Among the players seat at the tables for the start of play: Australian tournament legend James Obst. Obst has been beating some of the biggest games online for years and has made his mark with strong World Series of Poker results the past couple of years. He's certainly a player to keep an eye on here in his home country as this event unfolds.
Just like yesterday, Joel Williams welcomed players to the second starting flight of the 2018 Aussie Millions Main Event.
"The international contingent seems to arrive far earlier each and every year, and your continued patronage, particular with other offerings around the world, is particularly appreciated. Most importantly, I'd like to thank our local players who are present day in day out every single day of the year, without whose support it would be impossible to put on an event like this.
"It's a 12-month project making the event look as good as it is and it exceeds expectations each and every year. We pride ourselves on giving every possible player, with every possible bankroll, every possible opportunity to get a seat in our event."
He then introduced Australian Rules football legend Adam Goodes. A two-time Australian Football League (AFL) Premiership winner with the Sydney Swans (2005 & 2012), as well as a two-time Brownlow medallist (2003 & 2006), awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the AFL during the home-and-away season.
Williams then asked Goodes if he had room in his trophy cabinet for an Aussie Millions bracelet.
"There certainly is!" replied Goodes. "As well as the cash, I wouldn't say no to that at all. I'm not a big fan of bracelets, but I can definitely make room for one that's for sure.
"The best thing about poker is the people you get to play against. I've been playing against some awesome professional poker players, but instead of sitting there in awe of them I've been watching and trying to learn. The biggest thing to learn is that you have to minimize your mistakes because if you make one on the big stage it'll cost you your stack!
"Good luck to all players. Dealers - shuffle up and deal!"
One flight down and two to go at the 2018 Aussie Millions $10,600 Main Event at the lovely Crown Melbourne.
After a day that saw over 200 players enter and just shy of 100 advance on to Day 2 here in Victoria, Australia. That puts the event right on pace to match last year's turnout of more than 700 runners.
Day 1b is set for a 12:30 p.m. kickoff. That means another lengthy day of seven levels, each lasting 90 minutes apiece. The day will see levels progress from 50/100 on to 300/600/100 like so:
Level
Small Blind
Big Blind
Ante
1
50
100
2
100
200
3
100
200
25
4
150
300
25
5
200
400
50
6
250
500
75
7
300
600
100
Players get 15-minute breaks after each level and a dinner break after Level 4.
Day 1a saw Lee Armstrong top the field with 165,400, while other notables advancing included David Gorr, Manny Stavropoulos, Mike Del Vecchio, Mel Judah, Benny Spindler, Jonas Lauck and Max Silver. We'll see if anyone can match Armstrong's total as Day 1b rolls through its ups and down.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for all of the live updates from Down Under.
