Lex Veldhuis - Pokerspecialist

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6:05pm: David Costabile wins! Douglas Costa runner-up

It’s over! After winning a couple of double-ups, actor David Costabile of The Wire, Breaking Bad, and Billions jammed his leading stack from the button with 4♠4♣ and Brazilian footballer Douglas Costa called with A♣K♣.

The board ran out 8♦9♦J♠6♥10♣, and the small pair held — Costabile wins!

But in truth, a lot of charities are the big winners today. Costabile claims the $100,000 first prize which he will be donating to World Central Kitchen, a charity that supplies food to those who most need it.

Indeed, while all six of the final tablists had already won $10,000 for their respective charities, they each are getting to donate even more now:

1st: David Costabile – $100,000
2nd: Douglas Costa – $75,000
3rd: Jennifer Shahade – $40,000
4th: Casey Affleck – $30,000
5th: Chris Moneymaker – $20,000
6th: Mike Tindall – $10,000

Meanwhile, English footballer Wayne Bridge has taken down the winner-take-all Second Chance Tournament to earn $50,000 for his charity of choice.

Congrats to everyone today, and thanks for following the coverage!

5:55pm: Shahade falls in third, Costa and Costabile heads-up

Jennifer Shahade raised from the button with A♣Q♣, and it folded to Douglas Costa who jammed from the big blind with A♦10♣ and Shahade called.

The flop came 8♦K♦J♦ and Shahade was still technically in front, but the Q♦ turn made a flush for Costa and the ace on the river no matter.

Costa starts heads-up with a big chip lead with 990,375 versus David Costabile‘s 159,625.

5:50pm: Casey Affleck out in fourth, Chris Moneymaker out in fifth

Chris Moneymaker is out in fifth, his A♠Q♣ getting beaten by Casey Affleck‘s A♥2♥ in a preflop all-in after a deuce came on the board.

But Affleck didn’t last much longer, falling in fourth when he shoved with A♣9♠, Douglas Costa called with Q♥Q♦, and the board brought no help for Affleck.

With three left, Costa is in first (567K), Jennifer Shahade next (377K), and David Costabile third (205K).

5:45pm: Cranston bubbles, Tindall out in sixth

Bryan Cranston has bubbled, his K♠Q♠ failing him against Douglas Costa‘s pocket aces. That burst the bubble and the final six were reseated around the final table.

We got a shot of the final six here just before Mike “TheLordLord” Tindall was knocked out by Jennifer Shahade in sixth (see below).

“UncleWagsyPoker” is David Costabile, by the way. You can figure out who the others are.

5:35pm: Final table bubble arrives

Chris Moneymaker just busted Michael Ian Black in eighth when his A♦2♣ outlasted Black’s Q♥10♣ after a preflop all-in.

That came just before Jack “Supafuz” Stanton (ninth) and Nicholas “OP-Poker Nick” Walsh (10th) were both felted in ninth in a three-way all-in won by Jennifer Shahade.

With seven left, they are one away from the final table and the “cash.”

5:25pm: Amy Schumer joins the stream

There are 14 players left now, with Nicholas “OP-Poker Nick” Walsh and Chris “Money800” Moneymaker at the top of the counts.

Alas for Edward Norton, he just went out in 15th after getting his short stack in preflop and watching all four of his opponents at the table call. Bryan Cranston was the one of those four who earned the knockout.

Meanwhile Amy Schumer has joined the stream, and they are sweating her sister, Kim Caramele, who is still in the hunt.

5:20pm: Chatting with Worm

Felix “xflixx” Schneiders is at Edward “ENisWORM” Norton‘s table right now, and Schneiders couldn’t resist engaging in a little Rounders talk.

xflixx: I rewatch rounders every year ed. that movie is a huge part of what inspired me for all im doing now. thank you (heart)
ENisWORM: Love it
ENisWORM: No movie was ever more fun to make!
xflixx: I can imagine!

5:15pm: Culkin, Figueroa out

A few more have been knocked out with Macaulay Culkin and Nelson Figueroa among them.

That means 18 players are left, with Douglas Costa now in the chip lead.

5:10pm: Cheadle cut down by Stanton

Don Cheadle was just eliminated by Jack “Supafuz” Stanton.

