* Day 1A is over - read a full report of the day here.
* 39 remain (of 146 Day 1A entries)
* Day 1B starts tomorrow at 11:00am
12.45am: It's all over
Level 12 - Blinds 1,000-2,000 (300 ante)
Play has ended for the night - you can read a full wrap-up to today's play here. --JS
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12.35am: Pause the clock
Level 12 - Blinds 1,000-2,000 (300 ante)
There will be three more hands for the night. --JS
12.25am: Late night casualties
Level 12 - Blinds 1,000-2,000 (300 ante)
They made it all the way to the last level, but these players won't be making it to the bag-and-tag stage or Day 2:
David Radnor, Alexios Zervos, Andres Luis Viola, Jaroslaw Szyndler, Neill Howard Williams, Nadeem Hussain, William Davies, Seth Webber, Marco Vasconcelos, Jamie O'Connor, and Miguel Riera Suarez.
12.10am: What's all the commotion?
Level 12 - Blinds 1,000-2,000 (300 ante)
I heard a bit of hubbub coming from Jamie O'Connor and Jack Salter's table, and when the floor were called I went to check out what was going on.
First - the action leading up to it. It was pre-flop, and Massafumi Saito had opened to 3,600. O'Connor called, before a player then shoved for around 14,000. It folded back to Massafumi Saito who made some sort of gesture which two players at the table were sure was Saito saying "call", while everyone else at the table (Salter included) insisted he didn't (Salter is sat opposite Saito).
The floor ruled that as the majority of players think he didn't say call, that the ruling would be he'd folded. Then O'Connor snap called with the [qh][qd] - "I couldn't say anything, I was still in the hand!" he said - which would go on to beat the player-at-risk's pocket sixes. --JS
12am: Final level of the night
Level 12 - Blinds 1,000-2,000 (300 ante)
It's all gone up - the blinds and the antes. Only 45 minutes of play remain before the remaining players will bag and tag, earning themselves two days off before Saturday's Day 2. --JS
11.53: A tight squeeze
Level 11 - Blinds 800-1,600 (200 ante)
Dealer, small blind and big blind hands create an interesting dynamic; not only are players sat right next to each other, but their play throughout their time together has no doubt been influenced by each other's styles.
One hand we just caught started with a button-open to 3,600 from Steven Herron, which was flatted by former chip leader Emran Hussain out of the small. Jabran Zahid then woke up ion the big blind and put out a raise to 14,000.
Heron wasted no time in folding, while Hussain had a trickier decision on his hands - eventually folding, but showing an ace as he did it. Ship this one to Zahid. --JS
11.45: End of the night lull
Level 11 - Blinds 800-1,600 (200 ante)
Maybe it's the time of the day when play tightens up. Maybe the players are tired. Heck, maybe I'm just tired and missing all the action (don't tell my boss). But there doesn't seem to be much going on in the room right now action-wise.
Here's what I have seen though:
After Jamie O'Connor opened to 3,000, Jack Salter 3-bet to 8,400 only for O'Connor to 4-bet to an even 18,000. Salter gave it up.
I also saw the UK's William Davies bust with pocket fives to Simon Dryan's pocket tens. The board was safe all the way for Dryan and Davies hit the rail.
And I just wanted to point out that Gerald Ringe has by far been the smartest dressed player in the room today. He looks like he's either come straight from a wedding, or is going to some bizarre ceremony which takes place after 1am in London town. Whatever his reason, he deserves props. --JS
11.39pm: No Nevanlinna Land for Vasconcelos
Level 11 - Blinds 800-1,600 (200 ante)
Jussi Nevanlinna took a while to call an opponent's shove, but when he did, it was correct and his stack grew to 101,000.
The action folded around to Marco Vasconcelos on the button and he moved all in for his 10,900. Nevanlinna was in the big blind and made the call.
Vasconcelos: [td][2d]
Nevanlinna: [jh][8h]
The board ran [kh][2c][8c][qc][9s] to send Vasconcelos on his way. -- MC
11.27pm: Soders all luck for Tomas
Level 11 - Blinds 800-1,600 (200 ante)
Tomas Soders was up and out of his seat after a he witnessed a horrible flop in his attempt to double up.
He had three-bet all in for around 27,000 and saw David Lega move all in behind, for a little more. The original raiser folded and the cards were flipped up.
