Ivan the Terrible
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Facing off against the tournament's chip leader, former November Niner Ivan Demidov was unafraid to flip for a big pot, and the Russian's gamble paid off in a big way.
The action started with Demidov opening to 6,200 from the small blind, and Chidwick using his big stack to make a three-bet of 15,500. Demidov responded by moving his last 90,100 into the middle, and Chidwick called with his 
.
Demidov tabled the 
and he was racing for his tournament life. The flop of 
gave Chidwick a slew of additional outs if the board paired, or if a jack appeared to fill in his gutshot straight draw, but the 
on the turn was a brick. Chidwick now needed any ace, queen, jack, ten, or eight to win the pot, and give himself an overwhelming chip lead heading into the stretch run.
River: 
Demidov managed to fade half the deck, and he exhaled with relief after surviving a particularly harrowing all-in confrontation.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
265,000
-135,000
|
-135,000 |
|
||
|
181,000
135,300
|
135,300 |
|
||