The WSOP Main event will be aired on 30 minute delay starting 6pm PST (15 minutes after this original blog is posted). I will update this blog with analysis, big hands, etc as the tournament unfolds, and the updates will be in reverse chronological order, meaning the most recent update is on top, so to view them just occasionally refresh the page. I'll interact in the comments section as well, but the majority of updates will be in the blog itself. 

Follow along on ESPN2, and avoid spoilers by not refreshing Pokernews live updates, which should be 30 minutes ahead of TV.
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# Updates

## I'm getting tired and this blog is getting too long, and I doubt anyone is interested in reading this haha. I'm gonna throw in the towel. 

Check the comments for a link to where you can watch outside the US if you don't have ESPN, and you can follow along here on pokernews for updates afterwards (beware of spoilers): https://www.pokernews.com/tours/wsop/wsop-2017/event-73-main-event-world-championship/

This was fun...but it was way too much work for $3. Maybe a live stream of analysis is a better idea so I can avoid the typing with a computer on my lap for 5 hours.

#### Hands 55-60
https://s19.postimg.org/qjxkqa8qr/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_10.15.45_PM.png

## Blinds going up to 600k / 1.2M, 200k ante

#### Hand 54
Salas raises with 2.5M on the button with A3hh, Ott defends the BB with 95dd.

Flop: Qh 9c 6c, check check.
Turn: 9h. check check.
River: Th. Ott bets 3.7M, Salas goes all in, Ott folds.

**Analysis:** I would have just gone all in to prevent people to shove over the top, and given the payout jumps you can get some better hands to fold. After that I think it played out pretty standard, although I think Ott should have led the turn with 2 flush draws and many straight draws out there. Nice check back on the turn by Salas.

#### Hand 53
Blumstein raises to 2.3M with 44, everyone folds.

#### Hands 48-52: I had to step out, so copying the pokernews updates to catch up
https://s19.postimg.org/6ba74k9fn/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_9.59.58_PM.png

**Analysis:** The one noteworthy thing was that Hesp had QQ on the A52 flop. I cannot believe he didn't reraise preflop or call the flop. He must be pretty tilted and off to not want to 3bet QQ there with a short stack vs a short stack.

## Updated Chip Counts
https://s19.postimg.org/zcejdytvn/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_9.46.16_PM.png

#### Hand 46
Blumstein raises to 2.3M with AA, Piccioli folds QJss on the button, Hesp calls in the BB with AThh.

Flop: Ac 7d 5h. Hesp checks, Blumstein checks behind.
Turn: Ts. Hesp checks, Blumstein bets 3M, Hesp raises to 7M, Blumstein reraises to 17M, Hesp moves all in, Blumstein calls.

**Analysis:** Pretty bad luck, but there was no reason to go all in over Blumstein's turn 3bet. I would have just called, saw a river, and probably called almost any bet amount there. Alternatively he could have lead the turn, and I'm not sure whether he should 3bet or just call down -- probably call down given the stacks and the possibility of running into TT. Still, just terrible luck, really bad cooler for Hesp.

#### Hand 45
Piccioli limps with T2cc in the sb, Ott raises in the BB with A7o, Piccioli folds.

#### Hand 44
Hesp raises to 2.5M with T8o, Blumstein calls with 44, Sinclair shoves for 12.5bb with AQo, Hesp folds, Blumstein folds.

**Analysis:** Hesp's open was obviously just tilt, he needs to take a breather. Blumstein had a close spot. He's getting slightly better than 2:1, but if we give Sinclair a range of 77+ AJs+ AQo+ to shove then Blumstein doesn't have odds. I think I like the fold: rather than take a close spot, just retain your stack.

#### Hand 43
Hesp raises ATo, Pollak calls on the BTN with 88.

Flop: T65. Hesp bets 3M, Pollak calls.
Turn: 4. Hesp bets 3M again, Pollak calls.
River: 7. Hesp checks, Pollak bets 10M, Hesp calls.