Soders: [ad][kd]
Lega: [jh][jd]
The board ran [2s][js][4h][5s][7s] with Soders drawing dead by the turn. -- MC
11.15pm: Another level
Level 11 - Blinds 800-1,600 (200 ante)
Two more levels to play before Day 1A is done. --JS
11.11pm: Matas Cimbolas - your new chip leader
Level 10 - Blinds 600-1,200 (200 ante)
Who's running good now, eh Matas?
Lithuania's Matas Cimbolas has shot into the chip lead, after winning a pot against the man he just claimed was on a hot streak, Simon Brooke. We didn't catch the action but it must have been a big pot, as Brooke's stack as nowhere near what it was, while Cimbolas has heaps.
We just caught a hand where he added even more to his growing stack. It started with an open to 2,500 from David Radnor, which found callers in Brooke, Cimbolas and one other player. "How much do you have?" Cimbolas asked Radnor. "Just under 40," came the reply. "OK, I quietly call..." said Cimbolas.
The flop came [5c][4d][ad] and it was checked around, so we saw the [kd] land on the turn. Radnor checked to Brooke who led for 2,000, and then Cimbolas went from quiet to loud - making it 14,000 to play. Everyone folded, and Cimbolas now sits with 181,000. --JS
11:10: Brooke the hook
Level 10 - Blinds 600-1,200 (200 ante)
"You run so good!" said Matas Cimbolas to Simon Brooke after the latter took out Oliver Morgan. Brooke was all in for 12,000 earlier on, and now has 135,000 or thereabouts.
The two players were heads up to a [qd][7d][as] flop where Brooke set Morgan all in for 27,000. Call.
Brooke: [ac][7c] for two pair.
Morgan: [td][9d] for a flush draw.
The board ran out [4s][6s] to miss Morgan and he hit the rail. - MC
10.51pm: Webber puts his passport issues behind him
Level 10 - Blinds 600-1,200 (200 ante)
Seth Webber - the PokerStars Qualifier who had a bit of a mishap with his passport earlier today (see our 5:46pm post) - has just secured himself a double by winning a race.
He got his last 11,800 all-in with the [5c][5h] and was called by a player with the [ad][qh]. The [jh][3s][4c][3h][8d] board ran out pure for Webber though, and he's now up to 25,800. --JS
10.45pm: Bedtime for...
Level 10 - Blinds 600-1,200 (200 ante)
Say goodnight to: reigning UKIPT champion Vladas Tamasauskas; Tony Andreou, Andreas Olympios, David Leja, Parham Ahoor, Ka Him Li, Cusco Bach Guillem, Imran Shafi, Oscar Iscla Serradell, Nicholas Crisp, Charles Kolade Akadiri, Richard Steele, Mike Panteli, Bhavin Khatri, Dominic Wells and Mikhail Pokrepa. -- MC
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10.30pm: Last three levels of the night
Level 10 - Blinds 600-1,200 (200 ante)
The players have retaken their seats to play out the last three levels of the night.
During the break we found out that Johann Bjornsson had gotten his stack courtesy of Richard Kellett. Bjornsson six-bet all in with ace-king, ran into Kellett's kings, but spiked an ace to double to a huge stack. --MC
10.15pm: Break time chip counts
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
Players are taking a quick 15, so while they do that I had a look around the room at some of the notable stacks:
Emran Hussain - 170,000
Johann Bjornsson - 160,000
Catalin Lesuc - 109,000
Matas Cimbolas - 86,000
Jack Salter - 51,000
Jamie O'Connor - 69,500
See you shortly. --JS
10.10pm: The Turk is (almost) back
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
"There you go, the Turk is back!" exclaimed Yucel "Mad Turk" Eminoglu after he spiked an ace on the river.
He got his short stack in (on the turn we believe) with [ah][3h] and was called by Dominic Wells and his [ks][tc]. The board read [qd][6c][6h][kd] and the river came [as]. Wells dropped to 6,500. -- MC
10pm: Uselis needs no heart to double
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
Gediminas Uselis has doubled to around 90,000 chips after he faded a heart that Edmund Yeung needed to bust him.
Uselis opened to 2,200 and was called in one spot before Yeung squeezed to 9,000 from the small blind. Uselis was the only caller to the [ah][8h][3d] flop where he called a 9,700 c-bet from his opponent. The turn was the [6d] and Yeung wasted little time in setting Uselis in for his last 21,000. Call.
Yeung: [kh][jh] for a flush draw.
Uselis: [ad][qc] for top pair.
