The WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas zipped previous its promised $15 million assured prize pool with one other Day 1 beginning flight nonetheless on the horizon.
On Tuesday, a complete of 1,053 gamers paid the $10,400 purchase in to compete, which introduced the general tally as much as 1,668, making a pot so far of $16,346,400. If ever there was any doubt simply how excited the poker neighborhood was for this winter excessive curler, these have been put to relaxation.
Acquainted names equivalent to Chris Moneymaker, Mike Matusow, Joey Ingram, Maria Ho and Darren Elias got here to play some playing cards on Day 1b. Registration closed round 7 p.m. PT for the second beginning flight with Day 1c to start Wednesday at 11 a.m.
All these massive title professionals could not maintain tempo with Aryan Oliveira, who ended the session with the biggest stack at 1,551,000 thanks to an enormous heater within the ultimate few fingers. Justin Bonomo bagged the Day 1a chip lead at 1,011,000, effectively behind Oliveira’s tempo.
Huge Identify Execs Come and Go
Dan Smith bagged a monster stack on Day 1b.
The ten-level (60 minutes per degree) session started at 11 a.m. and did not wrap till round 12:30 p.m. Tuesday evening. Quite a few expert professionals and poker celebs got here and went because the day progressed.
Simply a number of the gamers who purchased in for Day 1b however left empty-handed embody Brian Rast, Jamie Kerstetter, Kathy Liebert, Phil Hellmuth, Vince Van Patten, and a pair of PokerNews workers, Jesse Fullen and Chad Holloway.
There have been 450 survivors who will advance to Day 2 on Thursday, none of whom got here even remotely near matching the large stack of Oliveira. Actually, the closest competitors from Day 1b was Andrew Crookston, who ended with 879,000, or about 176 massive blinds.
Dan Smith, who ended his reign because the “finest with out a WSOP bracelet” this previous summer time, completed among the many prime 5 chip stacks at 748,000.
WPT World Championship Day 1b Prime Chip Counts
| 1 | Aryan Oliveira | 1,551,000 |
| 2 | Andrew Crookston | 879,000 |
| 3 | Gin Tillman | 825,000 |
| 4 | Nick Yunis | 782,000 |
| 5 | Dan Smith | 748,000 |
Enjoyable-Crammed Day Past the Poker
Gamers had been handled to a particular presentation earlier than Stage 5 serving to rejoice the WPT’s twentieth anniversary. World Poker Tour CEOAdam Pliska launched an incredible on-stage efficiency which commenced with the jugglers of the present Absinthe, a efficiency by The Drumbots, ending with 10 WPT Passports given away to fortunate gamers within the match that can be utilized to enter future WPT occasions.
Every participant wore a bracelet that glowed, as did the sellers, and when the giveaway commenced, every supplier whose bracelet glowed crimson dealt playing cards to their desk, with the excessive hand successful the Passport.
And as an added deal with, WPT ambassador Doyle Brunson, the “Godfather of Poker,” made a particular look to announce “shuffle up and deal”. .
*Photos courtesy of WPT.
Christina Bradfield
Editor
Christina is a Las Vegas-based freelance author who found poker on the age of twelve. She’s been a contributor to PokerNews since 2022.
