8.50pm: Nealon down to dust
It's been an up and down day for Fergal Nealon, he's secured his first UKIPT main event cash but it looks like ultimately ending on a downer as he's got just seven big blinds left.
He told me: "I raised ace-jack in the cut-off and the big blind (Derrick Wall) shoved for 19 big blinds with kings, I called and the kings held."
However he's still in as are 33 other players, just 15 minutes to go in the day. -- NW
8.40pm: Doverklint dents Boeree
I didn't see how it went in but pre-flop Michael Doverklint got his last 80,000 in with pocket jacks and Liv Boeree matched that amount holding [As][Qs]. The [2c][9d][Jh][Kd][5c] board doubling Doverklint to roughly 160,000, whilst knocking Boeree's stack down to 120,000. -- NW
8.30pm: Fear the Finneran
The new chipleader is Thomas Finneran, he tweeted: "Just bust @peterswellman have 460k. Avg is 160k." -- NW
8.20pm: Online and live, both are still alive
As we enter the last 45 minutes of the day Team PokerStars Pro Liv Boeree and PokerStars Team Online's Dale Philip are both still going. The Scotsman tweeted: "Going into last level of day. 82,200 at BB4000. 36 players left."
Whilst I actually had to get up to get a count of Boeree's stack (200,000) but I'm glad I did as the EPT San Remo winner, who is sporting a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle t-shirt, told me, when questioned, that her favourite turtle is Michaelangelo.
She'll get her chance to be a 'party dude' later as the UKIPT party starts at 9pm. -- NW
8.15pm: Chop chop
Two interesting hands that both ultimately ended in chops to tell you about...
Hand one: Phil Peters opened to 6,000 on the button, Dylan Roberts three-bet to 13,500 from the big blind and Peters made the call. On the [6s][Js][2s] flop Roberts c-bet 7,000, call from Peters. The [Qs] fell on the turn and both players checked to see the [9s] complete the board. Again both players checked, Roberts showed [Ac][Ad], whilst Peters showed [6c][6d] for the flopped set. However, with a flush on board they chopped the pot. "I'm cursing because I haven't got a spade when that flop comes," said Roberts. "Turns out I'm behind anyway!"
Hand two: Pascal Tongi opened from the button and Dara O'Kearney defended from the big blind. On the [10s][Jh][As] flop O'Kearney check-called a bet of 6,500 from Tongi. The [Qd] turn was checked through before the [10d] completed the board. At this juncture O'Kearney led out for 15,000 and Tongi quickly called, O'Kearney showed [Ks][Js] for the monster flop hand and turned straight, whilst Tongi was equal to him with [Kd][2s].
Just 35 players remain here in Cork. -- NW
8.05pm: Sinclair sinks with disappointment
Richard Sinclair had been utilising his chip-leading stack very well since the bubble burst, involving himself in a lot of pots. This gave him a very loose image that would help him get paid if he found a big hand in a good spot. One can't get aces to always hold up though!
Kevin Callebaut was his opponent in the hand and had a 139,000-chip stack. The chips went in pre flop and the hands were on their backs.
Sinclair: [ad][as]
Callebaut: [kc][ks]
The board ran [3h][9s][kd][2h][5d] to make the Belgian a set. Sinclair is back in the pack with 195,000 chips. -- MC
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 2,000-4,000, ant 400
7.50pm: Nine lives for O'Kearney
Dara O'Kearney just sucked out on chip leader Pascal Tongi to stay alive in this tournament. The action was started by Tongi, who raised to 6,000, O'Kearney then shoved for 47,200 and Tongi made the call.
O'Kearney: [9c][9h]
Tongi: [10c][10s]
The [2d][9s][7s][7h][Ac] board gave O'Kearney a full-house and he's up to 100,000 whilst Tongi slips to around 300,000. -- NW
7.43pm: Big Mick, No Stack
One of the danger men left in the field, Mick Graydon, has been eliminated.
The Irishman has been struggling for the last few levels but made it through the bubble, stayed patient and waited for a good hand, and then busted.
Alexander Rhys-Davies opened to 6,600 from under the gun and was called in one spot before Graydon moved all in for around 50,000 from the small blind. Rhys-Davies moved all in behind and that was good to get it to heads up.
Graydon: [qc][qs]
Rhys-Davies: [ah][kd]
The board ran [9h][9c][3c][ks][6h] to pair Rhys-Davies' king on the turn. -- MC
7.30pm: Two bust outs and a double up
Three showdown hands to tell you about that happened in quick succession...
Hand One: Ollie Schaffmann is out, he told me: "It was a blind on blind battle, we were playing about 75,000 deep. I made it 7,000 from the small blind, the big blind made it 19,500, I moved all-in with ace-king and he called with tens. The board ran queen high, pretty standard. Still it's another flag, my first Irish one."
Hand Two: Down to just 6,500 Larry Cloney moved all-in with [8c][6c] and Rob Lyons made the call with [Ah][Kh]. The [4c][7s][Qh] flop gave Cloney additional outs, the [10c] turn even more, but he missed them all on the [3d] river.
