A no-go for Gill at WSOP Main Event
As I reported yesterday, Gill said on Twitter over the weekend that he was banned from all Caesars properties (which includes the Rio) after an alleged incident with a girl in a hotel room. Gill said the banishment occurred after he threw a girl's clothes out of a window.
He pleaded with WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel to try to get him back into the Main Event. The pleas did not work, as Gill remained banned.
Effel said that while he was sorry for Gill's situation, his "hands were tied."
Gill responded with this:
"@WSOPTD If your hands are tied, whose aren't? Because I am so confused, even the security there said 'we reserve the right...' without reason."
Gill also lamented that he was "out of the softest tourney of the year after putting up 10k. I doubt I could ever move on."
Carter Gill's chips got blinded off on Monday (photo by Vin Narayanan)
Gill's 49,000 chips were blinded off through the day.
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Boston Celtics superstar Paul Pierce continued his remarkable run at the Main Event as he chipped up throughout the afternoon on Day 2A.
Pierce played on the secondary featured table throughout the day. Unlike the previous four days, an announcer called the action from the secondary featured table. The main ESPN featured table is usually the only one offered that treatment.
The Truth was joined by former November Niner Dennis Phillips at the same table. Pierce was kind enough to sign a basketball for Phillips during the day and had around 90,000 chips after three levels.
Unfortunately for The Truth, it went downhill quickly. All of those chips disappeared during level four and he was eliminated.
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Pierce wasn’t the only celebrity who competed on Day 2A. TV stars Jason Alexander and Brad Garrett both took to the felt to try to become this year’s Lou Diamond Phillips. Phillips, in case you were unaware, made a deep run in the 2009 Main Event and finished in 189th place.
After Day 2A, it looks like Alexander is in the driver’s seat between the two sitcom actors when it comes to poker. He finished the day with 167,000 chips.
But in terms of entertainment, Garrett led the way. He was seated near the rail and drew a healthy contingent of fans. He was short-stacked all day and moved all-in late in the night.
Paul Pierce stayed alive until the fourth level. Unfortunately, there's no overtime in poker. (photo by Vin Narayanan)
“I’m all-in!” he bellowed, and sure enough reporters, TV cameras, players and fans crowded around his table. After a few players folded he said, “I’ve been known to turn tables. Especially at the buffet.”
Action moved around to the last player, who happened to be an older gentleman wearing a straw hat.
“I need a little help, sir,” Garrett pleaded to the man. The man open-folded 9x-5x and said there was nothing he could do. Garrett then showed his Ax-9x and scooped the blinds and antes.
After hamming it up for a few seconds, he ended his comedy routine by doing his best King George/Colin Firth impression: “Because I bloody well stammer!”
We don't know why he said this, but it drew laughs across the table. Garrett was able to double up near the end of the night and finished with 46,000 chips.
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Team PokerStars pro Humberto Brenes is rarely dull at the table. The Costa Rica native has been known to sing a tune or two at the table, and Casino City was lucky enough to swing by his table when he was heads-up against an opponent.
Dennis Phillips was seated at the same table as The Truth. (photo by Vin Narayanan)
Unfortunately, Brenes was singing in Spanish, which is his native tongue, so we couldn’t exactly understand what he was crooning about. Whatever it was must have worked, because he hit his flush on the river and won a sizable pot.
Brenes amped up the singing when he was collecting his chips. The Costa Rican crooner ended the day with around 157,900 chips.
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The Main Event is the ultimate grind. A player who makes the November Nine will have survived eight days of wall-to-wall poker.
Notable poker author Mike Caro, whose tablemates included Minh Ly, said that the grind extends away from the poker room as well.
“Do you realize if we make it to Day 3 we’ll have been here in Las Vegas for eight days?” he asked the rest of the table.
Another much younger player agreed with him, saying that he almost didn’t register for the Main Event because “it was not fun.”
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Seven former WSOP Main Event champions competed on Monday, with varying results. 1984 champion Tom McEvoy fared the best out of the world champions as he finished the day with 143,600 chips. Joe Cada (2009) also made it through Day 2A with 111,000 chips.
Reigning champion Jonathan Duhamel was eliminated before the dinner break as was Dan Harrington (1995) and Scotty Nguyen (1998). Johnny Chan (1987, 1988) was eliminated shortly after the dinner break.
Phil Hellmuth (1989), of course, started his day MIA but was able to slowly chip his way up. He ended the night with 64,900 and is still very much in contention in this tournament.