2008 39th Annual World Series of Poker
Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better (Event 16)
Date:
Sunday, June 08, 2008 to Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Buy-In:
$2,000
Prize Pool:
$1,002,820
Entrants:
551
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 03:07:29
Andrew Brown Wins Event #16: $2,000 Omaha Hi/Lo ($226,483)
In a mammoth showing, young gun Andrew Brown has won the bracelet and the title here in Event #16. Brown is just 25 years old, and now has his largest tournament cash by a long shot. Before the final table, he said he was, "The best PLO player nobody knows." Well, this wasn't PLO, but he is no longer an unknown either.
Brown played a pretty steady game for the first two days, but really turned it on today when it mattered. When he finally got heads up with Ted Forrest, he showed that he is more than capable of hanging with the top pros. For the first 30 minutes, Brown put on a clinic, and ran Forrest all the way down to 150,000. That was the easy part.
Forrest battled all the way back to regain the chip lead with 1.235 million a short time after. Showing the poise of a pro in his own right though, Brown continued pushing hard, and finally was able to wear Forrest all the way down to the felt. Truly a remarkable performance from our new bracelet winner.
Congratulations to Andrew Brown, Event #16 Champion!
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:58:42
Ted Forrest Eliminated in 2nd Place ($143,420)
With a raise and a call before the flop, the two men saw the flop come down 
. Forrest bet, and Brown called.
The turn was the 
. Forrest again bet, and Brown snap-called.
The river was the 
. Forrest fired his last 85,000 into the pot, and Brown beat him into the pot with the call. The hands are turned over:
Brown: 
Forrest: 
Andrew Brown takes down the whole pot, and the whole tournament, eliminating Ted Forrest in second place. Forrest walked away disappointed, and it unlikely the $143,420 will be much consolation to the pro.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:43:14
Up and Now Down
From the small blind, Brown comes in raising, and Forrest makes the call. The flop brings 
. Forrest bets out, and Brown calls.
The turn is the 
. Forrest slows down, passing it over to Brown. He bets, and Forrest calls.
The river is the 
. Forrest checks again, Brown bets, and Forrest comes back with a raise, which Brown calls. The cards are turned over:
Forrest: 
Brown: 
Ted Forrest gets three-quartered out of this pot, and he has been knocked all the way back down to 450,000.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:36:58
Body Language
About a half-hour ago, Ted Forrest seemingly couldn't win a pot. Andrew Brown was all over him, and without even looking at the chip stacks, you could read it in their body language. Brown was sitting forward in his chair and betting with aggressive motions. Forrest, on the other hand, was looking quite frustrated. After every pot, he would let out a disgusted sigh, stand up from his chair and pace around within a few steps from his seat. He had that "I-can't-win-a-pot" look about him, though it didn't seem to affect his play.
Now, things have changed. As Forrest has clawed his way back into contention, his mood has lightened, and his demeanor has improved noticeably. He now smiles occasionally and chats loosely with the railbirds. He even stood up twice to hug a lady that is railing him particularly close-by.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:25:09
Forrest Coming Back Strong
Andrew Brown raises from the small blind, and Forrest joins him with the call.
The flop comes 
. Forrest checks, Brown bets, Forrest raises, Brown reraises, and Forrest calls.
Fourth street brings the . Forrest check-calls a single bet this time.
The river is the 
and both players check and turn over their hands. Forrest's 
is good enough to award him the big pot, and almost doubles him up to 970,000.
Forrest also took down the following pot, and has snatched the lead back from Brown, although it is very, very close.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:20:17
The Suspense
Ted Forrest has won the last two pots, and is back up to 600,000 even. It feels like we are poised for a big double-or-nothing pot at any time now.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:15:16
Still Hanging in
Forrest got all his chips in preflop, and Brown called him down. The cards were shown down:
Brown:
Forrest: 
The board ran out 
, and Forrest doubled up with his ace-king high.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:13:02
Forrest in Trouble
Andrew Brown has been running over Ted Forrest heads up.
In the latest pot, Brown limps in, Forrest raises, and Brown calls. The flop comes down . Forrest bets, and Brown calls.
The turn is the 
. Forrest bets, Brown calls.
The river comes the . This time Forrest checks, as Brown plunks in a bet of 100,000. Forrest regretfully makes the call, as Brown says, "Flush," and turns over . Forrest stands up with his cards, looking them over close to his chest. After checking them several times, he tossed them into the muck, looking frustrated.
After that hit, Forrest is down to his last 150,000 in chips.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:03:24
Brown Rolling
Forrest raises it up from the small blind, and Brown makes the call. The flop shows . Brown checks, Forrest bets, and Brown calls.
The turn is the . Same action: check, bet, call.
