[user66118]
Joel Micka was first in the pot, putting out a raise to 18,500 from late position. Next to act was Jeff Petronack, who said, "Okay, let's do it. I'm all in." With that, he pushed all 107,000 of his chips into the middle. The button and small blind folded, and action came to big stack Ryan Fee. He asked Micka for a count, and when he got the necessary information, Ryan reraised all in over the top of the table. That was enough to get Micka out and pit Petronack against the chip leader for his tournament life.
Showdown:
Petronack:
Fee:
The flop of was an ugly one for Petronack. The turn was even worse, as the kept Fee in the lead and gave him the added benefit of a flush draw. Down to his last card, Petronack somehow pulled the out of the deck on fifth street, drawing a huge reaction from the spectators!
With that, Petronack earns a much-needed double up, sitting now with right around 220,000.
[user66118]
Tournament Director Mike Ward is announcing the final table today for the spectators, and he is a regular stand-up comedian when interacting with the players.
"Just so you guys know," said Ward to the table, "We still play this game with community cards..." Ward is referring to the fact that through the first seven hands of play, we've yet to see a flop.
[user66118]
Joel Micka has thrown the first jab here at the final table.
Sitting in the big blind, Micka picked up a walk on the fourth hand of play.
On the next hand, he was in the small blind, and action folded around to Claus Rasmussen in the hijack seat. Rasmussen opened with a raise to 20,500. When it came to Micka, he reraised, putting out a total of 54,500. Rasmussen tanked for about a minute before relinquishing his hand, and Micka picked up a nice chunk of easy chips.
[user66118]
Joel Micka
Joel Micka is from Mill Creek, Washington USA, and he is a twenty-year-old poker pro. It's his only job, and has been his only job for his entire working life. Playing on PokerStars as "JMPRODIGY", Micka regularly crushes high-stakes heads-up Sit 'n Go's. He earned his seat to the LAPT via a $500 online satellite, and this is his first major live event.
Get used to the name Joel Micka, as all indications are that he will be a force to be reckoned with on the international tournament scene once he turns 21. Micka starts play with 336,500 in chips, good enough for second place at the table.
[user66118]
Jesus Bertoli
Jesus Bertoli is a 25-year-old player who moonlights as a lawyer. He made the trip here from his nearby hometown of Margarita, Venezuela. Bertoli has become a fixture on the LAPT scene, playing all of Season One and snagged a 24th place finish in Rio. He says that his father is responsible for his poker education, and both Jesus and his brother are becoming avid players.
When he's not grinding it out on the felt or working a big case, Bertoli enjoys water sports, sailing, and futbol.
[user66118]
Maria Stern
Maria Stern is one of the foremost female poker players in the world, and the media has taken to calling her the "Godmother of Poker" here in Latin America. She has been playing tournament poker for many years, and has the results to justify her place in poker lore. In 1997, she earned herself a gold bracelet at the WSOP, matching that of her husband, Max. With that, the Sterns became just the second husband-wife combo to win bracelets. She's made history again here today, becoming the first lady to make a LAPT final table.
[user66118]
Claus Rasmussen
Claus Rasmussen is a 22-year-old native of Roskilde, Denmark. Rasmussen used to be a professional player. Table tennis player, that is. He played the game on a pro level for several years, but says he is stepping back slowly from that aspect of his life, as he's found a new game now. Rasmussen is quickly becoming a fine young poker player. He won his entry into this tournament via PokerStars' steps satellites. He said he just sat down one day, thought it looked interesting, and ran straight through from Step 1 to Step 6.
![[user66118]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
was an ugly one for Petronack. The turn was even worse, as the 
kept Fee in the lead and gave him the added benefit of a flush draw. Down to his last card, Petronack somehow pulled the 
out of the deck on fifth street, drawing a huge reaction from the spectators!