The [7c] river changed nothing and Yeung dropped to 42,500. -- MC
9.50pm: Sweet for Salter
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
Jack Salter - who became known for his triangle pose whenever he went all-in during his 2nd place run at the 2014 EPT Grand Final - is pulling some new moves here at UKIPT 6 London; a result of which is that he's chipping up nicely.
In one hand against Carlos Mocchett, Salter completed the open of 2,000 from the big blind and the two saw a flop. It was the [jd][8d][7s] and both checked, taking us to the [kh] turn. Salter now took the betting with a bet of 2,800, which was called. He did the same on the [9h] river, only now the bet was 7,500. That was too much for Mocchett, and Salter moved up to around 46,000. --JS
9.40pm: House-over-house cooler
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
"Nice hand!" said Chris Phillips to David Lasierra after he called the latter's shove on the river and saw the bad news.
The board read [qh][7h][9h][as][9s] and Lasierra moved all in for 33,100. Phillips called with pocket sevens for a full house, but Lasierra opened [ah][ad] for an even bigger full house and he moved up to 110,000. Phillips nearly has to start all over again after dropping to 31,000. -- MC
9.30pm: Blinds up again
Level 9 - Blinds 500-1,000 (100 ante)
We're now playing 500-1,000 with a 100 ante. Four more levels for the night. --JS
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9.25pm: When two big stacks collide - Romanian style
Level 8 - Blinds 400-800 (100 ante)
You've always got to stick around when you see two of the heftier stacks in the room prepare to play a pot together, and that's exactly what just happened.
It started with an open from one of the biggest stacks in the room at dinner, belonging to Catalin Lesuc. He made it 2,100 to play, only for Alexios Zervos - who had even more chips at the beginning of the hand - to make it 5,700 instead. It folded back around to Lesuc who made the call.
The dealer burned and dealt the [ah][7d][3s] flop, and after Lesuc checked Zervos put out a c-bet of 6,300. It was an easy call for Lesuc - he just threw some chips in before he'd even confirmed the amount.
The turn was the [4c] and the same thing happened - only this time Zervos' bet was 9,500. That took us to the [6h] river, and Lesuc basically insta-shoved for 66,200. Zervos squirmed and got out of his seat in annoyance. There was a straight draw out there now, but whatever Zervos though Lesuc had he clearly thought he was beat. He made a very reluctant fold, allowing Lesuc to scoop the pot and take his stack up to around the 100,000 mark, while Zervos has dipped to a still-very-healthy 86,000.
"Ahh - Romanian style!" Zervos said to Lesuc, who smiled. We therefore presume Lesuc is Romanian. If he's not, it would have been a rather odd thing to say, wouldn't it? --JS
9.20pm: So long, Albert
Level 8 - Blinds 400-800 (100 ante)
Albert Sapiano had fared very well in all in showdowns today, but variance finally caught up with him. The Pokerstars Blog had witnessed the first three, and got there just after the fact on the fourth.
His table mates explained that Sapianio had over-called a limp before a player raised and Dainis Budovskis shoved. The original limper folded, as did the raiser, but Sapiano called all in for around 12,000 with king-queen. He was in bad shape though as Budovskis held a dominating [ah][ks] and improved as the board came [7c][6d][ac][4c][7h]. -- MC
9.07pm: All the all-ins - but it's a no-go for No
Level 8 - Blinds 400-800 (100 ante)
It's been a hectic start to Level 8 - everywhere I looked there were red triangles flying. The players at risk seemed to be winning all the pots too; Andres Viola secured a full double-up, Paul Morris got his shove through, as did Parham Ahoor.
One player wasn't quite as fortunate though - despite having by far the best hand.
Antoine No had got his last 11,000 all-in with the [kh][kc] against Xizhe Yuan's [qh][qd], and things looked rosy. But the flop came the [3d][qc][5s], followed by the [3s][3c], and the cowboys were killed by the queens. No was outta here.
