Surprise, surprise. The final table of the inaugural Epic Poker League Main Event is stacked with poker superstars. The invite-only event featuring the many of game’s most accomplished tournament players is down to the final six, five of which boast a million-dollar-plus score in their career. Another million is up for grabs Friday at the Palms in Las Vegas.
Hasan Habib leads the way going into the final day after amassing 1,655,000 through the first three days of the tournament. He’s joined by two of the top three ranked players in the Global Poker Index, Jason Mercier and Erik Seidel, who continue to rack up massive scores in 2011. Mercier and Seidel were also ranked No. 1 and 2, respectively, in ESPN’s July edition of The Nuts, a media panel’s list of the top 10 poker players in the world.
Also reaching the final table were Gavin Smith, Huck Seed, and Chino Rheem, who’s been the subject of controversy lately as several members of the high-stakes community have come forward claiming that Rheem owes them money. With a minimum payday of $108,000 on the line Friday, Rheem could ultimately pay his way out of a bind if things go well for him at the final table.
Seed escaped elimination with a timely suckout on the final table bubble late Thursday evening. With the blinds at 5,000/10,000 and a 1,000 ante, Habib raised to 25,000 in the small blind and Seed effectively moved all in from the big blind, leaving just a few chips behind. Habib moved in and Seed called with Ac-3h, trailing the As-10d of Habib. The 7h-4s-3d flop gave Seed a pair and it held up on the turn and river to double his stack to 250,000. He finished the day with 396,000.
It’s been a pretty good month for Seed. We reported last week that he won $670,000 playing video poker at Aria. A victory Friday would surpass that payday that and match the biggest score of his poker career (first place in the 1996 WSOP Main Event for $1 million).
The final elimination Thursday brought plenty of drama for the TV crew on hand. Rheem raised preflop to 40,000 and Adam “Roothlus” Levy moved all in for about 400,000 directly behind. Action folded back to Rheem, who called with pocket kings, leaving Levy’s queens dominated.
That changed with the As-Ac-Qs flop as Levy’s rail erupted at the sight of his flopped full house. The turn brought the 9s, keeping Levy in front, but the Ad on the river gave Rheem a higher full house and sent Levy out in seventh place for $70,960. Rheem enters the final table third in chips after holding the chip lead for much of the day.
Others failing to make it through Day 3 were Justin Bonomo, Hoyt Corkins, Matt Glantz, Isaac Baron, Eugene Katchalov, and Day 2 chip leader Sam Trickett.
Play resumes at 2 p.m. PT Friday and the first ever winner of the Epic Poker League will be crowned late in the day. Here’s a look at the lineup heading into the final table:
Seat 1: Hasan Habib — 1,655,000
Seat 2: Erik Seidel — 1,109,000
Seat 3: Chino Rheem — 1,432,000
Seat 4: Gavin Smith — 766,000
Seat 5: Jason Mercier — 1,495,000
Seat 6: Huck Seed — 396,000
Payouts:
1st: $1,000,000
2nd: $604,330
3rd: $360,970
4th: $237,560
5th: $154,260
6th: $107,980