What had to happen has happened. We have a new November Nine. After 79 hours of play over 12 days, a field of 7,319 has been trimmed by 99.88 percent.

It means that on the weekend of 6-9 November, the following players will return to the Penn and Teller Theater at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas to determine the 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion. Each and every one of them deserves their shot at history.

Jonathan Duhamel - 65,975,000
John Dolan - 46,250,000
Joseph Cheong - 23,520,000
John Racener - 19,050,000
Matthew Jarvis - 16,700,000
Filippo Candio - 16,400,000
Michael Mizrachi - 14,450,000
Soi Nguyen - 9,650,000
Jason Senti - 7,625,000

The figures beside their names are their chip counts, accumulated through those 36 levels of play. By a margin best described as "runaway", Johnathan Duhamel, a 23-year-old former finance student from Quebec, Canada, is the chip leader and will be the clear favourite to follow Joe Cada into the winners' enclosure come the end.

Duhamel described himself today as a "luckbox", but he is being far too humble. Although he was central to all the day's major talking points - dishing out much of the cruelty inherent in poker - he also played one of the most focused and balanced games we've ever seen. Shadow boxing during the breaks, else standing alone like a fighter gathering thoughts before a bout, he played every pot as though it was worth a million dollars - and in many ways they were.

"It just helps me focus," Duhamel said. "When I play, I just want to be in my head."

Duhamel wore a rash of PokerStars patches since day one, and he is as fitting a player as any to be graced by the red spade. After playing a bunch of EPTs, as per a new plan, the spade will adorn him again as he seeks that platinum bracelet of a World Series champion.

There's no room for complacency from Duhamel, however. Eight others are breathing if not down his neck, then from not far down the road.

PokerStars' other interests rest with Jason Senti, a professional poker player from Minnesota. Senti is a former electrical engineer who turned his hobby (poker) into his main source of income. He was one of the shortest stacks at the start of day seven, but doubled up against David Assouline and never looked back.

Brandon Steven, a philanthropic amateur from Wichita, Kansas, was another one to wear proudly the PokerStars patch. He went out in 10th, which was the final table bubble. But boy, Steven deserves every high-five he has gotten.

Steven runs a chain of health clubs and car dealerships and so was one of only a couple of amateurs mixing it with the big boys in search of a place among the November Nine. He is used to large sums of money - although most often he is giving it away. Steven was the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Man of the Year in 2007 after breaking their national fund-raising record, including making more than $100,000 in a charity poker tournament. The philanthropist saw some of the karma pay him off in spades. He took $635,011 for tenth, and the thanks of everybody in Las Vegas.

It's a long story - more than 17 hours on the final day - as to how we got to these nine, starting at noon when 27 players still had the highest hopes. Brad Willis picks up the story of day eight:

When Johnny Lodden and William Thorson started the Main Event, they did it under a cloud. If history was an indication, only one of them would do well. Never before had they both cashed in the same event. When day eight arrived for the final 27 players, the two Team PokerStars Pros were still alive. Thorson had a playable stack. Lodden was in worse shape. He needed an early double up or he was going to be in trouble.

Lodden found what he hoped would be his chance. All-in with pocket eights, he got into a race with Matt Affleck's [ac][th]. Lodden flopped well, but an ace fell on the turn. It would come down to the river. Only an eight could save him and the dealer didn't have one on top to give. For Lodden, the 2010 WSOP was over. He finished in 27th place.

With the floodgates prised open by Lodden, the players began to flow through them. Matthew Bucaric, Mads Wissing, Ronnie Bardah, and Robert Pisano vanished in short order, a set-up for a story none of us wanted to tell.

There was no talking about William Thorson in this year's Main Event without mentioning what happened to him in 2006. It was then the Swedish Team PokerStars Pro made a deep run in what still holds as the biggest-ever WSOP Main Event. It ended with a 13th place finish when he ran jacks into eventual winner Jamie Gold's kings. This year, Thorson seemed just as focused and intent on not making the same mistakes.

During these past two weeks, he barely put a foot wrong. Though his stack had grown shorter than he would've liked, he still had well enough chips to threaten a final table appearance. But that all changed. When John Dolan opened to 375,000 and got calls from Brandon Steven and John Racener, Thorson decided to squeeze all-in from the blinds with [jd][td]. It was disaster. Racener was trapping with pocket kings and made the call. Though Thorson flopped a flush draw, he didn't get there.

A man with four-year-old demons to slay was gone in 22nd place - but much happier about his play. "Last time it took me two years to get over it, this time it took me two minutes," said Thorson.

After a brutal start to the day for the European players, Italy's Fillipo Candio went runner-runner to crack Joseph Cheong's aces and take over the chip lead. That started a short rush in which Redmond Lee and Patrick Eskandar were eliminated and took us below the 20-player mark.

