Day 5 of the 2022 Wynn Millions Main Event is about to get underway with only 16 players remaining. The fifth day of the $10,000-buy-in tournament kicks off at noon local time and will play down to a final table.
Isaac Kempton had a hot Day 4 that left him with the chip lead with a stack of 5,615,000, ahead of fellow big stacks Ian Matakis (5,030,000), Michael Stembera (4,225,000) and Tony Sinishtaj (4,065,000).
Other notables who are returning for Day 5 action include 2021 GPI Breakout Player nominee Vanessa Kade and five-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Shaun Deeb, who respectively sit with 3,575,000 and 2,495,000.
Defending champion Andrew Moreno won't be in the field as his deep run was cut short on Day 4 when he got his kings cracked to go out in 23rd place.
Like Day 2, 3 and 4, Day 5 will play for 90-minute levels with a 10-minute break at the end of each level.
The eventual winner of the Wynn Millions Main Event, which attracted 1,075 runners to generate $10,105,000 in prize money, will earn the lion's share of that for a seven-figure score worth $1,655,952.
Stay tuned as the PokerNews live reporting team is ready to bring you updates of the Day 5 action.
Debbie Lee opened to 80,000 in early position and Alex Livingston three-bet from the cutoff. Shankar Pillai in the big blind then four-bet shoved a stack of around 560,000 and Lee five-bet jammed for about 2,045,000. Livingston called with both players covered.
Shankar Pillai:
Debbie Lee:
Alex Livingston:
Livingston's aces were still ahead after the flop of and the runout didn't change things to send two players out in one of the first hands of the day.
Pillai had the shorter stack and therefore finished in 16th place for $94,272, while Lee earned a 15th-place finish and a pay jump to $108,602.
Michael Stembera opened to 105,000 in the cutoff and Thomas Boivin moved all-in from the button for 700,000. Shaun Deeb then re-shoved a slightly bigger stack from the big blind and Stembera folded.
Thomas Boivin:
Shaun Deeb:
Boivin was at risk but had Deeb pipped and maintained the best hand for a double-up as the board ran out to leave Deeb with crumbs.
The very next hand, Deeb got all-in from the small blind for about 250,000 and Sylvain Loosli called.
Shaun Deeb:
Sylvain Loosli:
The flop came to give Loosli the lead with a pair of nines, though Deeb had a straight draw. The on the turn didn't change things but the on the river gave Deeb the straight to keep him alive.
Sean Perry opened to 100,000 from middle position, Dan "The Man" Moran called the cutoff, and Tony Tran three-bet to 370,000 on the button. Perry folded and Moran called.
The dealer spread the flop and Moran checked. Tran bet 350,000 and Moran thought about it before moving all in for 835,000. Tran snap-called.
Daniel Moran:
Tony Tran:
The and completed the board to keep Tran in front, ending Moran's deep run in 14th place, good for $108,602.
Shaun Deeb was under the gun and opened to around 400,000 with just 10,000 behind. Sylvain Loosli re-shoved a stack of around 1,300,000 as the player next to act.
The action folded to Alex Livingston in the big blind, who called with both players covered. Deeb also called with his last 10,000.
Shaun Deeb:
Sylvain Loosli:
Alex Livingston:
The flop of left Livingston ahead with nines, and the board finished out to score him another double-knockout today and send Deeb and Loosli to the rail.
Deeb had the smaller stack and took the 12th place finish for $125,326, while Loosli took 11th and earned a pay jump to $145,755.
Thomas Boivin opened to 325,000 to leave himself with less than that behind. The action folded around the Vanessa Kade in the big blind.
"You look very pretty today," Boivin said with a cheeky grin as Kade peeled her cards.
"Awe, thank you — Wait, you're saying that because it's my turn to act!" Kade said. "Now I feel like I have to raise."
Kade raised to put Boivin all-in and he called off for his tournament life.
Thomas Boivin:
Vanessa Kade:
The flop came to give Kade the lead with a pair of aces but to give Boivin hope with a pair of nines. The board finished out to give the pot to Kade and to send Boivin out in 10th place for $145,755.
Boivin's elimination marks the end of Day 5. Stay tuned for a full recap of the day's events.
The penultimate day of the 2022 Wynn Millions Main Event wrapped up on Thursday after three hours of play, and in a tournament that attracted a total of 1,075 runners, who generated a $10,105,000 prize pool, only nine players remain in contention for the $1,655,952 first-place prize.
Vanessa Kade bagged the chip lead with a stack of 10,355,000 at the end of Day 5, while Alex Livingston (9,000,000) isn’t far behind. Tony Tran (6,145,000) rounds out the top three.
2022 Wynn Millions Final Table
SEAT
PLAYER
COUNTRY
CHIP COUNT
BIG BLINDS
1
Tony Tran
United States
6,145,000
102
2
Tony Sinishtaj
United States
4,470,000
75
3
Vanessa Kade
Canada
10,355,000
173
4
Alex Livingston
Canada
9,000,000
150
5
Neng Lee
United States
300,000
5
6
Isaac Kempton
United States
4,345,000
72
7
Roland Shen
United States
2,875,000
48
8
Michael Stembera
United States
3,835,000
64
9
Sean Perry
United States
1,700,000
28
Tony Sinishtaj (4,470,000), Isaac Kempton (4,345,000), and Michael Stembera (3,835,000) will begin Friday's final day in the middle of the pack. Kempton started Day 5 as chip leader and lost some chips overall, but will still have a healthy stack going into the final day.
The bottom three stacks were bagged by Roland Shen (2,875,000), Sean Perry (1,700,000), and Neng Lee (300,000), who will begin the final table as the clear short stack with five big blinds, while the average stack heading into the finale is just under 80 big blinds.
The day began with 16 players, and moved swiftly with a double knockout to eliminate Shankar Pillai (16th - $94,272) and Debbie Lee (15th - $108,602). Livingston had picked up aces and held against his opponent’s inferior pocket pairs to soar up the leaderboard.
United Kingdom’s Daniel Moran (14th - $108,602) was next to make his way to the payout desk after running into Tran’s rockets, and Ian Matakis (13th - $125,326) made his exit after calling on each street with his top pair, while Kade triple-barreled and rivered a straight.
Another double knockout occurred near the end of the day as Shaun Deeb (12th - $125,326) and France’s Sylvain Loosli (11th - $145,755) fell short of the final table, with Livingston again being on the winning side of it with his pocket nines.
Belgian Thomas Boivin (10th - $145,755) was the chip leader at the end of Day 3 and just missed out on the final table, after getting his short stack in with king-nine against Kade’s ace-jack and failing to improve to the winning hand.
The final day will begin with 86:00 remaining in Level 25 with blinds at 30,000/60,000/60,000, and although the nine contenders already have $171,280 locked up, all eyes will be on the $1,655,952 first-place prize and the glamorous Wynn Millions trophy.
Stay tuned as the PokerNews live reporting team will be back tomorrow to bring you updates of the final table action.