Benjamin Palmer Eliminated In 10th Place ($16,511)
Juha Vilkki and Benjamin Palmer got all of the chips into the middle before the flop and a seat at tomorrow's final table was on the line.
Showdown:
Vilkki:
Palmer:
With both players holding pocket aces, the young Finn began smiling devilishly and held up his , saying "I'm playing this one, this is my card." The dealer burned and turned, spreading a flop of across the felt. The flop actually changed little and both Vilkki and Palmer were still playing their pair of aces, although now Vilkki's chosen six provided additional outs to take the pot.
The turn card came and changed nothing. Vilkki was still holding his six up in the air, as if anticipating what was to come next.
River:
Roland Israelashvili practically shot out of his chair when the final six hit the board and asked Vilkki in amazement, "How do you know... how can you know this?"
The Finnish online regular who has been playing since he was younger than 16 years of age simply shrugged his shoulders in response, still flashing that devilish grin as the pot was shipped his way. He had just hit the river to claim the entire pot, stamping his ticket to the final table with flair. Juha Vilkki will enter the final table arena as the massive chip leader after this improbable win, holding a stack of 1,235,000, nearly double that of any other player.
Palmer was understandably devastated by the loss but accepted defeat graciously, and he will take home $16,511 for his deep run in this event.