All eyes fell on PokerStars' longest-lasting qualifier, Michiel Slijpkens. At only 21 years and four months old, he had a chance of setting a new record for the youngest World Series of Poker champion, beating Joe Cada's current mark. But Cada will cling onto the record: Slijpkens' pocket jacks lost a race to John Racener's king-queen and the young man from Holland disappeared in 19th place.

Scott Clements and David Baker were the next to go, taking us to dinner break and 90 minutes to reflect on what might be. As we left the Amazon Room, we introduced you to the players within reach of the WSOP final table. None of us could know who would make it, or what hell might befall the players we'd been covering for two weeks.

When the players returned from dinner, we looked to Matt Affleck for inspiration. We had no sooner put words to page than he suffered a beat that spawned sympathy in the hearts of the most jaded poker veterans. All-in on the turn with aces against Duhamel's jacks, Affleck had to dodge ten outs to avoid Duhamel hitting a set or open-ended straight. The pot was the biggest of the tournament yet and would almost guarantee the winner a spot among the November Nine.

Affleck leaned forward on the table. Even the most casual observer could see the abject fear in his eyes. After a deep run in 2009 in which he ultimately finished in 80th place, Affleck played this tournament with a clear need for redemption. He was within one card of a destiny he and many others believed he deserved. The eight that fell on the river knocked Affleck over. His head fell into his hands and when it emerged, the emotion on his face touched nearly every heart in the room.

It was impossible to feel anything but crushed - and Affleck's long drawn-out departure from the Amazon Room was almost unbearable to witness. "What are you gonna do?" Affleck said some hours later. "I played the best poker of my life."

Affleck's elimination was the first in a quick series. Within only a few minutes, Hassan Habib, Duy Le, and Adam Levy were gone. With only eleven players remaining, the Amazon Room grew tense. After more than 7,000 bust-outs over two weeks, it was only going to take two more eliminations to take us to the end.

The first of them was Pascal LeFrancois, slain by Joseph Cheong. Then it was that man Steven. He was a short stack, and then doubled up. He was the short stack again, then double it up again. He would not say die.

Eventually he found big slick and took it up against Matt Jarvis's pocket queens. The 10-handed battle had lasted for more than five hours, but the end game was in sight. The flop was blank, the turn was dry. The river missed Steven too and we had our November Nine.

In all, 839 PokerStars players competed in the 2010 WSOP Main Event. Of those, 146 cashed for more than a collective $15 million so far. Now, we move on to the November Nine where the money isn't just big. It's life-changing.

And so now we suspend our coverage of the WSOP. We will return in a few months to crown a champion. Many thanks to our colleagues at the German, Swedish, Dutch and Spanish blogs. We also could not have done this job without the help of our crack statistician, Excel maven, and undercover operative Mad Harper. Thanks also to our partner Joe Giron who not only has chauffeured us around town, but provided the best photographic coverage of this event for the past several years ever. Finally, to the people who run the WSOP, thanks again for your hard work and letting us be here.

With that, congrats to all who made the final table. We'll see you in November.

All photography from Las Vegas on PokerStars Blog is (c) Joe Giron/Joe Giron Photography.

You may have noticed that things have gone quiet for some time. Since the "last" table began there has been a drought of the all-in excitement that occupied us earlier. Instead, and who can blame them, the players are in no mood to bust out early and give up a spot in the November Nine.

That includes short stack Brandon Steven, who arrived at the final table with just a few million but is still battling strong several hours later.

But it's not for us to say who should bust out first, and the hundreds of people in the Amazon Room, gone 3am, don't seem to care either and are in no mood to be turning in. So we're here to the end and will publish a full wrap of the day once we find out who that November bubble boy is. In the meantime keep track of the action using the PokerStars Blog twitter, which you can follow by going here.

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SAVE OF THE HOUR

WSOP Head of Security Tony Spencer who, according to published reports, recently woke up a man who was sleeping...standing up...while watching the final table.

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WITHDRAWAL OF THE HOUR

It's times like these you really regret not topping up the Atomic Fireball supply.

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JOE GIRON'S PHOTO HOUR

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HERO OF THE HOUR

Lance. You know who you are.

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STATISTICS OF THE HOUR

Number of hours photographer Joe Giron has been standing by the final table waiting for a picture: 3.5
Number of people we can see who are sleeping: 2
Number of hours our German blogger has been here since the last German busted out: 15.5 today, plus 2 last night (Good job, Robin!)
Number of bags of Jack's Links Buffalo Chicken Jerky we have eaten since the final table began: 8
Number of times we have watched a live version of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'": 3

In the aftermath of Matt Affleck's departure from the main event one man was left to live with the consequences. Jonathan Duhamel is tearing through the field, and has a block of chips in front of him worth more than 50 million. But for Duhamel it was a bitter-sweet hand. Duhamel had got lucky, a painfully regular part of the game, and he was in no mood to pretend it was down to anything else.

