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The second stop of the 2025 Pure Poker Tour kicks off on May 15 at Pure Casino Yellowstone, with live coverage by Lyle Bateman throughout the series.
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John Donnelly Perseveres to Take Down Event #1: $340 Seniors ($9,850)
PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Winner John Donnelly After over 13 hours of play, John Donnelly has battled through the 127 player field to best the rest. For his efforts he took home the lions share of $9,850 from the $36,195 prize pool. Donnelly had been on the radar throughout the day playing cautiously but catching big hands and momentum.
This continued throughout the final table as he took the chip lead from Francis Fan, and sent him home in third place. Heads up play was short lived as Donnelly went into into it with a 2:1 chip lead. His aggression combined with run good allowed him to end the tournament shortly after.
Position Player Prize 1st John Donnelly $9,850 2nd Murray Duval $6,790 3rd Francis Fan $4,415 4th Bill Thomson $3,395 5th Tony Haines $2,615 6th Karin Schulenburg $2,070 7th John Venning $1,630 8th Cliff Green $1,290 9th Larry Quon $1,050 -
Murray Duval Eliminated in 2nd Place ($6,790)
Level: 22 (15,000/25,000/25,000) Entries: 2/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Murray Duval Action was caught after the turn came the 8♣7♣10♣4♠, and John Donnelly moved all in. Murray Duval called for less and both players revealed their holdings.
Murray Duval: 7♥8♦
John Donnelly: J♣5♣The completed with the 4♥ to end the tournament.
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Francis Fan Eliminated in 3rd Place ($4,415)
Level: 22 (15,000/25,000/25,000) Entries: 2/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Prior API Senior Winner Francis Fan Francis Fan moved all in from the small blind for 530,000 and John Donnelly made the call from the big blind. Both players revealed their holdings.
Francis Fan: A♠5♥
John Donnelly: A♣J♠The board ran out Q♣4♣7♦8♥K♠ for Fan to hit the rail in the worst of the podium placements.
John Donnelly: 2,200,000
Murray Duval: 975,000
Francis Fan: 0 -
Duvall Doubles
Level: 21 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 3/127 Prizes: $36,195 Murray Duval Action was caught after the turn of J♦8♠K♦4♣, and Murray Duval led out for 60,000. Francis Fan moved all in having Duvall covered and he made the call. Both players revealed their hands.
Murray Duval: Q♣J♥
Francis Fan: Q♥3♥The board completed with the 2♦ for Duvall to double.
Murray Duval: 825,000
Francis Fan: 605,000 -
Bill Thomson Eliminated in 4th Place ($3,395)
Bill Thomson Level: 21 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 3/127 Prizes: $36,195 Murray Duval raised to 60,000 from middle position. Bill Thomson defended his big blind.
The flop came 5♥9♠10♣, and Thomson moved all in. Duval was quick to call and both players revealed their holdings.
Bill Thomson: 5♦7♦
Murray Duval: A♠A♣The board completed with the Q♥2♠ to send Thomson out in 4th place.
Murray Duval: 350,000
Bill Thomson: 0 -
Chip Counts at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Francis Fan 1,140,000 57 Murray Duval 985,000 49 John Donnelly 730,000 37 Bill Thomson 320,000 16 -
Tony Haines Eliminated in 5th Place ($2,615)
Level: 20 (10,000/15,000/15,000) Entries: 4/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Tony Haines Tony Haines moved all in for 174,000, and Francis Fan made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Tony Haines: Q♦J♣
Francis Fan: K♠10♥The board ran out 3♠A♦6♦4♣10♣, to send Fan the pot.
Francis Fan: 1,150,000
Tony Haines: 0 -
Karin Schulenburg Eliminated in 6th Place ($2,070)
Level: 20 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 5/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Karin Schulenburg Karin Schulenburg moved all in and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
Karin Schulenburg: 4♣4♦
Francis Fan: 6♥6♦The board ran out 9♣8♦3♠10♦5♠ for Schulenburg to hit the rail.
Francis Fan: 766,000
Karin Schulenburg: 0 -
John Venning Eliminated in 7th Place ($1,630)
Level: 20 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 6/127 Prizes: $36,195 
John Venning John Venning moved all in for 90,000 and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
John Venning: 6♠6♦
Francis Fan: Q♠Q♥The board ran out A♣7♥A♠4♣K♣ for Fan to take the pot.
