Hellmuth and Brunson Fall Short

Hellmuth and Brunson Fall Short

Friday, 4 July 2014

Phil Hellmuth's dream of claiming another WSOP bracelet were dashed earlier today after he fell short in Event #61 ($10,000 Seven Card Stud).

The all-time record bracelet winner had high hopes at the start of play but as the action developed he was unable to parlay his 404,000 chip starting stack into anything significant.

Indeed, while Todd Brunson maintained his dominance at the top of the chip chart, Hellmuth's dreams slowly ebbed away throughout the session.

Although there were some positives for Hellmuth to draw upon - he eliminated Henry Orenstein and outlasted Henrik Hecklen - it was the draws of Brunson that would eventually be his undoing.

After shooting for a full house with X X / Jc 7s 4h 7d / Jh, the veteran pro was left crippled after Brunson revealed a completed full house. With that Hellmuth was forced to move on the next hand and finally fell when his pair of fives failed to better James Obst's pair of tens.

With the headline act now watching from the rail it was Brunson who looked in control but as the field thinned he faced a fresh challenge in the form of Matt Grapenthien.

Despite not having the poker heritage Brunson has, the Chicago native put in an impressive performance to take the lead going into heads-up play. Despite being pegged back by Brunson, Grapenthien was able to clinch his first title after a back-and-forth final battle.

The final hand saw Brunson miss his straight and finish with a pair of fives, which was enough to best the two eights held by Grapenthien. With that Brunson was forced to settle for second place and $165,891 while Grapenthien banked $268,473.

$10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship Final Result

1. Matt Grapenthien - $268,473
2. Todd Brunson - $165,891
3. James Obst - $103,895
4. Ben Yu - $75,227
5. Steve Landfish - $58,793
6. Phil Hellmuth - $46,885
7. Henrik Hecklen - $38,073
8. Henry Orenstein - $31,419
Image courtesy of WSOP.com.



Tags: WSOP 2014, Matt Grapenthien, Phil Hellmuth, Todd Brunson