First in from the button, Mike "Timex" McDonald opened to 44,000, and the action came to Viktor Blom's big blind. He shot a glance, then three-bet to 126,000, and McDonald shoved in for 447,000 total. Blom asked for the count, then made the call with a chance at the knockout. It was the right call, and he had McDonald in a bad way as the cards were turned up.
Showdown
McDonald:
Blom:
Things improved in a hurry for McDonald as the flop vaulted him into a big lead. Next door, Daniel Negreanu piped up with some dramatic foreshadowing. "I think an ace is coming. Ace of spades. I feel it. Do you feel it?"
The turn was the other pointed spade, the safe , and Timex was one card from the double.
River:
Somewhere, Barry Greenstein just got a royalty check for that ace on the river. Blom re-sucks on the end to earn the pot, and with it come all the rest of McDonald's chips. Relegated to the rail in seventh place, McDonald will leave with $0, and the remaining six players are now squarely on a rather large money bubble with five places paying out at least a quarter-million dollars.
Tags:
Daniel NegreanuMike McDonaldViktor Blom