2016 WSOP Day 14: Mercier Leads Razz, and Dreams Come True in the Millionaire Maker
One day after winning the 2016 World Series of Poker $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Single Draw Championship, Jason Mercier continued his sudden and decisive assault on the 2016 WSOP, and anyone who dare bet against him, taking the overnight chip lead heading into the final table of the $10,000 Razz Championship.
Day 14 of the 2016 WSOP also saw three bracelet winners crowned, two new events start up, another get deep, and a kindergarten teacher from Vancouver, Washington come one spot away from winning $1 million dollars, still making her poker dreams come true with a $500,000 third-place finish in the $1,500 Millionaire Maker event.
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Jason Mercier Looks for Back-To-Back $10K Wins
The 2016 WSOP $10,000 Razz Championship played from 45 remaining down to the final table of eight on the event's second day Tuesday.
Jason Mercier registered late for the event on Monday after winning his fourth career WSOP bracelet in the $10,000 2-7 Lowball Championship, grabbed the chip lead on Tuesday, and will take 1.595 million into the event's final day, beginning at 2 p.m. local time Wednesday. John Racener is the only other player over the seven-figure mark.
Mercier said he won more than first-place money in bracelet bets after his win Monday, and stands to collect even more cash with a number of significant bets on winning two or three bracelets this summer, the most publicized of which is a $10,000 wager at 180-1 to win three with Vanessa Selbst.
Phil Hellmuth made the money in the event, but failed to earn a spot at the final table that also includes two-time 2015 WSOP bracelet winner Brian Hastings.
$10K Razz Final Table
| Seat | Player | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bart Hanson | 246,000 |
| 2 | Jyri Merivirta | 109,000 |
| 3 | Ray Dehkharghani | 838,000 |
| 4 | Robert Campbell | 360,000 |
| 5 | Jason Mercier | 1,595,000 |
| 6 | Brian Hastings | 367,000 |
| 7 | Yueqi Zhu | 312,000 |
| 8 | John Racener | 1,174,000 |
All returning players are guaranteed $27,499 with $273,338 and a WSOP bracelet up top.
DeWitt Wins, Dreams Come True in the Millionaire Maker
A kindergarten teacher from Vancouver, Washington playing her first-ever World Series of Poker event came one spot from turning $1,500 into a million dollars in the 2016 WSOP Millionaire Maker event on Tuesday night.
Lisa Meredith still took home $500,000 for her third-place finish, with now two-time WSOP bracelet winner Jason DeWitt going on to win the title and $1.065 million, defeating fellow pro Garrett Greer heads up. Thanks to a payout structure that guaranteed the top two finishers in the event would be millionaires, Greer also took home $1 million for his runner-up finish.
More on Meredith's story and the entire event can be found here.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jason DeWitt | $1,065,403 |
| 2 | Garrett Greer | $1,000,000 |
| 3 | Lisa Meredith | $500,000 |
| 4 | Francis Rusnak | $366,787 |
| 5 | Luke Anthony | $276,632 |
| 6 | Arkadiy Tsinis | $210,112 |
| 7 | Mikhail Semin | $160,725 |
| 8 | Alessio Dicesare | $123,828 |
| 9 | Stanley Lee | $96,091 |
Notable members of 888poker to cash included ambassadors Sofia Lovgren (12th - $75,109) and Dominik Nitsche (244th - $5,702), and New Jersey ambassadors Tom Cannuli (331st - $5,003) and Jessica Dawley (1,070th - $2,250).
Marco Johnson Wins His Second Bracelet
Respected pro and mixed-game specialist Marco Johnson won his second WSOP bracelet on Tuesday night, taking down Event #18: $3000 H.O.R.S.E.
"I just got married and my wife is six months pregnant," Johnson said "So this one is really special."
Johnson said what made the win even more important to him, was the fact it came in a game he has dedicated so much time to.
"I grew up next to Chip Reese's sister and H.O.R.S.E. was always his game," he said. "When I moved to Vegas it was my goal to be good at H.O.R.S.E. That's really what I've focused all my energy on over the past five years. This feels good to win a bracelet in a mixed event for sure."
