

9.55pm: Heads-up play begins
After a short break heads-up play has begun, chip stacks are Dave O'Connor 5.99m and Sam Razavi 2.86m. Both these players have played a lot of heads-up cash in their time, so it should be a good battle. -- NW

9.50pm: Martin Mulsow eliminated in third place (?25,200)
Down to around 25 big blinds Martin Mulsow found [Ad][4h] and got it in against David O'Connor's [As][Qd]. The board of [2c][5h][7s][8h][10s] meant that Mulsow went from the penthouse to the outhouse in a matter of minutes. Still a great performance from the affable German and ?25,200 buys a lot of jager. -- NW

It's auf wiedersehen to Martin Mulsow for now

9.40pm: Dave O'Connor doubles through Martin Mulsow
Sick is an overused term in poker but it accurately describes what just happened. Sam Razavi opened to 100,000 on the button, Martin Mulsow 3-bet to 280,000, David O'Connor cold 4-bet to 610,000, Razavi folded, Mulsow moved all-in and O'Connor called all-in, he was the at risk player.

Mulsow: [Ah][Ac]
O'Connor: [Ad][Kd]

The flop was [6c][9h][Js] O'Connor was going to need runner-runner. The [Kh] fell on the turn giving him some outs and bink the [Ks] hit the river giving O'Connor a miracles perfect-perfect. All three players looked stunned, least not Sam Razavi who wasn't even involved in the hand! After that pot, Mulsow is down to 1.1m and O'Connor is up the new chip leader with over 5m. -- NW

Even Razavi can't believe it

9.30pm: Drinks update
There is no tequila behind the bar. An order for six Jagerbombs, the poker player's drink of choice, has replaced the Mexican fun juice.

And in another random turn of events David O'Connor has started using a banana as a card protector in a desperate attempt to pick up the nickname 'Bananaman.' -- RD

9.25pm: Three beers, six tequilas
Now then, this is the kind of final table that the PokerStars Blog can get behind. Martin Mulsow suggested that a round of beers should be ordered beers having all made that elusive top three finish. Sam Razavi agreed on one condition, that the beers are accompanied by a couple of tequila shooters. Lively three-way play to come. -- RD

9.20pm: Huge five million chip pot
On only the second hand of three-handed play Martin Mulsow and Sam Razavi got 2.65m in each pre-flop and we saw the biggest pot of the tournament thus far. But... it was an anti-climax as both players had ace-king off-suit and a rainbow flop ensured a chopped pot. -- NW

9.15pm: Mulsow leads three-handed
Martin Mulsow is our chip leader with three players left and Sam Ravazi finds himself to be the shortest stack for the first time today. Players seated in the following order:

Martin Mulsow - 3,603,000
David O'Connor - 2,652,000
Sam Razavi - 2,594,000

Play has restarted. -- RD

Martin Mulsow bursts into ~~laughter~~ the chip lead

8.55pm: Jamie Flynn eliminated in fourth place (?18,500)
The action folded to Sam Razavi on the button and he raised to 100,000, Jamie Flynn flat called and then Martin Mulsow made it 331,000 total from the big blind. This prompted a swift fold from Razavi but Flynn then moved all-in for around 1.4m total. After getting a count, Mulsow lent back in his chair, took a deep breath and said: "I have to call."

Flynn: [3d][3h]
Mulsow: [As][10c]

The flop of [4h][10c][Jc] gave Mulsow the lead and the [8d][9h] turn and river gave no help to Flynn who exited in fourth place. The remaining three players are fairly close in chips.

Short break while the players have a chat. -- NW

8.45pm: Back from the break
Players are back in their seats and level 26 is underway. Chip counts are as follows:
Sam Razavi, United Kingdom, 2.69m
David O'Connor, Ireland, 2.684m
Martin Mulsow, Germany, PokerStars player, 1.77m
Jamie Flynn, Ireland, PokerStars qualifier, 1.69m -- NW

Will the luck of the Irish stay with Sam Razavi?

PokerStars Blog reporting team in Cork Rick Dacey and Nick Wright. Photos by Neil Stoddart.

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-081718.html

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SCOOP: Treezer topped all to win Event #35-Medium
($2,600 NLHE HU)

SCOOP logo.gif Heads-up poker is the epitome of the game. The essentials are all rolled into one match that results in only one victor. Some say it is the purest form of poker, as every hand matters, every bet is important, and every fold is costly. Players have little time to analyze their opponents and have to play from instinct and the skills they brought with them to the match. There is never a dull moment in a heads-up battle.

Event 35 presented another chance for players to compete in this heads-up format. With no-limit hold'em as the game, players were paired randomly with other players, each of whom could be a novice who won a satellite or a professional with extensive heads-up experience. Players had to be prepared for anything that came their way for each round.

The medium buy-in version of Event 35 offered a $200K guarantee for a $2,500 + $100 buy-in. While that may sound a bit pricey for the medium level, consider that the high version of this event cost players $25,500. So, medium this was. And as soon as the tournament began, registration was closed and offered these numbers:

Players: 152
Guarantee: $200,000
Actual prize pool: $380,000
Paid players: 32

Round 1 launched Day 1 of the two-day action, as every player started in Level 1 with 25/50 blinds and 10,000 chips. A number of players received byes for the first round, as the number of players exceeded 128 but wasn't enough for 256 (powers of 2).

