Event #21: $1,500 Seven Card Stud
Day 3 Completed
Event #21: $1,500 Seven Card Stud
Day 3 Completed
Talk about a silent killer. Richard Ashby came into today's final table third in chips and maintained a dangerous presence throughout the day. In winning tonight's bracelet he bested a skilled group of players that made every effort to stop him on his quest - and at times they nearly did. However, it wasn't to be. With a large British contingency railing him on he quietly built up a large stack before finally taking all of the chips.
Of course Ashby is no stranger to the winner's circle. The $140,467 he pocketed this evening will bring his live tournament earnings close to $800,000. Not too bad considering he doesn't even consider himself a tournament player. Ashby regularly crushes high-stakes cash games, but he might want to consider spending more time at the tournament tables - and in fact, he quietly sidled direct from his bracelet win into the Omaha event across the way. Sick.
This is also the third bracelet for Britain. Ashby joins Praz Bansi and James Dempsey as British winners. In a nice show of camaraderie, both Bansi and Dempsey showed up to cheer their mate on.
Congratulations to Richard Ashby, Event No. 21 Champion!
Richard Ashby had a pair of kings up on sixth street. Christine Pietsch, who'd called him down that far but was only showing ace high, looked terribly unhappy. She folded, with obvious regret, and was down to 230,000.
Pietsch lost the next, rather smaller, pot as well.
So she was really rather short indeed by the time this took place:
Richard Ashby: / /
Christine Pietsch: / /
Ashby brought in and then called Pietsch's completion. Pietsch bet out on fourth and then reraised all in to a raise from Ashby.
Pietsch was most surprised to see Ashby holding queens for two pair, and her pair of tens was no good. With the best sportsmanship possible, Pietsch took second place - not bad for her first ever WSOP.
Richard Ashby had just relinquished some of his chips to Christine Pietsch, but he recently took back a commanding lead.
Pietsch: (XXX) /
Ashby: /
Both players came in for 10,000 on third street and checked it down to sixth street when Ashby made a bet, getting called by Pietsch. They checked again on seventh street and ashby's tens were good.
Pots like these might not seem large, but every bet takes a significant chunk out of Pietsch's stack.
Richard Ashby: (XX) /
Christine Pietsch: (XX) /
Pietsch bet out on sixth street and Ashby gave it up. She took the pot without a showdown to put her back up to a slightly healthier 700,000 or so.
Christine Pietsch: (XX) /
Richard Ashby: (XX) /
Ashby bet all the way and Pietsch called him down to sixth street, when she folded with a sigh.
She dropped down again, to 430,000.
Christine Pietsch, to announcer David Klein: "You're really good."
Dealer Mark to Pietsch: "You know the last time he heard that from a woman?"
Many of our pots aren't getting past third or fourth street, but in a recent one we got down to the river and Ashby came out on top.
Ashby: /
Pietsch: /
Pietsch answered Ashby's bring in with a bet on third street. He called, and would do so again on fourth street. Both players checked fifth street, but Pietsch bet again on sixth street. We saw no more action on seventh street.
Pietsch had a pair of sixes exposed, but Ashby turned over a pair of sevens to make the best hand.
Richard Ashby won four small pots in a row. None of them got beyond fifth street.
Then Christine Pietsch won two small pots in a row, none of them making it past fourth - the second one she raked in to cheering from our friend who works as a cleaner at the Rio (you get to know everyone here rather well over the Series) and who had already confided in us her hopes that a woman wins a bracelet in a open event.
Then this happened.
Ashby: (X) /
Pietsch: (X) /
Ashby brought in and called Pietsch's completion. Pietsch bet out on fourth street and again on fifth; both times Ashby smooth called.
On sixth, Pietsch checked and then called a bet from Ashby; on seventh she check-called again. She tabled two pair, kings and jacks - but Ashby's three deuces were better, and he moved into the chip lead on 1,015,000. Pietsch is now trailing on 850,000.