Mike Gorodinsky Gallops Away From the Field on Day 3 of $10,000 H.O.R.S.E.
The chips were flying, the wine was flowing, and the hats were sparkling on a wild Day 3 of Event #54: $10,000 H.O.R.S.E Championship at the 2023 World Series of Poker.
When the bottles were all empty and the night had ended, Mike Gorodinsky ended up leading the seven remaining players, who will return on June 26 at 4:00 p.m. local time. Gorodinsky won a massive three-way stud hi-lo pot with kings over nines to climb near 3,000,000 and bagged up 3,695,000 for the event’s final day. The two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner already has a banner hanging up in the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas celebrating his 2015 Player of the Year award; he now has a chance to win one of the most prestigious titles on the WSOP calendar.
Alex Livingston fell down to 650,000 after losing that pot to Gorodinsky but rebounded in the final level to finish in second place with 2,160,000. Brad Ruben, a four-time bracelet winner, all in the last three years, is in third place with 1,930,000. Ruben accumulated much of his big stack when he won a stud hand against Brian Yoon with a buried deuce for trips.
End of Day 3 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Bets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Gorodinsky | United States | 3,695,000 | 23 |
| 2 | Alex Livingston | Canada | 2,160,000 | 14 |
| 3 | Brad Ruben | United States | 1,930,000 | 12 |
| 4 | Brian Yoon | United States | 1,445,000 | 9 |
| 5 | Scott Seiver | United States | 990,000 | 6 |
| 6 | Carol Fuchs | United States | 515,000 | 3 |
| 7 | Christopher Claassen | United States | 265,000 | 2 |
Yoon, the start-of-day chip leader, earned a near-double up off Livingston in razz near the end of the night to finish with 1,445,000. The five-time bracelet winner has already been in the winner’s circle in the 2023 WSOP, winning the $10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship, and tomorrow has a chance to become just the 21st player in WSOP history with six gold bracelets.
Scott Seiver built up a chip-leading stack at the start of the nine-handed unofficial final table but fell back to 990,000. The night, though, only got worse for Seiver right at the end. After losing the final pot of Day 3 to Carol Fuchs, Seiver crumpled up one of his cards and tossed it into the middle of the table. The tournament floor approached him and gave him a one-round penalty to start tomorrow’s play, much to his consternation and loud disagreement.
Fuchs (515,000) and Christopher Claassen (265,000) are the short stacks when the final table resumes on the main feature table inside the Horseshoe Event Center. The final table will be streamed on a one-hour delay by PokerGO.
Final Table Payouts
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $422,747 | |
| 2 | $261,278 | |
| 3 | $187,406 | |
| 4 | $136,649 | |
| 5 | $101,319 | |
| 6 | $76,412 | |
| 7 | $58,633 | |
| 8 | Esther Taylor | $45,789 |
Just 17 players remained out of a starting field of 185 when Day 3 began at 2 p.m. today. John Racener (17th), Nick Guagenti (16th), and Connor Drinan (12th) were among those who fell short of the final table. Phil Hellmuth built his stack up above 1,000,000 with his eyes on bracelet No. 17 but lost a number of pots amidst a stream of profanity before busting in 11th place to Livingston in razz.
Once the nine-handed final table was reached with the elimination of David “Bakes” Baker in 10th, the atmosphere among the remaining players became lively and jovial. Craig Chait brought some bottles of wine for the table; Esther Taylor, who left the stage along with her shiny sequin fedora in eighth place, returned with glasses as the table shared a toast.
The tension, though, will only rise tomorrow with the bracelet within tantalizing reach of each of the seven remaining players. The action picks up on Level 24, with 80,000-160,000 limits. Each player is already guaranteed $58,633 but will have their sights firmly on the $422,747 first prize and coveted gold jewelry.
Come back tomorrow as PokerNews covers the race to the title and provides updates until there is one new mixed-game master at the WSOP.