£220 Opening Event
Day 1a Completed
2016 888Live Poker Festival London
£220 Opening Event
Day: 1a
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2016 888Live Poker Festival London
Buy-in
£220
Level
30
Blinds
100,000 / 200,000
Ante
30,000
Fletcher Leads after Day 1a of £100,000 Guaranteed 888 Poker London Live Opening Event
Level 13
: 2,000/4,000, 400 ante
After 13 exciting levels of poker and 176 total entries, London-based poker professional Arron Fletcher leads the Day 1a chip counts after a final couple of levels even he may not have seen coming. Determined to visualise the chip lead from two hours before the end of play, Fletcher went on the attack and got the ultimate reward.
Winning huge pots with a flopped set of fives may sound like a fortunate way to grab the lead but in truth, Fletcher hardly put a foot wrong, hero-calling twice in earlier levels to set up that late rally. He ended the day marginally ahead of Graham Hawkes, whose stack only ever seemed to build level on level. The British pair finished some distance ahead of Gary Dallison, who ended the day third of the remaining 24 players who have booked Day 2 seats.
Among the survivors are some big names. Chaz Chattha (180,500) will be confident of adding to his $1 million+ in live tournament winnings, while experienced Londoner Joe Grech (161,000) wont be behind in his ambitions. Ali Zinhi (141,000) led the way for some time before ending with a very playable stack. We lost players such as Teddy Sheringham, Jai Patel and Renee Xie, but others such as Paul Whyman (260,000) will roar into Sunday's final hopeful of lifting the trophy!
Join us on Friday at 6pm for the second flight as Day 1b kicks off at Aspers Casino in Stratford!
End Of Day 1a Chip Counts
Level 13
: 2,000/4,000, 400 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
535,000 | 10,000 |
|
515,000 | 24,000 |
|
298,500 | 68,500 |
|
260,000 | -10,000 |
|
|
220,500 | 162,700 |
|
|
217,000 | |
|
|
212,500 | |
|
180,500 | -9,500 |
|
|
161,000 | -84,000 |
|
|
153,500 | |
|
|
149,500 | |
|
|
149,000 | |
|
|
146,500 | |
|
141,000 | |
|
|
116,500 | |
|
|
103,500 | |
|
|
102,000 | |
|
|
83,000 | |
|
|
81,500 | |
|
|
71,000 | |
|
|
67,500 | |
|
63,500 | |
|
|
49,500 |
Fletcher on Top as Day 1a Ends
Level 13
: 2,000/4,000, 400 ante
He's dominated plenty of the action throughout Day 1a, so perhaps it is fitting that Arron Fletcher sits at the top of the chip counts as the day ends. The under the gun player made it 10,000 and Fletcher was one of two callers, himself holding 
.
The flop of 
saw Fletcher hit top set, and when he checked, another player shoved all-in with pocket nines. An easy call for Fletcher and he rode out turn and river to finish with over half a million chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
525,000 | 281,000 |
Hawkes Hunts Down Dumitrascu to Take Lead
Level 13
: 2,000/4,000, 400 ante
It is highly unlikely that anyone else will have the chip-lead other than Graham Hawkes. Fresh from a shoulder massage, the British player has skittled another hopeful's chances of making Day 2 and added fresh chips to what is becoming a humungous stack.
All-in with 
, Catalin Dumitrascu was racing against Hawkes' 
, but fell behind on the flop of 
. He never caught up through the 
turn or 
river, so bows out with just a few hands left, as players are informed of the bagging procedure. We're that close to Day 2 and will have a full chip count for you as soon as dealers and tournament staff confirm the numbers.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
491,000 | |
|
|
Busted |
Grech the Great
Level 13
: 2,000/4,000, 400 ante
London legend Joe Grech is up to chip leader after a great call on the river of a board showing 
after his opponent had bet pre and post-flop, checked turn then piled 80,000 all-in on the river with 
. Grech called with just 
.
"I didn't think the way he bet then checked that turn he had anything at that point. So I had to call the river."
It still took guts to make a call that table-mate says is 'the reason Joe Grech is Joe Grech.'
Admiration from the table and the chip lead. If Joe Grech thought things couldn't get any better...well, he was right.
In the next hand, he called Chattha's pre-flop button-raise to 7,000 from the small blind along with big blind, Paul Tirnovean. All three players checked to the river on a board of 
but that was when the blue touch paper was well and truly lit.
Grech led for 18,000, but Tirnovean raised to 52,300. Chattha got out of the way, but Grech called, turning over 
.
The rivered straight... but it was behind! Tirnovean turned over 
for the higher straight. He gets near Grech's lead, but not quite. What a couple of hands!
On an outer table, Arron Fletcher is playing his way into contention for the overnight lead, just 1,000 chips behind Grech. The London circuit pro is approaching a quarter-mill himself after running over his table for the last hour or so.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
245,000 | 245,000 |
|
|
244,000 | 34,000 |
|
|
230,000 | 230,000 |
Level: 13
Blinds: 2,000/4,000
Ante: 400
Fletcher Finds It
Level 12
: 1,600/3,200, 400 ante
Arron Fletcher called Kam Kamara's raise pre-flop to 7500. Kamara (pictured) was on the button and Fletcher in the small blind.
On the flop of 
, Kamara made it 14,000 and saw Fletcher raise to 34,000. Kamara raised all-in and Fletcher called it off, turning over the flush draw with 
. Kamara held and needed to hold. The turn brought no danger, but on the river of , Kamara's hand was flushed away. Fletcher builds to 210,000 and Kamara drops to 42,000.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
210,000 | 155,500 |
|
|
42,000 | -63,000 |
Patel Out Before Final Level
Level 12
: 1,600/3,200, 400 ante
Jai Patel told us how he departed Day 1a on his way out of the 888Poker London Live poker room.
"I moved all-in with A-J under the gun and the table chip leader called with A-K."
Jai will hopefully be back tomorrow, where he'll be looking to get through to Day 2 like many places who have departed. We've already lost such players as Enzo Del Piero, Irina Nikolaidi, Teddy Sheringham and Mohammed Suhail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Busted |
Level: 12
Blinds: 1,600/3,200
Ante: 400