The bubble moment in any tournament always generates tension. However, when the contest is the WSOP Main Event, this pressure becomes even greater. Last Thursday (09), right at the beginning of Day 4 of this year’s event, the competition entered this decisive phase. The journey started with only seven eliminations remaining until the payout, and quickly, four players left the room.
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Thus, three players were eliminated almost simultaneously during the bubble. One of them was the legendary Chris Moneymaker, champion of the 2003 Main Event and one of the main figures responsible for the so-called “poker boom”. Besides him, Stoyan Madanzhiev, champion of the 2020 WSOP Online Main Event, and Zhaken Seitbekov also said goodbye to the competition and shared a prize of US$ 30,000.
confusing. The board showed 8♥7♠7♦7♣8♠, and the legendary player called the all-in of Antonio Vargas. He probably believed the hand would end in a tie, since the board presented a full house. Moneymaker showed J♥9♦, while Vargas revealed A♥A♠. However, the aces secured a higher full house and confirmed the elimination of the 2003 champion.
On the other hand, the elimination of Stoyan Madanzhiev was even more exciting. At blinds 4,000/8,000, with big blind ante, he called a 4-bet all-in of 490,000 chips with A♥K♥. Gregory Brow, who had the largest stack, revealed 5♦5♣, and the pair held on the board 2♦9♠4♥2♣8♦, eliminating another player from the tournament.
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Last elimination and prize split
Next, the elimination of Zhaken Seitbekov happened in a hand that formed a big pot. The board showed 5♠6♣A♦3♦T♣, and the player put his 361,000 chips in the center of the table, receiving an immediate call. Seitbekov showed A♥9♥, while the opponent revealed 6♠6♦, enough to make a set and win the hand.
Traditionally, the bubble player of the WSOP Main Event does not leave empty-handed. In this edition, he secured the buy-in of US$ 25,000 for the WSOP Paradise. Additionally, the three eliminated players split two payout tiers of US$ 15,000, receiving US$ 10,000 each.
Finally, it remained to know who would get the seat to compete in the Bahamas. Therefore, the organization held a special flip and opened the board Q♦9♦Q♣J♣4♥. Zhaken Seitbekov received K♥2♦ and won the seat thanks to the higher kicker, as Chris Moneymaker had 5♣2♠, while Stoyan Madanzhiev revealed 6♣5♣.
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