October 04 2012, Chad Holloway

For the past two weeks, the Casino Barrière in Cannes, France, has played host to the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe. Thanks to PartyPoker sponsoring PokerNews’ coverage, we’ve been on hand to capture all the great action. In Week 1′s recap of the the biggest hands, we took a look at some Phil Hellmuth antics and Antonio Esfandiari’s third bracelet win.

Now, we’re back with a look at some of the most entertaining, interesting, and influential hands from the second week of the 2012 WSOP Europe.

Cantu Controversy in Event #5: “10,450 Mixed Max – No-Limit Hold’em

There was quite a bit of controversy in Event #5: “10,450 Mixed Max – No-Limit Hold’em, most of it fueled by Brandon Cantu. It came in the final four when heads-up matches were in progress, and the first came when Cantu was squaring off against Roger Hairabedian, who became the first Frenchman to win a WSOP Europe bracelet just a few days before, and concerned the Hairabedian’s relocation at the table.

The aforementioned ruling regarding Roger Hairabedian being moved to the opposite end of the table has now halted the action in this heads-up match. Brandon Cantu demanded to once again see Jack Effel regarding his decision on allowing Hairabedian to move to the other side of the table.

“It changes everything,” lamented Cantu to Effel. “All [Hairabedian] is doing is making it about himself.”

Cantu brought up the point that he had no say in the matter and that he came back from break to a table setup that looked completely different.

Effel, however, remained confident in his ruling.

“Look, you guys are playing for a lot of money here,” said Effel.

“I KNOW we are,” interjected Cantu, “which is why it’s ridiculous.”

“I’m going to let you sit here and rant, but I’m not going to change my decision. I suggest you take a deep breath and not let something like this get to you.”

Effel’s word was final and he left and told the dealer to resume play. Cantu put his headphones back on and sat steaming from the decision.

Not long after, Hairabedian and Cantu were at it again in a situation that halted play for approximately 45 minutes.

Brandon Cantu is unhappy again.

He and Roger Hairabedian saw a flop and Hairabedian checked out of turn. The turn was dealt and Hairabedian bet 75,000 when Cantu checked again. Cantu argued that Hairabedian checked out of turn again but the dealer and Hairabedian insisted he only lifted his hand and then said to Cantu that it was his turn to act.

A ruling was made against Cantu but he refused to accept it and called the dealer a liar and insane. The clock was paused and Jack Effel was called. After hearing everyone’s point of view, Effel was leaning toward ruling in favor of Cantu. No final ruling has been made yet as they are checking the footage from the cameras… Jack Effel came back and said that the footage showed that Roger Hairabedian did in fact check and subtly verbalized so. Hairabedian had to take his bet back and the hand played on. The atmosphere is very tense in the room right now.

Cantu went on to beat Hairabedian, but ultimately lost to Jonathan Aguiar after their match was postponed. Of course that led to even more controversy and inspired Cantu to sound off in a video interview with PokerNews.

Video: http://www.pokernews.com/video/wsope-2012-brandon-cantu-shares-his-mind-7232.htm

Hellmuth Chip Leader of WSOP Europe Main Event Final Table

On Wednesday, the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe “10,450 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event was down to just 17 players when a big hand developed and gave 12-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth take the chip lead, which he would carry into the final table.

Not only was the “Poker Brat” looking to capture bracelet No. 13, which would make him the only multiple-bracelet winner in 2012, he was looking to win the WSOP Player of the Year title, which he could clinch if he won the WSOP Europe Main Event and Greg Merson did not go on to win the October Nine Main Event; in addition, either a second, third- or fourth-place finish will also give Hellmuth a legitimate shot at the POY title.

Here’s a look at the big hand that gave Hellmuth the chip lead:

Curt Kohlberg opened to 30,000 from under the gun and action folded to Phil Hellmuth who pushed out a sizable three-bet to 180,000. Action folded back around to Kohlberg, who announced that he was all-in for 900,000 total.

