Attention high-stakes railbirds! The All-Star Showdown is here! The first of four quarterfinal matches has ended, with Benjamin "Sauce123" Sulsky beating Tobias "KTPOKP" Kuder in just under six hours to secure a spot in the semifinals.

The format for the All-Star Showdown is a variation on the SuperStar Showdowns of old, with the matches requiring players to play four heads-up cash sessions simultaneously. However, unlike in the SuperStar Showdowns where the matches would end after 2,500 hands even if a player hadn't busted, each All-Star Showdown match will continue until one player has won every last chip from his opponent.

The game is no-limit hold'em, with blinds of $50/$100. Each player is bringing $100,000 of his own money to the match (i.e., 1,000 big blinds). If the pair manage to get through 3,000 hands without one busting, the blinds will be increased to $100/$200 to accelerate the process.

Eight players, including new Team PokerStars Online member Isaac "IkeHaxton" Haxton -- are participating in this first All-Star Showdown. A draw determined the brackets for the single-elimination tournament. Here's the full schedule:

Quarterfinals
27 October: Tobias "KTPOKP" Kuder vs. Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky
28 October: Alex "Kanu7" Millar vs. Isaac "IkeHaxton" Haxton
30 October: Alexander "Sussie Smith" Roumeliotis vs. Dan "w00ki3z." Cates
31 October: Phil "mrsweets28" Galfond vs. Ben "ben86" Tollerene

Semifinals
2 November: Semifinal 1 (27 October winner vs. 28 October winner)
3 November: Semifinal 2 (30 October winner vs. 31 October winner)

Final
4 November: The All-Star Showdown final

Saturday's first quarterfinal match pitted the SuperNova Tobias "KTPOKP" Kuder of Austria against Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky playing from Canada. Like everyone else in the All-Star Showdown, both can be regularly found at the high-stakes tables at PokerStars, with Sulsky having additional renown for having some huge online tourney scores under his belt. Most notably, last May Sulsky took down SCOOP #37-H, the $21,000 buy-in heads-up NLHE event, an eyebrow-raising resume-builder for the All-Star Showdown.

Kuder and Sulsky took seats at the four "All-Star Showdown" tables just before 18:00 CET, and exchanged some friendly chat regarding previous heads-up encounters they'd had.

KTPOKP: gl gl
Sauce123: gl, hf
KTPOKP: u2
Sauce123: tx
Sauce123: hopefully our previous matches arent indicative of today :P
KTPOKP: i hope so :)

Soon play was underway!

Hour 1 (Hands 1-310)

Players started with stacks of $10,000 (100 big blinds) at each table, automatically topping off back up to $10K if they dipped below. Resetting of stacks would occur as well to ensure players would have at least $10K with which to play, until of course one began to run too low with his reserve funds to do so.

The pair traded small pots during the early going, with Sauce123 pushing to a $4,406 profit over the first 52 hands to grab an early advantage.

The lead quickly moved back to KTPOKP, however, in a hand on Table 1. In that one the flop brought Sulsky top pair of nines and Kuder the nut flush draw. The flush never came, but an ace on the river gave KTPOKP the better pair, so when Sulsky shoved the river Kuder called to win a $20,000 pot. Take a look:

RSS readers click through to see replay

Moments later, Sulsky rebought and doubled up himself at the same table in a hand in which both players flopped trip fives, but the turn gave Sauce123 a full house. Advantage back to Sulsky.

Kuder recovered, edging in front on each of the the other three tables, and after 103 hands Sauce123's lead was just $1,323.

Over the next 50 hands or so -- played at a clip of about five hands per minute -- the lead remained about the same. Sauce123 then swiftly grabbed a series of medium-sized pots to widen his lead to about $20,000, but KTPOKP was able to carve back some in a preflop all-in in which Sulsky held [Jd][Jh] and Kuder [Ac][Kc]. An ace flopped, KTPOKP's hand held, and after 202 hands Sulsky led by $12,329.