"Luck box," he said, to describe his day. "I won a huge pot and didn't deserve it. It's poker, but seriously, it was a 40 million pot I think and I had eight outs on the turn, so I was quite lucky to win that one. I made a bad read on the guy but ended up winning anyway."

Jonathan Duhamel, moments after eliminating Matt Affleck, with tournament director Jack Effel stacking his chips

Duhamel had been the first to approach Affleck as the young American stood covering his face with his cap. But what can you feel at a time like that?

"I don't know how to feel about it," said Duhamel thinking about it. "I made a bad call and I end up winning. Sometimes people do that to me and now at the most important time of my life I do that to other people. That's why I'm a luck box. That's it."

Duhamel now pushes on, five-handed on the secondary feature table with the two short stacks over the crowds on the main stage. His plan? To stay aggressive until the end of the day, whenever that might be.

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SITUATION OF THE HOUR

Pascal LeFrancois's elimination in 11th place stops the clock. Tournament officials clear the room to avoid similar scenes to those we saw when we went down to two tables, pandemonium on stage and all sorts of crowd issues. This time the spectators are forced to wait outside as the main stage is prepared for the last table, not the final table, the last table.

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DOUBLE UP OF THE HOUR

Brandon Steven made the double up of the hour, and it was a vital one. Jason Senti had raised from the button to 700,000 before Steven moved all in for 2.5 million. Senti wondered for a while but then called. Steven was a head though, his [ac][kc] to Senti's [kh][td].

Brandon Steven

The flop came [qs][5d][8c], enough for Steven to stay alive. He then made a pair on the [as] turn which his supporters cheered, only to realise it gave Senti more outs. Only four though and the [6h] on fifth street wasn't one of them. Steven back up to more than 5.5 million, but still the short stack.

*****

ELIMINATIONS OF THE HOUR

Hasan Habib - 14th
Duy Le - 13th
Adam Levy - 12th
Pascal LeFrancois - 11th

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REASON WHY BRYN KENNEY BUSTED IN 28TH OF THE HOUR

According to tournament staff, massages are not permitted on any of the feature tables. (Kenney was massaged from start to finish of days six and seven of the Main Event.)

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CROWD CONTROL OF THE HOUR

Men in the security detail brought in ahead of the expected rush of spectators running for seats on the main stage: 8

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COLOUR CODING OF THE SECURITY DETAIL OF THE HOUR

Two in blue shirts, two in beige shirts, two in black shirts, one in a yellow shirt and Tony Spencer in a suit.

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TOURNAMENT HOUSEKEEPING OF THE HOUR

Starting field: 7,310
Remaining players: 10
Number of players on official final table: 9
Blinds: 150,000/300,000/40,000
Average stack: 21,957,000
Biggest stack: Jonathan Duhamel 50,200,000
Smallest stack: Brandon Steven 3,305,000

At a conservative estimation, more than two million poker hands have been dealt in this World Series Main Event. But if any single hand is likely to be remembered long into the future of poker, it is the one that has just eliminated Matt Affleck in 15th place.

It wasn't necessarily what happened with the cards - the outdraw was no less horrific than thousands that occur every hour. But the reaction from Affleck, both the very minute an [8d] rivered a straight for Johnathan Duhamel, and then for the next 20 minutes as Affleck attempted to begin the rest of his life, was without comparison in modern poker memory.

Here's what happened, from the very start:

At the table

Affleck and Duhamel were involved in a pot worth 42 million tournament chips, an amount large enough to carry to November's final table with serious expectations of becoming World Champion. Affleck, 23, had pocket aces. Duhamel, 22, had pocket jacks. They had seen a flop of [10d][9c][7h], and then a turn of [qd]. And then all of Affleck's chips found their way into the middle.

Duhamel took five minutes before calling the bet. Affleck was leading but Duhamel could hit any king, any jack or any eight to win, eliminating Affleck. He hit the [8d].

As the eight-deep crowd gasped and roared, Affleck leant forward, slid his hat forward over his eyes, and rested his head on the arm-rest around the table. His body started to shake like a man beginning to weep. He held his head there for longer than any player I've ever seen. When he lifted it, he held his cap over his reddened cheeks. He wanted no one to see the tears in his eyes, but no one could look anywhere else.

He shook hands with his opponents, he took his off his microphone, he didn't pause to watch his chip stacks, meticulously arranged and scrupulously earned through eight days, slid in the direction of Duhamel.

In the corridor

As play resumed - it always does that - there was still the nervous chattering that follows any kind of monumental happening in any sporting pursuit. Folks discussed the hand, adding their own inexpert views to what they had seen, then discussed what they expected to happen in the future. "They sure take their time to make a decision these guys," said one man on the rail. "I mean, man, either do it or don't. Come on."

Affleck was not around to hear it. In the long corridor outside the Amazon Room, he stood beside three friends, all of them silent and frozen. He was in the very middle of the hall, like a statue. A few strays from the MMA fight in the neighbouring Pavilion Room ambled past. A janitor swept a plastic cup into his trash-can.