Francis Fan: 675,000
John Venning: 0 -
Cliff Green Eliminated in 8th Place ($1,290)
Level: 19 (8,000/16,000/16,000) Entries: 7/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Cliff Green Action was caught after an all in and call occurred between Cliff Green and John Donnelly. Both players revealed their hands.
Cliff Green: K♥10♣
John Donnelly: A♦A♠The board ran out A♣4♦Q♠7♥Q♣ to give Donnelly the pot.
John Donnelly: 877,000
Cliff Green: 0 -
Larry Quon Eliminated in 9th Place ($1,050)
Level: 19 (6,000/12,000/12,000) Entries: 8/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Larry Quon Joe Herlein moved all in for 80,000 from early position. Larry Quon called for his remaining 52,000 from the cutoff. Both players revealed their hands.
Larry Quon: A♠K♥
Joe Herlein: 9♥9♣The board ran out J♥Q♠5♥4♠8♥ to send Quon out as the first player from the final table.
Joe Herlein: 162,000
Larry Quon: 0 -
Final Table Photos
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Joe Herlein Eliminated in 10th Place ($850)
Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 9/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Joe Herlein Joe Herlein moved all in for 23,000 and was called by Cliff Green. The two players revealed their holdings.
Joe Herlein: K♠J♥
Cliff Green: 2♠2♣The board ran out 4♠5♥6♥7♣A♥ for Herlein to be sent home.
Cliff Green: 158,000
Joe Herlein: 0 -
Paul Meyer Eliminated in 11th Place ($780)
Paul Meyer Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 10/127 Prizes: $36,195 Paul Meyer moved all in for 98,000, and Francis Fan snap called. Both players revealed their hands.
Paul Meyer: K♠10♦
Francis Fan: A♠A♦The board ran out 7♦Q♣10♣5♣J♣ to send Meyer to the rail.
Francis Fan: 793,000
Paul Meyer: 0 -
Kim Graham Eliminated in 12th Place ($780)
Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 11/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Kim Graham Kim Graham moved all in for 227,000 and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
Kim Graham: A♣J♠
Francis Fan: A♦Q♠The board ran out 7♥J♦3♣7♦Q♣ to send Graham to the rail.
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All Players In the Money
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Ivan Magulak Eliminated in 13th Place ($680)
Level: 17 (4,000/8,000/8,000) Entries: 12/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Ivan Magulak Ivan Magulak moved all in for 60,000 and was called by Larry Quon. The two players revealed their hands.
Ivan Magulak: K♥Q♦
Larry Quon: J♠J♣The board ran out 5♣4♠5♥A♥9♦ to give Quon the pot.
Larry Quon: 185,000
Ivan Magulak: 0 -
Graham Eliminates Bridger to Burst the Bubble
Level: 16 (3,000/6,000/6,000) Entries: 13/127 Prizes: $36,195 Kim Graham Shortly before the break, Ron Bridger moved all in and was called Kim Graham. Both players revealed their hands.
Ron Bridger: 10♥10♠
Kim Graham: A♦A♥The board ran out 9♦Q♦2♣J♠J♥ for Graham to take the pot.
Kim Graham: 470,000
Ron Bridger: 0 -
Chip Counts at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Murray Duval 716,000 90 Kim Graham 470,000 59 John Donnelly 450,000 56 Karin Schulen 236,000 30 Cliff Green 227,000 28 Ivan Magulak 200,000 25 Francis Fan 149,000 19 Larry Quon 140,000 18 Tony Haines 137,000 17 Paul Meyer 130,000 16 Joe Herlein 110,000 14 Bill Thomson 100,000 13 John Venning 75,000 9 -
Lubyk Hits the Rail; Players on the Stone Bubble
Level: 16 (3,000/6,000/6,000) Entries: 14/127 Prizes: $36,195 Action was caught after the flop of 3♥5♠A♥, and John Donnelly led out for 40,000. Bill Lubyk moved all in and was called by Donnelly both players revealed their holdings.
Bill Lubyk: Q♥9♥
John Donnelly: A♣K♠The board completed with the K♣J♠ to send Lubyk out just shy of the money.
