After a few weeks of downtime in the live poker schedule we were so excited to settle down and watch a high-class final table that we did our best Dan Shak run-to-the-toilet impression…
Luckily the loo isn’t far and no important hands were missed.
The three short stacks going into the PCA Super High Roller final table all busted early, with Tony Gregg and GPI player of the year Ole Schemion going in the same hand. Fabian Quoss found a pair of Tens after both had moved all-in and held on a safe board against K♦-4♦ and A♦-9♣.
Matt Glantz soon fell to Vanessa Selbst and the table was quickly down to four hugely talented players. Dan Shak may have remained quiet on the poker front, but as we alluded to earlier he did provide the funniest moment of the final table. After being given permission to go to the toilet he did his best Usain Bolt impression and sprinted off to relieve himself! On his way back to the action he was caught on microphone saying to his wife it was “time to get aggressive”. Hopefully he was talking about the poker and not directly to her…
Of course it’s easy to play aggressive poker when you get a pair of Aces though. Shak picked up the pocket rockets and had Quoss hanging on for dear life until the German rivered a broadway straight to survive.
Vanessa Selbst went into the tournament aiming to become the first player to win both a High Roller and a Super High Holler tournament on the EPT. Both our eyes (and twitter feed) let us know she was playing fantastically well and her aggression finally found some resistance in Antonio Esfandiari. It took a pair of Nines albeit to her on, but Selbst’s A♣-K♦ flopped a gutshot and turned an Ace to knock the 2012 One Drop champion out.
We could watch Vanessa Selbst play poker for hours, but even this marathon three-handed session needed come to an end. The chip lead changed hands several times between Selbst, Quoss and Shak and after Quoss made another broadway straight against Selbst’s top two pair she was left crippled. The American then shoved the button with K♥-9♣ but couldn’t outrun Quoss and his A♥-4♥.
Shak finished second in the same event last year to Isildur and unfortunately the same outcome awaited him in 2014. Quoss limped the button with 8♠-6♥ and bet the T♦-7♣-Q♠ flop. Shak called with J♥-T♣, and shoved after another Quoss bet on the 9♦ turn. The German was ahead with his straight but needed to dodge an eight or King on the river. The A♣ hit and Fabian Quoss picked up the trophy and a cheque for $1,629,940!
Don’t forget, you can watch coverage of the PCA main event on the PokerPlayer homepage later today. [table id=24 /]
Photo courtesy of Neil Stoddart and the PokerStars blog.
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