Day 1 Concludes
The first day of action in the $25,000 High Roller Freeze-Out has come to an end here at the 2010 Full Tilt Poker Merit Cyprus Classic. Plenty of big names packed the small 36-player field and provided some great action for all of us. When the clock was officially ended for the night, 24 players remained.
Although the event started an hour late, it was well worth the wait. Phil Ivey graced us with his presence. He showed up late to the event and left early, but nothing can top having Ivey in the tournament. Along with him, top pros David Benyamine, Jon Turner, Sorel Mizzi, Carter Phillips, Andrew Feldman and Sam Trickett also took to the felt. All of them made it through to Day 2, but Chino Rheem and Erik Cajelais were amongst the few casualties that hit the rail.
Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi was also on hand, fresh off his amazing summer at the WSOP. His WSOP has yet to come to a conclusion as he awaits the Main Event final table in November and he was joined here in this event by two fellow November Niners. Both John Dolan and Filippo Candio were on hand, with Dolan showing up towards the very end of the night. Both are still alive in the event, keeping all three of the WSOP Main Event final table players in contention.
Play will resume tomorrow at 5:00 pm, an hour late than originally scheduled. We'll see you then for all the live coverage right here on PokerNews.