KTPOKP grabbed a few more chips back over the next 100 hands, gradually closing the gap back under $6,000. When the match reached the one-hour mark the pair took their first five-minute break, and with 310 hands in the books, Sulsky still led by $5,724.

52 hands: Sauce123 +$4,406
103 hands: Sauce123 +$1,323
156 hands: Sauce123 +$658
202 hands: Sauce123 +$12,329
250 hands: Sauce123 +$8,179
310 hands: Sauce123 +$5,724

Hour 2 (Hands 311-605)

The first 10 minutes of the second hour went very well for Sulsky, highlighted by a $13,200 pot won in a hand on Table 4 in which Sauce123 held [Ad][Kh], flopped a king, and managed to collect a couple of post-flop streets' worth of value. That one helped push Sulsky's lead up around $25,000.

Kuder soon got those chips back and a few more, however, in a hand at the same table in which KTPOKP got it all in on the turn with the board showing [9h][2h][Js][3h]. Kuder held [Jh][5h] for a flush while Sulsky had [2c][2s] for bottom set, and when the river brought a harmless king, KTPOKP had earned a $20,510 pot.

RSS readers click through to see replay

Undeterred, Sulsky kept pushing and grabbing small and medium pots, and by the time they crossed the 400-hand mark he had once again pushed his profit up close to $20,000.

The aggression from both players began to increase, with more four-bets before the flop and several back-and-forth battles over pots after. Sulsky continued to add to his stacks, leading significantly on three of four tables while Kuder had a small edge on Table 4.

In a hand on Table 3, they'd reach the river with the pot $3,400 and the board showing [2c][Ks][7c][5d][Qd]. KTPOKP took a $2,500 stab at the pot, but Sauce123 raised all in, forcing a tank and fold from his opponent. The lead had moved up over $30K.

Sulsky then won a huge $24K-plus pot in which he called a Kuder river shove with the board showing [Js][9h][4c][Kh][4s]. KTPOKP had [Ad][Th] for ace-high and had hoped to earn a fold, but he'd run into Sulsky's [Qd][Td] -- a king-high straight.

RSS readers click through to see replay

They crossed the 500-hand mark, with Sauce123's lead having moved up around $45K. Thanks to the topping off, the total amount of money spread across the four tables was up over $150,000, with nearly two-thirds of that sitting in Sulsky's stacks.

The second hour soon came to a close, with Sauce123 still comfortably in front.

352 hands: Sauce123 +$15,420
401 hands: Sauce123 +$19,488
452 hands: Sauce123 +$30,123
480 hands: Sauce123 +$40,182
499 hands: Sauce123 +$45,254
507 hands: Sauce123 +$41,999
555 hands: Sauce123 +$37,370
605 hands: Sauce123 +$40,092

Hour 3 (Hands 606-890)

The third hour began with Sulsky continuing to press his advantage, pushing his lead up over $50,000 at one point.

There was a lot of action on Table 3 to start Hour #3. First Sulsky won an $18K-plus pot after turning trip fours versus Kuder's top pair of kings. Then Sulsky gave those chips back in a couple of $10K pots when Kuder flopped two pair in one, then in another was dealt pocket queens and saw his hand hold up.

Kuder then earned a nearly $20K pot on Table 1 in a hand in which he three-bet from the small blind preflop, Sulsky called, and the flop came [2d][3h][6c]. Both checked, then after the [7c] turn KTPOKP bet $1,400 and Sauce123 called.

The river brought the [3s] and a bet of $1,500 by Kuder into the $4,400 pot. Sulsky raised to $7,500 and Kuder called. KTPOKP showed [Jh][Js] for jacks and treys, which was good versus Sulsky's [Kd][2c].

RSS readers click through to see replay

After that hand, KTPOKP actually led on two of the four tables, but Sauce123 maintained a better than $30K advantage overall.

Table 3 was the site of still more action, with a huge hand in which the board brought three tens and an ace and big betting on the river to put KTPOKP all in. Sauce123 held an ace for tens full, but KTPOKP had the case ten in his hand for quads. Take a look:

RSS readers click through to see replay

"Nh," typed Sauce123 afterwards, adding "should fold river u have quads."