John Donnelly: 441,000
Bill Lubyk: 0 -
Duval and Green Miles Above the Rest
While the tournament is nearing the bubble, Murray Duval and Cliff Green stand atop the field. Duval currently has 587,000 with Green playing 322,000. Jerry Tria recently hit the rail after being left short stacked.
He flopped a set and slow played into Francis Fan’s turned set that left him with under a big blind. Shortly after, he got it all in and was eliminated bringing the current field down to 16 players.
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Tria On the Up and Up
Level: 14 (2,000/4,000/4,000) Entries: 18/127 Prizes: $36,195 
PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Field After be left short handed, Jerry Tria has battled back through multiple double ups. First, he found a double up with 4♣5♣ after making the bottom end of the straight.
Shortly after, he moved all in for 44,000. Francis Fan moved all in over the top for 185,000. The remaining players folded, and both players revealed their hands.
Jerry Tria: A♣7♣
Francis Fan: A♥K♦“Don’t worry I’m gonna hit clubs,” Tria joked as the flop came 5♦K♣9♠. However, his prediction held truth, as the board completed with the 6♣J♣.
Francis Fan: 141,000
Jerry Tria: 113,000 -
Tria on Crumbs as Green Rises the Chip Ranks
Level: 13 (1,500/3,000/3,000) Entries: 21/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Seniors Table 9 Action was caught after the flop came Q♥10♠5♥ with 33,000 in the pot. Cliff Green fired for 20,000 from middle position, and the late position player moved all in for 40,000.
Jerry Tria called, and Green moved all in for 108,500. Tria made the call, and the three players revealed their holdings.
Late Position: K♠Q♠
Cliff Green: A♦Q♦
Jerry Tria: A♥K♥The board ran out 8♣2♣ to send the pot Green’s way.
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Chip Leaders at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Kim Graham 197,000 66 John Donnelly 189,000 63 Tony Haines 284,500 95 Joe Herlein 279,500 93 Murray Duval 207,500 69 Bill Lubyk 175,500 59 -
Bateman Gets Axed
Level: 12 (1,500/2,500/2,500) Entries: 31/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Lyle Bateman Action was caught after the flop came K♣10♥8♣ with 11,500 in the pot. Lyle Bateman checked from the small blind, and John Donnelly fired for 12,500.
Bateman moved all in for 40,000 and Donnelly went into the tank. Eventually he made the call, and both players revealed their holdings.
Lyle Bateman: K♠9♠
John Donnelly: K♥J♠The board ran out 5♠3♦ for Donnelly to take the pot.
John Donelly: 176,000
Lyle Bateman: 0 -
Magulak Holds a Key Card
Level: 12 (1,500/2,500/2,500) Entries: 33/127 Prizes: $36,195 
Seniors Table 6 Tony Haines called from under the gun, and Ivan Magulak raised to 6,500. Haines found the call.
The flop came K♣3♣4♦, and Haines was quick to check. Magulak fired for 11,000 and was rewarded with the pot.
“Since you’re a nice guy I’ll show one,” Magulak announced before revealing the K♦ in his hand.
Tony Haines: 138,000
Ivan Magulak: 116,000 -
Prize Pool Announced
Position Prize (CAD) 1st $9,850 2nd $6,790 3rd $4,415 4th $3,395 5th $2,615 6th $2,070 7th $1,630 8th $1,290 9th $1,050 10th $850 11th-12th $780 13th $680 -
Massive Hand for Haines
Level: 10 (1,000/1,500/1,500) Entries: 43/127 Prizes: $36,195 PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Field Desmond Stuart opened from early position. Ron Lauzon moved all in from late position for 62,000, and Tony Haines moved all in for 69,900 from the small blind. Stuart made the call and the three players revealed their holdings.
Ron Lauzon: A♦K♣
Tony Haines: A♣A♠
Desmond Stuart: 10♥10♣The board ran out Q♣K♥7♥8♠7♣ to send Lauzon to the rail.
Tony Haines: 196,000
Desmond Stuart: 70,000
Ron Lauzon: 0 -
Big Stacks at the Dinner Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Kelly Gall 163,300 136 Rob Lothian 161,500 135 James Witham 154,800 129 Ron Taylor 138,900 116 Treena Heydon 92,700 77 -
An Early Elimination for Fan
Level: 8 (500/1,000/1,000) Entries: 62/123 Prizes: $35,055 Prior API Senior Winner Francis Fan Action was caught after the board ran out 10♦10♣A♠8♣4♠, and Francis Fan led out for 18,000. His opponent moved all in for 34,300 from late position and Fan made the call.
