EVENT #46 $5,000 NO-LIMIT HOLD’EM 6 HANDED

Joe Commisso with WSOP bracelet Today we are going to cover the final table from this the 46th bracelet event of the 39th WSOP. We started with 805 players 2 days ago, and now were here only with only six remaining. The seating assignments and chip counts are as follows:

Seat 1: Sam Trickett - 1,000,450
Seat 2: Davidi Kitai - 298,000
Seat 3: Joe Commisso - 1,961,000
Seat 4: Richard Lyndaker - 2,345,000
Seat 5: Tom Lutz - 1,493,000
Seat 6: Edward Ochana - 928,000

All of these players are relative unknowns however Davidi Kitai does have a bracelet in this year’s World Series in Pot Limit-Hold’em. Of these six players they only 5 cashes amongst them and 3 of those belong to Davidi.

Early on we have already found one player getting caught with his hand in the “cookie jar” when Lyndaker raised 70k from the cut off and Tom Lutz popped him to 190k from the button everyone folded and that was the end of hand number 4. Tom Lutz isn’t afraid to play at raisers and play back on a re-raise, in hand #10 Lutz raised to 70k from the button, when Ochana bumped it up to 195,000, when the action came back Lutz he instantly popped it all-in for 1.7 million Ochana tanked and after a short while gave the table tap and mucked his hand leaving Lutz just under 2 million chips.

It didn’t take long for the fireworks to start just eleven hands, Lyndaker raised from the hijack to 70k and was called by Ochana on the button both blinds mucked and we went 2 to the flop. When the board ran out 3c Ac 10d Lyndaker made it 85,000 to go and Ochana raised to 285,000. After a few seconds Lyndaker moved all-in and was snap called by Ochana. When the cards hit the table Lyndaker had Ad 4s for top pair and Ochana was holding Qc Jc for a club flush draw and an inside straight draw. When the Kh hit the turn it was all over and meant that when the Ks hit the river it was of no difference and Lyndaker finds himself down to 1.9 Million and Ochana doubles up to 1.3 Million.

Only a few hands later we lost our first player of this final table when Katai and Lyndaker got into it on hand #15, Katai made it 102,000 to go from middle position after posturing for a few seconds with his chips Lyndaker made it 240,000 and Katai insta shoved when the action came back to him. Katai tabled 10s 10c and was sorely disappointed to see Ks Kc being tabled by Lyndaker and David was a four to one dog. The flop came down Ah 3d As when the turn hit 2c David was down to just 2 cards and with the Ad on the river David Katai picked up his 4th cash this year and an impressive $120,693 for his 6th place finish.

Just 6 hands later we lost our 2nd player of the day, this hand occurred just after an ESPN Live 360 commercial break  gotta love the new age of poker. Richard Lyndaker found himself in yet another situation where a player had his life on the line. Richard made it 85,000 to go from the cutoff, Lutz didn’t take long to decide to put in a raise and made it 210,000 to play. After a couple seconds Richard put in the additional 125k and both players took in a flop, when the 9c Qc 8h hit the board. Richard very quickly slid out a bet of 275k and after a minute or more Lutz made it 550k and was quickly re-raised all-in by Richard and Lutz made the call tabling his two red Aces, and was very disappointed to see a set of nines from Richard Lyndaker, with the 4c and the 2s being the turn and river Tom Lutz is our 5th place finisher and will take home $174,041 for his efforts.

After just over one hour of play the chip counts are as follows

Richard Lyndaker - 3,523,000
Joe Commisso - 2,098,000
Edward Ochana - 1,614,000
Sam Trickett - 835,000

On hand #24 we finally see a big hand that doesn’t involve Richard Lyndaker, as we saw a battle between Sam Trickett and Edward Ochana. Trickett made it 90,000 to play and was called by Ochana from the Big Blind, the flop ran out 9s 3c 2d Ochana checked to the aggressor, and after Trickett made it 130k to go Ochana check raised him to 330k. Trickett to a minute to think before making the call, when the Jd peeled off the turn Ochana checked and Trickett shoved in his last 441k, and Ochana tossed his hand to the muck.

