2008 39th Annual World Series of Poker
Pot-Limit Omaha W/Rebuys (Event 28)
Date:
Saturday, June 14, 2008 to Monday, June 16, 2008
Buy-In:
$5,000
Prize Pool:
$3,085,930
Entrants:
152
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:03:01
Congratulations to Phil Galfond, Champion of Event No. 28 ($817,781)
A wild mix of playing styles and personalities characterized Event No. 28, the $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha with Rebuys event. 152 runners lined up for this one, many of whom came with deep pockets, making the frantic rebuy period a gambler's delight. Things settled down on Day 2, as players carefully combated with their deep stacks, and sometime after 4 a.m. Monday morning, our final nine were set.
And what a final nine it was. Our final table featured several poker luminaries, including Johnny Chan, John Juanda, Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu, and David Benyamine. Of those, Chan emerged at one point as the chip leader, but a couple of damaging hands erased his big stack. Benyamine made the final three, but couldn't overcome a sizable chip deficit, and he, too, fell by the wayside.
Left standing were online stars Adam "the_houdini" Hourani and Phil "OMGClayAiken" Galfond, both of whom can be found playing high stakes PLO on Full Tilt (along with Benyamine and other big name pros). When heads-up began, Galfond enjoyed a 3-to-2 chip advantange, and while he never lost his lead Hourani proved a worthy adversary, battling for well over one hundred hands before Galfond finally took the last of his chips.
When asked afterwards whether he felt intimidated amid so many high profile pros, Galfond replied with a mix of humility and confidence. "I felt blessed to be here, but I didn't feel outmatched," answered Galfond. "I wasn't afraid. I just wanted to play my best game."
That he did. Congratulations to Phil Galfond for capturing his first WSOP bracelet. And thanks to everyone for following the coverage.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:47:44
Phil "OMGClayAiken" Galfond Wins Event #28 ($5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha with Rebuys), Adam Hourani Eliminated in 2nd Place ($493,748)
Hourani raised to 300,000 and Galfond called. Seeing that Hourani had only 125,000 behind, the crowd got on their feet in anticipation of the final all in. The flop was 
. Galfond set Hourani all in and he called.
Hourani 
Galfond 
"Phil is in bad shape here" deadpanned the Tournament Director.
However, the turn was the 
making Galfond two pair and giving him the lead. The river was the 
and after three and a half hours of heads up play, OMG, we have a champion!
Phil Galfond takes home his first WSOP bracelet and $817,781. Adam Hourani is our runner up and earns $493,748.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:38:26
Whittling Him Down
Galfond raised to 300,000 and Hourani called. The flop was 
. Hourani checked, Galfond bet 500,000, Hourani folded and Galfond won the pot.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:36:14
Adam Hourani Doubles Through Phil Galfond
Galfond raised to 300,000, Hourani moved all in and Galfond called.
Hourani 
Galfond 
The flop was 
. Galfond needs a non-heart seven to win. The turn was the , no help for Galfond. The river was the and Hourani doubled up to 1,000,000
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:31:53
Updated Chip Counts
Phil "OMGClayAiken" Galfond 5,930,000
Adam Hourani 450,000
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:27:32
Galfond's Hero Call
Galfond raised to 200,000 and Hourani called. The flop was and both players checked. The turn was the 
. Hourani bet 250,000 and Galfond called. The river was the . Hourani bet 475,000. Galfond paused to take a gulp from his water bottle before going into the tank for several minutes. He finally made the call.
Galfond turned up 
... no clubs... and won the pot with two pair. And for the first time in what seemed like hours, the crowd went wild.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:16:35
The Century Mark
We have just reached the 100th hand of heads up play.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:13:59
An Uncomfortable Fold
Phil Galfond raised 200,000 from the button, and Adam Hourani called.
The flop came . Both checked. The turn was the 
. Hourani bet 300,000. Galfond paused for thirty seconds or so, then made the call.