We'll try and keep up with all the action! --JS
9pm: Those we have loved
Level 8 - Blinds 400-800 (100 ante)
There are five levels left in the day, these players have played their last level for UKIPT6 London though: Chris Gordon, Yucel Eminoglu, Morten Mortensen, Tai Tan, Alan Gilmore, Jon Wong, Luke Gamble, Nezar Abdulrhaman, Yunheng Wu, Luke Haward, Ilan Florian Valentin Hannich, Paulius Cerniauskas, John Kitchen, Hamidreza Rajabi Montazeri, Morten Mortensen, Niko Koop, Phil Gould, Chris Phillips, Raymond Power, Ivan Dragoev, Simon Appleby, Gediminas Uselis, Charles Kolade Akadiri, Paul Morris, Michael Reid, Ramzi Jean Dagher, Marian Albert Didita, Hilmi Ture, Daniel Rudd, Ilan Florian Valentin Hannich, Paulius Cerniauskas, Jamie Rutherford and Antoine Louis. -- MC
8.45pm: Dinner time's over - we're back in the game
Level 8 - Blinds 400-800 (100 ante)
The remaining 93 players (of 146 entries) are taking their seats after the dinner break. We're going to play five more levels tonight, ending play at the end of Level 12.
The chip leaders in the room right now are Catalin Lesuc with 118,000, Emran Hussain with 110,000, and Anthony Kennedy with 95,000. Meanwhile, here are some stacks from the notables in the field:
Jack Salter 54,000
Matas Cimbolas 35,000
Jamie O'Connor 20,000
Vladas Tamasauskas 7,800
Adrian Mateos - Out --JS
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7.48pm: Dinner time
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
The players are on a 60-minute dinner break. --MC
7.45pm: Adios Mateos!
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
In the penultimate hand of Level 7, right before the players went on their dinner break, we lost Adrian Mateos from the UKIPT Main Event.
It was an interesting hand too. Mateos kicked off proceedings with an open, only for Emran Hussain to 3-bet. Another player then flatted, only for Mateos to shove for around 18,000. Hussain then re-shoved over the top, only for the other play to call all-in!
So what were the hands? Aces, kings and queens? Ace-king all round? Nope.
Adrian Mateos [8h][8d]
Emran Hussain [as][ac]
Unknown player [ks][qs]
Mateos had shoved with eights, while the other player called off his tournament life with king-queen suited. Both proved a bad idea after an ace fell on the [td][kd][ah] flop, which was then joined by the [7s] and [th] on the turn and river.
Mateos and the unknown player were both eliminated, while Hussain now sits with one of the biggest stacks in the room - around 86,000. --JS
7.42pm: Danilo and Kellet on the up
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
There's more than one way to boost one's stack in a poker tournament; Danilo and Richard Kellet just proved that. The two players are sat at adjacent tables and the concurrent hands they played took very different paths.
Danilo had [ah][ad] and got his 24,150 stack in preflop versus Oscar Iscla Serradell who held [qc][qh]. The board ran out [kh][9c][6d][8h][8s] dropping Iscla down to 60,000.
Kellett meanwhile, had a trickier route to a pot win. He, Gerald Ringe and the small blind all took to a [6c][8d][5h] flop with around 12,500 in the middle. The small led for 4,200 before Kellett raised to 9,000 from middle position. Ringe was in the cutoff and tanked before calling, which seemed to aid the small blind in his decision to fold. Both players checked the [2h] turn before Ringe folded to a 23,000 bet from Kellett on the [qd] river. Kellett, who busted the High Roller earlier and was alate entry to the Main Event, has already got up to around 60,000. -- MC
7.30pm: Haward exits - but not without his stone
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
Some players use coins; others use cuddly toys. For Luke Haward, his card protector of choice is a large, smooth, grey pebble. And he almost forgot it.
David Radnor kicked off the action with an open to 1,300, which Haward then 3-bet to 3,500. Matas Cimbolas - on Haward's left - then folded his hand, only for Elias Christodoulou to make it 9,000 to play.
Radnor stroked his beard in contemplation, but opted to let this one go. Haward then leaned out and flashed a stare towards Christodoulou and his chips. He shoved - but it was only for a few thousand more. Christodoulou called.
It was the [td][ts] in front of Harder, but he was trailing the [jh][js]. The board ran out [4s][7s][5c][kh][ks] and Harder was eliminated as Christodoulou started stacking chips while being massaged.
"Good luck guys," he told the table. "It was nice to meet you," replaied Cimbolas, always a friendly person at the tables.
Harder was half-way out the door when he heard a call to him: "Don't forget your stone!" shouted Cimbolas.
I don't know where Harder is now, but I'll bet he's just a stone's throw away. --JS
7.15pm: Salter pays off Greene
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
We finally managed to catch a hand with Jack Salter in it. The Brit has been quietly accumulating chips all day, although the hand we witnessed saw him lose a smallish pot.