**Analysis:** Bad call on the end there. I'm not sure exactly what Hesp was thinking, maybe that Pollak could turn T9 or 99 into a bluff, but it was just way too likely for him to have T8s, 88, a set of 7s, or a slow played lower set that wanted to value bet. 

Pollak is up to 73M chips now and is probably the favorite to win given his skill edge and he's in position on both the big stacks.

#### Hand 42
Salas shoves 13.5bb with AKo, everyone folds.

#### Hand 41
Ott raises to 2.2M with A4hh, Pollak defends the BB with QcTs.

Flop: Qd 9d 9h. Check, Ott bets 1M, Pollak calls.
Turn: 4c. Pollak leads 2.5M, Ott calls.
River: 6d. check, Ott bets 6.8M, Pollak calls.

**Analysis:** Wow, great call. I don't love Ott's play here because I do think Pollak has a value hand here which includes quite a few 9x, maybe some flushes, and like he did he could look him up with Qx. But it was creative, he got priced into a call on the turn since Pollak can lead many bluffs (gutshots, flush draws, etc), and turning his hand into a bluff on the end was very interesting. 

I assume he thought Pollak didn't have a missed draw like KT KJ T8 J8 JT because he would have fired the end with those and was trying to fold out specifically Qx. The more I think about it the more I like it, but it's pretty thin regardless, especially against someone who may call with Qx. I would not have called, so have to tip my cap to Pollak.

## Is anyone going to ever bust????

#### Hand 40
Salas raises all in for 11bb with AJhh, everyone folds.

#### Hand 39
Ott limps the sb with 64o, Hesp checks A5o.

Flop: 9s 4s 4d. Ott bets 1m, Hesp raises to 3M, Ott calls.
Turn: 6h. Ott checks, Hesp bets 4M, Ott raises to 9.5M, Hesp folds.

**Analysis:** Don't like this turn raise. I don't really like calling and checking the river either though to try and c/r there against Hesp who probably doesn't fire 3 times. I think the best play is probably to check call then lead the river, I think against specifically Hesp it's the best way to get money in.

## Updated Chip Counts As Players Go On Break
https://s19.postimg.org/4gxcmtmf7/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_8.47.00_PM.png

#### Hand 38
Pollak raises to 2.3M with 55, Ott defends his BB with A3o.

Flop: Jh 6c 3d. check, Pollak bets 2.4M, Ott calls.
Turn: 2c. check, Pollak bets 5.5M, Ott folds.

Don't know how I feel about that bet. On one hand Ott may fold 6x and some hands like AQ that didn't 3bet preflop. However, he should have quite a few Jx hands, will continue with some 6x, and there were no draws on the flop (since Pollak blocks 45), so I prefer a check back here. 

#### Hand 37
Blumstein raises to 2.3M with KTo, everyone folds.

#### Hand 36
Blumstein raises to 2.3M with J9hh, Saout goes all in for 18M with KK, Blumstein folds.

#### Hand 35
Pollak raises from the sb with 92o to 3.5M, Sinclair defends K7o.

Flop: 532. Pollak bets, Sinclair folds.

Very loose raise from Pollak, obviously trying to capitalize on his tight image. But this hand is just too weak, I think it's a fold against any competent player. Sinclair will shove frequently over the top and will defend a wide range.

#### Hand 34
Blumstein raises to 2.1M with T9s on the button, the blinds fold their trash hands.

#### Hand 33
Piccioli raises to 2.2M with 33, Hesp calls with QJo on the BTN, Blumstein calls with JsTs in the sb.

Flop: Ac Qs 2h. Checks to Hesp who bets 3M into 9M, Blumstein calls, Piccioli folds.
Turn: Ad. check, Hesp bets 3M again, Blumstein folds.

I would have checked back both the flop and turn in Hesp's spot, but he likes to move chips with middle pair. To be honest it doesn't really matter what he does in close spots with his chiplead, as long as he keeps playing hands and doesn't punt off his stack. He now has **133,000,000**, and nobody else has over 80M!

#### Updated Chip Stacks
https://s19.postimg.org/unyjis4oz/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_8.17.24_PM.png

#### Hand 32
Ott raises AJo on the button to 2.2M with 17M to start the hand, Hesp calls in the SB with 44, Blumstein calls in the BB with QTo.