The lead was suddenly back down under $20K. The gap would tighten even more after another nearly $25K pot went KTPOKP's way on Table 1 in a hand in which both players flopped two pair, but Kuder's were better.

They were nearing the end of the third hour when what would ultimately prove the biggest pot of the entire day arose, once more on Table 3 where the effective stacks had risen to more than 240 big blinds.

After an opening raise by Sauce123 to $200 from the button, KTPOKP reraised to $800 and Sauce123 called. The flop came [Jd][Kd][4s] and KTPOKP check-called a bet of $1,200 from Sauce123. The turn was the [5c] and once again Kuder checked. Sulsky bet $3,200 this time, and Kuder called.

The river was the [2d]. Kuder checked once more, and this time Sulsky pushed out a big bet of $14,400 and Kuder called. Sauce123 showed [9d][7d] for a diamond flush, and KTPOKP mucked as the $39,200 pot slid Sulsky's way.

RSS readers click through to see replay

Not long after that one, KTPOKP managed a quick double-up on the same table after flopping a set of fives, and the pair soon reached the three-hour break.

670 hands: Sauce123 +$30,267
704 hands: Sauce123 +$33,271
729 hands: Sauce123 +$18,984
771 hands: Sauce123 +$16,341
800 hands: Sauce123 +$18,241
838 hands: Sauce123 +$32,246
890 hands: Sauce123 +$22,341

Hour 4 (Hands 891-1,159)

Another five-minute break passed, and the pair were soon back at it.

Sulsky started the fourth hour on the right foot, swiftly snaring a $22,200 pot on Table 1 after turning a flush to nudge his lead back over $30K. A rush of pots then went Sauce123's way on Table 2, and as they crossed the 1,000-hand mark Sulsky's lead had ballooned back up over $50,000.

Still more went Sulsky's way in a hand that saw KTPOKP three-bet preflop, then check-call all three post-flop streets as the board came [Qs][Kc][Jd][6s][2c]. KTPOKP showed [As][Ah], but Sauce123 had flopped a straight with [Ts][9s] and claimed another $20K-plus pot.

RSS readers click through to see replay

Gradually KTPOKP's overall total fell down close $40,000, and play was halted on Table 3 in order to ensure Kuder could keep battling with at least $10,000 on each of the other three tables.

An all-in preflop situation soon arose on Table 2 in which KTPOKP picked up [Ah][Kd] but unfortunately for him Sauce123 had been dealt [Ad][As]. Five cards later, Sulsky had added still more to his stack.

RSS readers click through to see replay

With Kuder down to around $30,000, Table 2 was thus halted, and soon the fourth hour concluded with play continuing on two of the four tables.

941 hands: Sauce123 +$29,791
993 hands: Sauce123 +$52,860
1,016 hands: Sauce123 +$51,160
1,072 hands: Sauce123 +$54,860
1,108 hands: Sauce123 +$55,735
1,126 hands: Sauce123 +$63,435
1,133 hands: Sauce123 +$73,535
1,159 hands: Sauce123 +$68,785

Hour 5 (Hands 1,160-1,354)

The fifth hour began with KTPOKP chipping up enough to reopen a third table.

A preflop all-in soon followed on Table 4 with KTPOKP holding [Qd][Qs] against Sauce123's [Th][Ts]. A queen flopped, KTPOKP's hand held, and Kuder earned a timely boost to his comeback efforts.

That hand pushed Kuder back up over $40,000 total, and the fourth table was opened again.
KTPOKP's good fortune swiftly hit a wall, however, after running [Ac][Ks] into Sauce123's [Kh][Kd] and losing all of his stack on Table 2. The flop brought the case king but also a gutshot to Broadway for Kuder. However, the turn and river bricked out and a $24K-plus pot went to Sulsky.

RSS readers click through to see replay

Sauce123 would soon grab eight straight small pots on Table 3 to force KTPOKP from his seat there, and they were back down to two tables.

