Event #1: $500 Casino Employees No-Limit Hold'em
Day 1 Started
2010 World Series of Poker
Event #1: $500 Casino Employees No-Limit Hold'em
Day: 1
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2010 World Series of Poker
Buy-in
$500
Prize Pool
$324,450
Entries
721
Level
22
Blinds
15,000 / 30,000
Ante
4,000
Welcome to the 2010 World Series of Poker!
PokerNews' Live Reporting team would like to warmly welcome you to our exclusive coverage of the 2010 World Series of Poker! For the next seven weeks, our staff will be working away tirelessly to bring you all of the action directly from the tournament floor, and we couldn't be happier to provide you with live updates for all the bracelet events.
For many people in the world it's just another day, but for the entire community of poker players and fans, May 28, 2010 marks the start of the greatest tournament series in the world. This year, the 2010 WSOP kicks off with the Casino Employees event. A bracelet event once again this year, the $500 buy-in event will see casino employees from all over the world take to the felt in hopes of completing the WSOP dream. Last year, Andrew Cohen conquered the field of 866 players to take home the $83,778 first-place prize and the first gold bracelet of the summer.
This year, the start of the WSOP has been moved from the Amazon Room to the Pavilion across the hall. This room is filled with a sea of tables as far as the eye can see. To get straight to the point, it puts the Amazon Room to shame.
With that said, let's get things rolling. Shortly the Casino Employees event will have the cards in the air. Stay tuned!
Level: 1
Blinds: 25/50
Ante: 0
Shuffle Up and Deal!
Tournament Director Jack Effel gave the traditional announcement to "Shuffle up and deal," to kick off the first event of the 2010 World Series of Poker. There was no celebrity starter or Hall of Fame player to kick things off this year; instead, Effel let the dealers and casino employees do the honor of giving themselves the opening command in full unison.
The dealer button will start in Seat 10.
Camaraderie Abound
There seems to be a high level of camaraderie on the tournament floor as many of the players are saying "hello" and high fiving other players and dealers. Jack Effel is even making the rounds wishing the players luck. Although you do see this a good amount of camaraderie amongst poker players, it is definitely heightened in this event as many of the players in the event know the dealers and other staff members on the floor. Many others even know a player or two at their table from their job.
Jerry Yang Spotted in the Crowd
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2007's World Series of Poker Main Event winner Jerry Yang was seen at Table 67 saying hello to John Stewart, the poker room manager at Tachi Palace in Lemoore, CA.
Before leaving, Yang wished "Good luck everybody."
Notables in the Field
A few notable players have been spotted taking part in today's kickoff event.
Tournament guru Jack McClelland is seated at Table 20, Seat 7. Meanwhile, Anthony Yeh, who recently had two final-table runs at the 2010 Caesars World Series of Poker Circuit event is seated at Table 25, Seat 4.
Also spotted were Kyle Morris and Rachel Davis. Davis works over at the Bellagio where she "pitches cards and pushes pots" during the night shift most of the time. She is also the daughter of Michael Davis who won the Seniors World Championship event last year.
Jack McClelland Having a Laugh
With there being a shortage of notable personalities at the Casino Employees Event, the other players at Jack McClelland's table took note of the media coverage around their table. A player at Seat 1 asked, "Excuse me sir, are you famous?"
McClelland paused for a moment before replying, "Well, I'm old."
The table had a quick laugh before McClelland shared that his occupation is Tournament Director at the Bellagio.
Wilmot is All Set
When we arrived at Table 60 in the Pavilion Room the dealer had already flopped 
in a raised pot.
Matthew Wilmot checked and so too did an opponent in middle position. A player on the button bet 600 and both Wilmot and the middle-position player called.
All three players checked the 
on the turn, but after the 
fell on the river Wilmot led for 800. Only the middle-position player called and Wilmot rolled over 
for a winning set of deuces.
"That river cost me money I think," Wilmot quipped as he stacked his winnings. He has reason to smile though, he now sits with over 8,000 in chips.
Photo Gallery
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