Van Hoof, Jacobson, and Stephensen Make a Date for Tuesday Night
The 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event has been whittled down to its final three players, and the trio will return on Tuesday to play down to a champion that will walk away with the top prize of $10 million. The three players remaining are Dutchman Jorryt van Hoof, Swede Martin Jacobson, and Norwegian Felix Stephensen, and heading into Tuesday, van Hoof has the lead with 89.625 million in chips.
Jacobson sits second with 64.75 million, and Stephensen is the shortest stack with 46.1 million.
The first day of the November Nine had six players go bust, and the first to go was the same ninth-place finisher as a year ago in Mark Newhouse. After achieving the ridiculously incredible feat of reaching back-to-back WSOP Main Event final tables, Newhouse went from third in chips to start the day to the first player out.
From there, Bruno Politano fell in eighth place, Dan Sindelar hit the rail in seventh place, Andoni Larrabe was eliminated in sixth place, and Billy Pappas fell in fifth place to set up four-handed play. It was here that William Tonking's run came to an end when he fell in fourth place, and at that point everyone thought play would end for the night — but it didn't. Instead, it was decided to play to the end of the level, and the remaining three players trekked on.
The clock ticked down on Level 39, and when it struck zero play was halted for the night. Van Hoof had the chip lead, successfully navigating his way through the day to finish right where he started — at the top. He'll have a lead of about 25 million going forward, but this tournament is still very much anyone's game. All three players are skilled, they've got plenty of maneuverability in their stacks, and the structure is friendly for them. While Tuesday will no doubt be exciting, it's also going to be long in all likelihood, so get some rest and get ready.
There's three players left and $10 million to be won, and we'll see you right back here at PokerNews for complete live coverage with the cards in the air at 5:30 p.m. PT.