Hand Three: Eoin Olin opened in early position to 6,500, Johnny Kivits moved all-in for 63,100 from late position and when it folded back to Olin he made the call.
Kivits: [Js][Jc]
Olin: [Ah][Kh]
The board ran [7s][3d][4d][6c][4c] to keep the Dutchman in the lead, he's up to 130,000 whilst Olin slips to 60,000. -- NW
7.27pm: First big blow for Derrick
Chris Derrick has enjoyed a pretty stress-free tournament so far, chipping up consistently. That was until he lost a 320,000-chip pot to Kieran Furey.
The chips were being passed to Furey at the end of the hand, his pocket jacks still face-up in front of him. Derrick's nine-seven had been mucked after it was inferior on the [7c][jc][qd][7h][th] board.
Luckily for Derrick he's still left with an above average 160,000 to play with. -- MC
7.20pm: First three exits
For at least three players a min-cash is as far as they will go, the first two were eliminated before the break as they played one more hand before going on break. All of the following collect €1,315
48th - Alan Wilson, United Kingdom
47th - Paul Corrigan, United Kingdom, PokerStars Qualifier
46th - Paulius Mikaliunas Lithuania PokerStars Qualifier
7.10pm: Chip updates
A full rounds of chips counts were done during the break. Click here to see the list.
This is how the top ten looks:
Richard Sinclair -- 346,000
Pascal Töngi -- 344,000
Thomas Finneran -- 337,500
Chris Derrick -- 291,000
Nicholas Newport -- 240,000
Pawel Keller -- 220,000
John Keown -- 195,000
Cahal Heapes -- 185,000
Philip Peters -- 184,000
Alexander Rhys-Davies -- 181,000
--MC
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 1,500-3,000, 300
6.45pm: Julian Thew bubbles UKIPT Cork
The bubble did not take that long to burst and the unfortunate recipient of 49th place is Julian Thew.
As we were waiting for what would prove to be his final hand in this tournament, he told me that he'd lost a chunk to Richard Sinclair a short while ago with pocket queens against pocket jacks when Sinclair rivered a jack.
And it would be Sinclair who would get the last of his chips, the UKIPT2 Newcastle winner made it 5,400 to go from under-the-gun and called when Thew moved all-in 41,100 total. After waiting for all the other tables to finish their hands we got the big reveal.
Thew: [3c][3h]
Sinclair: [5s][5h]
The [10c][Kd][9d] flop saw the crowd of spectators joking for a chop, the [4c] turn ended any chances of that and the [Qc] river ended Thew's run in this tournament.
That hand happened right at the end of level 14 and players are now on a 15 minute break. -- NW
6.40pm: Gavin soft bubbles as Smith gains revenge
Kevin Smith was very unlucky to double up Fintan Gavin earlier but he just got his revenge to bust him two spots off the money.
Smith opened to 5,000 and called when Gavin three-bet to 10,500. On the [6s][4h][7s] flop Gavin open-shipped for around 30,000 with pocket kings and Smith called with pocket fives.
The board ran out [8s][3d] to make Smith's straight. Gavin wished everyone the best of luck before he made off.
The bubble period is now in play and that means all tables are playing hand-for-hand. -- MC
6.30pm: Finneren busts a shortie
Thomas Finneran is up to 340,000 chips after he busted Aparicio Sanchez.
He raised from the button and then snap called when Sanchez shoved for around 40,000 from the big blind.
Finneran: [ad][as]
Sanchev: [4c][4d]
The board ran [qc][5d][2d][3h][ts]. Sanchez almost wriggled out of the mess but it was not to be. -- MC
6.25pm: Big names but do they have big stacks?
With the bubble firmly in sight, here's how some of the big names and UKIPT notables that are still left in are getting on, the average stack is 110,500: Liv Boeree (140,000), Stephen McGrath (45,000), Dara O'Kearney (67,000), OIlie Schaffmann (77,000), Fintan Gavin (60,000), Richard Sinclair (250,000), Dale Philip (70,000), Julian Thew (130,000), Mick Graydon (73,000), Fergal Nealon (85,000), Neil Rawnsley (40,000), Nick Newport (240,000) and Neil Raine (95,000). -- NW
6.20pm: Finneran flips good
Thomas Finneran has just flipped Nick Bell out of this tournament in 52nd place. The action was started by Bell who made it 4,800 to go, Finneran three-bet to 11,200, Bell then made it 45,000 to go which shocked Finneran. "Forty-five thousand," he said out loud. "How much do you have behind?" he then asked. "It's about half my stack," said Bell. After a brief dwell Finneran moved all-in and Bell made the call.
Finneran: [Qs][Qh]
Bell: [As][Kd]
The [10h][4c][Jc][6h][7h] flop kept Finneran in front. -- NW
6.12pm: Close but no cigar for....
David Clarkson, Sameer Singh, Noel Magner, Simon Nash, Jim O'Callaghan, Michał Ozimek, Patrick Humphreys, Denise Fusciardi, David Corduff, Nick Bell, Patrick McFadden, Richard Haile and Hasmukh Khodiyara. -- MC
6.05pm: Lose one, win one, for Boeree
Liv Boeree was happy to release a hand (correctly) against Fridjon Thordarson before she made Gavin Stevens release his hands minutes later. At the end she was sat on around 160,000 chips.