Late Position: A♦9♦
Francis Fan: 10♠5♠Fan just barely covered the late position player to find the near double.
Francis Fan: 70,800
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Notables and Previous Winners
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Meyer and Razzaq are Bound to Battle
Level: 6 (300/600/600) Entries: 70/117 Prizes: $33,345 
Ali Razzaq and Paul Meyer Action was caught after an early open and one player called. Paul Meyer moved all in from the small blind. Ali Razzaq called for his remaining 7,900. Both players revealed their holdings.
Ali Razzaq: 9♣6♣
Paul Meyer: J♦J♥The board ran out 7♣9♥9♦7♦K♣ to give the short stacked Razzaq the double.
Paul Meyer: 28,500
Ali Razzaq: 19,700 -
Meyer Plays it Back at Razzaq
Level: 6 (300/600/600) Entries: 71/112 Prizes: $31,920 Ali Razzaq opened to 1,200 from under the gun. Paul Meyer three-bet to 3,500 from the big blind. Razzaq made the call.
The flop came J♦10♠10♣, and Meyer led out for 3,500. He was rewarded with the pot, as Razzaq made the fold.
Ali Razzaq: 29,000
Paul Meyer: 18,700 -
Campbell Takes it Down
Level: 5 (300/500/500) Entries: 73/105 Prizes: TBD Bradford Semotiuk opened to 2,000 from the cutoff. Both Dale Campbell and Jerry Tria defended their blinds.
The flop and turn came the 7♣4♦2♣3♠, and action checked through both streets.
After the river peeled the J♣, Campbell fired for 3,000. Both remaining players were quick to fold.
Dale Campbell: 40,100
Bradford Semotiuk: 34,200
Jerry Tria: 22,500 -
Big Stacks and Notables at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Bill Thomson 87,800 176 Shawn Taghavizadeh 70,700 141 Ivan Magulak 69,800 140 Reg Hampton 64,600 129 Tony Haines 64,400 129 Jason Kelson 57,800 116 Lyle Bateman 17,000 34 -
Bolger on the Board
Level: 4 (200/400/400) Entries: 74/94 Prizes: TBD 
Malcolm Bolger Malcolm Bolger blind raised to 1,000 from under the gun. Action folded to the blinds who both made the call.
The flop came 2♦A♣K♣, and all three players were quick to check.
After the turn peeled the J♥, both blinds checked to Bolger. He moved all in for 11,200, and received a quick fold from both players.
Malcolm Bolger: 15,200
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Seniors Kicks the Action Off
John Donnelly, winner of Seniors event Action is underway with Event #1: Seniors First kicking off the series. Among the field are formers multiple former winners and beloved reporter Lyle Bateman. Currently, 75 players remain of the 93 entries with a little over 3 hours of late registration left.
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Seniors Go First on the PPT
Event 1: $340 Seniors First 50+ ($300+$40) Date: May 15, 12 Noon Blinds: 30 Minutes Starting Stack: 25k Late Entry: 8 Levels (~5 PM) Day 1 Ends: One-Day Event As is typical on the Pure Poker Tour, Series #2 kicks off with the Seniors game, reserved for players 50 years of age or older. The action kicks off on Thursday, May 15 at noon and players will sit down with 25k in chips to play 30-minute levels throughout the event.
Entries are open for 8 levels so, including breaks, entries look set to close at about 5 pm. After that, they’ll play down to a winner before the action on this game stops. As usual, 10% of the starting field will make it into the money at the end of the night.
I’ll be at the felt for this one, trying to score my first live win, but my trusty sidekick Alek Gillies will be working the pad and paper on opening day. I’ll be on the floor for my first full day of reporting on Friday.
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John Donnelly Perseveres to Take Down Event #1: $340 Seniors ($9,850)
PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Winner John Donnelly After over 13 hours of play, John Donnelly has battled through the 127 player field to best the rest. For his efforts he took home the lions share of $9,850 from the $36,195 prize pool. Donnelly had been on the radar throughout the day playing cautiously but catching big hands and momentum.
This continued throughout the final table as he took the chip lead from Francis Fan, and sent him home in third place. Heads up play was short lived as Donnelly went into into it with a 2:1 chip lead. His aggression combined with run good allowed him to end the tournament shortly after.