One poker spectator had pursued Affleck all the way out into the hall and he sheepishly approached him with a baseball cap and a marker pen, proffering it nervously. Affleck took the pen, scribbled on the white baseball cap, and sent the man on his way. No words were exchanged.

Affleck then blew out his cheeks, still red and still moist, and wandered along the hall towards the main Rio Casino. He stopped when he caught sight of one of the monitors that showed the chip counts to spectators. It still had his name on it, fifth in chips, and heading to the November Nine. It was wrong, plain wrong. Affleck pulled his cap over his eyes again.

Off he went once more. He walked slowly, feet splayed outward, his "Griffey 24" Seattle Mariners jersey disappearing into the distance. He was still crying. His friends followed, but they gave him a five yard start. Affleck was alone; there was nothing a fist pump or a handshake could do.

Outside by the taxi rank

When he reached the end of the corridor, Affleck left the building and stood by the stairs leading to the taxi rank. He walked through a few smokers to a railing and lent over it, two elbows propping him there, as though he was about to be sick. He stood for two minutes before one of his friends walked over and patted him twice on the shoulder. They said nothing.

Affleck moved away and propped on another stretch of railing. His friend removed his jacket but stayed where he was. A group of four MMA fans smoked and talked about a car wreck one of them had recently been in. The petty minutiae of their impending court case, peppered by expletives, was out of earshot. Affleck instead stared into the shrubbery beneath the suites of the Palazzo Towers. That's usually where the November Nine stay when they return to Vegas to play the final table.

A plane flew into McCarran airport and Affleck watched it briefly. Then his friend moved over again and patted his back once more. Aflleck turned around and this time the buddies talked. Then they walked together back into the hall.

Back in the hall

As he held the door open for a lady to leave the corridor, the woman recognised Affleck and wanted to talk. "Congratulations," she said. "Congratulations on getting that far. We've been watching you for days."

Affleck thanked her but wandered away. She shouted after him: "Congratulations on getting that far."

He wandered back in the direction of the Amazon Room, pausing again to sign another baseball cap with a Sharpie and accepting congratulations. Three other poker supporters approached him, including Greg Mueller. They exchanged handshakes, but Affleck did not tarry. He seemed to be heading to the payouts room, but once again got only as far as the rotunda, and turned 180 degrees again.

Once more, with his silent three-man entourage lagging five paces behind, Affleck headed away. It was now the third time he had walked this corridor in as many minutes, like a polar bear in a zoo, having lost all sense of purpose. This time he turned past the shuttered merchandise stand and past the photos of previous Main Event champions. Six cabinets displayed World Series bracelets. Affleck did not look.

He then drifted into the corridor that led to the bedlam of the main casino. About a week ago, a banner hanged there that read "Thank You For Visiting the World Series of Poker. Don't Forget the Main Event."

Matt Affleck will never forget the 2010 Main Event. And the Main Event should never forget Matt Affleck.

*****

CHIP LEADER OF THE HOUR

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OTHER ELIMINATION OF THE HOUR PART 1

It's official. We will not have a new shortest-named World Champion after Duy Le was eliminated by Adam Levy.

Le, who's name is shorter than Joe Cada's by two letters, moved in with [ah][qd] and was called by Levy with [kd][6d]. In the end Levy didn't need diamonds, just a king on the [kc][4c][jh] flop. This got teh familiar "ooh" from the crowd. Both players have cheering sections and admirably Le's was made up of about five young girls jumping up and down. The turn card came [5h] and the river [5d] ending Le's tournament right there.

Le, who'd been a short stack for a while, high-fived a friend before walking into said five girls for some words of consolation. He looked happy. He's $500,165 ricer, finishing in 13th place.

*****
OTHER ELIMINATION OF THE HOUR PART 2

Adam Levy just has followed Duc Le to the rail. After fighting the short-stack fight, he shoved from under-the-gun with [ks][qh] only for Jonathan Duhamel to wake up with [ad][ac]. Levy's rail came to life but Levy wasn't fooled. He knew this was it and the odds were stacked against him. The [th][6c][3h] flop was no good, neither the [kc] on the turn. He needed another on the river but instead got a [2c].

Levy looked disappointed, a reassuring sign that the World Series means much more than the money that has made its reputation. For Duhamel though it's more wood for the fire. He's still the chip leader by some way, with 48 million.

*****

OUT OF CONTEXT QUOTE OF THE HOUR

"I s*** you not, someone just asked me if this moustache was mine."

*****

HOME MADE SIGNS OF THE HOUR

Jeff Madsen and friend rushing into the Amazon Room to hold up homemade signs expressing their support for Adam Levy, including one that reads "Adam's on the Eve of Something Special" and "Levy won't break."

*****

SIGHT OF THE HOUR

William Thorson and Johnny Lodden walking together down the hallway with big, stuffed envelopes. We don't have to guess what was inside, as they were coming from the payout office.