Flop: Jh 8d 2h. check, check, Ott bets 3.5M, Hesp folds, Blumstein went all in, Ott calls. 

The board runs out 6h, As, and Ott doubles up. Standard play on the flop, only non-standard thing was Hesp's call preflop: I think he should have 3bet or folded vs a shortstack, leaning towards raising and then calling off against Ott's eventual shove.

#### Hand 31
Piccioli raises with 9d9h, Hesp defends with Kh6s.

Flop: Ad Qc 4d. Check Check.
Turn: Jd. Hesp bets 3M, Piccioli calls. Piccioli has a flush draw here, not Hesp.
River: Ac. Check, check. 

Well played by Piccioli, and Hesp's line was good too.

#### Hand 30
Salas moves all in for 11.5bb with KQhh and everyone folds. Standard shove.

#### Updated chipstacks:
https://s19.postimg.org/muy6seqir/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_7.57.39_PM.png

#### Hands 28 and 29
Blumstein raises and everyone folds.

#### Hand 27
Saout went all in for 10bb on the button with T9dd, Sinclair called off in the bb with K8s.

Flop TT4, and this hand is over. Standard shove from Saout and good call by Sinclair for only 1/3 his chips.



#### Hand 26
Hesp raises to 2M with QQ, Blumstein 3bets with AJo to 5.2M, Hesp 4bets to 20M, Blumstein folds. 

All action was reasonable, as were other options. The reason Hesp could get away with this risk is cause he had over a 20M chiplead on Blumstein coming into the hand.

#### Hand 25
The rare walk for Antoine Saout.

#### Hand 24
Hesp limps from sb with trash, Blumstein checks back trash, then Blumstein bets a trash flop and wins. Rushed through this one to get back to live TV!

#### Hand 23
Bryan Piccioli raises to 2.2M on the button with 76cc, Hesp defends his BB with Q7o.

Flop: Ah Qs 9c. Hesp leads half pot, Bryan folds.

I hate this lead. Bryan will bet this flop a decent amount with worse hands that will fold to the lead, and if you are going to lead you *definitely* don't want to lead with middle pair. Either lead with a hand like T8 or a strong hand that gets worse to call.

#### Hand 22
Hesp raises to 2M with KJo, Blumstein calls with AKcc, Pollak calls with QTss in position.

Flop Jh 8s 6s. Hesp leads for 3M, Blumstein calls, Pollak calls.
Turn Jc. Hesp checks, Blumstein checks, Pollak checks.
River Ah. Hesp checks, Blumstein bets 8.5M, Pollak folds, Hesp calls.

Tricky play by Hesp. I would have preferred betting the turn, especially with many possible draws out there 3 way. But after checking the turn, checking the river makes sense. He wants to let someone bluff behind, it's unlikely anyone has an Ace to call him, so why even bother betting? Only thing I don't like is Blumstein's flop call, think he needs to fold with a player behind. 

## Blinds 400k/800k, 100k ante.

#### Hand 19-21: 3 standard hands, so I'm copying from Pokernews to catch up
https://s19.postimg.org/5t5cqbbnn/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_7.41.58_PM.png

#### Hand 18
Ott raises to 1.7M with AKcc, Pollak defends his BB with ATo

Flop 832 1 club. Check, Ott bets 1.3M, Pollak folds. 

**Sorry for lack of updates, had to run out briefly, will slowly catch up**

#### Hand 17
Blumstein limps in from the SB with AQhh, Saout checks his option with 6c3s.

Flop: 7c5d2c. Blumstein minbets, Saout calls.
Turn: 5h. Blumstein checks, Saout bets 30% pot, Blumstein calls.
River Jc. Blumstein checks, Saout bets 1.75M (only 25% pot), Blumstein check raises to 4m with AQs, Saout folds.