Soon all-in river push by Sauce123 on a [Kd][Ac][6s][6h][9h] board on Table 1 was called by KTPOKP. The latter showed [Ad][4h] for aces and sixes, but Sulsky had [As][Ah] for a full house and another $20K pot. That table closed, and they were down to just one.

Kuder had less than $10K, and Sulsky took to the chat box to see if his opponent might be ready to gamble the rest away.

Sauce123: want to flip ?
Sauce123: one table boring
KTPOKP: no..why should i do this?
Sauce123: fine, ill just play bad instead

Kuder battled gamely, earning a double-up in a hand in which both players flopped top pair of queens, but Kuder had the better kicker.

Sulsky continued to talk about flipping, noting that a big pot-limit Omaha game was running. "you can fold every hand and play plo instead," answered KTPOKP. "i don't care."

Play continued, with Sulsky in fact joining a couple of $200/$400 PLO tables as it did. In one hand, Sulsky put in a four-bet preflop, and after a long pause Kuder shoved all in, forcing a quick fold from Sauce123. But KTPOKP mostly kept out of harm's way while preserving his remaining chips.

Slowly but surely, Sauce123 edged to an advantage on the lone remaining table as the next hourly break arrived.

1,201 hands: Sauce123 +$57,635
1,237 hands: Sauce123 +$73,485
1,264 hands: Sauce123 +$91,585
1,273 hands: Sauce123 +$82,570
1,345 hands: Sauce123 +$86,389
1,354 hands: Sauce123 +$87,689

Hour 6 (Hands 1,355-1,457)

Play resumed, and soon KTPOKP was back down close to $11,000.

They reached the river in a hand in which the Kuder three-bet before the flop, then led with bets on the flop and turn as the board came [3s][Qc][9d][2d]. The river brought the [6c] and a shove from Kuder, and after thinking a bit Sulsky let his hand go.

Another hand arose in which Sulsky raised Kuder's river bet with the board showing [Jc][Jh][Ad][7c][2h] and after some thought Kuder called. Sauce123 showed [7s][2c] (jacks and sevens) while KTPOKP turned over [Jd][Ts] for trip jacks.

Alluding to Sulsky's PLO game -- and perhaps their hand strengths in that just concluded hand -- Kuder started typing:

KTPOKP: this is not omaha
Sauce123: nh
KPTOKP: we are playing holdem here
Sauce123: oh ****
KTPOKP: just for your notice

Kuder had built a stack up close to $20,000, meaning despite being down in the match he had an edge at the table as Sulsky had but about half that amount in play.

At about the five-and-a-half-hour mark, a relatively big hand finally developed that swung the advantage back to Sauce123.

Following a preflop three-bet by Sulsky, the flop came monotone -- [Ks][3s][Ts] -- and Sulsky check-raised a bet from Kuder. The turn brought the [Tc] and a $3,000 bet from Sauce123, called by KTPOKP. The river was the [9c], and after hesitating a moment, Sulsky shoved, and KTPOKP let it go.

RSS readers click through to see replay

Sulsky kept leaning on Kuder, and before long had the Austrian down under $5,000. But Kuder would double that in a hand in which both players flopped flushes, but KTPOKP's ace-high flush beat the jack-high one of Sauce123.

They were just a minute or so shy of the the six-hour mark when the end finally arrived on the 1,457th hand of the match.

Sauce123 started it with a raise to $200 from the button, with KTPOKP coming back with a three-bet to $700 which Sulsky called. The flop came [Kd][2s][Qd]. KTPOKP bet $800, and Sauce123 called. The turn then brought the [7s] and action. KTPOKP initially checked, and when Sauce123 fired $2,000, Kuder check-raised all in for $7,972 and Sulsky quickly called.

Sauce123: [Kc][6c]
KTPOKP: [Ks][Js]

Kings for both, with Kuder enjoying the better kicker (plus a flush draw). But the river brought the [6h], delivering a second pair to Sulsky along with the last of his opponent's money.