On the 4♠A♣J♦6♠ turn, Cheadle checked, Stanton bet, Cheadle shoved, and Stanton called. Cheadle had a flush draw with 9♠7♠, but Stanton had a better draw and a pair with J♠5♠.

The river was the J♥, and Cheadle’s out. Jack’s got himself a top five stack now.

5pm: Tohi eliminated

The musician Tohi is out, the first elimination of the final.

Tohi got it all in on a 3♣7♥7♥ flop with A♥3♥ for treys and sevens, but Nicholas “OP-Poker Nick” Walsh had 8♠8♣ for a better two pair, and the Q♠ turn and 2♥ flop sealed it.

That bumps up near the chip lead, where Felix “xflixx” Schneiders currently resides.

4:45pm: Final Tournament underway

There are 23 players who have made it through to the final tournament — six from the Player Invitational, and 16 from the Celebrity Shootout.

Bryan Cranston has the early chip lead as play begins, with Thomas Lennon, Kim Caramale, and Chris Moneymaker near the top as well.

Meanwhile Edward Norton and Don Cheadle are among the short stacks, although the stacks are all still fairly deep and bunched up as the final gets going.

4:35pm: Prize pool for final

Thomas Lennon has won his table and made it to the final. So have David Costabile, Mike Tindall, and PokerStars Ambassadors Chris Moneymaker and Jennifer Shahade.

4:25pm: Prize pool for final tournament

They are close to finishing up the Celebrity Shootout portion of the event. Meanwhile, the prize pool has been sorted out for the final.

Here is what will go to the celebrities finishing in the top spots, with the money going to their chosen charities on top of the $10,000 they’ve already won for the charities for getting this far. If one of the six players from the Player Invitational makes the cash, the money will go to CARE International.

1st – $100,000
2nd – $75,000
3rd – $40,000
4th – $30,000
5th – $20,000
6th – $10,000

4:10pm: Costa wins, advances

Douglas Costa just busted PokerStars Ambassador Andre Akkari heads-up to move on.

They got all of Akkari’s chips in the middle with Akkari holding A♠6♥ and Costa A♥9♠. An ace came but the board didn’t help Akkari further, and he’s now bound for the Second-Chance Event while Costa will be in the final.

It sounds like all the other tables that are still going are heads-up now, so the final will be happening relatively soon.

4pm: More winners

Michael Ian Black, Macaulay Culkin, and Casey Affleck have all won their tables and have made it to the final.

Meanwhile Lisa Kudrow and Edward Norton are heads-up on their table.

3:55pm: Cranston KOs Paul, advances to final

Bryan Cranston just won his table, knocking out his Breaking Bad co-star Aaron Paul heads-up with ace-eight versus ace-deuce.

“It was like an episode of Breaking Bad, and I was Tuco,” cracked sixth-place finisher Azaria afterwards.

3:45pm: Player Invitational concludes, six advance

It sounds like the “Regular Tournament,” a.k.a. the “Player Invitational,” a.k.a. the “non-celebrity” half of the event has already played down from a field of 89 players to the six who have advanced.

A few PokerStars Ambassadors got through that field — Felix “xflixx” Schneiders, Arlie “princepablo” Shaban, and Nicholas “OP-Poker Nick” Walsh. So did PokerStars Blog’s own Jack “supafuz” Stanton, along with “Raksha26,” and “pienososas.”

They’ll join the winners of the Celebrity Shootout tables in the final.

3:35pm: Don Cheadle advances

Don Cheadle (Ocean’s trilogy, Hotel Rwanda) just won his table after knocking out Michael Cera heads-up to advance to the final.

In the last hand Cheadle had about a 5-to-1 chip lead when they got it all in on the turn with the board showing 2♣5♠8♠4♠. Cera had 10♠7♠ for a flush, but Cheadle had Q♠2♠ for a better one. The river was the 8♦, and Cheadle won.

Cera, who played the ruthless “Player X” in Molly’s Game, will get to enter the Second Chance Tournament for his runner-up finish.

3:25pm: Cranston busts Azaria

After being stacked by Teri Hatcher early on, Hank Azaria just busted for good from his table after getting all in with K♣6♣ and getting called by Bryan Cranston who had A♥10♣.

