On the last day of preliminary play at the Party Poker Premier League, Dave “The Devilfish” Ulliott needed a victory and a victory only to make it into the heads-up playoffs that determine the last two players to make the final table. Ulliott defeated Tony Guoga in heads-up play to earn the victory and a spot in the playoffs. Also at stake was the final table chip lead, as Andy Black and Tony Guoga were looking for the points to give them the chip lead.
The last match in the preliminaries saw Dave Ulliott, Tony Guoga, Andy Black, Phil Hellmuth, Juha Helppi, and Roland de Wolfe seated at the table. Roland de Wolfe could guarantee himself a spot at the final table and send Marcel Lüske into the playoffs if he could earn just one point. It was not to be, though, as Phil Hellmuth moved all-in with [Qd][10c] and de Wolfe made the all-in call with [As][8h]. The flop came down [9c][6c][2h]. Hellmuth got more outs when the turn came down [3c], as Phil could now make a pair or a flush to knock out de Wolfe. The river card [Jc] gave Phil the flush and sent Roland de Wolfe to the rail with no points. Marcel Lüske was now in the final table, while Roland de Wolfe would have to fight it out in the playoffs.
Andy Black would be the next player to head to the rail, exiting after he moved all-in with [As][4c] and was called by Dave Ulliott who held [Js][Jh]. Black needed an ace and would not get one on a board of [Kh][Qd][3s][3h][Jd], while Ulliott’s hand improved to a full house on the river jack. Black was eliminated, guaranteeing that Tony Guoga would hold the chip lead at the final table.
Juha Helppi started the day in the same situation as Dave Ulliott: win or go home. Helppi would be forced to go home after he finished in fourth place. Ulliott pushed all-in and Helppi called with [Qs][5h] only to see Ulliott reveal [As][Kh]. The flop came [8c][6d][3d], no help for Helppi. The turn of [7c] and the river of [Js] sealed Helppi’s fate, as the two points he earned were nowhere near enough for him to make the playoffs.
Phil Hellmuth would have his best finish of the tournament went it didn’t matter, as he was already mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Hellmuth got all his money in preflop with [Kh][3c] and face Dave Ulliot’s [Qd][7d]. The flop came down [10s][8s][5d], a good flop for Hellmuth. However, the turn dropped the [Qc] onto the board, giving Ulliott the lead. After the river card came down [Jc] Hellmuth was gone in third place.
Heads-Up play commenced between Dave Ulliott and Tony Guoga, with Ulliott needing the win to make the playoffs. On the final hand Ulliott got to see a free flop with [4c][2c], as Tony merely called with his [Jh][9s]. The flop came down [10c][9c][3h] and both players checked. The [5c] fell on the turn, giving Ulliott his flush. Ulliott moved all-in and Tony made the call, only to see that he was drawing dead. The river was the [10d] and Ulliott had won the match and the nine points he needed to make the playoffs and send Vicky Coren home.
The preliminaries had ended, with Tony Guoga, Andy Black, Alex Kravchenko and Marcel Lüske making the final table. Roland de Wolfe, Annie Duke, Eddy Scharf and Dave Ulliott would have to play in best-of-5 heads-up matches to see which two made the final table. The last four in the standings, Vicky Coren, Juha Helppi, Ian Frazer, and Phil Hellmuth were heading home.