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BAD TIME FOR A CONVERSATION OF THE HOUR

Just a few minutes ago as a railbird asked the player at the urinal how many players were left in the Main Event. The man next to him (who had just sprinted into the men's room) was Michael Mizrachi, taking a much-needed break when there was no tournament break.

*****

TOO MUCH INFORMATION OF THE HOUR

"I need to go tinkle first." --Girl yelling across the Amazon Room to a friend.

Stop press:: Everything below is relevant, but dated. As we hit the publish button, Matt Affleck called all-in with aces against Jonathan Duhamel's jacks. Affleck was ahead, but Duhamel had an up and down straight draw to go with his two jack outs. With one card to come, Affleck had to dodge a king, eight, or jack. An eight fell and Affleck was crushed. We'll have a full post on the subject in a bit. For now, here's what we'd written just before that hand.

*****

Matt Affleck knows he has something to prove. A chip leader last year with 130 players left, the University of Washington finance graduate ended up busting in 80th.

With that monkey still on his back, Affleck came back here this year and has put on a performance worthy of his reputation.

Today, Affleck is sitting on the feature table under the TV lights. He's wearing his Mariners jersey with pride and looking good with a top 5 chip stack and five players remaining.

A little bit earlier today, our video team caught up with Affleck for a chat. Here's what he had to say.

*****
TOURNAMENT HOUSEKEEPING OF THE HOUR

Number of players remaining: 15
Number of players who will remain at the end of the night: 9
Number of hours from now we expect it to take to reach the November Nine: 5.5
Average stack: 14,638,000
Blinds: 120,000 / 240,000 (30,000)

*****

STATS OF THE HOUR

Estimated number of prospective railbirds running to feature table area after dinner break: 200
Actual number of prospective railbirds successful in their attempt to get a seat beside feature table: 0

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INNOVATION OF THE HOUR

Wristbands for railbirds.

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EXPLANATION OF THE HOUR

"All you poker fans, thank you for coming, but there has been a safety issue and we are sure you understand."

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DEPTH, IN PEOPLE, OF SPECTATORS AT SECONDARY FEATURE TABLE OF THE HOUR

Eight. They're eight deep at the rail.

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THANKS OF THE HOUR

To the chefs, servers and especially the women who stand and smile at Bonita Michoacan, Official Mexican Restaurant of PokerStars Blog. (And Humberto on the keyboards.)

*****

OVERHEARD PHONE CONVERSATION

"He's got a red eye and got hit in round two, but he's fine. He's good to go." - woman on phone talking about, we assume, the MMA fights going on in the Pavilion room.

*****

STATISTIC OF THE HOUR

Level of interest out of ten a man in the shop had in talking to me when he thought I was playing the Main Event: 9
Level of interest out of ten the same man in the shop had in talking to me when he discovered I was only part of the media: 3

*****

RIO EMPLOYEE OF THE HOUR (AGAIN)

Bill the shoe shine guy who, after a week of looking for one of our bloggers, spotted him and returned the hat he'd left behind a week ago.

Four months from now, the names of the 17 players currently sitting about 10 yards from where I type will be known across the globe. The ESPN television broadcast will have made them all celebrities, and for a "lucky" nine of them, we'll probably also find out details of their lives, shoe size, sports team, high school indiscretions, former girlfriends, favourite colour and opinions on Atomic Fireballs (the official candy of PokerStars Blog).

Right now, however, no one in the Amazon Room really knows all that much about many of these folk. We've all stared at them for hours on end, but we've hardly exchanged more than two words with them. The last thing a player wants when they're playing for six or seven figures is a reporter badgering them for their grandmother's name and news of "what they'd do with the money if they won."

Here's what Mad Harper has dredged up about three PokerStars players on the brink of history, including our current World Series chip leader.

Jonathan Duhamel, 22, Boucherville, Quebec, Canada

Former finance student Jonathan Duhamel first came to international attention when he came close to making the final at the Season 5 PokerStars European Poker Tour event in Prague, Czech Republic. Up against players such as Andrew Chen, Nasr El Nasr, and EPT Barcelona champion Sebastian Ruthenberg, he made tenth place for €42,800. He has also competed at the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo two years ago and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas for the last two years.

Duhamel first came to attention at this year's Main Event when he was pictured on PokerStars Blog wearing at least ten PokerStars.net logos on his WSOP hoodie. Duhamel is one of at least 60 players who have won a seat to next year's PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas after cashing in the WSOP Main Event while wearing PokerStars branding.

Duhamel was enjoying success at the World Series even before this year's Main Event began, finishing 15th in a $2,500 NLHE tourney for $37,276 and 50th in a $1,500 NLHE Six-Max event for $5,724. Duhamel comes from the Montreal suburb of Boucherville.

Matt Affleck, 23, Seattle, Washington, USA

This is not the first time that Matt Affleck has come close to WSOP glory. Last year he was chip leader when the Main Event was down to just 130-odd players but ended up busting in 80th place for $68,979.

