The scene at the Rio last night was electric as Phil Hellmuth was chasing bracelet #12 in the $50,000 Players Championship. The Amazon room was full of fans watching what could be history in the making. As the Final Table kept getting smaller you could feel that Phil Hellmuth was going to do it. 

When they were 4 handed the short stack Owais Ahmed shoved preflop and Phil Helmuth called the All In and it looked good as Ahmed turned up King High while Phil had a Ace. The flop brought some drama as Ahmed hit his 3 outer catching a King. Hellmuth just put his head down but just like Barry Greenstein's Book " Ace on the River" and Phil Hellmuth took the pot and Hellmuth was jumping up and down and that's when you thought this is it he is going to do it.

Hellmuth later took out Ming Ly and went to heads up virtually dead locked in Chips with Brian Rast. These 2 battled all night and you pretty much knew it would come down to these two. Rast had been the aggressor all night and at times appeared to frustrate Phil so it was going to be an exciting Heads Up Battle.

They took a 15 min break before they began Heads Up Play. When they resumed it was Phil who was the aggressor and this seemed to baffle Brian Rast and before long Phil built a commanding lead. Phil had over 80% of the Chips in play and had Rast primed for the knockout blow and Bracelet #12 and then it all went so wrong...

Phil flopped a flush draw and raised all in against Rast's pair it was the right call but the flush never came. Phil was still sitting with a commanding Chip Lead but a few hands later they get it all in again with Phil holding a flush draw again. Once again the flush never came and we were back to even in chips.

I liked Phil's aggression but this isn't Phil Hellmuth Poker going all in on the draw. So it wasn't that long and once again Rast bet out on the flop and Phil moved all in and Rast snap called saying Sorry Phil I have the nuts. Rast flopped a King high straight while Phil once again was chasing a flush and once again it never came. 

I agree with the first push given the stack sizes but the second 2 pushes I question as it just wasn't typical Phil Hellmuth poker. Phil generally doesn't get all his money in on a draw let alone 3 times. Also why play Big Hands when you still had the Chip lead? It was small ball with timely re-raises that got you the big chip lead yet the tournament was decided on 3 hands and all 3 were draws.

Still it was a hell of an effort from one of if not the best tournament player out there.