Kurt Kohlberg

“What did he say? All in?” said Hellmuth. “I call!” Hellmuth shot out of his chair and tabled .

Kohlberg showed and was in dire need of some help.

Fortunately for Kohlberg, the flop brought him hope, as it fell , giving him an open-ended straight draw. Hellmuth took one look at the flop and stormed from the table.

The rolled off on the turn, giving Hellmuth a set but Kohlberg was still drawing live going to the river.

Fifth street was paint, but unfortunately for Kohlberg, it was the , pairing him up and securing his elimination in 17th place.

While stacking his new chips, Hellmuth broke into a chorus of English New Wave band ‘Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World.” Hellmuth may not be ruling the world, but he is certainly ruling this room as this win boosts him to 2,000,000 and is good for the top spot on the chip counts.

A Cooler for Tony G in the “50,000 Majestic High Roller

Day 2 of the “50,000 Majestic High Roller took place on Wednesday, and it was a long day on the felt resulting in another early-morning finish. Overall the field size grew to 60 total entries (49 players and 11 rebuys), creating a prize pool of “2.88 million with “1 million going to the winner, and Day 2 saw a bevy of eliminations including Phil Ivey, Jonathan Duhamel, Daniel Negreanu, Sam Trickett and PartyPoker Pro Marvin Rettenmaier. However, it was another PartyPoker Pro, Tony G, who was the victim of a big cooler to finish in 17th place. Here’s a look at the hand as reported in our Live Blog:

Tony G was just the victim of a massive cooler, as he was eliminated in a million-chip pot.

Tony G

Scott Seiver gave us a summary of the hand right after Tony G left the tournament area. Richard Yong had raised preflop, Tony G three-bet and Yong called.

The flop brought and both players checked. On the turn the hit and Yong bet 100,000. Tony G moved all in and Yong called.

Tony G had outs, but the river was the . Right after being eliminated in this massive pot Tony G complimented Yong on his hand. He shook hands and left the room as we are down to just 16 players.

After the eliminations of Fabian Quoss in 11th place and Scott Seiver in 10th place, the final nine players redrew to one table and opted to stop at the end of Level 17. The event will conclude on Thursday with John Juanda leading the pack with 2.596 million in chips. Follow the conclusion of the “50,000 Majestic High Roller right here on PokerNews.

Be sure to check out our Live Reporting Section to follow our updates sponsored by PartyPoker. Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook today!

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October 03 2012, Josh Cahlik, Donnie Peters

The 2012 World Series of Poker Europe continued on Wednesday with Day 4 of the “10,450 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event where Phil Hellmuth distanced himself and now headlines the final table as chip leader. In addition, the “50,000 Majestic High Roller continued with Day 2 action as some of poker’s most notable players competed for a “1,000,000 first-place prize. Find out about these stories and more in our recap thanks to PokerNews’ coverage sponsored by PartyPoker.

Phil Hellmuth Leads WSOP Europe Main Event Final Table That Includes Jason Mercier and Joseph Cheong

It was a quick day at the WSOP Europe Main Event on Wednesday as the final 24 players returned to battle for a coveted spot at the final table. After a flurry of big pots and dramatic eliminations, the official final table was set with none other than 12-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth leading the way.

After the final 24 players took their seats, play began fast and furious and never relented as the day wore on. The players to bust before the final two-table redraw at 16 were able to earn a payday of “26,611. Those to see the exit included Joe Kuether, Vladislav Varlashin, two-time WSOP bracelet winner Andy Frankenberger, Vadzim Markushevski, Sebastien Guinand, Joe McGown, Liv Boeree and Curt Kohlberg.

Joseph Cheong

Boeree came in to play focused and poised to make a deep run. However, the deck seemed to have it out for Boeree, and during the second hand of play she ran into Stephane Albertini’s for a solid chunk of her stack. She was able to recover from that hit, but she eventually saw her tournament life end at the hands of Joseph Cheong.