He opened to 1,150, and it folded around to David Greene in the big blind, who made the call. The flop came [jd][4c][2d] and Greene checked, allowing Salter to put out a c-bet of 1,200. Greene bumped it up to 3,200 at this point, and Salter threw out calling chips.
The turn came the [qs], and the action slowed entirely with both players checking. But on the [kh] river Green continued with his aggression, putting out a bet of 4,000. Salter smiled as he stared at Greene, and eventually made a call. He'd muck though when Greene turned over his [kc][qd] for runner-runner two-pair. --JS
7pm: Level up, registration closes
Level 7 - Blinds 300-600 (75 ante)
The start of Level 7 has commenced and that means registration has closed. The clock says that 146 players have registered, we'll get confirmation of that number shortly. -- MC
6.55pm: Crazy action
Level 6 - Blinds 250-500 (50 ante)
There's no 'waiting around for a good hand' for some players. This hand happened so quickly that we didn't even bother getting anyone's names - we just want to bring you the hyper-aggressive action.
So, a player from early position made it 1,100 to go - pretty standard at a 500 big blind level. Then the player to his immediate left instantly made it 5,100. Then the player to his immediate left shoved all-in for around 16,000. A female player in the big blind thought for about 20 seconds before folding, and the original raiser let his hand go with a sigh. The player who 3-bet insta-called and turned over just the [kh][ts] - and he was the player at risk! Get this though - the player who shoved over the top of him only had the [as][3d]!
The board ran out blank for the 3-bettor ([3c][4h][2s][8c][5d]) and his Main Event was over.
Pointing to the two players who folded pre-flop, another player at the table said: "Guaranteed you both had better hands than that!"
We'd be hard-pressed to disagree. Crazy action here on Day 1A. --JS
6.43pm: High rollers make the final table
Just eight players remain (listed below) in the High Roller Event and all are guaranteed a £7,410 payday. Luis Rodriquez from Spain - with over 1.1 million - remains favourite or the £55,650 top prize. -- MC
| Seat | Name | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luis Rodriquez | Spain | 1,114,000 |
| 2 | Lawrence Bayley | UK | 523,000 |
| 3 | Linus Leoliger | Switzerand | 162,500 |
| 4 | Jack O'Neill | UK | 147,500 |
| 5 | Leo Nordin | Sweden | 147,500 |
| 6 | Niall Murray | UK | 143,500 |
| 7 | Andrew Christoforou | UK | 46,000 |
| 8 | Ben Winsor | UK | 307,500 |
6.32pm: Zhou tries to hero, but comes up zero
Level 6 - Blinds 250-500 (50 ante)
It's always risky making hero calls; you'll either look like a genius, or...the opposite.
Well, it was Yingchen Zhou who we just caught attempting to hero, only to find out he was crushed. On a flop of [qd][5d][js], Zhou's opponent had shoved all-in for 11,975 and, although Zhou had him comfortably covered, he was deep in the tank. Eventually he'd cough up the calling chips, but shook his head when he saw the [ad][jh] for second pair. He gingerly turned over his [4d][4s] and the rest of the board brought him no help. --JS
6.25pm: Lesuc leading way
Level 6 - Blinds 250-500 (50 ante)
The irony of the title is not lost on us here in London. Catalin Lesuc entered level six as the clear chip leader with around 120,000. Edgar Drozdov (67,000), Tony Andreou (65,000) and Tai Tan (64,000) are amongst those in the chasing pack. -- MC
6.15pm: Back to work - end of registration looming
Level 6 - Blinds 250-500 (50 ante)
The players are back from their break, and we're now moving into Level 6. That means there's just 45 more minutes for new players to register and sit down today, otherwise they'll have to wait for one of the other starting fields (Day 1B tomorrow, or Day 1C on Friday).
Coming back from the break, here are a few notable name stacks:
Matas Cimbolas - 39,000
Jack Salter - 52,000
Chris Gordon - 13,000
Adrian Mateos - 26,000
Vladas Tamasauskas - 28,000 --JS
6pm: Players on second break, Morris won't be among those returning
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
The players are taking their second 15-minute break of the day. For James Morris, his break will be indefinite after busting in the last hand of level 5.
He tank-called a 5,000 bet on the turn and then called off his remaining 9,300 on the river when his opponent set him in. The board read [qs][2c][7s][3c][2h] and Morris' [ts][td] lost out to his opponent's [as][ad]. -- MC
5.53pm: Sapiano's hot streak continues
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
There's no stopping Albert Sapiano right now, as he's just doubled up again!
