LAS VEGAS — A 26-year-old poker professional who used to play online before federal indictments shut down the top poker websites to Americans took the chip lead Sunday at the World Series of Poker main event, then added to his stack by taking out last year's third-place finisher.
Phil Collins of Las Vegas picked up 3.5 million in chips during the first two hours of play Sunday as 52 players were eliminated from the no-limit Texas Hold 'em tournament through the first four hours of play. Players were expected to return to the tables after a two-hour dinner break.
After the first break in play, Collins took the last of Cheong's nearly 1 million in chips to move up to nearly 8.7 million in chips — more than 4 times as many as the next highest player at his table.
A few hands later, Collins eliminated another player with a straight to move past 10 million in chips, well over 300 minimum bets given the slow-rising structure of the tournament.
Cheong gambled the last of his chips with ace-queen, a fairly strong hand for a player short on chips looking to double up. But Collins held pocket aces, the best starting hand in Texas Hold 'em. Cheong picked up a pair when the community cards were dealt but it wasn't enough to prevent his elimination.
Cheong won $54,851 and had the best finish of any player who made the final table last year.
"I've been playing the best poker of my life, and playing this tournament exactly how I want to play it," Collins said.
Collins said he's been playing his hands aggressively, and with the goal of not playing big pots in situations where he has marginal hands.
Ben Lamb was second in chips at the day's first break with 5.3 million in chips. After the day's first four eliminations, the 26-year-old Oklahoman who moved to Las Vegas passed 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth Jr. in the series' Player of the Year race.
The annual award will be determined based on Lamb's finish and the results of the World Series of Poker Europe later this year.
Collins, a University of South Carolina graduate who married his wife last year, said he did not have much experience in live poker before April 15, when federal prosecutors in New York indicted executives and others tied to PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker on charges of tricking banks into processing illegal gambling payments.
"Going into this world series, since I have so much free time, I started playing some more cash — $5-$10 and $2-$5 — and I think that really helped my game," Collins said. "I don't have the experience playing live poker tables even though I've played the biggest tournaments in the world and I've played online the biggest stakes."
"Being good at live poker takes practice, so I've put in some practice and I definitely think it's paying off," he said.
Oskar Garcia can be reached at http://twitter.com/oskargarcia