Position Player Prize 1st John Donnelly $9,850 2nd Murray Duval $6,790 3rd Francis Fan $4,415 4th Bill Thomson $3,395 5th Tony Haines $2,615 6th Karin Schulenburg $2,070 7th John Venning $1,630 8th Cliff Green $1,290 9th Larry Quon $1,050 -
Murray Duval Eliminated in 2nd Place ($6,790)
Level: 22 (15,000/25,000/25,000) Entries: 2/127 Prizes: $36,195 Murray Duval Action was caught after the turn came the 8♣7♣10♣4♠, and John Donnelly moved all in. Murray Duval called for less and both players revealed their holdings.
Murray Duval: 7♥8♦
John Donnelly: J♣5♣The completed with the 4♥ to end the tournament.
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Francis Fan Eliminated in 3rd Place ($4,415)
Level: 22 (15,000/25,000/25,000) Entries: 2/127 Prizes: $36,195 Prior API Senior Winner Francis Fan Francis Fan moved all in from the small blind for 530,000 and John Donnelly made the call from the big blind. Both players revealed their holdings.
Francis Fan: A♠5♥
John Donnelly: A♣J♠The board ran out Q♣4♣7♦8♥K♠ for Fan to hit the rail in the worst of the podium placements.
John Donnelly: 2,200,000
Murray Duval: 975,000
Francis Fan: 0 -
Duvall Doubles
Level: 21 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 3/127 Prizes: $36,195 Murray Duval Action was caught after the turn of J♦8♠K♦4♣, and Murray Duval led out for 60,000. Francis Fan moved all in having Duvall covered and he made the call. Both players revealed their hands.
Murray Duval: Q♣J♥
Francis Fan: Q♥3♥The board completed with the 2♦ for Duvall to double.
Murray Duval: 825,000
Francis Fan: 605,000 -
Bill Thomson Eliminated in 4th Place ($3,395)
Bill Thomson Level: 21 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 3/127 Prizes: $36,195 Murray Duval raised to 60,000 from middle position. Bill Thomson defended his big blind.
The flop came 5♥9♠10♣, and Thomson moved all in. Duval was quick to call and both players revealed their holdings.
Bill Thomson: 5♦7♦
Murray Duval: A♠A♣The board completed with the Q♥2♠ to send Thomson out in 4th place.
Murray Duval: 350,000
Bill Thomson: 0 -
Chip Counts at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Francis Fan 1,140,000 57 Murray Duval 985,000 49 John Donnelly 730,000 37 Bill Thomson 320,000 16 -
Tony Haines Eliminated in 5th Place ($2,615)
Level: 20 (10,000/15,000/15,000) Entries: 4/127 Prizes: $36,195 Tony Haines Tony Haines moved all in for 174,000, and Francis Fan made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Tony Haines: Q♦J♣
Francis Fan: K♠10♥The board ran out 3♠A♦6♦4♣10♣, to send Fan the pot.
Francis Fan: 1,150,000
Tony Haines: 0 -
Karin Schulenburg Eliminated in 6th Place ($2,070)
Level: 20 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 5/127 Prizes: $36,195 Karin Schulenburg Karin Schulenburg moved all in and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
Karin Schulenburg: 4♣4♦
Francis Fan: 6♥6♦The board ran out 9♣8♦3♠10♦5♠ for Schulenburg to hit the rail.
Francis Fan: 766,000
Karin Schulenburg: 0 -
John Venning Eliminated in 7th Place ($1,630)
Level: 20 (10,000/20,000/20,000) Entries: 6/127 Prizes: $36,195 John Venning John Venning moved all in for 90,000 and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
John Venning: 6♠6♦
Francis Fan: Q♠Q♥The board ran out A♣7♥A♠4♣K♣ for Fan to take the pot.
Francis Fan: 675,000
John Venning: 0 -
Cliff Green Eliminated in 8th Place ($1,290)
Level: 19 (8,000/16,000/16,000) Entries: 7/127 Prizes: $36,195 Cliff Green Action was caught after an all in and call occurred between Cliff Green and John Donnelly. Both players revealed their hands.
Cliff Green: K♥10♣
John Donnelly: A♦A♠The board ran out A♣4♦Q♠7♥Q♣ to give Donnelly the pot.
