On Tuesday, the World Series of Poker on ESPNrolled on with the Circuit National Championship. The tournament took place at Harrah’s New Orleans and featured well over 100 poker hopefuls vying for the first U.S. WSOP bracelet awarded in 2013. PocketFives joined the coverage when four players remained.

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To start off the second hour of coverage, which began at 10:00pm Eastern Time, Max Steinbergmade a hero call with jack-high on a board of 9-6-5-K-9 against Jonathan ballallday12Hilton, who had flopped a set of fives. Hilton scooped 1.1 million in chips, causing ESPN poker commentator Norman Chad to remark, “What could [Steinberg] beat? If Hilton had two traffic tickets, he had a better hand.”

As a result, Hilton held 54% of the chips in play, while Steinberg shed one-quarter of his stack. ESPN commentator Lon McEachern called Steinberg’s play “the call heard round the poker world.”

It didn’t take long for Steinberg to rebound, however. Brock t soprano Parker was all-in before the flop with A-4 and up against Steinberg’s A-8. The better pre-flop hand held when the board peeled off 9-8-3-2-10 and Parker was busto in fourth place. Steinberg, with 9-7, then bluff-shoved all-in on a board of 8-A-10-2-K and prompted Hilton, who had K-Q for second pair, to lay his hand down.

Robert Panitch was the next to go after his 8-7 of clubs could not find a flush. Panitch, the elder statesman of the table, was all-in on a flop of 4-K-A with two clubs and Hilton looked him up with A-9. A heart and a spade completed the board and the last 20 minutes of the ESPN episode were dedicated to heads-up play between Hilton and Steinberg.

Hilton (pictured) drew first blood. Steinberg pushed all-in on a flop of 4-K-10 with J-9 and Hilton called for his tournament life with 10-8 for second pair. The board ran out 5-2 and Hilton doubled up. Chad described Hilton’s call as “gutsy” and the momentum seemed to be entirely in Hilton’s corner.

At the end of the two hours of coverage on ESPN, Steinberg bet 275,000 with 9-7 on a board of K-10-8 and Hilton, who held K-10 for top two pair, called. The turn was an ace and Steinberg moved all-in. Hilton came along after a few seconds of deliberation as an 82% favorite to take down a WSOP bracelet and came through when the river was a meaningless deuce.

Next Tuesday, the 2013 WSOP Main Event will begin airing at 9:00pm Eastern Time on ESPNstarting with Day 3. You can catch this year’s November Nine on November 5.

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