£888 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2023 888poker LIVE Coventry
£888 Main Event
Day: 1a
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1a
2023 888poker LIVE Coventry
Buy-in
£888
Prize Pool
£500,000
Entries
672
Level
29
Blinds
40,000 / 80,000
Ante
80,000
Entries
85
Players Left
17
Some River Magic Gives Ali Abdulzahra the Chip Lead on Day 1a of the 888poker LIVE Coventry Main Event
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
A brutal river card late in the night catapulted Ali Abdulzahra into the chip lead after Day 1a of the £888 888poker LIVE Coventry Main Event.
Elliott Panyi had moved all in for 110,000 with ace-king. Abdulzahra called with a dominated ace-queen. Panyi took a bigger lead when he flopped top pair as Abdulzahra was prepared to hand over the massive pot. But the river gave Abdulzahra a straight as he ended the night with 318,000 and leading the 17 players who will return for Day 2 on October 28.
Bhavin Khatri, winner of 888poker LIVE London last year, is in second place with 258,000 after winning a pot when he shoved with just a pair of fours on the river and got called by a pair of threes. Gary Miller, coming off a deep run in the EPT Cyprus Main Event just a few days ago, cracked a pair of aces with a set of sevens on his way to 171,000.
Teodor Evstratiev (252,000) and Greg Thomson (202,000) round out the top five, while Lukas Dimsa (156,000) and Abdullah Alshanti (152,500) also survived the day.
Day 1a Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ali Abdulzahra | United Kingdom | 318,000 | 106 |
| 2 | Bhavin Khatri | United Kingdom | 258,000 | 86 |
| 3 | Teodor Evstratiev | Bulgaria | 252,000 | 84 |
| 4 | Greg Thomson | United Kingdom | 202,000 | 67 |
| 5 | Gary Miller | United Kingdom | 171,000 | 57 |
| 6 | Lukas Dimsa | Lithuania | 156,000 | 52 |
| 7 | Glynn Owen | United Kingdom | 156,000 | 52 |
| 8 | Abdullah Alshanti | United Kingdom | 152,500 | 51 |
| 9 | Man Li | n/a | 115,500 | 39 |
| 10 | David Morris | United Kingdom | 114,500 | 38 |
A total of 85 entries entered the first of four starting flights into the Main Event. Day 1b begins tomorrow at noon local time, with action lasting an additional 14 40-minute levels. Day 1c is on October 27, followed by a turbo Day 1d flight later that night. The remaining players will then combine for Day 2 at 11 a.m. on Saturday, with late registration remaining open until the start of the day.
Plenty of British poker stars were playing the high roller in the Coventry Building Society Arena today and are likely to jump into tomorrow’s flight. They include 888poker Ambassador Ian Simpson, along with Carl Shaw, Niall Farrell, Dean Hutchison, and Ludovic Geilich. 888poker Ambassadors Lucia Navarro and Vivian Saliba are also poised to jump into the field during a later flight.
PokerNews will return tomorrow at noon for the second starting flight as another crop of hopefuls take their shot at capturing the 888poker LIVE title.
End-of-Day Chip Counts (full)
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
318,000
8,000
|
8,000 |
|
||
|
258,000
-2,000
|
-2,000 |
|
252,000
-58,000
|
-58,000 |
|
202,000
202,000
|
202,000 |
|
171,000
66,000
|
66,000 |
|
|
156,000
116,000
|
116,000 |
|
156,000
46,000
|
46,000 |
|
152,500
-17,500
|
-17,500 |
|
115,500
5,500
|
5,500 |
|
114,500
4,500
|
4,500 |
|
|
114,000
14,000
|
14,000 |
|
105,500
45,500
|
45,500 |
|
|
97,500
97,500
|
97,500 |
|
95,000 | |
|
90,500
10,500
|
10,500 |
|
|
84,500
-55,500
|
-55,500 |
|
|
63,500
63,500
|
63,500 |
Play Concludes
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Day 1a has ended with 17 players remaining out of the 85 who entered throughout the day.
Stay tuned for full chip counts and a recap of the day’s action.
Sambrook Gets Rivered on the Last Hand
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
On the last hand of the night, Jack Sambrook moved all in for 45,500 and was up against Chuc Khuu.
Jack Sambrook: 10♥10♠
Chuc Khuu: A♠2♠
Sambrook was ahead and poised for a double up as the board came 5♥9♦K♦9♣, but Khuu spiked the A♥ on the river to win the pot and send Sambrook to the rail right before bagging up for the night.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
95,000 | |
|
Busted |
Li Goes Racing Near the Finish Line
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Man Li moved all in for 51,000 from the hijack as action folded to big blind Abdullah Alshanti. "You wouldn't fold my hand," Alshanti said, showing A♦10♦ as he mucked.
Li moved all in again the next hand, this time for 58,000, and Teodor Evstratiev called in the cutoff.
Man Li: J♦9♦
Teodor Evstratiev: 4♦4♠
Li took the lead on the 9♣J♥5♦ flop with two pair, and the board ran out 10♣2♥ to secure him a double up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
310,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
|
110,000
-70,000
|
-70,000 |
Six More Hands
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Tournament officials have confirmed players will see six more hands on Day 1a before bagging up their chips for the night.
Toole Finds a Double on the River
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Anthony Toole was all in for around 35,000 from middle position and was up against Bhavin Khatri in the cutoff.
Anthony Toole: A♠9♠
Bhavin Khatri: A♥K♥
Khatri had Toole dominated heading to the 4♠6♥8♠ flop. The turn came the 7♦, but the 10♦ river gave Toole a straight and a double up.
"Hard to win that one," Khatri said as he surrendered the pot.
Stephen Barnes and Jamie Walden were the two latest eliminations approaching the end of Day 1a.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
260,000
-20,000
|
-20,000 |
|
|
80,000 | |
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted |
Miller Calls Down Evstratiev
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Heads-up in a blind versus blind battle, Teodor Evstratiev bet 5,000 on the 8♣Q♥2♣ flop and Gary Miller called.
The turn came the 4♦ and Evstratiev bet another 12,000. Miller called to the 7♦ river and checked over to Evstratiev again.
Evstratiev slowed down and checked this time. "Queen," Miller said, revealing he had top pair as Evstratiev instantly mucked.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
200,000
10,000
|
10,000 |
|
|
105,000
-45,000
|
-45,000 |
Brutal River Spells the End For Panyi
Level 14
: Blinds 1,500/3,000, 3,000 ante
Elliott Panyi had a three-bet to 19,500 in front of him from the small blind before Ali Abdulzahra four-bet to 40,000 in middle position. Panyi then moved all in for 110,000 and Abdulzahra snap-called.
Elliott Panyi: A♥K♠
Ali Abdulzahra: A♣Q♦
Panyi had Abdulzahra dominated and poised for the massive double up to join the ranks of the chip leaders as the flop came K♣9♣7♠, giving him top pair.
The turn was the J♠ and Abdulzahra had some hope with a straight draw. The 10♣ fell on the river and several cries of "Oh my God" arose from the table as Abdulzahra spiked his straight to send Panyi crashing out of the tournament.
"It happens. Good luck," Panyi said before making his exit.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
310,000
110,000
|
110,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
Busted | |