John Donnelly: 877,000
Cliff Green: 0 -
Larry Quon Eliminated in 9th Place ($1,050)
Level: 19 (6,000/12,000/12,000) Entries: 8/127 Prizes: $36,195 Larry Quon Joe Herlein moved all in for 80,000 from early position. Larry Quon called for his remaining 52,000 from the cutoff. Both players revealed their hands.
Larry Quon: A♠K♥
Joe Herlein: 9♥9♣The board ran out J♥Q♠5♥4♠8♥ to send Quon out as the first player from the final table.
Joe Herlein: 162,000
Larry Quon: 0 -
Final Table Photos
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Joe Herlein Eliminated in 10th Place ($850)
Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 9/127 Prizes: $36,195 Joe Herlein Joe Herlein moved all in for 23,000 and was called by Cliff Green. The two players revealed their holdings.
Joe Herlein: K♠J♥
Cliff Green: 2♠2♣The board ran out 4♠5♥6♥7♣A♥ for Herlein to be sent home.
Cliff Green: 158,000
Joe Herlein: 0 -
Paul Meyer Eliminated in 11th Place ($780)
Paul Meyer Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 10/127 Prizes: $36,195 Paul Meyer moved all in for 98,000, and Francis Fan snap called. Both players revealed their hands.
Paul Meyer: K♠10♦
Francis Fan: A♠A♦The board ran out 7♦Q♣10♣5♣J♣ to send Meyer to the rail.
Francis Fan: 793,000
Paul Meyer: 0 -
Kim Graham Eliminated in 12th Place ($780)
Level: 18 (5,000/10,000/10,000) Entries: 11/127 Prizes: $36,195 Kim Graham Kim Graham moved all in for 227,000 and was called by Francis Fan. Both players revealed their holdings.
Kim Graham: A♣J♠
Francis Fan: A♦Q♠The board ran out 7♥J♦3♣7♦Q♣ to send Graham to the rail.
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All Players In the Money
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Ivan Magulak Eliminated in 13th Place ($680)
Level: 17 (4,000/8,000/8,000) Entries: 12/127 Prizes: $36,195 Ivan Magulak Ivan Magulak moved all in for 60,000 and was called by Larry Quon. The two players revealed their hands.
Ivan Magulak: K♥Q♦
Larry Quon: J♠J♣The board ran out 5♣4♠5♥A♥9♦ to give Quon the pot.
Larry Quon: 185,000
Ivan Magulak: 0 -
Graham Eliminates Bridger to Burst the Bubble
Level: 16 (3,000/6,000/6,000) Entries: 13/127 Prizes: $36,195 Kim Graham Shortly before the break, Ron Bridger moved all in and was called Kim Graham. Both players revealed their hands.
Ron Bridger: 10♥10♠
Kim Graham: A♦A♥The board ran out 9♦Q♦2♣J♠J♥ for Graham to take the pot.
Kim Graham: 470,000
Ron Bridger: 0 -
Chip Counts at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Murray Duval 716,000 90 Kim Graham 470,000 59 John Donnelly 450,000 56 Karin Schulen 236,000 30 Cliff Green 227,000 28 Ivan Magulak 200,000 25 Francis Fan 149,000 19 Larry Quon 140,000 18 Tony Haines 137,000 17 Paul Meyer 130,000 16 Joe Herlein 110,000 14 Bill Thomson 100,000 13 John Venning 75,000 9 -
Lubyk Hits the Rail; Players on the Stone Bubble
Level: 16 (3,000/6,000/6,000) Entries: 14/127 Prizes: $36,195 Action was caught after the flop of 3♥5♠A♥, and John Donnelly led out for 40,000. Bill Lubyk moved all in and was called by Donnelly both players revealed their holdings.
Bill Lubyk: Q♥9♥
John Donnelly: A♣K♠The board completed with the K♣J♠ to send Lubyk out just shy of the money.
John Donnelly: 441,000
Bill Lubyk: 0 -
Duval and Green Miles Above the Rest
While the tournament is nearing the bubble, Murray Duval and Cliff Green stand atop the field. Duval currently has 587,000 with Green playing 322,000. Jerry Tria recently hit the rail after being left short stacked.
