Franco Spitale Leads Final Six of the Millionaire Maker
Day 4 of Event #54: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em has concluded here at the Horseshoe Las Vegas. Of the 45 competitors who started the day, the final six players will return for Day 5, where the tournament will play down to a winner.
The last six players standing navigated through a record-breaking field of 10,939 entrants to arrive at the final table and capture a piece of the $14,603,565 prize pool and a coveted World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet.
The chip leader heading into the start of Day 5 is Argentinian Franco Spitale, who is on the hunt for his first WSOP bracelet and has already locked up the largest cash of his tournament career. Spitale was cheered on by a rowdy rail of friends fueled by many adult beverages.
End of Day 4 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Franco Spitale | Argentina | 83,600,000 | 42 |
| 2 | Stephen Dauphinais | Canada | 68,700,000 | 34 |
| 3 | Justin Carey | United States | 63,900,000 | 32 |
| 4 | Harvey Jackson | United States | 25,200,000 | 12 |
| 5 | Paul Saso | United States | 22,600,000 | 11 |
| 6 | Charles Kersey | United States | 9,800,000 | 4 |
Stephen Dauphinais will enter Day 5 in second chip position in part thanks to a daring bluff he executed with eight players remaining. Dauphinais went all in on the river against Justin Carey with seven high, and Carey ended up folding.
Day 4 Action
Day 4 action was fast and furious; 45 players were slimmed down to 27 within the first two and a half hours of play. Spitale had a massive double elimination during Level 36 with 17 players remaining. Ramon Rivera was all in with ace-king, Larry Quang was all in with ace-three, and Spitale had both opponents covered and was all in with ace-queen. A queen of clubs fell on the flop, giving Spitale the lead. Neither opponent could catch up, and Spitale took a commanding chip lead over the remaining players.
Notable eliminations included three time bracelet winner Sean Troha in 43rd place ($36,830). Day 3 chip leader Martin Mathis in 37th place ($36,830), and Bracelet winners Max Neugebauer in 24th place ($55,560), and Jason Wheeler in 18th place ($55,560). Jason Hickey was eliminated in seventh place when his ace-king could not beat Stephen Dauphinais jack-ten, sending the final six players home for the night.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $1,250,125 |
| 2 | $1,001,170 |
| 3 | $651,040 |
| 4 | $500,110 |
| 5 | $376,470 |
| 6 | $289,630 |
Action will begin on Day 5 at 5 p.m. local time on Thursday, June 27, at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, where a champion will be crowned.
The tournament will resume at Level 41, with 47:34 remaining on the clock. Blinds are 1,000,000/2,000,000, with a 2,000,000 big blind ante. Levels will be 60 minutes long, with 15-minute breaks every two levels and a dinner break to be determined.
Streaming will begin at 6:00 pm on PokerGO (subject to change), and PokerNews will be providing updates on delay in sync with the stream so as not to spoil any of the tournament as it progresses.
Be sure to follow PokerNews throughout the remainder of this event and future coverage throughout the summer.