Affleck, who graduated in finance from the University of Washington, took up poker playing with friends in high school. Affleck's best result to date was third place in the 2009 California State Poker Championship in May last year for $124,306. Earlier this summer, he min-cashed for $4,782 in the WSOP $2,500 NLHE Six-Max event.

Affleck has won seats to PokerStars tournaments all over the world including APPT Macau , LAPT Punta del Este in Uruguay and EPT London. One of his best live results came after he qualified on PokerStars for EPT Deauville in France. He didn't cash in the Main Event but managed a second place finish in the €500 side event for €36,900.

Brandon Steven, 36, Wichita, Kansas, USA

Brandon Steven - who celebrates his 37th birthday next Saturday - is one of the few amateur players among these final players. Together with brother Rodney, he runs a chain of health clubs and car dealerships in Wichita. The pair are also keen fundraisers - their own foundation The Genesis Foundation for Fitness & Tennis (GFFT) provides physical training funding for disadvantaged young people and up-and-coming athletes. They also run an annual charity poker tournament raising more than $100,000 a year. Steven was the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Man of the Year in 2007 after breaking their national fund-raising record. He and his wife Karen, 36, have five children aged one through nine-years-old. All the kids are here at the Rio, being cared for by their nanny while their mum rails dad.

Before this year's Main Event, Steven's best live result to date was 30th in a 2007 $1,500 NLHE event for $17,577.

*****

JOE GIRON'S PHOTO GALLERY

Here are a couple of other faces to watch:

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ELIMINATION OF THE HOUR

David Baker is out. Jonathan Duhamel had opened for 500,000 in middle position and was called by Matt Affleck and then Baker in the big blind. The [qs][2s][4c] flop was checked by Baker but Duhamel bet again, making it 1,175,000 to go. Affleck got out of the way but Baker moved all-in for around 5 million chips.

Duhamel snap called with [kd][kh] and was up against Baker's [js][7s] flush draw. With the television pause complete the turn card [qh] paired the board, making things harder for Baker. The River was the [4h]. No good for Baker whose Main Event comes to an end.

Duhamel, who now assumes the chip lead, came around the table to shake Baker's hand, rather than wait for him to pass by on his way to the cash desk, where he'll collect a cheque for $396,967.

*****

QUOTE OF THE HOUR

"I don't know who JC Alvarado is railing, but he's got a vuvuzela with him."

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ACCESSORY OF THE HOUR

JC Alvarado's vuvuzela.

*****

STATISTIC OF THE HOUR

Number of spectators watching the action from a position where only the dealer is in view: 7

*****

OVERHEARD CONVERSATION OF THE HOUR

"Is that Hassan?"
"No, it's not my son."

*****

PRICE CHECK OF THE HOUR

Price to watch MMA fight night in the Pavilion Room of the Rio: Tickets starting at $30
Prie to watch the final two tables of the 2010 WSOP Main Event: Free

*****

UM...WHAT...OF THE HOUR

"Good laydown, Grinder! Sharks don't eat fish! Sharks don't eat fish!" --One of Michael Mizrachi's railbirds

*****

EXPLETIVE OF THE HOUR

"(Expletive deleted)!!!!!!!!" --The Grinder's biggest supporter, storming from tournament area after the aforementioned hand.

PokerStars Dutch qualifier Michiel Sijpken is a private kinda guy, shy of interviews and protective about things that might get him in any sort of trouble. But, we know his birthday and that was all we needed to make a public spectacle of him.

As we told you a few days ago, if Sijpkens had managed to win the WSOP this year, he would've broken Joe Cada's record as youngest Main Event winner.

That's not going to happen now. Although he'd just managed to double up with [4c][4d] versus [ac][qh] (he flopped a set), he quickly had his jacks snapped off by John Racener's king-queen, all-in pre-flop. Racener flopped a queen and that was all she wrote for the kid from Holland.

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OVERHEARD IN THE HALLWAY CONVERSATION OF THE HOUR

Guy 1: "Tomorrow we're going to jump from 11,000 feet."
Guy 2: "I'm not doing anything tomorrow. I'm broke."

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DRINK OF THE HOUR

The blue one brought into the Amazon Room by one spectator, in a glass the size of a lobster tank.

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IN CONTEXT QUOTE OF THE HOUR

"At this stage I always think about one player out per hour." - Realistic member of the media.

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SELECTED CHIP COUNTS OF THE HOUR

Jonathan Duhamel, PokerStars Player, 22,400,000
Matt Affleck, PokerStars Sponsored Player, 16,500,000
Jason Senti, PokerStars Sponsored Player, 14,500,000
Duy Le, PokerStars Sponsored Player, 11,100,000
Brandon Steven, PokerStars Sponsored Player, 7,465,000
David Baker, PokerStars Sponsored Player, 4,600,000

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REDRAW OF THE HOUR

With 18 players remaining after the elimination of our young Dutch hero Michiel Sijpkens, we are down to two tables. There's the main feature table, then the secondary feature table, while the third-ery featured table is no more.

