10 Australians Fighting for One Gold Bracelet
Phil Ivey didn't make the trip Down Under. Daniel Negreanu didn't make it to Day 2. Antonio Esfandiari busted in 45th place. We know what you may be thinking — this final table isn't that big of a deal, right? Well, try telling that to the 10 Australian boys left.
What this final table lacks in the form of a big name superstar it certainly makes up for in good, old fashioned poker camaraderie. The final 10 players — all of whom are from Australia — have battled long and hard to make it to Day 3, and now all eyes are on them as nine eliminations stand between one of these players and his first World Series of Poker gold bracelet.
Yesterday's Day 2 started off as a quest to reach the money. From the more than 90 players returning, only 54 of them would walk away with some cash. You wouldn't think it was the day the money bubble burst, though, as things only got more and more cheerful in the room as the day went on. Then deep into the money, the fun really picked up and the players began sharing a great sense of pride amongst with another. Before anyone knew it, all of the internationals had been eliminated and the remaining competitors looked around at each other with grins from ear to ear.
Leading the charge is Luke Brabin, who bagged up 336,000 in chips. Brabin is trailed the closest by Ryan Hong with 308,000, and then it's Brian McAllister with 233,000, Stephen Lindeblad with 218,500, and Didier Guerin with 205,000 all bunched in the middle.
Final Table Seat Draw
| Seat | Player | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Didier Guerin | 205,000 |
| 2 | David Profaca | 62,500 |
| 3 | Ryan Hong | 308,000 |
| 4 | Zane Ly | 121,500 |
| 5 | Brian McAllister | 233,000 |
| 6 | Daniel Murphy | 153,000 |
| 7 | Luke Brabin | 336,000 |
| 8 | Kahle Burns | 120,000 |
| 9 | Piyush Gupta | 67,000 |
| 10 | Stephen Lindeblad | 218,500 |
The first gold bracelet of 10 from this festival will be awarded today, and it's still anyone's game. Sure, Brabin has the chip lead, but the swings late on Day 2 proved that anything can happen. While we can't guarantee a time frame for this one or if someone's aces will hold up, we can tell you that it's going to be a blast from start to finish.
The players are excited, we're chomping at the bit to see who the winner is, and the audience has already started at the bar. The cards will be in the air at 12:10 p.m. local time, so be sure to stay tuned right here to PokerNews for all the live updates coming straight to your screen. We'll see you shortly!