Want the latest news and gossip emanating from the center of the poker universe in Las Vegas, Nevada? Here's where it's at.
Today in the 3-Bet we find Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier freed from the grips of French bureaucracy and bolting for Vegas, Jennifer Harman charges back into the WSOP bracelet picture and one young poker player has his million-dollar dreams come true.
1) Passport Replaced; ElkY Incoming
Trapped in Paris waiting for a stolen passport to be replaced, PokerStars pro Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier has had to sit out the first week of the 2014 WSOP.
For a guy as competitive as him it must have been excruciating to sit on the sidelines while the poker world buzzed thousands of miles away.
The anguish is over, though, as French bureaucracy finally came through with his new document - a couple of weeks ahead of previously expected.
Finally, after much trouble, got my passport! #Vegas here I come! #WSOP2014 pic.twitter.com/iplq1SIaJF
— Bertrand Grospellier (@elkypoker) June 4, 2014Given his rough start to 2014 we expect he'll be extremely fired up and motivated to make up for lost time. Poker players in Vegas, heads-up.
2) Harman Leads Final 36 in $10k 2-7 Draw Lowball
Remember Jennifer Harman? Diminutive blonde, double WSOP bracelet winner, one of the best poker players in the history of the game Jennifer Harman?
After being in the poker spotlight for all of the 2000s Harman's taken a backseat to a few rising stars of today's game lately - most notably Vanessa Selbst, Loni Harwood and a new wave of female tournament crushers.
Lest we forget, though, Harman is one of the true icons of high-stakes poker and one of the best poker players, in all variations, of all time.
Selbst has three bracelets but Harman's sat - and won - in the biggest cash games in poker history. And that's still the ultimate litmus test for a poker player.
She's also in the picture for her third bracelet as she bagged up the biggest stack after Day 1 of the ultra-competitive $10k 2-7 Draw Lowball event yesterday.
She's got a long way to go for the bracelet and an impossibly tough field to cut through but if anyone can do it, it's Harman. The current top 10:
1. Jennifer Harman 133,800 2. John Juanda 124,300 3. Shawn Sheikhan 122,400 4. Larry Wright 121,300 5. Galen Hall 120,000 6. Ashton Griffin 119,000 7. Brian Rast 111,700 8. Paul Volpe 103,200 9. Mike Watson 102,800 10. Joe Cassidy 96,200
3) Jonathan Dimmig Gets Made
Every poker player dreamed about it. Almost 8,000 players put up the $1,500 to give it a shot. But only one player could win the life-changing Millionaire Maker event at the 2014 WSOP.
That winner? Buffalo, New York native Jonathan Dimmig, who outlasted the field over four days and the final table of nine yesterday to pad his bankroll to the tune of $1.3 million.
Given that his TOTAL career live earnings up until yesterday sat at around $35,000 we feel pretty confident in saying it is, in fact, life-changing money. Surprisingly, though, the pressure of the final table and the looming payday didn't get to him:
"It's not my style to sit back and wait and let others bust out so I can move a notch up the pay ladder," Dimmig told the WSOP. "I noticed some of the guys were just trying to get up the money ladder, and I don't think like that.
"This is a life-changing event. I don't want to look back in 30 years and say 'what if?' This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and you got to go for it."
Congrats to Dimmig and all the long-suffering sports fans of Buffalo. The official final nine and payouts:
1. Jonathan Dimmig $1,319,587 2. Jeffrey Coburn $815,963 3. James Duke $614,368 4. Andrew Teng $465,972 5. Bradley Anderson $355,913 6. Stephen Graner $273,854 7. Jason Johnson $211,394 8. Andrew Dick $164,118 9. Maurice Hawkins $128,150
For more on Maurica Hawkins, check our interview out here. Complete results for the Millionaire Maker here.
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