He got it in with the [qc][jc] and was up against his opponent's [as][3s]. The flop was good for Sapiano as the [js][9s][8c] gave him top pair and a gutshot. The [tc] on the turn completed that draw and the [kd] improved his hand needlessly.
Sapiano is now up to 43,000. --JS
5.46pm: Webber has the best girlfriend a man could ask for
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
PokerStars qualifier Seth Webber was here on time for the start of Day 1A but couldn't take his seat as he had left his passport at home in Brighton, on the UK's south coast. Luckily for Webber he has a very understanding girlfriend who travelled all the way up with it, allowing the South African native to finally take his seat.
"I'm in the bad books!" said a sheepish Webber. "I'll be buying the drinks though," he continued with a smile. -- MC
5.30pm: A double up and more for Černiauskas
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
There are plenty of chips being splashed about over on Table 7, and before the blinds went up we caught one hand which secured Paulius Černiauskas a much-needed double up.
It started with an open to 650 from the player to Černiauskas' right, which he then called, as did two other players. The flop was the [jh][4d][qd] and it checked to the raiser who continued for 1,250. Now Černiauskas shoved for 7,325 total, which got the other players to fold. The raiser made the call though.
Černiauskas had the cowboys - the [kd][kc] to be precise - but would have to hold against his opponent's [9d][8d] for a gutshot and flush draw. The [5h] turn was safe, as was the [3h] on the river, and Černiauskas stacked up around 22,000 to take him almost back where he started. --JS
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5.25pm: Sapiano gets there again
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
Albert Sapiano has doubled once more, and needed the deck's help again.
He moved all in for 6,200 with a flop reading [ks][as][5d] and found one caller, who held [ad][kc]. Sapiano held the drawing [3s][4s] and made a wheel straight as the board ran out [2d][jc]. -- MC
5.15pm: Level up
Level 5 - Blinds 200-400 (50 ante)
5.10pm: Good bluff by Cimbolas
Level 4 - Blinds 150-300 (25 ante)
"What a legend! He's the best." Said a player at Table 4 during a hand where Matas Cimbolas took a chunky pot down uncontested.
There had been a raise to 700 and a call before Cimbolas squeezed to 2,800 from the small blind. The original raiser folded but the player on the button called to see a [9c][9h][qh] flop.
"Only one question I have," said Cimbolas. "How do I get max?"
His opponent called and the [kc] appeared on the turn. "That's a decent card!" continued Cimbolas before he bet 5,500.
His opponent folded and Cimbolas said "Oh my god, what a bluff!" He moved up to 50,000 chips. -- MC
4.55pm: Appleby bubbles High Roller
The £2,200 High Roller event only lasted three hands after Simon Appleby fell to massive chip leader, Luis Rodriguez.
The latter raised the 4,000 big blind up to 8,000 and was called by Appleby on the button, and the big blind. The board rolled out [2d][7d][4h][4s][7s] with Rodriguez betting 16,500, 26,000 and shoved the river. Appleby stuck with him all the way and called all in for around 107,000 on the river.
Rodriguez opened [7h][th] for a full house Appleby winced when he saw the holding as he new he was a goner with [ad][4d] for a smaller full house that was in the lead by the turn. Rodriguez moved up to more than 700,000 chips, nearly four times the average stack!
That pot ensured everyone still in is guaranteed £3,470. -- MC
4.40pm: UKIPT5 Dublin champ doubles up 'Team PokerStars Live at the Hippodrome' Pro
Level 4 - Blinds 150-300 (25 ante)
The man who took down the UKIPT Dublin title in February - Vladas Tamasauskas - is in the house today, and he'd been chipping up nicely. But the Lithuanian - who pocketed a staggering €176,900 for his big win and only third career cash - just took a slight knock as he doubled up Chris Gordon, a member of the Team PokerStars Live at the Hippodrome team.
Tamasauskas made it 750 to go from early position, and one player called before Gordon shoved for his short 4,575 stack. It folded back around to Tamasauskas who then slid in 30,000 for an isolation bet. It worked, as the other player got out of the way and the cards were on their backs.
