On Friday, July 5, the single-day attendance record for the WSOP Main Event had been shattered, with 4,900 entrants registering for the Day 1c flight.
2019 WSOP: Event #73: $10,000 NLHE MAIN EVENT
- Schedule: July 3 to July 16, 2019
- Venue: Rio All-Suites Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
- Buy-in: $10,000
This brings the total attendance so far to over 8,000, making it the second-highest number of Day 1 flight attendees in the history of WSOP.
With late registration still open until the start of the Day 2 flights scheduled this weekend, July 6 and 7, there's a possibility that this year's tournament could break the all-time record for Main Event participants. As of now, 8,773 is the record number of entrants who joined in the Main Event back in 2006.
Day 1c is probably the most eventful of all Day 1 flights this summer. While it's great news that the single day attendance record has been broken, there have been some odd happenings that went on as the day progressed: two players have been disqualified, an earthquake incident that shook the Rio casino, and the elimination of Phil Ivey within the first hour of play.
Day 1c saw James Henson as the chip leader of the pack, followed by Mike McDonald (306,300), Joshua Ray (304,200), Robert Kokoska (285,500) and Mamouni Mohamed (284,000).
Other players who survived Day 1c include WSOP bracelet winners Adam Friedman (263,100), Timur Margolin (197,400), Calvin Anderson (178,100), Joey Couden (170,300) and Josh Arieh (169,500). Josh Arieh just came off fresh from a 2nd place finish at the $50,000 Poker Players Championship (Event #58).
Here's a recap of all the Day 1 flights' chip leaders and number of attendees:
|
Flights
|
Chip Leader
|
Chips in the bag
|
No. of Entrants
|
|
Day 1a
|
Bryan Campanello
|
417,500
|
1,300+
|
|
Day 1b
|
Adam Owen
|
351,800
|
1,915
|
|
Day 1c
|
James Henson
|
316,100
|
4,900
|
Bryan Campanello is the overall chip lead from all of the Day 1 flights combined.
This brings the total number of 8,115+ entries for all Day 1 flights of the WSOP Main Event this year.
Ivey says Bye-Bye Early at the Main Event
In the first hour play, unfortunately and quite surprisingly, 10-time golden bracelet winner Phil Ivey got eliminated even before 1pm. He was looking for a spade for his nut flush draw that never came versus Jeffrey Chang's high two pair.
Two Players Got Kicked Out
Sometime after Phil Ivey got eliminated, there was a player sitting at the table of 2015 Main Event champ Joe McKeehen (picture below) who got disqualified from playing in the tournament. Georgii Belianin was kicked out of the premises after he reached and scooped up the chip stack of the player sitting beside him, which amazed and shocked others who saw the deed. WSOP Vice President Jack Effel escorted Belianin out of the Rio Convention Center after the incident.
In the opening minutes of Level 2, a player went all-in blind preflop, turning over Q3 offsuit before others could even make their move. He then turned around, dropped his pants and mooned everyone else at the table. He also took off his shoes and threw them, hitting a player in seat one. The man was quickly disqualified and escorted to the exit.
Earthquake Alert
Things seemed to go smoothly for some time after the above incidents happened, until an earthquake shook the halls of the Rio Convention Center for the second time around in two days. As the chandeliers and other fixtures of the Rio swayed prominently due to the 7.1 magnitude quake that went on for a few seconds, many players stood up from their tables and left their seats mid-hand. The quake caused significant panic that the WSOP officials quickly put the event on dinner break during Level 4, around 40 minutes ahead of the original schedule.
Those Who Made It
Despite the crazy events that happened on this flight, lots of poker action was seen in many tables. Former Main Event champs who participated in this year's Main Event include Robert Varkonyi (2002), Jamie Gold (2006), Joe Cada (2009), Joe McKeehen (2015), and John Cynn (2018).
Other notable players who made it include partypoker ambassador Kevin Martin (220,600), Ali Imsirovic (102,500), Sam Greenwood (126,400), Matt Affleck (166,800), Leon Tsoukernik (167,200), and Garrett Adelstein (216,700).
The players who survived Day 1c shall then advance to Day 2c, which begins at 11am on July 7, Sunday.
Let's not forget about Day 2ab, which comprises of all the survivors of Day 1a and 1b in a combined field. It is scheduled on July 6, Saturday at 11am local time with participants scheduled to play five 2-hour levels. Those who will make it through the Day 2 flights shall then return for Day 3 on July 8, Monday at noon.
Source:
http://www.wsop.com/tournaments/updates/?aid=2&grid=1622&tid=17298&dayof=7651&rr=5
.Any news from WSOP main event always attractive , wish no more earthquake
