6.13pm: BREAK
The end of level 8 means the players get one more fifteen minute break before the final four levels play out.
77 players remain in contention - though given the rate of attrition we witnessed during the final four levels in the first two days' play, this number is likely to be substantially reduced.
We'll be back soon for the fireworks!
6.10pm: Micro-millions winner in the house
Raphael Augustin had a nice touch in March, collecting $78,000 for winning the micro-millions. He's managed to survive the early carnage here and is tootling along just fine at the moment with aroun 38,500. Can he pick up his second big score within a month?
6.01pm: Instant-death service
Mark Willis just went for double his short stack up with pocket fours. Unfortunately he ran into kings. Even more unfortunately a king flopped to leave him clutching at almost invisible straws.
There was no perfect runner-runner to save him and he bombs out in level 8.
The new dealer who had arrived at the table for that hand was interrogated. "You deliver instant-death service then huh?"
"That's right, " he chuckled...
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 400-800-100
5.41pm: 90 players left...
130 started but already we've lost nearly a third of these....forty players having hit the rails as we move into level eight.
Gene Spencer-Salmon was unable to recover following that critical blow from Craig Sweden. He joins the ranks of the also-rans:
John Lucarotti
Gene Spencer-Salmon
James Kendrick
Ben Hodgkins
Jong Oh Chae
Stephen Bridges
Simon Griffin
Jamie Wilson
5.25pm: Sweden hands out Gene therapy
Craig Sweden just laid a trap for Gene Spencer-Salmon, check-calling 1,200 on a [Ac][7c][3h] board before check-raising from 2,400 to 8,400 on the [2h] turn.
Spencer-Salmon has cut a serene figure so far but this ruffled his feathers. "What have you got?" he inquired to no avail.
Eventually he called and when Sweden shoved for 14,000 on the [6c] river he called again after some vacillation.
Sweden showed him [Ah][7h] for two pair and it was good.
Spencer-Salmon crippled, Sweden up to 48,000....
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 300-600<-75/b>
5.05pm: More eliminations
It's sad that not everyone can win, but that's just the way it is.
These men have fallen by the wayside over the last level - we warned the increasingly steep blinds would take their toll - note one of those fallen is the boisterous Albert Sapiano!
Thomas Currie
Adham Or Mackie
Salvatore Barna
Albert Sapiano
Toran Nicholls
Alberto Folador
4.52pm: Berry crushed
Nicolas Berry was reasonably short and so when he flopped a flush draw with [Qs][9s] on a [4h][2s][5s] board, he happily pushed his last 6,000 or so into the middle.
Unfortunately, he had run into Colin Marks' [2h][4h] and Marks re-shoved to isolate the hand.
Needing a spade to dig himself out of his predicament, the door to redemption was firmly slammed in his face on the [2d] turn, completing Marks full house and leaving Berry drawing dead and racing out of the poker room.
Marks up to 40,000...
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 200-400-50
4.34pm: Big Mac squeezes out some sauce
We just joined El-Jay Macdonald's table to find all his and one other player's chips in the middle.
The board read [5h][8s][6h][Ac][2h] - Macdonald turning over the (technically) third nuts with [Kh][Th] for a winning king-high flush.
When his hapless opponent Mark Salmons showed down pocket aces for top set, a sympathetic "oooohh" rang out from the table. Poker is a harsh, unforgiving game at times.
Salmons leaves but a buoyant Macdonald is up to 33,000.
4.25pm: Gone but not forgotten
They paid their monies, they plied their trade and they busted out.
Not their finest moment perhaps but we salute and commemorate these fallen soldiers nonetheless. Good game,
Manish Parmar
Jerome O'Shea
Michal Wieslaw Jaron
Ethan Folk
John Michael McGrane
Matyas Szalai
Mohammed Suhail
Emmanuel Arokodare
Peter Emir Ali
Vishal Patel
Tai Tran
4.22pm: Singh when you're winning
Jerome O'Shea has just busted out - holding ace-king on an [Ac][Qh][8h] board, he went to war for his stack with Sameer Singh, only for Singh to make a quick call with the nuts - pocket aces.
A harsh cooler, but he was drawing almost dead and the board ran out with no succour, completing his fall from grace.
"I was more scared of the queen actually," O'Shea added as he gathered his belongings and left. Singh up to 36,000...
4.15pm: Welcome back to the Hippodrome for level 5 of Day 1C
Numbers are likely to be around 130 in total. We have news of some more eliminations just prior to the break to come, but the players are now seated and we are ready to play out another brisk four levels.
The blinds are now 150/300/25 and we are likely to see more vigorous contests, re-steals and squeezes with more chips on the line in the levels ahead. Bring on the noise!
To read updates from levels 1-4, click here.