Gordon: [5d][5s]
Tamasauskas: [qs][qc]
Gordon needed some home-turf help, and he got it on the [8c][5c][tc] flop. The set put him ahead, but he'd need to dodge any club or a queen to hold. The [4s] turn and [jd] river changed nothing, giving Gordon the double up to just under 10,000. --JS
4.30pm: Level 4 - shuffle up and deal
Level 4 - Blinds 150-300 (25 ante)
We're back here on Day 1A. We'll be playing two more levels before players take another break, and at that point registration for Day 1A will come to an end. If you're thinking of coming down to the Hipprodrome to play though, don't worry; there's Day 1B tomorrow and Day 1C on Friday. --JS
4:15pm: Break time
Players are now on their first 15-minute break of the day. --JS
4.10pm: Early bump in the road for Mateos
Level 3 - Blinds 100-200 (25 ante)
You might think it's always smooth sailing for the poker phenoms, but we just caught a slight slip-up from Adrian Mateos.
With the board reading [td][5d][3h][kd] and with roughly 4,000 in the pot, Mateos put out a bet of 1,675, and his one opponent made the call. After the [ah] hit the river, though, Mateos' opponent put out a chunky bet of 3,225 and Mateos snapped it off. He mucked though when he saw the villain's [7d][2d] for a baby flush. The Spaniard has around 20,000 in front of him. --JS
4.05pm: Nice turn of events for Sapiano
Level 3 - Blinds 100-200 (25 ante)
Albert Sapiano doesn't like to hang around. If he hits a board, he's happy to put chips in.
He did that just now for all his chips but found himself behind. The poker gods look favourably on him though and he doubled up after sucking out on his opponent.
The flop read [qc][8d][5s] and Sapiano check-raised all in for 5,975 after his opponent had bet 3,000. Sapiano opened [7h][8s] once he was called, behind to his opponent's [jd][js]. The board ran out [7c][ks] to make Sapinao trips and the pot was pushed his way. -- MC
3.55pm: Adrian Mateos takes his seat
Level 3 - Blinds 100-200 (25 ante)
This room of players already boasted plenty of talent, but Adrian Mateos entering the field just edged it up a notch.
Mateos is an absolute beast, who in just his early-twenties has already won more than $4.1 million in live earnings - including his profile-boosting wins at the EPT11 Grand Final ($1,214,161) and the WSOPE Main Event ($1,351,661).
Not content with just winning at the felt, Mateos is also nominated for two awards at the European Poker Awards 2016 - which will take place during the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo.
His performance in last year's Grand Final earned him a place on the short list for Tournament Performance of the Year, while his epic bluff against Johnny Lodden at that final table caused Daniel Negreanu to announce on the live stream: "We're seeing some high-level poker."
There's no doubt we'll see some high-level poker from Mateos here today, so make you stick around and keep refreshing the live updates. --JS
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3.40pm: Cimbolas says his holas
Level 3 - Blinds 100-200 (25 ante)
Matas Cimbolas has taken his seat on Day 1A - but not without saying hello to no less than 10 players upon entering the room.
The talented Lithuanian - who lives right here in London with a group of grinders from his home country - called an open of 350 and saw a flop with one opponent. It came the [3h][qs][6c] and Cimbolas checked, before facing a continuation bet of 400 that he would quickly call. The turn came the [7h] and both players checked, before the [9h] hit the river. Cimbolas checked once more, and then folded when his opponent bet 700.
We'll be hoping to grab lots of action from Cimbolas throughout the day, who has $726,000 in live earnings - including a final table appearance at EPT11 Deuville. --JS
3.30pm: Level up, antes in play
Level 3 - Blinds 100-200 (25 ante)
3.25pm: High Roller Day 2 is in full swing
The UKIPT London festival kicked off yesterday with the £2,200 High Roller event, and attracted an impressive 114 entries. They helped amass a £221,166 prize pool and 28 players returned for Day 2 hoping to claim a share of it.
The final 17 will make the money and guarantee themselves £3,470, but all will be hoping to walk away with £55,650 - the prize saved for the champion. As the time of publishing, 24 players remain.
Some of the big names still in contentions are: Ben Winsor, Felix Stephensen, Niall Murray, Richard Gryko, Richard Kellett, Simon Appleby, Tamer Kamel and Lawrence Bayley. -- MC
3.10pm: Sidhu felted early
Level 2 - Blinds 75-150
Certainly one of the most decorated players in the room when it comes to UKIPT and EPT cashes, Kully Sidhu knows a thing or two about navigating these fields.
Sadly for the Brit, though, this is one event he won't be going deep in. We picked up the action on a [5s][4d][8d][qh] board, with a hefty amount already in the middle. Sidhu's only opponent in the hand, Fabian Deimann, had bet around 4,000, only for Sidhu to bump it up to what looked like 10,000. It all happened so fast that when Deimann shoved and Sidhu called we couldn't get accurate counts of the chips each player had behind, but what we did catch were the cards: [as][ah] for Sidhu, which was trailing the [4h][4s] of Deimann, who had flopped a set.