RSS readers click through to see replay

1,427 hands: Sauce123 +$88,278
1,457 hands: Sauce123 +$100,000

Congratulations to Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky for winning the first of four quarterfinal matches in the first ever All-Star Showdown, essentially leading from start-to-finish! Sulsky will play the winner of tomorrow's match between Alex "Kanu7" Millar vs Team PokerStars Online member Isaac "IkeHaxton" Haxton.

We'll be back tomorrow here at the PokerStars blog for coverage of that match. We'll also have reports for all of the other remaining matches in the All-Star Showdown, too, so stay tuned!

Martin Harris is a Freelance Contributor to the PokerStars Blog.

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: All Star Showdown]

Electronic poker tables which speed up play and avoid dealer errors were installed by a casino in Reno eager to try a new product with uneven response in earlier testing.

Read More... [Source: Poker News]

The final table is set!

While the cash tables were buzzing with players chasing the royal flush jackpot, those on the tournament floor were looking for a huge score of their own.

When play began we had 63 poker hopefuls return to the Crown poker room and we were off to a flying start as the shortstacks gambled for their tournament lives.

After eight and a half hours of play we've finally made it to our last-ever AZNPT final table. Those lucky nine will be back tomorrow before we crown a champion!

The plan starting the day was to play down to seven but when time lingered on and the action slowed down as we approached the end, a decision was made to conclude things nine handed.

Play would conclude only a few minutes into Level 24 when start-of-day chip leader Kenn Langcake eliminated Adam Monaghan. It folded around to Monaghan on the button who pushed all in for his last 195,000 in chips. Next to act Langcake moved in over the top with enough to cover and with the big blind out of the way the cards went on their backs.

Monaghan: [Qh][8h]
Langcake: [Ad][4c]

Monghan needed help and he celebrated after finding it on the [Qs][3h][Ks] flop. He was trying to fade an ace to stay alive but couldn't do it as the [Ac] turn rolled off and the [9c] river bricked. Monaghan would have to be content with his 10th place finish for $11,725 while the other nine guaranteed themselves $19,120.

Bubble boy - Adam Monaghan

Leading the way for tomorrow's return after a great day on the felt is Peter Matusik. The Brisbane local emerged as chip leader about half way through proceedings and is currently out in front with 2,430,000.

Matusik put a stop to Day 1B end-of-day chip leader Hyeong Wook Choi into the late stages of the night after the dealer fanned out an action flop. The [3c][8s][6s] board saw a jam from Choi and a snap-call from Matsusik before players revealed their hands.

Matusik: [6h][6d]
Choi: [Qs][9s]

It was Matusik's middle set up against Choi's flush draw and with the [Kd] turn and [Td] river appearing Choi would fail to spike one of his outs to instead find the rail. Matusik would continue chipping up as play went on before ultimately finishing with the lead going into the final table tomorrow.

Current chip leader - Peter Matusik

Following Matusik on the chip stack podium are Lin Shi (current second place) with 1,865,000 and reigning Aussie Millions champion Manny Stavropoulos (third place) on 1,570,000. By reaching the final table here this week Stavropoulos has already guaranteed himself the ANZPT Player of the Year title and will be hunting for the last ANZPT Main Event title to top it off.

ANZPT7 Melbourne Final Table Draw
Seat 1: Manny Stavropoulos (Australia) - 1,570,000
Seat 2: Kenn Langcake (Australia) - 650,000
Seat 3: Mile Krstanoski (Australia) - 525,000
Seat 4: Carl Knox (New Zealand) - 860,000
Seat 5: George Balandinos (Australia) - 990,000
Seat 6: Erich Stadler (New Zealand) - 490,000
Seat 7: Peter Matusik (Australia) - 2,430,000
Seat 8: Lin Shi (Australia) - 1,865,000
Seat 9: Nikolce Trajkovski (Australia) - 800,000

So that's all for tonight! The remaining nine players will return tomorrow from 12:30pm to battle it out for the ANZPT Main Event title! In the meantime you can find out about our final tablists by reading there player profiles. We hope you can join us tomorrow - Stay tuned!

