Further updates from the WSOPE in Cannes
Event 5 of the World Series Of Poker Europe in Cannes turned out to be an interesting affair, even if it was not a particularly well attended one. The mixed max structure meant that throughout day one play would be nine handed, then six handed on day two with stacks being carried forward for heads up matches when down to the final sixteen. An innovative approach, but one that only 96 players took a fancy to – in no small part due to a meaty buy in of €10,000 pricing out many of the locals.
After some agonizingly long heads up matches the final two was reached as Branton Cantu and Jonathan Aguiar sat down to play for the bracelet, but their match also played on for hours without a winner in sight. Not for the first time in Cannes, play had to be suspended as the casino closed for the night and it was not until two days later that play resumed as both players took part in the WSOPE main event. Eventually a winner was found as Aguiar won a race against Cantu’s pocket deuces for a first ever WSOP bracelet and €258,047.
Shortly afterwards Cantu launched into a wonderfully Hellmuthian rant, claiming that the WSOP had robbed him of the title by allowing the final stage of the game to be postponed by two days, giving Aguiar a chance to speak to “his internet nerd friends” and analyse the action. During an interview in which he appeared to be close to tears he even claimed to have put in “one of the best performances maybe in the history of the World Series.” In true cry baby fashion Cantu also said he wanted to play heads up again for the difference between first and second place, and the good news is that Aguiar has agreed. The match is due to take place during the Festa Al Largo series at Bellagio later this month.
The final bracelet event of the WSOPE is well underway (the €10,000 NLHE main event) and as usual Jason Mercier and Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier are both sitting on big stacks. That event is due to finish on Thursday 4th October, but there is also one further event left to play which does not have bracelet status. That is the Majestic High Roller – an event with a €50,000 buy in which is rumoured to have attracted a lot of interest from many of the Asian players who can be found playing the high stakes games in Macau. Action in that event is due to start today.