Event #10 of the June Power Weekend, the $100 + $20 + $100 NL Hold’em 6-Max 50/50 Bounty, brought out a field of 163 players. All the events throughout the Power Weekend were popular, and this closing event was no exception.
We have come to expect fast, loose and aggressive action in bounty tournaments, especially during the early levels when bounty hunting is often the name of the game, but tonight’s tournament started out with a lot more caution and pot control than we have come to expect. The first four levels only saw a few bounty chips change hands, but that all changed after the first break. The action picked up pace from there and did not slow down until the very late stages. There was a brief period when the play tightened up as the money bubble approached, but following Muset’s huge pot against Philippe Drouin where Muset cracked pocket kings with big slick for roughly 600K in chips, the pace picked up again. There was a double elimination on the bubble, and the players kept up their aggression all the way to the final table.
When the seven finalists made it to the final table, Muset had a dominating chip lead. And he only increased that lead at the final table. The players were very cautious in the first few orbits of play. But it only took one level of play for the players to throw caution to the wind; a flurry of pre-flop all-ins reduced the final table from seven players to one in only a few orbits. And Muset was the main beneficiary, collecting all but one of the bounties at the final table.
After eliminating Jean-Francois Stoycheff and Ioannis Tsontakis to get the ball rolling at the final table, he also busted David Sorgente in fourth place. Sorgente and Muset got their chips in before the flop, and Muset’s 
prevailed over Sorgente’s 
. Sorgente collected $960 for his fourth place finish. Nick Frascarelli met a similar fate as Sorgente, as he was eliminated by Muset following a pre-flop all-in. Frascarelli’s 
was dominated by Muset’s 
, and the queen-high flop sealed the deal. Frascarelli took home $1,570 for finishing third.
In the end, it came down to Tony Lei and Muset. Both players had played the largest stacks in the field over the course of the last three tables so it was fitting that they should meet heads-up. But their heads-up match was very brief, as both players were happy to get their chips in and let the poker gods sort it out, which they did. Like many other spots throughout the evening, they chose Muset. Lei collected $2,670 as the runner-up.
Muset’s solid play in the early levels put him in a position to succeed in the late stages. He made the best of the format; he gambled when it was in his favour, took aggressive lines when he had to and sensed when he had to stay out of the way. Along with some good timing and a bit of luck, victory was his for the taking tonight. Congratulations!
Event #10 Champion: Cristian Muset, $4,162
Last hand of play:
over Drouin’s opening raise. To everyone’s surprise, Drouin made the call and tabled 
. When Drouin flopped top set on the 
river gave him (second) the nuts.