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: Australia New Zealand Poker Tour]

Representative Jim McDermott has authored a new bill suggesting using online gambling taxes to fund foster care programs, as well as state and tribal budgets.

Read More... [Source: Gambling Bill News]

Last Thursday, I went on 95.7 The Game in the Bay Area and floated the notion that Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr should rest Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut for Saturday night’s marquee showdown at San Antonio.  

At that time, the Warriors held a 3.5-game lead over the Spurs in the race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with just 15 contests remaining on the schedule.  Additionally, Golden State was playing at Dallas Friday and has a layup at Minnesota Monday. Use the Spurs game as an opportunity to get Harrison Barnes more time as the top scoring option while resting your stars for the upcoming playoff push. After all, Golden State hadn’t won in San Antonio since 1997.

As you could no doubt imagine, this idea wasn’t well received by Dub Nation.

In the end, Kerr chose to rest only Bogut and the Spurs (-4.5) went on to notch their 33rd consecutive regular season home victory over the Warriors by the final score of 87-79. The reigning MVP connected on just one 3-pointer (1 for 12) in 38 minutes in Golden State’s worst offensive showing since suffering a 91-75 home loss to the Charlotte Bobcats back on February 4, 2014.

In the grand scheme of things, this game meant very little. But at the very least, basketball fans should be stoked on the idea that the high-flying defending champs finally appear to have an adversary worthy of being called a rival. 

Magic had Bird and Jordan, for a time, had the Bad Boy Pistons. The NBA desperately needed somebody to rise up and challenge the Warriors.

From a gambling perspective, however, there are three essential takeaways from Saturday night’s Golden State-San Antonio showdown:

1. Pace: We talked about the importance of this metric in this column a few weeks back and it played a significant role in San Antonio’s win Saturday night. 

When the Warriors hammered the Spurs by 30 points back on January 25, it was the fastest pace the Spurs had played all season. Advantage: Golden State. 

However, Saturday night’s rematch featured the slowest pace the Spurs had played at all season. Advantage: San Antonio.  You’re performing a great disservice to yourself if you aren’t including this metric in all of your basketball handicapping.

2. Response off a loss: The Warriors are 4-2 ATS off a loss this season, with the Over cashing in four of those six matchups. That’s important to keep in mind for Monday’s matchup at Minnesota. However, Golden State isn’t the only NBA team turning a sizeable profit this season when faced with a bounce-back situation:

NBA TEAMS OFF A LOSS (ATS) IN 2015-2016

San Antonio: 8-2 ATS
Golden State: 4-2 ATS
Memphis: 19-10-1 ATS
Portland: 22-12 ATS
Miami: 17-11-1 ATS
Denver: 24-16-1 ATS

What do all six of these teams have in common? They’re covering the spread at least 60.0 percent of the time when coming off a loss.  

NBA TEAMS OFF A LOSS (OVER/UNDER) IN 2015-2016

Golden State: 4-2
Portland: 22-12
Milwaukee: 25-14
Denver: 24-15-2
Sacramento: 24-16-1

The Over cashes more than 60 percent of the time for all five of these teams when they are coming off a loss. But there’s another profitable angle you should be considering for teams coming off a loss and it’s just as simple:

NBA TEAMS OFF A LOSS (UNDER/OVER) IN 2015-2016

Los Angeles Clippers: 16-7-1
New York: 26-15
Charlotte: 18-11
Miami: 17-11-1

The Under is hitting more than 60 percent of the time for each of these four teams when coming off a loss.  

