$2,700 Main Event
Day 1b Completed
2023 Potomac Winter Poker Open
$2,700 Main Event
Day: 1b
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1b
2023 Potomac Winter Poker Open
Buy-in
$2,700
Entries
533
Level
31
Blinds
125,000 / 250,000
Ante
250,000
Entries
310
Players Left
58
Benjamin Foster Tops Day 1b Field of Event #11: $2,700 Main Event
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
Following 15 levels of play on day 1b of Event #11: $2,700 Main Event at the Potomac Winter Poker Open, 58 players survived from an initial field of 310. Leading those 58 players is Benjamin Foster who span his starting stack up to an impressive 723,500. That was a fair amount more than his nearest competitor, Sung Lee (645,500). Hal Rotholz rounds out the top three on 516,000.
Several notable players were able to navigate their way through the day's play, including WSOP bracelet winner Justin Liberto (363,500), 2022 GPI POY Stephen Song (320,000) and WSOP bracelet winner Lara Eisenberg (167,000).
Well known players to enter but not find a bag include 2015 WSOP Main Event champion Joe McKeehen, poker pro Joey Weissman and WSOP bracelet winner Yaser Al-Keliddar.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| RANK | PLAYER | COUNTRY | CHIP COUNT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Benjamin Foster | United States | 723,500 |
| 2 | Sung Lee | United States | 645,500 |
| 3 | Hal Rotholz | United States | 516,000 |
| 4 | Jacob Hershey | United States | 477,500 |
| 5 | Vincent Pahuja | United States | 461,000 |
| 6 | Ryan Eriquezze | United States | 428,500 |
| 7 | Joseph Lebrun | United States | 420,000 |
| 8 | Phong Nguyen | United States | 409,500 |
| 9 | David Frutchev | United States | 408,000 |
| 10 | Christopher Brown | United States | 388,500 |
The 58 survivors from day 1b will combine with the 41 players from day 1a on Sunday, February 5th at 12 p.m. at which point play will continue until just six players remain. Be sure to stay tuned as the PokerNews live reporting team provides comprehensive coverage of Event #11: $2,700 Main Event at the Potomac Winter Poker Open.
End-of-Day Chip Counts
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
723,500 | 723,500 |
|
645,500 | 645,500 |
|
516,000 | 53,500 |
|
477,500 | 327,500 |
|
461,000 | 461,000 |
|
|
428,500 | 428,500 |
|
409,500 | 174,500 |
|
|
408,000 | 408,000 |
|
388,500 | 388,500 |
|
|
364,500 | 364,500 |
|
363,500 | 363,500 |
|
|
351,500 | -98,500 |
|
|
348,000 | 348,000 |
|
343,000 | 343,000 |
|
|
338,000 | 338,000 |
|
|
336,500 | 336,500 |
|
|
336,000 | 336,000 |
|
|
331,000 | 331,000 |
|
327,000 | 327,000 |
|
|
326,000 | 326,000 |
|
320,000 | 320,000 |
|
|
308,000 | 308,000 |
|
|
302,500 | 302,500 |
|
302,000 | 302,000 |
|
|
300,500 | 300,500 |
End of Play
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
Play has concluded for the night. Stay tuned for a full chip count from the field and a recap of the day to follow shortly.
Last Five Hands
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
The tournament director just announced that each table will deal five more hands before the remaining players bag for the night.
Filippone Empties Clip
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
John Filippone opened to 16,000 from early position and received a single call from Michael Dentale on the button.
Filippone continued for 25,000 after the flop came 
and Dentale instantly called.
There would be no slowing down for Filippone on the 
turn as he sized up a second barrel to 75,000. Again, almost as soon as Filippone's chips crossed the betting line, Dentale made the call.
Barely had the 
river hit the felt before Filippone announced he was all in. Dentale seemed frustrated with the river card, saying 'you went runner-runner on me, it's insane'. Eventually he tossed his cards into the muck and Filippone, with a 'I didn't need the river', flipped over 
for the turned straight.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
450,000 | 115,000 |
|
135,000 | 70,000 |
Prizepool and Payouts Confirmed
Level 15
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
The tournament staff how now released prizepool and payout details. A total of 531 entrants generated a prizepool of $1,274,400 that will be divided amongst the top 54 finishers. Everyone who makes it into the money is guaranteed a minimum of $5,098 with $277,053 and the title of main event champion set to head the eventual winner's way.
Level: 15
Blinds: 3,000/6,000
Ante: 6,000
Hijar Outraces Weissman
Level 14
: Blinds 2,500/5,000, 5,000 ante
Joey Weissman opened to 10,000 from under the gun and faced a three-bet to 32,500 from J Hijar out of the small blind. Weissman responded by moving all in with the covering stack. Hijar promptly called to put himself at risk.
J Hijar: 
Joey Weissman: 
Hijar was locked in the most classic of races for his tournament life but found no help on the 
flop. The 
turn did give him a wheel draw and, with one card between himself and elimination, Hijar opted to use his one time. That seemed to be a good decision as the 
rolled off the deck on the river to improve Hijar to a wheel and hand him a huge double late in the day. Weissman, meanwhile, could only watch as a good portion of his stack was shipped across the table.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
255,000 | 255,000 |
|
215,000 | 215,000 |
Filippone Continues to Build Stack
Level 14
: Blinds 2,500/5,000, 5,000 ante
A player opened to 10,500 on the button and was called by John Filippone out of the small blind as well as the big blind player.
Action checked through the 
flop to the 
turn at which point Filippone led out for 25,000. That bet alone was enough to force folds from both of his opponents to keep Filippone, who earlier eliminated Joe McKeehen from the tournament, chipping up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
335,000 |