The 10♦2♣J♣ flop paired Cranston but gave Azaria a flush draw. But the A♠ turn (making two pair for Cranston) and 4♥ river didn’t help Azaria, and he’s the first to go from their six-handed table (busting before J.K. Simmons who has been sitting out the whole way).

Cranston is the chip leader with five left there.

3:20pm: Shootout action continues

There are about 13-14 tables in action in the Celebrity Shootout portion of the event, with most of them still full of players.

That means the Final Tournament coming later will have about 20 players total to begin (see details below, 2 p.m.)

3:10pm: Table talk

Hank Azaria just posed a question to his table a question he likes to ask when playing poker. Perhaps you can use it next time you’re in a game.

What was the first concert you ever attended? The answers…

Bryan Cranston — B.B. King in Los Angeles (in 1967, he thinks)
Teri Hatcher — Foreigner in San Francisco
Liam Payne — Gareth Gates & Will Young (at a UK TV show)
Azaria — Jethro Tull at Madison Square Garden in 1976

Azaria’s sisters has them all beat, though — they saw the Beatles at Shea Stadium!

3pm: Playing for chips, playing for charity

Teri Hatcher and Liam Payne are currently chatting with the hosts over the stream and talking about the respective charities for which they are playing.

Hatcher is playing for The People Concern, a group helping with homelessness in the Los Angeles area, while Payne’s charity is The Trussell Trust that helps fight hunger in the UK.

See below (2 p.m.) for information about how the payouts will go.

And hey, it looks like both Bryan Cranston and Hank Azaria now have gotten their cameras on, too.

2:45pm: Edward Norton reprises his Rounders role

It was Andy Bellin, screenwriter and author of Poker Nation, who along with Hank Azaria had a lot to do with helping organize Stars CALL For Action. He’s at a table with Billy Crudup, Brian Koppelman, Lisa Kudrow, Kevin Pollak, and Edward Norton.

Norton, as everyone knows, played “Worm” in Rounders. He’s playing the role again today, in a way, as his username is “ENisWORM.”

I would suggest the other players stay alert — they might catch a hanger.

2:30pm: A few japes with Stapes

Our friend Joe Stapleton is playing in the Celebrity Shootout. He just checked in on the livestream to talk about his table a little, which includes Gabriel Macht, Adam McKay, Michael Ian Black, Justin Long, and Rob Riggle.

While chatting, Stapes was facing a postflop shove from McKay and after fretting aloud a bit he finally gave it up.

Right now Stapes is full of quips (as usual), but short on chips (also as usual).

2:20pm: Watch the action

Hosts James Hartigan and Lex Veldhuis have been narrating the action so far on the livestream, although stay tuned as there will be interviews and celebrity check-ins along the way. Click the links above to watch.

2:10pm: Hatcher felts Azaria

The first Celebrity Shootout table shown on the stream features Hank Azaria, Aaron Paul, Bryan Cranston, J.K. Simmons, Liam Payne, and Teri Hatcher. And the very first hand was a doozy.

Picking up on the river with the board showing 8♠J♠3♠9♠10♠, Azaria led with a bet and Teri Hatcher shoved, and after a brief pause Azaria called. He had A♠2♠ for an ace-high flush, but Hatcher had that beat with Q♠Q♦ for a straight flush!

Azaria will be able to buy back in, but what a start for Hatcher!

2:00pm: How the tournament will work

It’s about that time. Just a few minutes of introduction and the event will be underway. Let’s take these last moments to talk about how today’s event is going to work.

There will be two “prelim”-type tournaments followed by a final tournament. The first two events will play simultaneously:

Celebrity Shootout — The celebrities are being seated at six-handed tables, each of which will be playing down to a winner who will then advance to the final. Players will start with 5,000 chips and be able to rebuy if they bust within the first half-hour (otherwise, they’ll enjoy some additional chips).

Regular Tournament — Meanwhile the poker fans comprising the rest of the field are playing a “regular” multi-table tournament, and the final six will get to join the winners of the Celebrity Shootout in the final.

Then comes the Final Tournament which will be a regular multi-table tournament and will play down to a champion.