3. Stephen Curry: The reigning MVP scored only 14 points in over 37 minutes of action Saturday night against the Spurs while connecting on just one of 12 3-pointers (.083). Here’s a breakdown of how Curry bounces back this season in the next game out after shooting 20 percent or worse from 3-point range:

November 7 at Sacramento: 2/10
November 9 vs. Detroit: 3/7

January 2 vs. Denver: 1/5
January 4 vs. Charlotte: 5/10

February 6 vs. Oklahoma City: 1/9
February 9 vs. Houston: 7/16

March 6 at Los Angeles Lakers: 1/10
March 7 vs. Orlando: 7/13

As you can tell, Curry bounces back with a bang off a poor effort, as the Golden State point guard is averaging 5.5 successful 3-pointers while shooting .478 from deep in the four games following a performance of .200 or worse from three-point range.

Keep this in mind as it pertains to Curry prop bets for Monday night’s game at Minnesota.

But the real kicker here as it pertains to Monday night prop bets in the Golden State-Minnesota matchup focuses on Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson, who is averaging 22.1 points per game this season. If you eliminate the six matchups Thompson has played coming off a loss, the two-time All-Star is averaging 21.5 points per game.

But in the six games coming off a loss, Thompson’s scoring average soars to 27.8 points per game.

Just a little nugget to consider when trying to get next week off on the right foot.

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Read More... [Source: Covers.com: NBA News and Stories]

The second and penultimate day of the 2016 Marrakech Poker Open Main Event saw a total of 55 hopefuls from a 220-entry field return to the tables of Casino de Marrakech. Only the top 27 spots were paid, and after almost nine levels of one hour each, the final table of eight was determined. Leading the way was Abdenbi Abida, who bagged up 1.499 million in chips and slightly edged out Henrique Pinho.

2016 Marrakech Poker Open Main Event Final Table

Seat	Player	Country	Chips
1	Fahd	Morocco	456,000
2	Michael van der Ghinst	Belgium	94,000
3	Patrick Groppi	France	1,080,000
4	Mathieu Papineau	France	886,000
5	Mathieu Biague	France	126,000
6	Henrique Pinho	Portugal	1,425,000
7	Ali Mechiche	Morocco	1,027,000
8	Abdenbi Abida	France	1,499,000

Among those to bust early on Day 2 were Romain Paon, Thierry Gogniat, Barny Boatman, and 2016 LAPT Vina del Mar champion Rodrigo Strong. Boatman flopped a set of fours, but Masbah Ben Baba turned the nut straight with king-jack suited to bust the World Series of Poker bracelet winner.

WSOP Marrakech Main Event runner-up Anthony Rodrigues followed soon after, and then Isabel Baltazar, Carlos Lopes, and Said El Yousfi also missed out on the money.

El Yousfi then fell when his aces were cracked by Abida.

The bubble burst without hand-for-hand play being active, as Marcel Vadella hit the rail at the same time as Mohamed Ali Houssam was bounced on another table. For Houssam, the 2011 WPT Marrakech champion, he flopped top set only to run into the straight of Saverio Cocozza. Houssam failed to pair up and the field had been reduced to the last 27, all guaranteed at least 18,000 Dirhams (approx. $1,850 or €1,650) for their efforts.

The usual rush of eliminations after getting into the money didn't take place, but Riccardo Giacalone, Arthur Conan, and Jean Pierre Supiot all settled for a min-cash.

As the eliminations piled up, Pinho dominated his opponents and busted Tsunamy in a flip with ace-king suited versus pocket sixes.

Philippe Ktorza then ran queen-jack into the queens of Ali Mechiche, and Cocozza's pocket tens were no good against the jacks of Abida. Abida also busted Andre Fonseca with ace-eight suited after flopping top pair and the nut flush draw. Fonseca check-raised all in with an inferior ace-four and found no miracle.

The unofficial final table of nine saw just one hand played. That hand involved Dominique Terzian's shove with kings ending in dramatic fashion, as Abida woke up with pocket aces behind to deal the final blow for Day 2.

Patrick Groppi (1.08 million) and Mechiche (1.029 million) also bagged up seven figures, while Mathieu Papineau is in the middle of the pack with 886,000. Marrakech Poker Open High Roller runner-up Fahd (456,000), Mathieu Biague (126,000), and Michael van der Ghinst (94,000) complete the lineup for Sunday, and action will resume with six minutes left at blinds of 8,000/16,000 and a running ante of 2,000.