The river is the . Again, Brown check-calls a bet from Forrest and turns over 
. Forrest appears unhappy at that last card, and tosses his hand in face-down.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:58:52
Tides Turning
Brown limps in from the small blind, and Forrest makes a raise, as Brown simultaneously adds his chips to the pot. The flop comes out 
. Forrest bets, Brown raises, and Forrest calls.
Fourth street is the . Forrest checks over to Brown, who bets and gets called.
Fifth street is the 
. Forrest taps the table, and Brown fires another bullet. Forrest shakes his head once, and slides his cards into the muck. Brown flashed two of his cards at Forrest, drawing a knowing nod from the pro.
After that swing, our new chip leader is Andrew Brown with 1.5 million.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:51:24
Just Quads
Forrest completes from the small blind, and Brown checks his option. The two men see the flop come down 
. Brown bets, and Forrest calls. The turn and river come 
, 
, with Brown betting and Forrest calling on both streets. After Brown puts in the last bet, Forrest slams a stack of chips down, and lets out a frustrated, "Wow." When he finally does make the call, he sees the bad news. Brown shows him 
, taking it down with quads, and getting the battle back very close to even.
Forrest sits in the lead with 1.140 million in chips, while Brown is now hot on his heels with 1.075 million.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:44:56
Back and Forth
Andrew Brown has taken the majority of the pots so far in the heads-up battle. We pick this one up with the players going to an unraised flop. It comes down . Brown bets, and Forrest calls.
The turn is the . Brown checks over this time, and Forrest puts out a bet of his own, which Brown calls.
The river brings the , and both men check.
Forrest turns over the winner this time. His 
gives him queens up and the full pot.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:41:31
Saving Them For a Rainy Day?
Apparently, we have discovered another part of Ted Forrest's superstition. He just bought another drink, and he's not drinking it. He now has three waters and three energy drinks in front of him, unopened.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:32:54
Forrest Strikes First
Andrew Brown opens the action with a raise from the small blind, and Ted Forrest comes along from the big blind. The flop is 
. Forrest checks, Brown bets, and Forrest calls.
The turn is the , and both men check. The river brings the . Forrest leads out, and Brown makes the call. Forrest shows 
, good enough to win him the full pot, and take a bite out of Brown's stack.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:28:38
Jim Pechac Eliminated in 3rd Place ($88,065)
What we thought would happen ten hours ago has finally come to fruition. "Big" Jim Pechac has just been eliminated from the tournament in third place. On the hand prior, he was crippled in a pot against Andrew Brown. He was left with 120,000, and he busted on the following hand:
Ted Forrest folded on the button, and Andrew Brown raised from the small blind. Pechac reraised from the big blind, putting himself all in and at risk against Brown. The hands were tuned over:
Brown:
Pechac:
The board frowned on Jim Pechac, as it ran out , giving Brown the winning two pair, and sending Pechac home.
We sure had a blast watching Big Jim carve his way through the field today. Instead of $8,554 that he was expected to cash, his stamina has earned him a nice $88,065 payday, certainly something to be proud of.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:20:16
Ah, Ah, Ah, Ah, Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive
Ted Forrest makes a raise from the button, and "Big" Jim Pechac makes the call from the big blind.
The flop comes down 
. Pechac bets out, Forrest raises, and Pechac reraises enough to put himself all in. Forrest calls, and the hands are shown down:
Forrest:
Pechac:
Pechac is well ahead, but needs to dodge a lot of outs with two cards to come. When the board runs out , , Pechac does come out on top, and doubles up to 250,000. As we've been saying all day, he is the short stack, but appears comfortable in that spot.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:13:28
Pechac Down Again
Andrew Brown folds on the button, and Jim Pechac completes from the small blind. Ted Forrest checks his option, and the two players see a flop of 
. Pechac bets, Forrest raises, and Pechac calls.
The turn is the , and Pechac check-calls a bet from Forrest.
The river is the , and again Pechac checks and then calls. The cards are turned over:
Pechac:
Forrest:
Ted Forrest rakes in the full pot with a pair of deuces for the high, and a 7-5-4-2-A low. Pechac is crippled down to 125,000, though he is perfectly used to playing on a short stack.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:01:47
Play Resumes
For what looks to be the last time this evening, the players have returned from break, and the cards are in the air once again, as we push towards a bracelet here in Event #16!
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:42:59
A Short Recess
The tournament clock has been paused, and players are on a 20-minute break.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:42:13
Ship it Four Times
For the second time in this three-handed fight, Ted Forrest has won four pots in a row. He has now chipped up over 1.4 million.
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:37:30
Of All People...
Between almost every hand, Ted Forrest stands up, and takes a quick walk around behind his chair, pacing nowhere in particular. Jim Pechac just asked him about it.
"Where you keep going? You nervous?"
Forrest responded, "I'm very superstitious."
We're not entirely sure what that means, but whatever Forrest is doing seems to be working just fine for him, as he is the chip leader by nearly a 2-to-1 margin.
