EVENT #6 - MERNONE, 3RD

3rd, Wayne Mernone - $30,212

After a long 25 hours of play over two days, Wayne Mernone (Lawrenceville, NJ) is happy, but not thrilled.

"They were grinding me down," he says after finishing third in the 1k tournament. "I just didn't play well at the end."

Mernone is most disappointed in his final hand after shipping his last 700k to Alex Santiago. Both players see a flop of [K J 4], which Santiago bets. Mernone reraises all-in and Santiago calls.

Mernone turns over (8 9) and is way behind Santiago's (K 6). "I wish I would've played it differently," Mernone says. "I figured if he didn't connect on the flop he'd go away."

Mernone collects $30,212 for third place and takes away invaluable experience. "These guys played great. I enjoyed it."

Santiago begins heads-up play with 3.3 million chips and has a 3-1 chip lead over Bob Hwang.

Level 23 continues (20k/40k/4k ante).