World Poker Tour Caribbean Day 2: Tony Dunst Eyes First WPT Title with 32 Left
On Thursday, the World Poker Tour Caribbean in St. Maarten continued with Day 2 action from the $3,200 Main Event. The day began with 107 of the original 191 entries returning to action, but after six 90-minute levels of play, just 32 players remained in contention for the $145,000 first-place prize.
The man best positioned to make a run at the title is Thomas Laviano, who finished as the chip leader with 402,000. However, some stiff competition is hot on his heels including Dan Sindelar (398,000), Jean-Nicolas Fortin (361,500), and Christian Stallinger (306,000).
Here’s a look at the top 10 chip counts at the End of Day 2:
| Rank | Player | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Laviano | 402,000 |
| 2 | Dan Sindelar | 398,000 |
| 3 | Jean-Nicolas Fortin | 361,500 |
| 4 | Christian Stallinger | 306,000 |
| 5 | Tony Dunst | 282,000 |
| 6 | Viet Vo | 281,000 |
| 7 | Fedor Holz | 269,000 |
| 8 | Sean Jazayeri | 251,000 |
| 9 | Giacomo Fundaro | 237,500 |
| 10 | Bobby Oboodi | 236,500 |
According to the WPT live blog, action picked up on Level 9 (400/800/100) and the eliminations came fast and furious. In one hand, Giacomo Fundaro opened for 1,700 under the gun only to have Micah Raskin three-bet to 4,400 from the button. Paul Benichou then four-bet all in for 20,500 from the big blind, Fundaro folded, and Raskin made the call.
Benichou: 9♦9♥
Raskin: 10♠10♥
It was a bad spot for Benichou, but the 7♥6♦5♥ flop gave him a little hope as an eight would give him a straight. The 4♣ turn was no consequence, and neither was the A♦ on the river. Raskin’s tens held, and he sent Benichou to the rail in the first level of the day.
Not long after, Ricardo Sousa raised under the gun and was met by a three-bet to 4,5000 by Tom Van Den Berg in the small blind. Sousa responded by moving all in for roughly 23,000, and Van Den Berg called with the A♥K♦. Sousa sheepishly turned over the A♣Q♥. The A♠3♠2♣ flop gave both players a pair of aces, but Van Den Berg’s kicker had him well out in front. The 9♠ turn meant Sousa needed a queen on the river to survive, but the lady eluded him as the 10♥ blanked.
As far as Laviano was concerned, he got many of his chips in Level 12 (800/1,600/200) when he eliminated WPT Borgata Poker Open champ Anthony Zinno. It happened when Zinno opened for 3,500, Laviano three-bet to 12,000, and Zinno shoved for approximately 60,000. Laviano called and the cards were tabled.
Laviano: A♦J♥
Zinno: K♠K♥
According to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, Zinno was a 71.56% favorite to double on the hand while Laviano would come from behind 28.04% of the time. The A♠8♠4♠ flop delivered Laviano a pair of aces and made him a 57.07%; however, Zinno picked up a flush draw to go with his kings, and that gave him a 42.93% chance of reclaiming the lead. The 6♦ turn made Laviano a 3-1 favorite, and the 2♦ gave him the hand to send Zinno to the rail.
Other players who failed to make it through Day 2 were Mike Watson, Mike Linster, Paul Newey, Marko Neumann, Manig Loeser, Tobias Reinkemeier, Will Failla, Victor Figueroa, Steve Gee, Stephen Bokor, Ken Aldridge, Casey Kastle, Fabian Quoss, Igor Kurganov, and Joe Kuether.
While man fell, there are still some notables in contention including Pim Van Wieringen (183,500), Marvin Rettenmaier (153,000), Ferenc Riech (118,000), Micah Raskin (101,500), Byron Kaverman (89,000), Youssef Bejjani (76,500), Justin Zaki (60,000), and Greg Vozel (19,500).
Even the WPT's own Tony Dunst made Day 3, and he did so with the fifth best stack in the field at 282,000. While this event isn't in the money yet as only the top 24 spots will be paid, Dunst is in great position to make his sixth WPT Main Event cash. The best of the bunch came in April 2012 when Dunst took fifth at WPT Jacksonville for $66,532.
Day 3 will kick off at 4 p.m. Atlantic Standard Time (3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT) as the final 32 look to play through the money bubble on the way to the final table of six. PokerNews will be sure to bring you a recap of all the action upon completion of play.
Data and photo courtesy of WorldPokerTour.com
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