This would have been a nice calldown by Blumstein with Ace high, but raising was fun as well. I would personally have bet bigger on the end than Saout did, more like 3.5M, but I understand his thinking: he was trying to represent having a 7 that was trying to get looked up light. I think you have to bet bigger to fold out a lot of the Ace high hands though. Weird check raise by Blumstein, but I think he read Saout for a 7 and thought he would fold it. Nice play.

#### Hand 16
Piccioli raises 55 to 2M, Blumstein defends ATo in the BB.

Flop 972r. Check Check.
Turn 6c, two clubs on board. Blumstein bets 60% pot, Piccioli calls.
River 3h. Both players check and Piccioli wins.

Mostly standard hand, but I'd prefer a check from Blumstein on the turn. He has 2 overcards, a gutshot, and is beating a bunch of broadway hands. Betting the turn is ok, but I'd like to see him follow through on the river because it's very hard for Piccioli to call.

#### Hand 15
Saout makes a tight folds with 19bb and QJss 3rd to act, Sinclair raises 97dd to 1.6M, Piccioli calls 88 on the BTN, Hesp calls in the BB with 44.

Flop 653r. Hesp leads out for 3M, Sinclair calls, Piccioli folds.
Turn 5. Hesp leads out again for small, Sinclair folds.

Analysis: Everyone has a piece: Hesp has a pair and open ender, Sinclair has a double gutshot, Piccioli has an overpair. Hesp's lead is fine, Sinclair's call is standard, and Piccioli is in a ridiculously tough spot. If he calls there are very few cards he likes to see on the turn. He can't raise and risk someone coming back over the top with a draw and blowing him off the best hand. I actually like the fold, but I can get behind a call as well in position getting 4:1. I would have folded though.

Hesp's small lead on the turn was a good idea, and Sinclair probably has to fold because he has no idea what outs are even good if he calls.

#### Hand 14
Hesp raises to 2M with A8dd, Ott defends his BB with Q7ss.

Flop 332. Ott check folds. Nothing he can do, and he has to defend getting that price: 3.33:1

#### Hand 13
Hesp raises to 1.8M w/ Q9ss, everyone folds.

#### Updated Chipstacks:
https://s19.postimg.org/4qcsoszb7/Screen_Shot_2017-07-20_at_6.52.46_PM.png

#### Hand 12
Ott riases A3hh to 1.7M, Hesp 3bets to 5M with QQ, everyone folds.

Unfortunate for Ott to keep running into big hands while he has the worst seat at the table: directly out of position to the two chipleaders. It was a standard steal attempt, but he probably does need to tighten up some with his image (folding to resistance), seat (OOP to chipleaders), and stack (near the bottom now, may be 7/8).

#### Hand 11
Blumstein raises KQo to 2M from the cutoff, everyone folds.

#### Hand 10
Blumstein raises the button to 1.7M with T8o, Saout shoves KJo in the sb for 15bb, Blumstein folds.

Somewhat loose raise from the chipleader -- he should be careful in spots like this with a pro who has 15bb and is much shorter stacked than anyone else at the table and will shove over him often. If the players in the blinds had more chips this would be fine, but he can't push Saout around here because Saout has nothing to fear with no players shorter than him. I don't think he can get away with raising more than 50% of hands here, but there will be spots he can raise 100% of hands later in the final table. Good play by Saout.

#### Hand 9
Salas raises J9dd to 2M, Hesp calls on the button with TT, blumstein reraises to 6.2M in the SB, Salas folds, Hesp calls.

Flop K94dd. Blumstein bets 1/4 pot. Hesp FOLDS???

I think 3bet squeezing is very reasonable preflop in general: Salas is handcuffed here and can't call without very strong hands, but Hesp is probably calling almost anything he has (he has a solid range here) and Blumstein is out of position against a sticky player who has the second most chips. This is asking for trouble.

Hesp's fold on the flop is atrocious. He has a ton of chips, this is a very small investment, he's in position, and this really isn't a terrible flop for him. There's only one over card, Blumstein can definitely have AQ or bluffs, and Hesp's image makes him tough to bluff on future streets. You simply cannot fold getting 5:1 here with a pair in position and his chipstack.