Here are the new line ups:

Feature table:

Seat 1: Soi Nguyen
Seat 2: Michael Mizrachi
Seat 3: Hasan Habib
Seat 4: Scott Clements
Seat 5: John Racener
Seat 6: Matthew Jarvis
Seat 7: Jason Senti
Seat 8: Brandon Steven
Seat 9: Benjamin Statz

Secondary feature table:

Seat 1: Adam Levy
Seat 2: Jonathan Duhamel
Seat 3: Matt Affleck
Seat 4: John Dolan
Seat 5: Duy Le
Seat 6: Pascal LeFrancois
Seat 7: David Baker
Seat 8: Joseph Cheong
Seat 9: Fillipo Candio

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INVITATION TO WHOOP OF THE HOUR

Jack Effel on the mic: "We're playing down to the November Nine. It's gonna happen tonight!"

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SECURITY GUARD TONY'S NIGHTMARE OF THE HOUR

A double stroller, containing two children, being pushed into the Amazon Room by a deaf father. "Wait! Wait! Stop!" No response. "You can't go in there!" No response. Etc, etc.

As play started today the running theme was the domination of the Europeans. Scanning the three tables the landscape was dotted with some of the best from the other side of the Atlantic, names like Johnny Lodden, Mads Wissing, William Thorson and Redmond Lee.

Then something bad happened. First Lodden was brushed aside, then Mads Wissing. Before long Thorson was on the rail followed there by the last Englishman Redmond Lee. Had the tide suddenly turned?

Well no, and it's all down to Filippi Candio. The Italian has put a serious dent in Joseph Cheong's day. Cheong may have started the day as the chip leader but now sits nursing a bad head.

Candio, who was fifth in chips himself before the start of the hand, had raised pre-flop which Cheong then re-raised before the Italian decided to call. The flop came [6c][6h][5c]. Cheong then made it 1.5 million to play, waiting as Candio tanked for while. Decision made Candio announced raise, making it 4.4 million, and throwing the tension back at Cheong. He pushed, making it a call for his World Series life for Candio who still had a more than 12 million left behind. He called. A pot worth 25 million was about to make someone very happy.

Filippi Candio can't believe it

Candio showed his [7s][5s] for two pairs and a back door draw, but Cheong flipped over [ac][as]. Those watching inched closer as the table disappeared behind staff and cameras. Candio himself disappeared, out of his seat and seeking refuge from somewhere off stage. For his part Cheong just waited in his seat for something he had no power over. The turn card [8s] did him no harm but the [4c] on the river made Candio his straight.

Filippi Candio hugs a friend on the rail after making his straight

Candio erupted, leaping up and down and into the arms of a friend on the rail. He'd just won himself the chip lead ten players from the final table. Cheong didn't move from his seat, he just counted out the chips. The ten million he has left is still ample, but right now must seem like a pittance.

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PERSPECTIVE ALTERING TOURNAMENT HOUSEKEEPING OF THE HOUR

We are now entering level 32 where blinds are 100,000-200,000. The ante now will be 30,000, which is the same size as a starting stack. Yep, every single hand, the players are tossing as much into the pot as all of the 7,319 hardy souls paid $10,000 for a little more than a week ago.

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HAPPY SWEDE QUOTE OF THE HOUR

William Thorson: "Last time it took me two years to get over it. This time it took about two minutes."

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BUTCHERING OF A GEORGE BEST QUOTE INTO A T-SHIRT SLOGAN OF THE HOUR

"I spent most of my money on boats, babes and beers. The rest I wasted."

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ALTERNATIVE ENTERTAINMENT OPTION OF THE HOUR

The slots tournament now under way on the Rio casino floor.

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ELIMINATION OF THE HOUR

Redmond Lee, came into today as one of the shorter stacks in the field. Midway through the last hour, Lee, a PokerStars sponsored player from the UK. Lee's push with pocket fours was ill-timed against a pair of tens. Lee busted in 21st place.

Redmond Lee

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TWEET OF THE HOUR

Jason Mercier: Amazing that out of the 20 players left in the main event... I knew 9 of them personally before the tournament

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DOUBLE UP OF THE HOUR

You can't ask for much a much better spot of you're Matt Affleck. All in with aces versus Matt Jarvis' [ah][kc], Affleck flopped top set, and left Jarvis with only runn-erunner outs to the flush. The clubs didn't come and Affleck scored a key double.

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ILLICIT REQUEST OF THE HOUR

"Who has Adderall? Anyone on the rail? Adderall? I need two!" --Railbird who is apparently sleepy

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CONSOLATION OF THE HOUR

"That's alright. Ain't nothing but a chicken wing." --Duy Le supporter on the rail

William Thorson is out in 22nd place - and there was something very sad about seeing him go. While the Team PokerStars Pro waited for his chips to be counted, taken from him and handed to his conqueror, there was a sense that the crowd didn't realise what they had just lost - a European poker heavyweight on a mission to end his own personal nightmare.