Plus, Johnson said he was also happy he could make money for friends David "ODB" Baker and Jason Mercier, who had made "significant" bets he would win a WSOP bracelet this year.
Johnson himself earned $259,730 for the win, and while he said that was important to him, the bracelet also feels great.
"The money means more, because when you play for a living, you've got to pay the bills," Johnson said. "But the bracelet is a special feeling you can't really describe."
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marco Johnson | $259,730 |
| 2 | Jared Talarico | $160,522 |
| 3 | Gerald Ringe | $108,924 |
| 4 | Todd Ickow | $75,397 |
| 5 | Glenn Engelbert | $53,259 |
| 6 | John Crisp | $38,409 |
| 7 | Toma Kalaj | $28,291 |
| 8 | Chino Rheem | $21,294 |
PokerNews Stream Teamer Wins WSOP Gold
PokerNews Stream Team member Chase Bianchi won Event #17: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em on Tuesday night.
Bianchi is scheduled to begin streaming on the PokerNews Twitch channel next week, but in the meantime, he captured his first WSOP bracelet, winning $316,920 in first-place prize money as well.
Bianchi got the better of a 2,242-entry field, including a final table featuring tough Welsh pro Roberto Romanello, who ultimately finished third.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chase Bianchi | $316,920 |
| 2 | Erik Silberman | $195,738 |
| 3 | Roberto Romanello | $142,926 |
| 4 | Charles Carragher | $105,308 |
| 5 | Paul Nunez | $78,301 |
| 6 | James Alexander | $58,758 |
| 7 | Felix Morin-Dutil | $34,024 |
| 8 | Cameron Rezaie | $34,024 |
| 9 | Christopher Leong | $26,259 |
888poker-sponsored player Jeff Gross took 23rd place for $10,259, and Cannuli notched another cash for the summer with a 262nd-place result worth $1,628.
Down to 12 in the $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha
Day 2 of Event #19: $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha played down from 136 to just 12 remaining on Tuesday.
Garrett Garvin will take the lead into the event's final day, with Bruno Borges closely in tow. Hedge fund manager and high-roller regular Dan Shak is also still in the hunt.
Top 5 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Stack |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garrett Garvin | 1,002,000 |
| 2 | Bruno Borges | 722,000 |
| 3 | Henri Ojala | 631,000 |
| 4 | Zachary Hench | 620,000 |
| 5 | Kirby Lowery | 588,000 |
Play will resume at 12 p.m. Wednesday with plans to play down to a champion. A WSOP bracelet and a $185,317 first-place prize awaits the winner.
$3K Six-Max NL Draws 1,029
Event #21: $3,000 Six-Max No-Limit Hold'em drew 1,029 players on Tuesday, creating a prize pool over $2.8 million that will pay the top 155 spots. A min-cash is worth $4,545, while the winner will earn $531,577 and a WSOP bracelet.
After 10 levels of play on Day 1, 233 players survived with Yang Wang bagging up the chip lead. Others still in the hunt include Andrey Zaichenko, Upeshka De Silva, Daniel Negreanu, John Gale, Andy Frankenberger, Maria Ho, Chris Ferguson, and Jonathan Duhamel.
Play resumes at 12 p.m. local time Wednesday with plans to play 10 more levels.
$1,500 Limit Hold'em Draws 665
The Event #22: $1,500 Limit Hold'em drew 665 entries on Tuesday, creating an $897,750 prize pool that will pay the top 100 finishers. A min-cash is worth $2,255, and the winner will earn $188,815 and a WSOP bracelet.
Just 157 players survived the first day with pro Max Silver taking the chip lead. 2015 WSOP Main Event champ Joe McKeehen is still in the hunt here as well.
Play resumes at 2 p.m. local time Wednesday.
What's On Tap?
In addition to all the other action described above, Event #23: $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em begins at 11 a.m. local time and Event #24: $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship starts at 3 p.m.
As the 2016 WSOP rolls on, be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for continued coverage, brought to you by our sponsors, 888poker.
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