The river was the 
. Hourani quickly checked. and after riffling his chips for a while Galfond bet 700,000. Hourani shook his head and went into the tank. After about four minutes and a great deal of anguish, he folded.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:07:21
You Can't Lose What You Don't Put in the Middle... But You Can't Win Much Either
A graphic just flashed across the screen above the table that is showing the ESPN 360 broadcast. It read "Adam Hourani has moved all in 6 times."
"Cats only have nine lives!" heckled a spectator from the stands, eliciting a laugh from Hourani.
Just then, another chron flashed on the monitor. This one said "Phil Galfond has moved all in 0 times."
This fact got an even bigger reaction from Galfond's flock of railbirds.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:03:45
The Battle Continues
Phil Galfond raised to 200,000 from the button, and Hourani called. The flop came 
. Hourani checked, Galfond bet 250,000, and Hourani called.
The turn was the 
. Again, Hourani checked. This time Galfond also checked.
The river was the 
. Hourani carefully stacked his chips, then bet 400,000. Galfond stewed a bit, looked back at his cards, then tossed them in the muck.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:58:14
Diamonds Not a Galfond's Best Friend
Adam Hourani raised to 200,000 from the button, and Phil Galfond reraised pot to 600,000. Hourani thought a moment, then called.
The flop came single-suited: 
. Galfond checked, and Hourani pushed the rest of his chips in the middle -- just over 800,000.
Galfond didn't look pleased. After about thirty seconds, he let it go.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:54:58
OMG a River Card
Hourani limped on the button and Galfond checked. The flop was 
and both players checked. The turn was the 
. Check-check again. The river was the . Galfond checked, Hourani bet 125,000 and Galfond folded.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:51:08
New Chip Counts
Phil Galfond -- 5,055,000
Adam Hourani -- 1,325,000
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:49:18
Wait, Is This It? No, It Isn't...
Galfond raised to 200,000 and Hourani called. The flop was 
. Hourani checked and Galfond checked behind. The turn was the . Hourani checked again, Galfond bet 250,000, Hourani raised all in and Galfond insta-folded, much to the crowd's chagrin.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:47:38
Broadway for Galfond Knocks Hourani Under 1 Mil
Phil Galfond limped from the button, and Adam Hourani checked his option. The flop came 
. Galfond bet 125,000, and Hourani raised to 325,000. Galfond called.
The turn was the 
. Galfond quickly checked, and Hourani checked behind.
The river was the . After thinking for a minute, Galfond bet 475,000. Hourani leaned back in his seat and looked across the table at Galfond. Calling here would mean leaving himself only about 955,000. Finally, he made the call.
Galfond showed Q-J-8-2 for the nut straight, and Hourani mucked.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:41:43
Galfond Wins a Few More
Galfond limped on the button and Hourani checked. The flop was 
. Hourani bet 125,000 and Galfond tossed in a call. The turn was the . Hourani checked, Galfond bet 275,000, Hourani folded and Galfond won the pot.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:38:57
Gimme Them Chips Back
Adam Hourani raised to 200,000 from the button, and Phil Galfond made the call.
The flop came 
, and both checked. The turn was the . Galfond bet 300,000, Hourani folded, and Galfond took the hand.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:37:17
Hourani Takes it With a Reraise
Galfond raised to 200,000 and Hourani called. The flop was . Hourani checked, Galfond bet 275,000, Hourani raised to 775,000 and Galfond folded.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:30:51
First Three Hands After Break
After each player took a turn folding his button, Adam Hourani limped from the small blind/button, Phil Galfond raised to 240,000, and Hourani called.
The flop came . Galfond bet 300,000, Hourani folded, and Galfond took the pot.
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:26:19
Updated Chip Counts
Phil Galfond -- 4,676,000
Adam Hourani -- 1,705,000
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:24:59
Players Return from Break
Cards are back in the air.