The river was the [9h] and we said goodbye to Kully Sidhu, while Germany's Deimann now sits with around 60,000. --JS
2.45pm: Blinds are up
Level 2 - Blinds 75-150
Well that went fast! It was a pretty timid first level here, but then they so often are. The blinds have moved up to 75-150, so hopefully we'll start to see some big pots brewing. --JS
2.35pm: Can we get to four figures?
Level 1 - Blinds 50-100
Most UKIPTs have two starting flights but, seeing as the Hippodrome Casino is a little snug, three starting flights have been scheduled to make sure everyone can find a day to play. Saying that though, 30 poker tables are operational and Tournament Director Toby Stone indicated that up to 350 players can be accommodated each day.
Some of those being accommodated today include: four-time UKIPT casher Mike Pantelli; EPT11 Prague third-place finisher Jon Wong; EPT12 Dublin third-place finisher Kully Sidhu; along with UKIPT regulars Albert Sapiano, James Morris and Marco Vasconcelos. -- MC
2.12pm: So, who's here?
Level 1 - Blinds 50-100
We're starting to scope out our Day 1A field, but one table caught our eye from across the room. It features the UK's Jack Salter (best known for finishing 2nd at the EPT Grand Final in 2014 for €765,000), as well as Jamie O'Connor - known as 'Ship It 2010' on PokerStars (who has an impressive $1.6 million in total online winnings). We look forward to seeing how these guys clash throughout the day. --JS
2.03pm: Cards in the air!
Level 1 - Blinds 50-100
The players have taken their seats here on Day 1A and our dealers have shuffled up. Let the first hand commence! --JS
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1:40pm: Welcome to the big smoke!
Afternoon all! We're here at the beautiful Hippodrome Casino right in the heart of Leicester Square to kick off the Main Event of UKIPT6 London - the first stop of the Season 6 tour. It's a late kick-off time today, with play starting at 2pm; but we're sure you won't find any of the players complaining about their lie-in!
It's not the first event of the festival though - the £2,200 High Roller kicked off at 6pm last night (Tuesday 5th), and drew a massive, star-studded field of 114 players. It's the biggest ever standalone UKIPT High Roller, and here's a run down of just some of the names playing here in the capital:
Team PokerStars Pros Liv Boeree, Jake Cody; German (and Russian) wizards Tobias Reinkemeier, Igor Kurganov and Fabian Quoss; not to mention Victoria Coren, Pierre Neuville, Oliver Price, Jack Salter, JP Kelly, and Dara O'Kearney.
That's one stacked line-up. Only 28 players remain in that event and they'll play down to a winner today, so stay tuned for more info. You can be sure they'll all be in the Main Event at some point, whether it's here on Day 1A, or in Thursday's Day 1B or Friday's Day 1C.
Back to the Main Event, though. It was the UK's own Rapinder Cheema who took down the Season 5 UKIPT London Main Event for a first place prize of £78,825, after a deal was made heads-up with Spain's Fernando Marin (who qualified for the tournament online at PokerStars). They shared the final table run with tour regulars including Lawrence Bayley (4th) and Brett Angell (7th) - the latter of which won this very event in Season 4 for £115,083. We'd be shocked not to see them all returning to the Hippodrome felt this week.
So sit back, relax, and get ready for all the great action from UKIPT6 London. --JS
Key UKIPT6 London Facts:
- 25,000 starting stack
- Blinds starting at 50/100 for 250 big blinds
- Levels are 45 minutes on Day 1 and they'll be 12 of them. From Day 2 onwards levels increase to 60 minutes.
- Day 1A is today, Day 1B takes place tomorrow, and Day 1C takes place on Friday. The field will then combine for the first time on Saturday for Day 2. We'll reach the money during the 10 levels of play on Day 2 and then play down to a final table, which will take place on Sunday.
- Full UKIPT6 London schedule here.
- Other tournaments today include a £110 NL Holdem Freezeout Satellite to the UKIPT Main Event, and a £110 NL Holdem Turbo Deepstack.
PokerStars Blog Reporting Team at UKIPT6 London: Marc Convey and Jack Stanton. Photos by Mickey May. Follow the PokerStars Blog on Twitter: @PokerStarsBlog