He flopped a set and slow played into Francis Fan’s turned set that left him with under a big blind. Shortly after, he got it all in and was eliminated bringing the current field down to 16 players.
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Tria On the Up and Up
Level: 14 (2,000/4,000/4,000) Entries: 18/127 Prizes: $36,195 PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Field After be left short handed, Jerry Tria has battled back through multiple double ups. First, he found a double up with 4♣5♣ after making the bottom end of the straight.
Shortly after, he moved all in for 44,000. Francis Fan moved all in over the top for 185,000. The remaining players folded, and both players revealed their hands.
Jerry Tria: A♣7♣
Francis Fan: A♥K♦“Don’t worry I’m gonna hit clubs,” Tria joked as the flop came 5♦K♣9♠. However, his prediction held truth, as the board completed with the 6♣J♣.
Francis Fan: 141,000
Jerry Tria: 113,000 -
Tria on Crumbs as Green Rises the Chip Ranks
Level: 13 (1,500/3,000/3,000) Entries: 21/127 Prizes: $36,195 Seniors Table 9 Action was caught after the flop came Q♥10♠5♥ with 33,000 in the pot. Cliff Green fired for 20,000 from middle position, and the late position player moved all in for 40,000.
Jerry Tria called, and Green moved all in for 108,500. Tria made the call, and the three players revealed their holdings.
Late Position: K♠Q♠
Cliff Green: A♦Q♦
Jerry Tria: A♥K♥The board ran out 8♣2♣ to send the pot Green’s way.
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Chip Leaders at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Kim Graham 197,000 66 John Donnelly 189,000 63 Tony Haines 284,500 95 Joe Herlein 279,500 93 Murray Duval 207,500 69 Bill Lubyk 175,500 59 -
Bateman Gets Axed
Level: 12 (1,500/2,500/2,500) Entries: 31/127 Prizes: $36,195 Lyle Bateman Action was caught after the flop came K♣10♥8♣ with 11,500 in the pot. Lyle Bateman checked from the small blind, and John Donnelly fired for 12,500.
Bateman moved all in for 40,000 and Donnelly went into the tank. Eventually he made the call, and both players revealed their holdings.
Lyle Bateman: K♠9♠
John Donnelly: K♥J♠The board ran out 5♠3♦ for Donnelly to take the pot.
John Donelly: 176,000
Lyle Bateman: 0 -
Magulak Holds a Key Card
Level: 12 (1,500/2,500/2,500) Entries: 33/127 Prizes: $36,195 Seniors Table 6 Tony Haines called from under the gun, and Ivan Magulak raised to 6,500. Haines found the call.
The flop came K♣3♣4♦, and Haines was quick to check. Magulak fired for 11,000 and was rewarded with the pot.
“Since you’re a nice guy I’ll show one,” Magulak announced before revealing the K♦ in his hand.
Tony Haines: 138,000
Ivan Magulak: 116,000 -
Prize Pool Announced
Position Prize (CAD) 1st $9,850 2nd $6,790 3rd $4,415 4th $3,395 5th $2,615 6th $2,070 7th $1,630 8th $1,290 9th $1,050 10th $850 11th-12th $780 13th $680 -
Massive Hand for Haines
Level: 10 (1,000/1,500/1,500) Entries: 43/127 Prizes: $36,195 PPT #2 Event #1 Seniors Field Desmond Stuart opened from early position. Ron Lauzon moved all in from late position for 62,000, and Tony Haines moved all in for 69,900 from the small blind. Stuart made the call and the three players revealed their holdings.
Ron Lauzon: A♦K♣
Tony Haines: A♣A♠
Desmond Stuart: 10♥10♣The board ran out Q♣K♥7♥8♠7♣ to send Lauzon to the rail.
Tony Haines: 196,000
Desmond Stuart: 70,000
Ron Lauzon: 0 -
Big Stacks at the Dinner Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Kelly Gall 163,300 136 Rob Lothian 161,500 135 James Witham 154,800 129 Ron Taylor 138,900 116 Treena Heydon 92,700 77 -
An Early Elimination for Fan
Level: 8 (500/1,000/1,000) Entries: 62/123 Prizes: $35,055 Prior API Senior Winner Francis Fan Action was caught after the board ran out 10♦10♣A♠8♣4♠, and Francis Fan led out for 18,000. His opponent moved all in for 34,300 from late position and Fan made the call.
