Hand 87: Brandon Shack-Harris opened for 50,000 and took down the pot.
Hand 88: Shack-Harris again raised to 50,000, and again he won the pot.
Hand 89: Iori Yogo's turn to raise to 50,000, but he got repopped to pot by Shack-Harris. Yogo folded.
Hand 90: Morgan Popham raised to 50,000 on the button, and Steve Billirakis called in the big blind. Both players checked the flop, and a emerged. Popham's 65,000 bet took the pot down after Billirakis checked.
Hand 91: Popham raised to 50,000 under the gun, and Yogo defended his big blind. Both players checked the flop to see the fall on the turn. Two more checks followed, and the completed the board. Yogo bet 80,000 and won the pot.
Hand 92: Shack-Harris raised to 50,000 and won the pot.
Steve Billirakis may not be a household name, but he is surely the most experienced player at the final table of the $1,000 PLO event. In 2007 he made WSOP history by winning the $5,000 World Championship Mix Hold’em Limit/No-Limit event after beating Canadian poker pro Greg Mueller heads-up. By doing so, he became the then-youngest WSOP bracelet winner in history, having won the event only 11 days after his 21st birthday.
PokerNews' Pamela Maldonado spoke to Billirakis during the break of four-handed action moments ago.
How do you feel about playing down to six players instead of stopping at the final nine last night?
It doesn’t matter to me. I was happy about it because I just want to play and get it over with as soon as possible. Starting with six or starting with nine doesn’t affect me at all. I’m comfortable with a full table and with playing short-handed. Plus, I’m sure the WSOP had a good reason for breaking it the way they did.
Did the break give you time to reflect your play and adjust your strategy?
During my breaks I don’t really think too much about my play. I try to relax and give myself those few minutes to clear my mind. Coming back from break though I’ll continue to play tight, hopefully make some good hands and try to advance to heads-up. Getting lucky will help this late in the game.
Your last WSOP final table came in 2011 when you made two final tables, and you bubbled a third. Then you won in Europe that same year. How does it feel to be back?
It feels really good to be back. I took a year off last year and now I feel really good about my tournament game. I think it’s strong and I’m playing really well. I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
Hand 84: Steve Billirakis opened to 50,000 and won the blinds.
Hand 85: Steve Billirakis opened to 50,000 and Iori Yogo called from the button before Morgan Popham potted to 224,000 from the small blind. Billirakis and Yogo folded and Popham was pushed the pot.
Hand 86: Iori Yogo opened to 50,000 from under the gun and Brandon Shack-Harris called from the small blind after returning from break during the previous hand. Steve Billirakis also made the call, and the flop fell . The action was checked around before the was produced by the dealer on the turn.
Shack-Harris led for 80,000, Billirakis made the call, and Yogo passed. The river brought the and Shack-Harris bet out 250,000, putting Billirakis into the tank for several minutes before opting to fold and leave himself with just 545,000.
The crew is back for another episode of the PokerNews Podcast from the 45th annual World Series of Poker. Jason Somerville talks about his 18th-place finish in the $1,000 buy-in pot-limit Omaha event, and the crew discusses the Jason Mo vs. Vanessa Selbst heads-up match along with Darren Elias' affinity for North Faces and the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Hand 77: Iori Yogo opened to 40,000 and Brandon Shack-Harris called from the big blind to see a flop fall. Both players checked and the landed on the turn. Shack-Harris checked, and then folded to Yogo's 40,000-chip delayed continuation-bet.
Hand 78: Steve Billirakis received a walk.
Hand 79: Morgan Popham opened to 40,000 from the cutoff and collected the blinds.
Hand 80: Iori Yogo limped from the small blind only to have Morgan Popham raise to 50,000. Yogo made the call and then checked the flop before Popham pushed out 45,000.
Yogo called as the fell on the turn and he checked once again as Popham followed suit. The river brought the and a bet of 100,000 from Yogo would see him collect the pot once Popham folded.
Hand 81: Steve Billirakis opened to 40,000 and won the blinds.
Hand 82: Steve Billirakis received a walk in the big blind.
Hand 83: Morgan Popham opened to 45,000 and Brandon Shack-Harris made the call as the dealer spread a flop. Both players checked, then the landed on the turn. Both players checked again, then the completed the board on the river.
Popham bet out 50,000 and Shack-Harris swiftly mucked, then players headed to break.
Hand 71: Brandon Shack-Harris fired up a min-raise on the button, but nobody wanted to play.
Hand 72: Steve BIllirakis raised to 45,000 on the button and won the pot.
Hand 73: Shack-Harris got a walk.
Hand 74: Iori Yogo opened for a raise and was called by both Shack-Harris and Billirakis in the small and big blinds, respectively. Everyone checked the flop, and a arrived on fourth street. Shack-Harris came out with 70,000, and Billirakis folded. Yogo thought briefly before following suit.
Hand 75: Shack-Harris won the pot with a raise on the button. He showed .
Hand 76: Shack-Harris raised to 40,000 and was called by Morgan Popham in the big blind. The flop prompted two checks, and a came out of the deck. Popham bet 55,000, and Shack-Harris called. On the river, Popham checked and watched his opponent bet 130,000. Popham slid a call forward.
flop, and a 
emerged. Popham's 65,000 bet took the pot down after Billirakis checked.
fall on the turn. Two more checks followed, and the 
completed the board. Yogo bet 80,000 and won the pot.
. The action was checked around before the 
was produced by the dealer on the turn.
and Shack-Harris bet out 250,000, putting Billirakis into the tank for several minutes before opting to fold and leave himself with just 545,000.
flop fall. Both players checked and the 
landed on the turn. Shack-Harris checked, and then folded to Yogo's 40,000-chip delayed continuation-bet.
flop before Popham pushed out 45,000.
landed on the turn. Both players checked again, then the 
completed the board on the river.
arrived on fourth street. Shack-Harris came out with 70,000, and Billirakis folded. Yogo thought briefly before following suit.
.
came out of the deck. Popham bet 55,000, and Shack-Harris called. On the 
river, Popham checked and watched his opponent bet 130,000. Popham slid a call forward.
.