WSOP Day #4: Bracelet for one Chen, controversy for another

One legend departs, another waiting for glory?

All eyes in the $25K Heads Up event this year were focused, once again, on John Smith, a player whose first documented WSOP cash came in 1991 and who had twice finished runner up in the Heads Up Championship event. However, Smith this time stumbled in the quarter-final, succumbing to the young British upstart Darius Samual. Smith had to make do with $86,000 and equal fifth place -- and a slot in our Hand of the Day (see below).

John Smith, left, and Artur Martirosian, top, play their quarter-final matches

Samual, who already cashed in Event #1 at the WSOP this year, will now square up against Russian crusher Artur Martirosian in the first semi-final, scheduled for Saturday. Martirosian has two WSOP bracelets to his name already, but this $25K buy-in event is more in keeping with the tournaments he usually plays than the $800 Flip & Go in the Bahamas last December that gave him his most recent chunk of silverware. A regular on the Super High Roller circuit, and an online beast, Martirosian is the likely favourite in the final four.

That said, Nikolai Mamut and especially Faraz Jaka, the other two semi-finalists, have very strong claims. Jaka has been to seven WSOP final tables and won one bracelet -- notably, in a Shootout event, which required numerous heads-up battles to prevail. Jaka is the lone American left, with his opponent, Mamut, flying the Russian flag. Mamut plays most commonly in Europe, but his three biggest tournament scores have all come in the United States. He has never outright won a live tournament, however. Is this his time?

Faraz Jaka heads into the Heads Up final four

There are three more matches left: the two semis and then the final, with $500,000 and the bracelet to the overall winner. Should be a cracker.

$25K Heads Up Championship final four

• Darius Samual v Artur Martirosian
• Nikolai Mamut v Faraz Jaka

Payouts

• Winner: $500,000
• Runner-up: $300,000
• Beaten semi-finalists: $180,000

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Chen goes one better to secure first bracelet

No one remembers who finishes second. Unless they come back the next year and go one better.

Pittsburgh's James Chen struck a disconsolate figure this time last year when he was powerless to stop Ben Lamb marching to his second WSOP bracelet and thus hogging the headlines at the end of the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship. But Chen came back to the WSOP this year with renewed vigour and as the clock edged toward midnight at the Horseshoe, he completed a tournament run that would earn him his own chunk of silverware, and redemption.

James Chen: If at first you don't succeed, try again

Chen was the dominant player from a field of 928 entries in Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better, earning $209,350. Though this was a lower buy-in than the Championship event last time, Chen proved again that PLO8 is his game, leading from wire to wire at the all-American final table. 

Popular commentator and pro Jamie Kerstetter was first out from the final, unable to spin up a short stack. But Kerstetter was not alone in finding Chen unbeatable. Only heads-up opponent Lewis Brant held up the Chen juggernaut for any significant length of time, but even he folded at the last.

“Last year to come so close was disappointing, but this year to get it done was amazing," Chen told reporters.  “It was fun, cards were hitting. I made a lot of hands and it was great.”

With a bankroll swelled by more than $200K already, Chen is almost certainly in town and well set for the rest of the summer.

Willis gets Brits started, denies Wang a triple

There were no surprises when American players landed the first two bracelets of the 2024 WSOP summer. The host nation remains utterly dominant in both player numbers and champions. But this year it only took until Event 3 for the ever-growing international contingent to make its mark, thanks to British music entrepreneur Daniel Willis striking gold in the $500 WSOP Kickoff No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout.

Willis, from Swindon, in the UK, described himself as a former poker pro, who pushed the game into the back seat around a decade ago to focus on the music biz. But he rediscovered all his old nous to sweep past a field of 3,485 and land a victory worth $175,578. 

In doing so, Willis denied American pro Michael Wang a career third bracelet, with Wang having to settle for $117,046 and the runner-up spot.

"It just went really, really well in those crucial spots," Willis said, acknowledging the good fortune necessary to navigate such an enormous field. “I’m just really grateful for this amazing opportunity...And how everything unfolded to be here and to be the winner.”

Daniel Willis picked one up for the Brits

This was the tournament in which Daniel Negreanu made a deep run, finishing in 16th, but in which Wang was the best-known player heading into the eight-handed final day. Willis had the chip lead at the start of the final table, and was still sitting at the very end. In the hand that ended it all, Wang flopped a pair of aces with his , but by the time the full board read , Willis' was now best.

“The final table seemed to go really smoothly,” Willis said as he held the bracelet up to the cameras as proof.

Hennigan, Deeb and Blom in Dealers Choice contention

A brilliant final day awaits in Event #7: $1,500 Dealers Choice (6-Handed) where WSOP Hall of Famer and six-time bracelet winner John Hennigan lines up alongside fellow six-time winner Shaun Deeb in the last 10.

But it's not only the current and surely future Hall of Famer who'll be the focus of attention in this one. Add to the mix the inscrutable Swedish enigma Viktor Blom (you might know him as Isildur1) and you've got a pretty sensational line-up on the last two tables.