Unfortunately for Sam Trickett the nice pot take down was marred by a departure in 4th place. When Sam made it 90k to go he found himself up against Ochana in the same position of Big Blind this time he was again smooth called by Ochana and the two took in a flop of 10h 8h 6c this time however Ochana led out for 105k, and quickly Sam announced raise however did not announce the amount, after a moment he came up with a figure of 405k and Ochana moved all-in. Sam was disappointed to see his Kh Ks was in deep against the 6h 6d of Ochana and his flopped set. With a 9s on the turn it was down to just two Kings and unfortunately the 4d on the river was defiantly not a King and Sam left but not empty handed he got $245,927 for his finish.

With 30 hands in the books we find ourselves down to just 3 players and the chip stacks are as follows:

Edward Ochana — 2,868,000
Richard Lyndaker — 2,829,000
Joe Commisso — 2,373,000

And we see that all 3 players are very evenly matched.

After 40 hands we have seen a slow in the action as these players are playing solid deep stack poker, there has been a little separation in stacks as Commisso has chipped up to 3.55 million while Lyndaker has slipped a little to 2.5 million and Ochana brings up the rear with just over 2 million.

We have found ourselves at the first official break of this final table; the players will have 20 minutes to relax while tournament officials color up the chips. When the players return they will find themselves on level 24 with the blinds 20,000/40,000 with a 5,000 ante. Over the last 10 hands we have seen a little bit of preflop action but when a flop has hit the board we have seen very little action, and were starting to get the feeling that a big hand is looming and it’ll be a doozie.

Hand #53 brought the first bit of action in a while when Ochana called from the SB after the button mucked and Joe Commisso raised another 110k and was quickly called by Edward Ochana. With a flop of 2s 9c Js Ochana checked and Commisso pushed out a bet of 160k and was called by Ochana. With a 5c on the turn Ochana led out for 280k and after asking for a count Commisso made the call after finding out that Ochana had 1.3 million behind the 280k. When the board paired with a 5h on the river Ochana led fired out 500k and Commisso didn’t take long to call. After making the call Commisso turned over Jd 7d and Ochana mucked and is down to 810,000 while Commisso is up to 4.86 Million. After the hand Ochana announced quite loudly “REGROUP!”

It took almost 50 hands till we lost our next player when Ochana couldn’t make a come back and the short stack found himself on the way out after he raised to 125,000 from the button, Commisso folded from the SB and Lyndaker called and both Lyndaker and Ochana saw a flop of 2d 3d 8s. the action went check check and after a 9h comes off on the turn Lyndaker checked and Ochana slip out 130,000. After a second Lyndaker bumped it up to 310k and after a moments thought Ochana made the call. With a 10d on the river Lyndaker moved all-in after a second’s thought and with only 520k left Ochana took a moment to think about the decision. After toying around trying to pick up a read on Lyndaker Ochana made the call and tabled Qc 10s for top pair but after seeing the Jc 7c he realized his tournament was done and with a 3rd place finish he picks up $368,891.

Hand 70 leads off our heads up battle between Joe Commisso and Richard Lyndaker with 5.295 million and 2.685 million respectively with a 2 – 1 advantage Commisso is the favorite to take home the bracelet and the $911,855 first place prize money.

We have reached level 25 and with the blinds now 25,000/50,000 and a 5,000 ante and with 73 hands in the books the battle rages on. After a few small pots and a lot of folding pre-flop, we saw a decent pot after Joe made it 150k to go from the button Lyndaker bumped him up to 520k, Commisso asked for a count and then made the call. With a flop of Kh 8h 4c Lyndaker led out for 450k Commisso insta mucked his hand only to a see Lyndaker flash his 9c 6s to show a nice well timed bluff.

On hand 98 Lyndaker made it 150k to go and Commisso called, with a flop of 10h 6d 2h. Lyndaker continued with a bet of 220k which was raised to 660k by Commisso. With a little over 1.5 Million behind Lyndaker went into the tank and after stacking up his chips as if to shove them into the middle he feigned the call and used his other hand to muck his cards. And now finds himself 1.5 million to Commisso’s 6.5 million.

It took 30 hands to see any kind of significant action, when on hand #128 Lyndaker made it 130k to go and was called by Commisso. With the flop coming down Qd 7h 6s the action was checked through and after the Kc came off on the turn Commisso checked to Lyndaker who put in a bet of 185,000 and was called by Commisso and after a 4s on the river Commisso began playing with his chips before throwing in 500,000 which was not received well by Lyndaker who had a look of what the &*$# could you have. After a short deliberation he called and to his disappointment Commisso showed 6d 4c for two pair and Lyndaker mucked.

