It folded around to Michael Binger on the button who raised, and when Gregory Jamison in the small blind looked like he was contemplating sticking around, Binger offered some advice.
"Remember, we're on the bubble guys. Don't want to go out on the bubble!"
Jamison called amid chuckles all around. Jamison has about 45,000 and Binger around 100,000, so it would probably require a remarkable hand for Jamison to bust here.
The flop came , Jamison checked, Binger bet, and Jamison let it go. "I had it," said Binger, showing two of his four cards -- -- as he grabbed the chips.
Benjamin Yogel raised UTG and was called in middle position by George Rechnitzer and Matt Ashton.
Yogel moved all in on a flop of , Rechnitzer raised only for Ashton to make it three bets with a check-raise from the small blind. Rechnitzer made the call and then tank-called a bet on the turn before both players checked the river.
Ashton scooped with , ahead of Rechnitzer's for the side pot as well as Yogel's for the main pot.
Kyle Loman raised from middle position, Jason Potter three-bet from the cutoff, and it folded back to Loman who called. The flop came . Loman checked, Potter bet, and Loman called. The turn was the . Loman again checked, Potter bet once again, and again Loman called.
The river was the . Loman checked one more time, and when Potter pushed out yet another big bet (5,000), Loman finally let it go.
We are fast approaching the money bubble, with the short stacks starting to eye the big board as the "Players" number decreases. Just 52 remain, meaning with four more eliminations they'll be in the money.
Stud 8
Erik Seidel had been nursing a short stack for some time before finally busting. Christopher Amaral followed him to the rail shortly thereafter.
In Amaral's final hand, he was all in with one card to come with versus Ben Yu's . Yu picked up the on the end, and so still had queens up. Amaral needed to pair up or hit the last ace, but whatever he received on seventh didn't help him and he tossed his cards dealerward.
For this half-and-half tourney of split-pot games, here's a split-post.
Stud 8
Matthew Wood completed with the and it folded around to Mickey Appleman, sitting on Wood's right, who completed with the up. Wood paused, leaving Appleman an opening. "Come on, I haven't won a hand in two hours."
Wood then folded, showing he had another underneath. "Now you've won one," said Perry Friedman. Appleman currently has about 26,000.
Omaha 8
They switched games on the next hand, and on this one it was Wood who was wishing for some charity. But none came after he and Mayu Roca Uribe put in several bets on every street to the river as the board filled out . When Uribe bet on the final street, Wood shook his head in disgust, and turned over his hand -- -- before mucking.
Wood is now down to about 6,000, while Uribe has about 48,000.
Michael Binger raised the cutoff and Benjamin Lukas made it two bets from the small blind, Binger then called bets the whole way on the board but mucked when he saw his opponent's for the nut low and two pair.
Scotty Nguyen raised preflop and was called on the button by Hoyt Verner and Jason Potter in the big blind. The was checked to Verner who bet, Potter check-raised and Nguyen folded. Verner made the call then called another bet on the [Kc} turn. We missed the river action but it looked as though both players checked the , Potter showing for jacks and sevens, Verner flashing having missed everything, unable to even take half the pot.