The 2017 World Series of Poker Championship Event is in full swing as, after the completion of Day 2C early this morning, Artan Dedusha will take the survivors towards the first day of action when all the competitors will be battling it out at the same time.
Dedusha started the day’s action with a decent 109,700 in chips, but it was going to be an arduous task to work through the 3300 players who came from Day 1C. Dedusha appeared to be up for the task, albeit with the assistance of some good fortune. The Brit saw some good fortune when his pocket fives flopped a set and busted an opponent’s pocket Kings, then rubbed the rabbit’s foot again when he flopped two pair against an opponent holding pocket Aces. These hands allowed Dedusha to rack up a 680,000-chip stack that not only led the Day 2C competitors but put him in the overall lead.
Dedusha’s work wasn’t the only surprise of the Day 2C action. The newlywed Merciers – Jason and Natasha – both came through the day’s carnage with a bit of a surprise. The six-months pregnant Natasha will hold bragging rights so far in the Mercier clan as she finished off Day 2C with 470,000 chips. As she was bagging those up, Jason was doing the same with his 101K in chips, an impressive feat considering he started Day 2C with just slightly more than half his tournament starting stack (28K).
Of course, with the good also comes the ugly – in poker terms, that means people being eliminated. Daniel Negreanu was one of those who had to make the long walk from the Rio tournament arenas after being eliminated on Day 2C. On what would be the hand that led to his demise, Negreanu showed an Ace after an A♦ 3♦ 5♦ flop, only to have his opponent show him merely a 6♥ 3♦ for a wealth of draws but air for actuality.
Perhaps a bit steamed by that, Negreanu moved all in from early position with pocket sevens and found a dance partner in John Allan Hinds. Hinds’ pocket sixes were behind pre-flop, but four spades on the board along with Hinds’ 6♠ gave him a flush and defeated Negreanu, sending him to the rail in disappointment after an outstanding WSOP run.
Negreanu wasn’t the only one who had something to be disappointed about. Former World Champions Ryan Riess, Joe McKeehen and Phil Hellmuth hit the rail, alongside other pros such as Maria Ho, Men ‘The Master’ Nguyen, Paul Volpe, Antonio Esfandiari and Gus Hansen. And there won’t be a rematch of the “Clash of 2016,” as both William Kassouf and Griffin Benger both were eliminated and won’t be around for Day 3.
Dedusha will be the overall leader with his stack on Day 3, but here’s how he came out against his other Day 2C combatants:
1. Artan Dedusha, 680,000
2. Marcin Chmielewski, 564,000
3. Michael Krasienko, 561,300
4. Sonny Franco, 546,700
5. Ryan Hughes, 510,100
6. Tyson Mao, 506,500
7. Denis Timofeev, 498,000
8. Alexander Yen, 490,000
9. Nick Petrangelo, 480,300
10. Natasha Mercier, 476,800
This was the Top Ten from the Day 2A/B battlefield:
1. Lawrence Bayley, 618,000
2. Mickey Craft, 608,100
3. Richard Gryko, 564,800
4. Scott Anderson, 560,000
5. Sergio Castelluccio, 548,500
6. Michael Sklenicka, 540,600
7. Joseph Conor, 511,100
8. Koen Breed, 480,800
9. Grayson Ramage, 471,000
10. Larry Smalley, 469,000
And this (according to WSOP reports) would be the overall leaderboard for the tournament after the completion of Day 2 action:
1. Artan Dedusha, 680,000
2. Lawrence Bayley, 618,000
3. Mickey Craft, 608,100
4. Richard Gryko, 564,800
5. Marcin Chmielewski, 564,000
6. Michael Krasienko, 561,300
7. Scott Anderson, 560,000
8. Sergio Castelluccio, 548,500
9. Sonny Franco, 546,700
10. Michael Sklenicka, 540,600
As stated previously, the field will come together for the first time today on the Rio tournament battlefields. There are 2600 players remaining from the original 7221 runners, but it still may be a bit difficult getting to the 1084 players who will make the minimum $15,000 cash and earn a flag on the Hendon Mob board late Thursday night/early Friday morning. There’s still quite a bit of work to be done before we begin speaking about the true contenders for the 2017 World Series of Poker Championship Event bracelet and the crown of World Champion, but that time is coming closer.
