Overall Standings
1. Phil Laak – 32 points
2. David Benyamine - 24 points
3. JC Tran – 17 points
4. Yevgeniy Timoshenko – 16 points
5. Giovanni Safina - 15 points
6. Roland De Wolfe – 14 points
7. Vanessa Rousso – 12 points
8. Ian Frazer – 10 points
9. Phil Hellmuth - 6 points
10. Tony G - 5 points
T-11. Luke Schwartz – 4 points
T-11. Daniel Negreanu – 4 points
There hasn't been a whole lot of change right away. Tony G did jump from the bottom ahead of Luke Schwartz and Daniel Negreanu, but Schwartz is guaranteed at least six points here so he'll be moving back ahead of Tony G shortly.
Safina has also locked up six points and will move ahead of Yevgeniy Timoshenko and JC Tran. Phil Laak and David Benyamine are sitting one and two at the moment and will be increasing their point totals and lead on the rest of the field. It'll be by a matter of how much now.
Schwartz seems to be the biggest beneficiary of the fourth heat so far. After earning only four points so far, he's already locked up six more and can jump to at least a tie with Ian Frazer, who holds ten points. Schwartz could move up to as high as fourth if Safina goes out next and Schwartz wins this heat.
Even though Benyamine and Laak have solid spots locked up already, the amount of chips each player starts with at the final table is directly related to how many points they earn in the preliminary heats. So, both those players will still be trying to max out their performances and get as many points as possible. They do have the ease of being able to loosen up a bit and not worry about going out anytime soon and coming up short.
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