Here’s how the “payouts” will go from that $1 million prize pool being donated by PokerStars, with everything going to charity:

Final Tournament Payouts

• Every celebrity who wins their table is guaranteed $10,000 for their charity. This is displayed via the payouts in the final tournament.
• The six players from the “Regular Tournament” who make it to the Final Tournament will have at least $10,000 donated on their behalf to Care International — possibly even more depending on how they do going forward!
• Players will play down to a final table of six.
• The final table of six will be able to build on their $10K donation depending on where they finish.
• The winner will be able to donate $100,000 guaranteed to their charity of choice.
• 2nd-6th prizes will be determined based on final entrants, with all building on the $10,000 donation they already have for making the final.

There will also be a “Second Chance Tournament” starting at 4 p.m. ET for celebrities who finish second at their shootout tables, a regular multi-table tournament that will play down to a winner. First prize will get to direct $50,000 to his or her charity of choice out of the $500,000 being reserved for the celebrities’ charities.

Got it? Good. Let’s watch some poker.

1:30pm: An invite from Hank Azaria

Just a half-hour until things get started. While we wait for the action to begin, here’s Hank Azaria telling his followers about the event. And yes, that’s his own voice, not one of the hundreds of characters on The Simpsons from which you know him.

Hank Azaria✔@HankAzaria

This is the highlight of my quarantine – if there is such a thing. So excited to team up with @PokerStars for an epic event to raise much-needed funds for COVID relief. #StarsRaising https://bit.ly/3fsiGVd 10700:10 – 8 May 2020Twitter Ads information and privacy19 people are talking about this

11:55am: Celebs answering the Stars CALL For Action

At 2 p.m. ET, the Stars CALL For Action online celebrity charity tournament will be getting underway. You’ll be able to follow all of the action live on Twitch, Facebook, or YouTube. Meanwhile as the day progresses we’ll be providing some updates here as well, letting you know how the players are faring and other information as it goes.

Once things get started, we’ll be explaining here just how the tournament is formatted and what to expect, including information about how the $1 million prize pool donated by PokerStars will be going both to CARE International and to the celebrities’ chosen charities as well. However if you want to know more about the event right now, you can go ahead and check out this overview answering a lot questions about the event.

Celebrities will be playing a “shootout” format from which each table’s winners will advance it to the “final tournament” later today. Meanwhile a group of poker fans will be playing a “regular” tournament from which the final six players will get to join the celebrity shootout winners for the final. The final will be played as a standard multi-table tournament.

The list of celebrities who have confirmed keeps growing. With the start time still a couple of hours away, here is the latest list of those taking part.

Aaron Paul	Elton (Akexander Duszat)	Mark Teixeira
Aaron Tveit	Eric Bogosian	Martha Plimpton
Adam McKay	Erik Siedel	Max Beesley
A.J. McLean	Felipe Araujo	Michael Cera
Amy Schumer	Fintan Hand	Michael Ian Black
Andre Akkari	Gabriel Macht	Mike Tindall
Andy Bellin	Hank Azaria	Mike Carlsen
Andy Frankenberger	Jack Black	Nate Silver
Anna Andres	James L. Brooks	Nelson Figueroa
Asia Kate Dillon	Jason Alexander	Nene
Beanie Feldstein	Jeff Garlin	Neymar Jr
Ben Spragg	Jennifer Shahade	Pete Alonso
Bill Simmons	Jens Knossi	Peter Mackenzie
Billy Crudup	Jimmi Simpson	Ricardinho
Brad Garrett	J.K. Simmons	Ricky Williams
Brian Davis (True Geordie)	Joe Stapleton	Rob Riggle
Brian Koppelman	John Ales	Ron Darling
Bryan Cranston	Jon Hamm	Sarkodie
Casey Affleck	Jon Weiner	Teddy Sheringham
Chris Carlin	Josh Charles	Teri Hatcher
Chris Moneymaker	Justin Long	Thomas Lennon
Clement Lenglet	Kevin Pollak	Tohi
Dan Le Batard	Kevin Trapp	Tony Yazbeck
David Arquette	Liam Payne	Tracy Letts
David Costabile	Lisa Kudrow	Wayne Bridge
David Lee	Liviu Virciu	Willie Garson
David Schwimmer	Lou Diamond Phillips
Don Cheadle	Lucas Lima
Douglas Costa	Macaulay Culkin
Edward Norton	Maggie Gray

Originally posted on PokerStarsBlog
by Martin Harris