Instead, one of poker's most natural talents was dispatched by the same hand that had put an end to his Main Event dream in 2006.

Into level 31, Thorson looked down at [jd][td] and moved all-in for 5 million behind John Dolan's opening bet of 375,000 and calls from John Racener and Brandon Steven. While Dolan and Steven stepped aside Racener had found kings and was happy to call.

The flop of [2h][6d][ad] gave Thorson hope for a rally, and got the attention of those on the rail looking for commitment-free drama. But the [2s] followed by a [5c] on the river meant that for a second time Thorson's deep run was halted by kings.

Thorson graciously shook hands with those at his table, including Michael Mizrachi, who for the large part was the main attraction for the packed rail and who may have realised a big threat to his own hopes had been dealt with.

Thorson later admitted that he'd almost put Racener on kings or aces but had taken the decision to push, thinking anything less would force Racener to fold.

But as Thorson pointed out earlier in the Main Event, what stung about 2006 was his belief that he'd made a mistake, re-raising with jacks. While Jamie Gold's kings sent Thorson into a long period of painful reflection, this time there's no such angst.

A few regrets perhaps, on both sides of the table. Till next time.

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HOW THIS POST WOULD HAVE LOOKED OF THE HOUR

Thorson's elimination came just as PokerStars Blog's collective finger was about to press publish on another post. For very obvious reasons, we held the front page on that post to include the details of Thorson's bust. If we hadn't, this is what you would have seen:

"They tend to come in bunches," said a sage on media row. He might have been talking about drunk, whooping meat-heads in Ed Hardy shirts, or even Atomic Fireball shivers. But he was actually referring to eliminations from the World Series of Poker Main Event. And he was right.

After Johnny Lodden became the first to hit the rail this afternoon, there was a brief hiatus in the slaughter. But in short order we then lost Matthew Bucaric (to Filippo Candio's turned flush), Mads Wissing (to William Thorson's turned two pair) and Ronnie Bardah (ace-king into Candido's aces).

Then, on the final hand before the break, Johnathan Duhamel won a massive pot from Robert Pisano that left them at either end of the chip-count leaderboard. Here it is in patented "Of the Hour" format:

CRIPPLING TURN OF THE HOUR

Jonathan Duhamel check-called a flop bet from Robert Pisano on [2d][5c][3c] board. When the turn came [ac], Duhamel bet out around 1.8 million. Pisano shoved on him, and Duhamel snap-called with [4s][5s], the turned straight.

Pisano shook his head and turned over [as][kh]. The [6h] on the river changed nothing and Duhamel took nearly every chip Pisano had. Duhamel took the whole of the next 20-minute break after the hand to count/stack all his chips (more than 21 million) and shadow-box around the table.

RETURN TO THE MAIN NARRATIVE OF THE HOUR

That hand took us to the break and although adrenalin kept Duhamel jigging throughout, Pisano slouched off for a smoke and a reassessment. He returned to a stack of only 320,000 (not even two big blinds) and an expression of scarcely-concealed woe. He was going to need to mount the biggest comeback story of them all to make the November Nine.

He didn't manage it.

In the small blind on the first hand back, Pisano was all in blind. He picked up four callers, including Pascal LeFrancois to his immediate left. The flop came [qh][10s][2c], which everyone checked, and Pisano must have feared the worst when LeFrancois bet 180,000 on the [2s] turn. That left them heads up.

Pisano checked his hand for the first time - and it could have been worse. His [js][9d] was at least alive, even though it was behind LeFrancois's [qs][8c]. "King ball!" bellowed Pisano's rail. "Put a king out there!"

The dealer tried his best, but the [jd] was as good as a blank. Pisano drifted into the night as the announcer's "Congratulations to our 23rd placed finisher" never sounded so hollow. Pisano wins $317,161.

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MEMORY OF THE HOUR

When we covered the last day of action in last year's WSOP, we were at 120,000-240,000 (30,000) blinds and antes, Right now, we're a couple of levels away from that at 80,000-160,000 (20,000)

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OUT OF CONTEXT QUOTE OF THE HOUR

"I think you have me me confused with a different kind of Englishman."

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RAILBIRD OF THE HOUR

One-time tournament chip leader James Carroll returns to follow the progress of Adam Levy.

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NEVER, EVER AGAIN MOMENT OF THE HOUR

Purchase of $8.50 Supreme four-bite Pizza Hut personal pan pizza by PokerStars blogger Brad Willis

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FIREBALL WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS OF THE HOUR

Dry mouth. Despondent. Less chatty.

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FROM THE VAULT OUT OF CONTEXT QUOTE OF THE HOUR

"I didn't know it was your dog." --July, 2009