#### Hand 8
Hesp completes the sb with K2ss, Blumstein checks his option with 87o.

Flop T99r. Hesp checked dark, Blumstein bets his open ender, Hesp calls. 
Turn 4c, rainbow board. Blumstein checks behind.
River Qs. Hesp checks, Blumstein bets 75% pot, Hesp folds.

Dislike how both players played this hand. Preflop was standard: I like the limp and the check behind. That's about the end of them playing this hand well.
-Hesp's c/c on the flop is pretty bad: he is very unlikely to improve and can face action on future streets to make him fold.
-Blumstein's check behind on the turn is probably a mistake: he has a weakish hand, can get Hesp to fold many better hands, and he cannot win at showdown if he doesn't hit or make at least a pair.
-Hesp can consider betting the river, but checking is fine. He would rep some very strong hands by betting, but he probably can't get much better to fold: Blumstein isn't folding a queen, won't have many Ax hands, and smaller pairs are rare. If he did bet he would probably have to overbet to rep trips to try and fold out a ten. On the other hand, Blumstein has to bet to try and win the hand, but he isn't repping very much. It honestly looks like he has nothing (not even a straight draw) and I'd probably call him with K high in Hesp's spot: I think Hesp should have called.

I think Blumstein and Hesp are probably the two weakest players at the table. They also have the most chips which should make this final table very very fun to watch.

#### Hand 7
Sinclair minraises 44 from the hijack (2 from button), Hesp defends Q8dd in the bb.

AK6cc flop, Hesp continuation bets, Hesp folds. In general I would check back that flop, but I like it here: Hesp is defending wide, he almost certainly has 2 overcards to the 44 pair that he could hit on the turn, and he will likely fire the turn with any hand if you check back so this is the best opportunity to win the hand. Vs other players I may check if they are likely to check down or defend tighter.

#### Hand 6
Blumstein (chipleader to start the day) voluntarily enters the pot for the first time today, raising K9o to 1.7M. Blinds are 400k/800k/100k. Dan Ott defended the BB with A6o.

Q54cc, Blumstein cbets, Ott folds. Ott had no clubs, standard fold after whiffing with his stack. No reason to defend that flop light against an early position raise from Blumstein.

#### Hand 5
Hesp minraises AThh from early position, everyone folds. 

#### Hand 4
Sinclair raises the button with AQo, Ben Lamb went all in with A9hh for 22bb from the sb, Sinclair called instantly.

Board ran out 6543T, and Lamb is out in 9th place, taking home $1,000,000. This hand was completely standard, nothing either player could do differently. 

#### Hand 3
Hesp pulls off the hat trick: he raises JTo to 4.375bb (very large) and everyone folds. Once again he shows his hand.

I suspect after this start he will choose to slow down some which may actually be a mistake: he may be thinking he needs to wait for better hands because his image is shot, but almost the entire table is handcuffed by their stacks so he can really apply a lot of pressure. Let's hope he keeps it up.

#### Hand 2
Ott raises AJo, Hesp 3bets QQ, Ott folds, Hesp shows again. He is having a lot of fun and he is making this enjoyable to watch. And he's now taken over the chiplead!

#### Hand 1: Shuffle up and deal!
https://s19.postimg.org/5xm53a01v/A2825_CFB-_ECEB-4303-_AB33-_B5_FB37365_B98.jpg

Fireworks already. Hesp minraises in the cutoff with K9o and a bigstack, Saout 3 bets in the sb to just under 6bb, Pollak folds TT, Hesp calls. Saout continuation bets small, Hesp raises, and Saout folds. 

I like Pollak's fold with TT: he was 3rd in chips coming into the day and had no reason to risk that with shorter stacks on a marginal spot. Hesp's call with K9o is a bit loose, but he has a lot of chips and clearly planned on attacking boards unlikely to hit Saout (aka anything without A/Q on it). 

He risked 6.4 million to win almost 15 million in the pot with his flop raise, so it didn't need to work very often (~30%), and especially on a board like this, Saout is very likely to continuation bet and is definitely >30% to not have anything. Nice play by Hesp, and he showed the bluff! This guy is the best thing to happen to poker in years.