Late Position: A♦9♦
Francis Fan: 10♠5♠Fan just barely covered the late position player to find the near double.
Francis Fan: 70,800
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Notables and Previous Winners
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Meyer and Razzaq are Bound to Battle
Level: 6 (300/600/600) Entries: 70/117 Prizes: $33,345 Ali Razzaq and Paul Meyer Action was caught after an early open and one player called. Paul Meyer moved all in from the small blind. Ali Razzaq called for his remaining 7,900. Both players revealed their holdings.
Ali Razzaq: 9♣6♣
Paul Meyer: J♦J♥The board ran out 7♣9♥9♦7♦K♣ to give the short stacked Razzaq the double.
Paul Meyer: 28,500
Ali Razzaq: 19,700 -
Meyer Plays it Back at Razzaq
Level: 6 (300/600/600) Entries: 71/112 Prizes: $31,920 Ali Razzaq opened to 1,200 from under the gun. Paul Meyer three-bet to 3,500 from the big blind. Razzaq made the call.
The flop came J♦10♠10♣, and Meyer led out for 3,500. He was rewarded with the pot, as Razzaq made the fold.
Ali Razzaq: 29,000
Paul Meyer: 18,700 -
Campbell Takes it Down
Level: 5 (300/500/500) Entries: 73/105 Prizes: TBD Bradford Semotiuk opened to 2,000 from the cutoff. Both Dale Campbell and Jerry Tria defended their blinds.
The flop and turn came the 7♣4♦2♣3♠, and action checked through both streets.
After the river peeled the J♣, Campbell fired for 3,000. Both remaining players were quick to fold.
Dale Campbell: 40,100
Bradford Semotiuk: 34,200
Jerry Tria: 22,500 -
Big Stacks and Notables at the Break
Player Chip Count Big Blinds Bill Thomson 87,800 176 Shawn Taghavizadeh 70,700 141 Ivan Magulak 69,800 140 Reg Hampton 64,600 129 Tony Haines 64,400 129 Jason Kelson 57,800 116 Lyle Bateman 17,000 34 -
Bolger on the Board
Level: 4 (200/400/400) Entries: 74/94 Prizes: TBD Malcolm Bolger Malcolm Bolger blind raised to 1,000 from under the gun. Action folded to the blinds who both made the call.
The flop came 2♦A♣K♣, and all three players were quick to check.
After the turn peeled the J♥, both blinds checked to Bolger. He moved all in for 11,200, and received a quick fold from both players.
Malcolm Bolger: 15,200
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Seniors Kicks the Action Off
John Donnelly, winner of Seniors event Action is underway with Event #1: Seniors First kicking off the series. Among the field are formers multiple former winners and beloved reporter Lyle Bateman. Currently, 75 players remain of the 93 entries with a little over 3 hours of late registration left.
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Seniors Go First on the PPT
Event 1: $340 Seniors First 50+ ($300+$40) Date: May 15, 12 Noon Blinds: 30 Minutes Starting Stack: 25k Late Entry: 8 Levels (~5 PM) Day 1 Ends: One-Day Event As is typical on the Pure Poker Tour, Series #2 kicks off with the Seniors game, reserved for players 50 years of age or older. The action kicks off on Thursday, May 15 at noon and players will sit down with 25k in chips to play 30-minute levels throughout the event.
Entries are open for 8 levels so, including breaks, entries look set to close at about 5 pm. After that, they’ll play down to a winner before the action on this game stops. As usual, 10% of the starting field will make it into the money at the end of the night.
I’ll be at the felt for this one, trying to score my first live win, but my trusty sidekick Alek Gillies will be working the pad and paper on opening day. I’ll be on the floor for my first full day of reporting on Friday.
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  John Donnelly | $9,850 |
| 2 | Murray Duval | $6,790 |
| 3 | Francis Fan | $4,415 |
| 4 | Bill Thomson | $3,395 |
| 5 | Tony Haines | $2,615 |
| 6 | Karin Schulenburg | $2,070 |
| 7 | John Venning | $1,630 |
| 8 | Cliff Green | $1,290 |
| 9 | Larry Quon | $1,050 |
| 10 | Joe Herlein | $850 |
| 11 | Paul Meyer | $780 |
| 12 | Kim Graham | $780 |
| 13 | Ivan Magulak | $680 |