The board rested as [9d][as][5c][kh][8d] and Boeree checked to Thordarson who bet 19,600 into the 24,000 pot. Boeree snap folded and was shown pocket eights by Thordarson!
The next hand Boeree was on the button and three-handed to a [tc][3h][7h] flop. Stevens was the aggressor and continued for 8,000; only the Team PokerStars Pro called. On the [kh] turn Stevens checked to face an 11,000 bet than he was unable to call. -- MC
6pm: More for Derrick
On a [Qs][Qd][Qc] flop Simon Nash moved all-in for his last 30,000 into a similar sized pot and was snap called by Chris Derrick.
Nash: [Ah][Jc]
Derrick: [Ks][Kh]
The [3h] turn and [4c] river kept Derrick in the lead and the rich get richer with Derrick closing in on 275,000, whilst everyone else moves one place closer to being €1,315 richer. Just 55 remain. -- NW
5.55pm: Big stacks play cautiously
Being so near the money (eight spots off) it's understandable that big stacks would play cautiously against each other. That's exactly what happened between Thomas Finneran and Chris Derrick.
The former made it 5,000 to go from under the gun and was only called by the latter on the button. Finneran continued for 5,500 on the [8h][5d][ac] flop and Derrick called. Both players checked the [jd] turn before Finneran check-folded to a 13,500 bet on the [3d] river. That put Derrick up to about 220,000 and Finneran down to 165,000. -- MC
5.40pm: O'Kearney taking time out from online grind
Dara 'SlowDoke' O'Kearney is currently leading the UKIPT3 Best Online Qualifier leader board, with an immense 59 packages won across the seven events that have been played so far.
He's still just one tabling though here in Cork as he's one of the 61 players still left in. "Blinds just went 1200/2400 with 300 ante at #ukiptcork 61 left, 13 from bubble. Average 92k. Me 79k."
Since O'Kearney's tweet there's been three exits and just 58 remain. -- NW
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 1,200-2,400 ante 300
5.30pm: Humphreys finished by Finnie
After an open to 4,000 from Pascal Töngi in early position, Kevin Finnie flat called from the cut-off only for Patrick Humphreys to move all-in for 32,000 from the small blind. "No," said Tongi as he folded, but Finnie decided he was priced in and gave Humphreys a spin.
Finnie: [Ac][Qh]
Humphreys: [5d][5s]
The board ran [10d][Js][As][3h][3s] to eliminate Humphreys. -- NW
5.20pm: BigMickG a little smaller
Not a good level for Mick 'BigMickG' Graydon, who became Ireland's first ever SuperNova Elite a few years ago, "Terrible level. Down to 41k av. is 77k," he tweeted in the fashion you'd expect from someone used to multi-tabling and multi-tasking. -- NW
5.10pm: We'll miss you all
More bust outs: Johan Modschidler, Aidan Connolly, Stephen Freeman, Dennis McCartney, Jamie Browne, Alistar Carins, Darren Fuller, Alek Nazareet, James O'Connor, Emmett Davis, Dennis Smit, Marius Stauga and Robbie Renehan. -- MC
5pm: Instant service for Raine
Neil Raine stopped to tell us how he was all in not long ago but managed to win a race to double up.
He three-bet all in for around from the big blind with ace-king after Kevin Finnie opened with pocket nines. Finnie called but lost the pot after the first card out was an ace. He's still going well on 105,000 chips. -- MC
5.25pm: Chip counts
Here's the top five counts from the break
Pascal Töngi, Germany, PokerStars Qualifier, 230,000
Chris Derrick, United Kingdom, PokerStars Qualifier, 212,800
John Keown, Ireland, 195,000
Andrew Grimason, Ireland, 180,000
Nicholas Newport, Ireland, PokerStars Player,173,000
To see counts of all the remaining players click here. -- NW
4.47pm: New barriers broken by Keown
John Keown is up to 210,000 chips after he forced Seamus Birt off a hand on a [5s][8d][qs] flop. Somehow 40,000 chips had made it into the middle before Keown led into Birt for 25,000. Birt tanked for a good while and then folded. Keown flashed pocket jacks and raked in the pot. -- MC
4.37pm: Pots and stakes getting bigger
With four of the eight allotted levels of today in the books just 73 of the 158 players who started Day 2 remain.
That means the bubble - when 49 players remain - is probably a good two and a half levels away from being in effect, but it's probably already in the minds of many of the players left in.
A min-cash is worth €1,315 so not to be sniffed at, especially if you're a qualifier who's got in for a fraction of the €770 entry fee.
The players, including Team PokerStars Pro Liv Boeree (105,000) and PokerStars Team Online Dale Philip (75,500) are re-taking their seats now. During the break tournament staff did a comprehensive chip count of everyone left in and we'll get that information up on the blog as soon as possible.
PokerStars Blog reporting team in Cork (in order of the man crush they have on Glen Murray right now) : Marc Convey (cartoon birds and hearts fluttering above his head) and Nick Wright (meh, takes more than 26 goals to impress me). Photos by Mickey May (Glen who?).