After that hand Joe Commisso had 7 million to Richard Lyndaker’s 1 million. The next few hands were good for Lyndaker as he got a walk on hand #131 then open shoved on hand #132 and Commisso mucked, Lyndaker again received a walk on hand #133. On hand #134 we had a first chance to end the tournament when Lyndaker was called after open shoving and as the hands were tabled

Lyndaker: Ks 6s
Commisso: Ah 7d

With a flop of 6d 8s 9d giving Lyndaker bottom pair and Commisso an up and down straight draw, the board paired when the 8c came off the turn and with a Qd on the river Lyndaker caught a break and doubled through. That hand leaves Lyndaker with 1.94 million chips and Commisso 6.1 million.

The action was quite uneventful for the next few hands as it was mostly a raise fold situation one way or the other, until hand #147. After some posturing Commisso raised to 130,000 and was called by Lyndaker. After the flop hit 2d 7s Qs Lyndaker checked and Commisso put in a rather quick bet of 200,000. After taking a few moments to count out his chips Lyndaker raised Commisso up to 475,000 it didn’t take long for Commisso to shove in all his chips with the call Lyndaker was at risk of going home in second. When the hands were tabled Lyndaker was staring down the barrel of a flush draw with an over.

Commisso: Ks 6s
Lyndaker: 10s 7d

After the Qd came off on the turn Lyndaker still had to sweat 12 cards and with the 6d on the river he found himself right back in this match with 3.46 million to Commisso’s 4.59 million, and we looked to be in for a longer night than originally thought.

On hand #153 Lyndaker took the lead in chips after he called Joe’s raise of 180k from the button and after a flop of Jd 8s 3h both players checked. When the 4s hit the turn Lyndaker led out for 230k and was called by Joe. After the Jh paired the board on the river Richard bet out 560,000 and was called after a small amount deliberation by Joe. Richard showed pocket 6’s and Joe mucked giving Richard a very small chip lead. Richard started this final table with the lead but lost it on hand #30 well it only took #123 hands to get it back.

As level 26 comes to a close Richard Lyndaker has a commanding lead with 5.435 million to Joe Commisso’s 2.615 million chips. Level 27 will see the blinds at 40,000/80,000 with a 10,000 ante. We have now played over 100 hands of heads up play, and as is indicative of this heads up match the 100th hand was a walk.

Hand #177 was the first bit of action we’ve seen in a while after Commisso made it 290k preflop the flop ran out 2h 10h Ah, and after the action was checked to Commisso he bet out 300,000 and was called by Richard. Both players checked the 5h on the turn and after the 4d hit the river Lyndaker bet 575,000 into a pot of over a million and after a short stint in the tank Commisso made the call. Lyndaker showed Jd 10d for a pair of 10’s and to his relief Commisso turned over Ac 3h for a 3 high flush that was over kill as his A was best anyway. After this hand Commisso has retaken the advantage and now has 4.54 to Lyndaker’s 3.51 million chips.

As level 27 came to a close we had an interesting hand. Joe made it 315k to go and was re-popped to 1.130 million, after rechecking his cards Joe gave a hand jesture to indicate allin and Lyndaker folded. However both players showed there hands and for the action that occurred everyone had a puzzeled look as Lyndaker had 9d 4d and Commisso had Qh 8c. With that level 27 has come to a close and we start level 28 with the blinds 50k/100k with a 10k ante.

Over the last few hands we have seen the players exchange the chip lead as either player try to gain hold of this heads up battle. We have seen a lot of flops but very few turn cards and even fewer rivers unless it has been a check down situation but mostly the action has ended pre-flop or flop.

On hand #228 Commisso found himself at risk of his night being over. After he called a raise of 225k preflop from the BB, the flop ran out Ah Qc 8d. Commisso checked to Lyndaker who fired 250,000 and was called. With the turn bringing the 7c Commisso again checked to Lyndaker who fired 725,000 into 970,000 pot, after peeking at his cards Commisso announced all-in. Lyndaker then asked for a count and was informed that Commisso had approximately 2.3 million. After some time Lyndaker made the call showing As Ks to Commisso’s Qs 7h meaning that Lyndaker would need to see a Ace, King or Eight to end the tournament however to his displeasure the 10h hit the river. With that hand Joe has gotten back to the 7 million mark while Richard is at 990k and looking down the barrel once again.

