James Mitchell bet 150,000 pre-flop from middle position and was only called by Arron Fletcher in the big blind. The two professionals went heads-up to a flop of 
. Fletcher checked, but Mitchell made it 100,000, which Fletcher called.
The turn of 
saw Fletcher check again, so Mitchell made it 150,000, again prompting a call. On the river of 
, Mitchell made it 425,000. It would take over two-thirds of Fletcher's remaining chips to make the call, so his tournament direction hinged on it. He took his time, looking at Mitchell for around four minutes and processing the hand. Eventually, Fletcher made the call and was shown Mitchell's hand - 
. Fletcher turned over 
to win the hand with two-pair on a four-diamond board.
A high quality hand all round, with the trickiest of decisions played out superbly by both players. While James Mitchell is by no means out of contention, slipping to a still-strong 900,000, Fletcher has catapulted himself from below average to threatening the lead.
An intriguing player, Arron Fletcher's rise from tournament hopeful to cash game pro and backer is an interesting one. We'll be bringing you an exclusive and at times explosive chat with the Cambridge-born professional before the end of the week here on Pokernews.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,850,000
1,250,000
|
1,250,000 |
|
900,000
-1,300,000
|
-1,300,000 |
, Singh held 
and the flop came 
. 
turn actually gave Pedersen one card for a chop, but the river was not a six but the 
. Whyman called it off, had 
and we were off to the races. 
saw Hawkes double up and while he is comfortable, Paul Whyman is in desperate need of a double as shirt-stack. 
board and rivered Campbell's hopes. 