Cheong opened with a raise and Boeree three-bet all in for 272,000. Cheong called with only to find that he was behind Boeree’s . The flop and turn were safe for Boeree, as they fell to the felt. The river, however, spelled disaster – the – pairing Cheong’s ten and sealed the deal on Boeree’s tournament.

Kohlberg was eliminated immediately after Boeree, and his elimination sent a shock wave throughout the room that prompted players from every table to stand up and watch the action. Kohlberg opened with a raise to 30,000 from under the gun and Hellmuth three-bet to 180,000. Action folded back to Kohlberg and he wasted no time announcing that he was all in for roughly 900,000. “What did he say? All in?” said Hellmuth. “I call!” Hellmuth shot out of his chair and tabled .

Kohlberg showed and was in dire need of some help. The flop brought Kohlberg hope, however, as it fell , giving him an open-ended straight draw. Hellmuth took one look at the flop and stormed away from the table. The rolled off on the turn, giving Hellmuth a set but Kohlberg was still drawing live going to the river. Fifth street was paint, but unfortunately for Kohlberg it was the , pairing him up and securing his elimination in 17th place.

The next two players to go took home a prize of “32,356 for their efforts. Max Silver, who finished eighth in this very event last year, fell at the hands of Cheong when he called all in with two pair against Cheong’s made straight. David Benyamine was the next player to see elimination when he ran into the full house of Sergii Baranov.

Kyle Julius and Toby Lewis were the next two to go and finished in 14th and 13th place respectively. Julius and Lewis took home “40,320. The 2005 WSOP Main Event runner up Steve Dannenman was the next to see his tournament come to an end. Dannemann rode the short stack for most of this tournament and finally moved all in from the button holding two nines. Cheong woke up with pocket jacks in the big blind and the jacks held, sending the always smiling Dannenmann home in 12th place.

Nicolas Cardyn and Scott Seiver were the next two to be eliminated, and the exit of Seiver prompted a full redraw for the unofficial final table of nine. Play for the day almost came to a close when Timothy Adams moved all in and was dominated by Hellmuth. Fortunately for Adams, he was able to spike a ten on the river to double up.

The table then engaged in two rough hours of poker where many chips exchanged hands and and short stacks doubled up. Finally, Adams became the final table bubble boy by getting his entire stack in the middle with against Christopher Brammer’s . Adams was unable to improve, and he was forced to settle for a ninth place finish.

2012 WSOP Europe Final Table

Play will resume on Thursday at 1345 CEST (0745 EDT). Due to live television scheduling, the players will play until four players remain and then take a break until 2145 CEST (1545 EDT) when they will resume and play until a winner emerges. Be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews as we provide updates from the exciting conclusion to one of the most prestigious events of the year!

“50,000 Majestic High Roller

On Wednesday, Day 2 of the “50,000 Majestic High Roller finished up and just nine players remain. It was a long day on the felt resulting in another early-morning finish, but one that was very exciting. When things were all wrapped up, John Juanda led the pack with 2.596 million in chips.

Plenty of notable players began the day still in contention for the title, and there were even a few late entrants. Both Phil Ivey and Jonathan Duhamel were two of the players to enter at the beginning of the day, and overall the field size grew to 60 total entries (49 players and 11 rebuys). Daniel Negreanu, Sam Trickett and Tony G were some of the others returning to action on Day 2.

All five of those aforementioned players failed to make to through to Day 3, which also meant they didn’t make the money. After tallying up all the buy-ins, a prize pool of “2.88 million was announced with “1 million going to the winner. The top eight spots were set to be paid.

As play closed in on the final table, Marvin Rettenmaier was eliminated in 12th place, Fabian Quoss in 11th place, then Scott Seiver in 10th place. The final nine players redrew to one table and were going to play it out until the bubble burst and just eight remained. There was a change of plans, though, and the players opted to stop at the end of Level 17. The schedule is to return Thursday at 1500 CET (0900 ET) and play down to a winner.

End-of-Day Chip Counts

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