Three hands later Richard called allin after Joe open shoved from the Button, showing Qs 6h to Richards As Qc. After the flop ran 7h 3h 3d it looked good for Richard with 3s on the turn it got better and after sweating the river he found himself up to 1.93 million as the Kc fell. Richard then folded the next 3 hands before shoving allin after Joe raised to 200k from the button. Even after looking like he absolutely should fold Joe reluctantly made the call and tabled Kd 9s to his dismay he was up against Ks Jd. The flop ran 4d Ac 7h, the turn was the 5c followed by the Ad on the river and just like that Richard has 3.4 million.

As level 28 came to a close Richard picked up a pot of 1.9 million after flopping middle pair on a board of Jc 3h 10s Js Qh, Joe mucked after calling on the river. With the start of level 29 the blinds are 60k/120k with a 15k ante. After what appeared to be a very quick final table Joe and Richard have now been battling heads up for nearly 5 hours.

On hand #252 Richard once again doubled up after Limp shoving preflop and finding himself behind against Joe’s Ad 9s to Richards 10-8s but when the flop hit Kh 8h 2s and the turn came off the 5s giving Richard the lead with a nice redraw the river bricked out 4d and once again Joe missed another opportunity to skin this cat. You have to wonder how many more times Richard will dodge the bullet or will Joe’s in ability to finish him off finally haunt him.

After a few more hand Richard once again took the chip lead and on hand #258 caught Joe way off guard as he open shoved 4.3 million, and after some time Joe called allin with his Ac 8d to the Jd 10c of Richard. When the flop hit Ad 7c 5d it seemed as though Joe finally was to get the best of Richard with all the chips in the middle, too bad it was yet again when all his chips were in the middle. With the Kh on the turn Joe had to sweat the Queen but to his delight the 7h was a welcome brick card and he now finds himself in the driver seat for the 3rd time in this epic battle.

After a few small pots and one allin Richard still finds himself alive in this match but not looking good. On the 200th hand of heads up hand #269 Joe raised to 275k and was insta raised allin by Richard, and with a call we had the cards tabled once again and Richard in danger of going home once again with his Kc 4s up against the Ac 10d of Joe. But when the flop hit 10s 9s Kd Joe could only wonder what it would take to beat this guy. With the 9h and 3s on the turn and river Richard now finds himself at 2.5 million and hoping to make a stellar come back for the 3rd time. And on the very next hand he open shoved with Qd Jh and found himself behind once again to Joe’s Ad 3d however with a Ks Jc 3c flop he ran into the wall again. With no help on the turn (6s) or river (10c) Lyndaker doubled through again and finds himself with the chip lead.

Richard Lyndaker - 5,050,000
Joe Commisso — 3,000,000

On hand #276 Richard again had a chance to end it when he raised to 240k preflop and was called. With a flop of Kd 8h 6s, Joe checked and Richard bet out 300k and was raised to 1,000,000 by Joe with that Richard moved allin and Joe made the call with a look of disgust.

Commisso: 9s 7c
Lyndaker: Kc 4c

But as has been the case all night when someone is allin they survive and with the 5d on the turn Lyndaker was drawing dead and Joe once again has the chip lead 6.2 million to 1.8 million.

On hand #278 it all culminated finally! As Lyndaker Open shoved with 9s 7d and was snap called by Joe with Ad Qs, and I’m sure Joe was asking himself if he could actually win. That question was answered when the flop came down Qh 4s 10s leaving Richard with nothing but running cards. When the 10h hit the board on the turn it was all over and we have a champion in Joe Commisso. Richard Lyndaker won’t leave empty handed as he takes home $570,551 for his efforts or just under $100,000/hr for heads up play .

Winner of Event #46 $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em 6 Handed is Joe Commisso who hails from New Jersey but now live in Las Vegas and plays poker professionally. This is only his fifth live tournament ever, and one of the others being a wsop circuit event in Atlantic City where he final tabled.

Thank you for continuing to follow our coverage of the Thirty Ninth Annual World Series of Poker from The Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

By Staypuff.