Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2006 | 1:50 a.m.
DAY: 11 (Officially known as Day 7)
BIG NEWS: Nine players remain in the hunt for poker's top prize of $12 million. Former Hollywood talent agent Jamie Gold eliminated six players on his way to 25.6 million in chips. The nearest competitor was four-time World Series bracelet winner Allen Cunningham with 17.8 million. Gold's mother, Jane, said her son had a way with numbers even at the early age of 2. "His grandfather was playing cards and wanted to show him off. And he says, 'Count to the people.' Jamie says, 'One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, jack, queen, king.'"
STUD OF THE DAY: David Einhorn, a 37-year-old hedge fund manager from New York, was knocked out in 18th place after his top pair of queens was sandbagged by Gold, holding two pair. The consolation prize: Einhorn said he's giving his $659,730 winnings to The Michael J. Fox Foundation to help cure Parkinson's. Einhorn serves on the foundation's board and said his grandfather suffered from the disease.
BUSTED OUT: Italian pro Jeffrey Lisandro in 17th for $659,730.
POKER TALK: Read: To surmise what another player has based on his previous actions, the size of the bet and any physical signs indicating strength or weakness. Prahlad Friedman said his powers of ESP clicked in when he surmised Gold had just a king when he bet at a pot, even telling him so, but was thrown off when Gold burst into histrionics. In the end, Gold flipped over an unpaired king and 10. "The read was absolutely incredible," said tournament supervisor Charles Ciresi.
UP NEXT: Wednesday is a day off. On Thursday, the nine players left will play off for a top prize of $12 million.
HE SAID WHAT?: "I thought he was doing like reverse-reverse bad acting. So I got all screwed up." - Friedman, a 28-year-old poker player from Los Angeles, who thought that when Gold confessed to a bluff that he was lying. Friedman folded the best hand, a pair of sevens, to Gold's ace-king high in a pot for 1.3 million in chips.
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