World Series of Photos: From Nine to Seven

Throughout the summer, PokerGO has brought fans across the globe exclusive access to World Series of Poker final table streams and Poker Central has been following all the WSOP action. Each day, “World Series of Photos” has told the daily stories from the Rio, so you don’t miss any of the sights of the WSOP. Now, as the WSOP Main Event final table hits PokerGO and ESPN, there are only a few sights left before the summer comes to an end… 

Event #73 – $10,000 World Series of Poker Main Event

Two big stacks returned to the opening day of the WSOP Main Event final table and when it was all said and done, there was one left standing on the mountaintop. A massive clash between Scott Blumstein and John Hesp shot Blumstein and his top set to the top of the leader board, the New Jersey native shot to his rail to celebrate the double up, pictured top, one that has given him a stranglehold on the rest of the final table and should punch Blumstein’s ticket to the final day of the final table.

If a player goes up, another player must go down and last night, that player was fan favorite John Hesp. The British amateur opened the final table with his usual tricks, showing winning hands, bluffs which gave the WSOP Main Event final table more of a glorified home game feel than a table that was competing for $8 million and poker’s top prize. Alas, the Cinderella run took a huge hit on Thursday night and while Hesp is still alive, the clock has likely already struck midnight on everyone’s favorite Main Event character.

While the two big stacks had a dominant position on the rest of the table, coming into the day, two former November Niners dominated the headlines. Ben Lamb and Antione Saout made return trips to the Main Event final table and while Lamb was the first player out, on the fourth hand of the night, Saout battled and is still in contention. How big a threat he is though, likely depends on how he starts Day 2 of the final table, as the Frenchman is treading water with just under 15 big blinds.

Another player who will come into Day 2 under that threshold is Daniel Ott, who was one of the most impressive players at the final table last night. As the Poker Central Podcast strategy expert, I have the ability to make those claims and some would likely agree, as Ott got away from some hands that would have given him trouble and could have prevented him from making some valuable pay jumps. If he can impress again tonight, Ott could find himself fighting for a top-three finish in this year’s Main Event.

Follow all the WSOP Main Event action on PokerGO and ESPN, and watch exclusive WSOP event replays on PokerGO.