All players have 55,000 Dirhams (approx. $5,700 or €5,050) locked up for their efforts, but all eyes are set on the first-place payout of 440,000 Dirhams (approx. $45,600 or €40,500).

Make sure to tune back in to PokerNews.com on Sunday starting at 1 p.m. local time to find out who will be crowned champion of the 2016 Marrakech Poker Open from Casino de Marrakech.

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The Cavaliers have won 15 of the past 18 meetings with the Clippers, including a 115-102 home win on Jan. 21.

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Cleveland Cavaliers at Los Angeles Clippers (+1.5, 208)

Power forward Kevin Love will return after a one-game absence and the Cleveland Cavaliers look for their sixth victory in seven games when they visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. Love sat out Thursday's victory over the Los Angeles Lakers due to pain in both knees and he's looking to rebound from an 11-for-42 shooting slump over his last four outings.

Love's shaky play has contributed to the Cavaliers being unable to perform at the level that forward LeBron James is seeking. Cleveland's recent surge has been fueled by point guard Kyrie Irving, who is averaging 24.9 points over the last seven games after scoring 26 during Thursday's 120-108 win over the Lakers. The Clippers have won five of their past seven games as they make a run at catching the third-place Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference playoff race. The contest with the Cavaliers is followed by a five-game road trip that begins in San Antonio and concludes by visiting the Golden State Warriors.

TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC

LINE HISTORY: The spread opened on Saturday afternoon with the Cavaliers pegged as 1.5 point favorites and has held steady. The total hit the board at 207.5 and rose slightly to 208 by Saturday evening.

INJURY REPORT:

Cavaliers - C T. Mozgov (Questionable Sunday, illness)

Clippers - PF L. Mbah a Moute (Questionable Sunday, eye)
                SF P. Pierce (Questionable Sunday, toe)

COVERS POWER RANKINGS: Cavaliers (-8.9) - Clippers (-8.8) + home court (-3) = Clippers -2.9

WHAT SHARPS SAY: "Cleveland will be playing an early daytime game on the West Coast after daylight savings time.  The Cavaliers have been in California since Wednesday, and they’ve had two days off prior to this game, but this is still a tricky scheduling spot.  Los Angeles has alternated wins and losses over their last four games; they won at home in their last game.  The Clippers’ defense has allowed 98 points or less in four of their last five home games." - Covers Expert Steve Merril

DANCE TEAM WAR:

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (46-18): Cleveland is vying to hold off Toronto for the top seed in the Eastern Conference and is 2-0 on a four-game road trip that concludes Monday against Utah. Center Tristan Thompson has posted back-to-back double-doubles during the excursion and is averaging 14 points and 14.5 rebounds in the two contests. Thompson has scored in double digits in a season-best six straight games and is averaging 12.5 points on 28-of-41 shooting during the stretch.

ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (42-22): Small forward Jeff Green has produced back-to-back strong efforts by averaging 20 points on 16-of-24 shooting against Oklahoma City and the New York Knicks. Consistency has been an issue for Green since he was acquired from the Memphis Grizzlies as he scored in double digits in only one of the previous four games, twice going scoreless. "It's great that I'm on the floor," Green said after playing 45 minutes against the Knicks on Friday. "I don’t mind it. It's all about competing. It's 5-on-5. I’m going to push through and compete."

 

TRENDS:

* Cavaliers are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 vs. NBA Pacific.

* Clippers are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 vs. Eastern Conference.

* Over is 4-0 in Cavaliers last 4 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.

* Under is 7-1 in Clippers last 8 home games.

COVERS CONSENSUS: The public seems to agree with our Power Rankings and is favoring the Clippers early on. The over is getting punched at a very agressive 71 percent and we can expect the total to move up, at least, another half point by gametime Sunday afternoon. "); h = d.getElementById(tid); h.parentNode.insertBefore(s, h); })(document);

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