Mikhail Smirnov Eliminated in 11th Place ($11,908)
Gerard Rechnitzer completed with a , and Mikhail Smirnov raised to two bets with a . Right behind him, Stephen Su reraised to three bets also showing a , and that drew a long pause from Rechnitzer. he only had about 80,000 chips left behind, if that. But Smirnov had even less. Rechnitzer called the floor over to ask how the payouts would be awarded if they were both eliminated on the same hand. With his bigger stack, of course, Rechnitzer would be in line to receive the higher payout if that occurred, and it was a difference of more than $3,000 they were discussing. After some deliberation, Rechnitzer elected to duck out of the way and let the other two go at it. Smirnov reraised for the extra 2,000 he had behind, and the boards were run through.
Smirnov:
Su:
Smirnov drew pretty poorly and could only manage a ten-low, but he was still in front of Su's first six cards. His river was a timely , though, giving him the pot and the knockout.
It's not so timely for Smirnov, sent to the rail in 11th place for nearly $12,000. Rechnitzer has locked up that pay bump.