Level 4
: 50/100, 0 ante
Players are on a five-minute break.
2021 WSOP.com Online Bracelet Events
Event #14: $500 No-Limit Hold'em
Day: 1
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1
2021 WSOP.com Online Bracelet Events
Buy-in
$500
Prize Pool
$466,200
Entries
1,036
Level
40
Blinds
100,000 / 200,000
Ante
25,000
Entries
1,036
Players Left
1
Level 4
: 50/100, 0 ante
Ye "yuan365" Yuan, also known as Tony Yuan, has a tiny amount of cashes on his Hendon Mob profile, with just $6,774 in career tournament earnings outside of one particularly big outlier. Yuan, a Ph.D Candidate of Mathematics and Probability at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, overcame the odds and made the final table of the 2020 WSOP $10,000 Main Event, after pushing through a field of 705 entrants.
“I still can’t believe it." Yuan told PokerNews about his run to the final table. "I don’t know how I made it, but someone I did. I was quite lucky to have some big hands. I won a coinflip when short-stacked with pocket nines against my opponent’s ace-jack offsuit." Yuan also was confident in the transition to the live final table, as opposed to online, saying, "I’m a live guy. I think my live play is better than my online play. I can read people.”
Yuan finally succumbed in fifth-place, losing a flip with ace-ten to the pocket fours of Joseph Hebert, but the $286,963 payday certainly helped put a big dent in his college tuition. Now, with another summer of online events, Yuan will be looking to make another deep today after notching two final tables already this series.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
15,000
15,000
|
15,000 |
Level: 4
Blinds: 50/100
Ante: 0
Level 3
: 40/80, 0 ante
Gershon "jets613" Distenfeld raised to 540 from the big blind after two players limped. Two players called.
The flop came 
. Distenfeld bet 900, one player folded, John "sn1p3rjdubz" Duci moved all in for 1,088 and Distenfeld called who had the 
against the 
of Duci.
The turn was the 
. the river was the 
to give Distenfeld the straight and bust Duci.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
33,778 |
Level 3
: 40/80, 0 ante
A raising war between Allen "chainsaw" Kessler and John "silverz759" Griffin saw a 
flop appear for 1,080 a pop.
Kessler led out for 1,687 only to have Griffin raise to 4,079 and Kessler clapped back with a three-bet jam of 15,489. Griffin snap-called his 13,740 stack and both hands were revealed.
John "silverz759" Griffin: 
Allen "chainsaw" Kessler: 
Kessler was out-flopped by Griffin and the turn followed by the 
river left him with just 1,749.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
29,730
29,730
|
29,730 |
|
|
1,749
-13,251
|
-13,251 |
Level 3
: 40/80, 0 ante
No stage in poker stood as a bigger goal for a tournament player than the final table of the WSOP Main Event. For years, that meant going to sleep knowing you had the chance of a lifetime, to go down in poker history in the next few days as the cameras captured your every bet, raise and fold.
All of that changed in 2008.
The year after Jerry Yang's Main Event victory was broadcast to all on ESPN's standard tape delay, organizers made a decision to try to increase the excitement and anticipation around the final table: after the final nine was reached, play would be paused. At that point, everyone left would go home with 9th-place money and the players would reconvene a few months later to play out the final table on a short tape delay.
That lasted until 2016, and this is the history of the November (and October) Nines.
Click here to read the article about the history of the WSOP November Nine
Level: 3
Blinds: 40/80
Ante: 0
Level 2
: 30/60, 0 ante
A series of preflop raises saw "scakewalk" four-bet to 4,500 and Dave "Crispr" Alfa called on the button.
After the 
flop appeared, "scakewalk" continued for 2,400 only to call off their 10,425 stack after Alfa jammed for 28,335.
"scakewalk": 
Dave "Crispr" Alfa: 
The 
turn gave Alfa a little sweat as it gave both players a club flush draw with "scakewalk" holding the ace but luckily for Alfa, the 
river secured him the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
44,790 |
Level 2
: 30/60, 0 ante
"allin12" raised to 175, Edward "eddiegood598" [Removed:363] three-bet to 437, "Car1tonBanks" called as did "allin12".
The flop came 
, "car1tonBanks" bet 815 and "allin12" called while [Removed:363] folded.
The turn was the . Action went check-check. The river was the 
. "allin12 bet 1,995 and was called and showed the 
as the winning hand to collect the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
18,472
18,472
|
18,472 |
|
|
10,610
10,610
|
10,610 |
Level 2
: 30/60, 0 ante
Last December, Gershon “jets613” Distenfeld, who is in today's field, was one of the finalists at the 2020 WSOP Demostic Main Event final table. He was a fan favorite because the 45-year-old pledged to donate 100% of winnings (minus any taxes) to charities of his family's choice, and he wound up finishing in eighth place for $125,885.
A professional in the finance space, Distenfeld said he simply plays poker for the challenge and competition.
“The charities I have chosen thus far encompass many of my and my wife Aviva’s personal areas of interest which include organizations with proven track records in helping those less fortunate and more vulnerable improve their lives," he said at the time.
Here's a partial list of the charities Distenfeld benefitted with his finish:
- Minds Matter – Helping driven, low-income students succeed in college, create their future and change the world.
- NCSY Relief Missions – Harnessing teen volunteers to address disaster relief and food insecurity. I named this program after my parents of blessed memory.
- Yachad - Dedicated to enhancing the life opportunities of Jewish individuals with developmental disabilities or other learning challenges.
- Project S.A.R.A.H. (Stop Abusive Relationships At Home) - working to overcome cultural, legal and religious barriers confronting victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse.
Distenfeld, 45, was born in Queens, New York but now resides in Bergenfield, New Jersey with his wife of nearly 21 years, Aviva. Together they have three daughters Shoshana (19), Talia (15), Esti (13), and one son, Aryeh (4). He graduated from Yeshiva University with a BS in Finance in 1997.
A recreational player, Distenfeld works for AllianceBernstein as co-head of Fixed Income and Director of Credit. His position has led to him being a frequent guest on Bloomberg TV and CNBC. In fact, the day after making the final table he was able to share the news to a mainstream audience by making an announcement on Bloomberg Surveillance Simulcast (at the 1:14:20 mark).
“I mainly started watching on TV in the Moneymaker era,” said Distenfeld, a passionate fan of the New York Jets and New York Rangers. “Eventually started reading/studying a lot and finally began to play in casinos. I gravitated towards tournaments over cash games. I have been going to the WSOP for a week in June for most of the past several years where I’ve played in some of the events, but this is my first Main Event.”
For Distenfeld, part of poker’s allure was the fact that he could use many of his professional skills in the game.
“I’ve studied behavioral finance a lot which has impacted how I approach the financial markets,” he explained. “I have brought that same discipline to the poker tables. Often, it isn’t how smart you are that determines your success. It’s capitalizing on the biases of others that makes you a consistent winner.”
Click here for more on Gershon Distenfeld
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
33,167
-175
|
-175 |