It took seven levels for most of the matches to finish, but one table took it well into the eighth level before it ended. And it stopped when UhhMee was defeated and left in 129th place. Meanwhile, one of the Team PokerStars Pros in the field ended his run as well, as Britain's JP Kelly was ousted in the first round.

Round 2 got underway into the tournament's second hour with every single player partnered with a competitor. The 128 players on 64 tables wasted little time thinning the field further, with all eliminated players unable to recoup their cash.

This was the time that most of the PokerStars players also departed. The first to go was Stavros "IDOLLS" Kalfas, and Team Pros Lex Veldhuis and Dag Palovic followed. Team Online's Jorge "Baalim" Limon was next, and Team Pros Vicky Coren and Joep "Pappe_Ruk" Van Den Bijgaart also accepted elimination.

Round 3 was set up to reduce the field from 64 players to only 32, and this was considered the bubble round, as only those winning their matches and going to Round 4 would make the money. Play began with the necessary caution that was to be expected.

One of the two remaining Team PokerStars Pros was eliminated along the way, as Ruben "rubenrtv" Visser of the Netherlands tangled with XTheDecanoX on a board of [Kc][3d][Ks][8c][7c]. Visser moved in with [Kh][9d], but the trip kings were no good against the [Ac][3c] flush of XTheDecanoX. Visser exited in 63rd place.

The round finally came to its conclusion when bmwmcoupe defeated MONSTER_DONG.

Round 4 took a little pressure off the players, as they were all guaranteed a minimum $3,800.00 payout. The final 32 players were back at the tables to move on, though only 16 of them would do so.

The last Team PokerStars Pro in the tournament was Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, and he was involved in a very back-and-forth battle with SyrahJenNe. It wasn't until Level 4 that the final hand began with a series of raises that resulted in Grospellier calling all-in with [Qs][Qc], but SyrahJenNe showed [Ad][As]. The board of [4s][Ac][5h][2h][Ts] only improved those aces and eliminated Grospellier in 21st place.

A few more players, like toweliestar and Moorman1, exited as well, and PanamaRespec left in 18th place. When Lrslzk was eliminated in 17th, it ended the round and Day 1 of the tournament.

Day 2

Round 5 kicked off the second day of play at 12:30 ET with 16 players left in the field. Everyone was guaranteed at least $5,700.00 for their finishes, but the eight winners would move onward and upward. With a little rest under their belts, they proceeded and their matches were decided as follows, in the order they were completed:

yadio defeated VbV1990
supfoolio defeated StigR
Greenstone25 defeated GotURead
Rens02 defeated PrtyPsux
treezer defeated p0cket00
L0ve2playU defeated SyrahJenNe
ChrisFun123 defeated JIZOINT
deadfizh defeated XTheDecanoX

Round 6 - Quarterfinals

Play for the final four tables started just over two hours into Day 2, and the final eight players were guaranteed a payout of $13,300 for making it to the quarterfinals. But with money jumps significant for those who moved on, the matches were contentious.

Table 1 was the first to find a winner. Supfoolio had only a slight lead over Rens02, but the two got into a heated betting war over the course of the [Ad][Kh][4d][2s][As] deal. A bet from Rens02 led to a check-raise all-in from supfoolio, and Rens02 called all-in with [Ah][Th]. But those trip aces were beat by the [Ac][4s] of supfoolio who made a full house. Rens02 was gone in eighth place with $13,300.00.

A few levels later, Table 2 finished. It happened when short-stacked deadfizh got involved with ChrisFun123 to see a [Qh][3d][2s] flop, after which a bet, raise, and call led to the [Ad] turn. ChrisFun123 bet all-in, and deadfizh check-called all-in for 3,920 more with [As][5d]. But ChrisFun123 had [Ah][Tc], and deadfizh was out in seventh place with $13,300.00.

Soon after, Greenstone25 risked his last 1,300 chips with [Qc][8s] on a [6d][5h][Qs] flop, but treezer called with [Qd][Tc]. No help came on the [Ks] turn or [2d] river, leaving Greenstone25 out in sixth place with $13,300.00.

And moments later, yadio put his last chips on the line with [Jd][Jc], and L0ve2playU had only [8c][8h]. But the flop not only brought [8s][2d][Qc] for the set of eights, but the [Jh] turn and [8d] river completed the board with quads, which beat the full house of yadio. That painful elimination left yadio out in fifth place with $13,300.00.

Round 7 - Semifinals

The two tables in the semifinal round guaranteed each player at least $30,400.00 for finishing this deep in the tournament. The action got underway at the following two tables, with each player starting with 10,000 chips:

Table 1: ChrisFun123 v. supfoolio
Table 2: L0ve2playU v. treezer

On Table 2, treezer ran into trouble early in the match but managed the following double-up to completely take control of the table: