Sunday, September 26, 2010 9:07 PM Local Time
It's a result that we here at the Empire had to wait an unscheduled extra three days for - but Mr. Gustav Hansen of Denmark has been waiting for it for a lot longer than that.
Hansen has been a regular at the WSOP in Las Vegas since 1996 when he and Huck Seed were the last two players to cough up their $10,000 for a Main Event seat. Seed went on to win it that year, and while Hansen has enjoyed some excellent results in the intervening years (three WPT titles plus an invitational is nothing to sneer at), he has never managed to get his hands on a coveted bracelet. Until now.
Hansen admitted that winning a bracelet was, "For sure a monkey off my back," but that he was somewhat surprised that it had come in a heads-up event. He conceded that he'd got rather lucky in his earlier round match against Phil Ivey, but beyond that was very happy with how he'd played, and with good reason - he almost had it won back on Day 3, before Jim Collopy made an extraordinary comeback to make it one-all.
Nevertheless, in a high-octane match that saw Collopy take an early lead before doubling Hansen back up in a crazy cooler of a hand - Collopy's slow-played flopped trips against Hansen's rivered full house - it was Hansen who came out on top. As he hobbles out into Leicester Square on his broken leg, Hansen will surely sleep well tonight, knowing that he has finally achieved the Holy Grail of poker - a bracelet.
From this WSOPE Heads-Up odyssey, it's over and out.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 8:50 PM Local Time
Gus Hansen opened for 91,000 on the button and Jim Collopy pushed for around 1.2 million.
Gus Hansen said many things while he was contemplating what to do. Among them were, "I'm getting tired," and then a moment later, "This is probably a bit light, but I call."
On their backs.
Collopy:
Hansen:
Board:
Collopy stood with his hands behind his back, his head slightly lowered, looking for all the world like a captain going down with his ship. No kings came in for him, nor did his turned flush draw materialise on the river. The best hand held up, and it was all over.
Still, plenty of time for Mr. Collopy - he's only 21, and we suspect we'll see him at another final table pretty soon.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 8:35 PM Local Time
After a couple hands' worth of various walks and preflop raises which resulted in nothing major at all, Gus Hansen opened for 91,000 and Jim Collopy announced all in from the big blind. There was a brief moment of tense inaction from Hansen - but then he folded, and we continue.
Hansen's at around 2.6 million now, to Collopy's 1.2 million.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 8:14 PM Local Time
...For five minutes, anyway. Back soon.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 8:14 PM Local Time
Gus Hansen opened for 66,000 on the button - a rare non-limp - and Jim Collopy called in the big blind. Collopy checked and Hansen bet 86,000 - but folded when Collopy raised it up to 202,000.
The stacks remain at roughly Hansen 2.4 million to Collopy's 1.4 million.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 8:04 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy's stack has made a small upwards movement to around 1.4 million now after he raised to 75,000 from the button and got a call from Gus Hansen to see a flop. Hansen checked before very quickly calling Collopy's 78,000; the caginess however resumed as both players checked down the turn and river. Hansen turned over for a pair of deuces, but Collopy's was good enough to win him the pot.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:57 PM Local Time
Just as we wrote that Jim Collopy hadn't limped on the button at all yet, he went and limped on the button!
Indeed the play seems to have got altogether less aggressive in the last half hour or so, and we now appear to have entered the small-ball period of the tournament. With the blinds going up regularly, though, we will be seeing some more of that good action pretty soon...
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:51 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy has raised his button almost every time - we don't recall him limping at all, and he's only given Hansen a walk once or twice.
His chosen raise amount this time was 75,000 and Hansen called to see a flop. He checked, Collopy bet 78,000 and Hansen called.
They both checked the turn and saw a river. This time Hansen bet out 206,000, and Collopy gave it up.
We're actually rather sad that the TV crew decided not to film this one in a serious manner, as it would have been most interesting to watch this one back with the hole card cams. As it is, many of these hands will remain a mystery to all but Collopy and Hansen.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:44 PM Local Time
...if you want to win a small pot, that is.
Gus Hansen seems to be a big fan of limping on the button, but this time he raised to 66,000. Jim Collopy called and they saw some community cards.
They both checked the flop and Collopy checked the turn as well before calling an 81,000 bet. A third check from Collopy on the river was followed this time by a second check from Hansen who quickly mucked to Collopy's .
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:34 PM Local Time
We haven't seen anything particularly life-changing since that last biggie, but most of the small pots we have seen have gone Jim Collopy's way to put him back up to around 1.6 million.
Collopy picked up a tiny, mostly limped and checked pot with just on a board, and then another even smaller one when he showed a ten on an board.
The hand after that, Hansen and Collopy limped and checked their way to the turn of a at which point a small quantity of chips went in - we regret that we missed the action because at this point someone switched off the flop cam (the TV people seem to have got all the footage they needed and quit this tournament) and we had to run into the tournament area to see what the cards were. It was not a big bet, though, and as soon as Collopy had bet out 78,000 on the river, Hansen folded anyway.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:27 PM Local Time
Gus Hansen has taken 463,000 off Jim Collopy after five-betting him pre-flop. Hansen limped (as he does 90% of the time) to face a raise to 82,000 from Collopy. His response was to bump it up to 221,000 but Collopy put it a four-bet to 463,000. Collopy let his hand go though when Hansen made it 1,021,000.
The very next hand Collopy raised from the button but folded to a Hansen three-bet.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:20 PM Local Time
Wow, we're only two hours in and we've already seen both players take and then lose big chip leads. And this latest pot has put them almost exactly back to even.
Jim Collopy raised from the button to 57,000, which Gus Hansen called. Hansen check-called another 63,000 on the flop, but check-folded to a bet of around 160,000 from Collopy on the turn.
They're at roughly 1.9 million apiece.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:17 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy scooped a pot to moved within a 100k of Gus Hansen. He raised to 57,000 from the button and Hansen called to see a flop. Hansen check-called a 63,000 bet before both players checked the turn. The river fell and Hansen led for 106,000. Call.
Hansen tabled but lost out to Collopy's .
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:14 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy opened for 70,000 and Gus Hansen flat-called before checking the flop. Collopy bet 63,000, but was met with a check-raise to 141,000 from Hansen. Back to Collopy - who now made it 299,000 to go.
After just the shortest of pauses, Hansen folded and the pot went to Collopy.
Collopy - 1.6 million
Hansen - 2.2 million
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:09 PM Local Time
Gus Hansen limped from the button and both players checked the flop after Jim Collopy checked his option. Then Hansen led for 30,000 and 70,000 on turn and river. The final board read and Hansen revealed for a straight and the pot as Collopy mucked.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:06 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy was all-in but managed to take down the pot uncontested. He raised to 47,000 from the but only to face a re-raise to 147,000 from Gus Hansen. His response was to position his two hands behind all his chips and push forward in an all-in maneuver. Hansen checked his cards once more and folded.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 7:03 PM Local Time
The short break seems to have refocussed Jim Collopy after that nasty cooler a few minutes back, and he's come back to the table fighting.
Just now he raised from the button and Gus Hansen called to see a flop. Hansen checked, and Collopy took it down with a continuation bet. Just a small pot, but they all count when you're at a 2:1 chip disadvantage.
Collopy may be the shorter stack now, but he has proved over the course of this tournament that he is a master of recovery - if you recall, he came back from extreme short stackage in his semi-final match against Ram Vaswani, and then again in Round 2 of the final. The blinds are still pretty small as well, and this match could very definitely go either way.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 6:49 PM Local Time
A couple minutes for our final two to reflect on their strategy, or throw up in the toilets, depending.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 6:49 PM Local Time
There is only one word for this hand - as the online kids say, "SICK".
Gus Hansen limped in on the button - no change there - and Jim Collopy raised out of the big blind - no change there either.
The flop came down and Collopy bet out 78,000. Hansen called, and they saw a turn.
Turn:
This time Collopy checked. Hansen thought about it for a while before betting 128,000. Collopy just smooth called. Intriguing.
River:
Collopy checked again, and the action was on Hansen. He thought about it for a while - and thought - and thought some more - and then drank a whole bottle of water - and thought about it again - and then announced all in.
An instacall from Collopy, followed by a sound like he'd been punched in the stomach.
Collopy: for trips
Hansen: for a rivered full house
Hansen went from the short stack to the big chip leader in one fell swoop. The current counts are Hansen 2.54 million, Collopy 1.3 million.
Sunday, September 26, 2010 6:35 PM Local Time
Jim Collopy raised to 50,000 from the button and Gus Hansen called to see a flop where both players checked. The turn came and Hansen led for 62,000. Collopy called and both players checked the river. Hansen tabled and took the pot as Collopy mucked.