The enigma in the flesh: Viktor Blom

Hennigan and Deeb are renowned mixed-game crushers. The former's bracelets have come from HORSE, Stud, Lowball and Limit Hold'em, as well as the 2014 $50K Poker Players Championship. Deeb has titles from stud, PLO and 8-Game, as well as Hold'em. But even in this company, Blom remains the biggest box office draw. His nosebleed online games used to command audiences in their thousands, and this will offer WSOP railbirds the rare chance to see him in the flesh.

They'll play to a winner today, with $138,296 (or basically one small cash-game pot for Isildur) heading to the champion.

Ivey gunning for #11 in $5K PLO

If poker fans have any eyes left on Saturday, they might want to focus one on Day 2 of the $5K PLO event, where Phil Ivey will return and hunt for his 11th career WSOP bracelet. From a field of 733 entrants, Ivey is among the 130 who made it into the second day of this one, comfortably sitting in 48th place in the overnight field.

The tournament is predictably rammed with the best of the best, with Anthony Zinno, Joao Vieira, Chance Kornuth, Anson Tsang, Dylan Linde, Ryan Laplante, Sam Soverel, Dan Zack, Scott Seiver, Nacho Barbero and Bin Weng also in the top 50. (Fear not, another whole host of superstars sit in places 50-130 as well.) PokerOrg reporters on the ground in Vegas have promised 'Phil Watch' from the minute Ivey arrives.

Matthew Wantman and Dan Zack sweat a run-out in the PLO

Hand of the day

John Smith's matches in the $25K Heads Up event tended to be the last to finish in that particular round, which brought even more spectators to watch proceedings. More spectators = more drama, and Smith conspired with both the schedulers and the dealer* at the end of Round 3 to ensure maximum thrills for all concerned.

Players progressing into Round 4 locked up a min-cash in this event, while anyone losing in Round 3 went home with nothing. It was essentially the heads-up version of a bubble. Smith's match against Weston Mizumoto was the last to finish again, with everyone else bar these two knowing whether they were in profit or not for the event.

John Smith burst the bubble in the Heads Up event

Smith had a chip lead as he opened , only to be faced with a jam from opponent Mizumoto, putting his tournament life on the line. Smith took a moment before tossing in the call, quickly learning he was behind Mizumoto's . Spectators too knew they were now roughly 60/40 against heading into Round 4.

However, the dealer deposited a flop of to give Smith trips. The turn left Mizumoto drawing dead and heading home with nothing. Smith had done it again: yet another heads-up cash for the veteran talent.

Mizumoto was humble in defeat, referencing his nemesis, the GOAT. 

*metaphorically. There was no *actual* collusion!

Tweet of the day

While one James Chen was landing a first bracelet, the Taiwanese poker player with the same name was stoking perhaps the first major controversy of this year's WSOP. 

Chen noticed and photographed a player at his table allegedly using GTO Wizard during play in the $1K Mystery Millions event, bringing the subject of real-time assistance (RTA) front and centre in the first week of the WSOP. 

Chen, whose Twitter handle of @ChipBurglar is eerily relevant, went on to have a long Twitter discussion with the player -- who outed himself as Frédéric Normand -- on the subject. Normand denies wrongdoing; others weighed in with screenshots of tournament rules; but Chen doubled down.

It's too early to determine if or how this will become a factor at this year's WSOP (GTO Wizard was a flagship sponsor last time out) but it's one to watch. Here's the tweet that started it all. 

Video of the day

An important charity appeal...

The day in numbers

15

There are more bracelets than players left in the $1,500 Dealers Choice. John Hennigan and Shaun Deeb have six each, while Lawrence Brandt has two already and Peter Gelencser has one.

443

The number of people who will tell you that Limit Hold'em isn't dead. The first limit event of the 2024 WSOP drew 443 entrants paying $1,500 apiece. The winner will pick up $121,074 with a min-cash worth $3,014.

$4,938,500

Not WSOP action but the amount won by Peter at this year's Million Dollar Game on Hustler Casino Live. He becomes the show's biggest ever winner, surpassing Tom Dwan.

Results

Event #3: $500 Kickoff No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout

Full results list on the official WSOP site

Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better (8-Handed)

Full results list on the official WSOP site

Ongoing events

Event #7: $1,500 Dealer's Choice (6-Handed – final 10)

Event #8: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha (8-Handed)

See WSOP site for full counts

Event #9: $1,500 Limit Hold'em (8-Handed)

See WSOP site for full counts

Bracelet winners

• Event #1: $5,000 Champions Reunion – Asher Conniff
• Event #2: $500 Casino Employees No-Limit Hold’em – Jose Garcia
• Event #3: $500 Kickoff No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout – Daniel Willis (UK)
• Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better (8-Handed) – James Chen (USA)

What to look for on Day #5

The second Championship event of this year's WSOP gets under way at 2pm, with the elite Omaha players arriving for Event #10: $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship. Prepare for lots of chopped pots and, presumably, a few dealers having to learn quickly low to split half the pot three ways, while awarding two players equal portions of the other half. Cue: mayhem. It's a four-day event, with registration closing an hour into Day 2.

It's also a good weekend to sit in front of the laptop as the first online event gets started. WSOP Online Event #1: NL Hold'em 55th Annual Kick Off has a $555 buy-in and will play start to finish in one sitting.

Day #4 photo gallery

Daniel Willis

^{Additional images courtesy of WSOP/Danny Maxwell}