$600 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2016 Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam
$600 Main Event
Day: 1a
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2016 Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam
Buy-in
$550
Prize Pool
$252,106
Entries
475
Level
30
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
10,000
Joseph Elia Leads 34 Survivors of the Seneca Summer Slam Main Event's First Starting Flight
![[user127999]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
Level 15
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
The first of two starting flights for the 2016 Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam $600 Main Event was a wild one inside the Niagara Falls Poker Room on Friday.
The flight itself drew 184 entries, putting the event well on the way to smashing its $100,000 Guarantee with Saturday's second starting flight still to come.
By the time 15 levels were through, just 34 survived a roller coaster day.
Mike "The Mayor" Rellinger grabbed the early chip lead and then dusted that off in no time. He fired a second bullet and rose from the ashes again to bag a healthy stack.
The chip lead changed hands more times than it's worth counting, until suddenly, in a wild flurry at the end of the day, Joseph Elia (420,500) grabbed the overnight lead, getting in a 420,000-chip pot with queens versus aces and flopping quads to crack them.
Satellite qualifier Julie Billiteri also had a crazy end to the festivities, starting the 14th level with around 20,000 and running it all the way up to almost 400,000 over the next hour.
Sammy Iraci, Linda Hackney, David Paluch, and local hero Jason Nablo also bagged over 300,000.
All 34 survivors will return Sunday at 11 a.m. local time where they will be joined by those who push through Saturday's second starting flight to play down to a champion.
Tune in tomorrow at 11 a.m. local time for PokerNews' coverage of the second starting flight for the 2016 Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam $600 Main Event, because if today was any indication, it should be a humdinger.
End Of Day 1a Counts (full)
Level 15
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
420,500 | 500 |
|
396,000 | 221,000 |
|
336,000 | |
|
|
324,500 | |
|
|
312,500 | |
|
300,000 | 133,000 |
|
227,000 | 32,000 |
|
211,500 | |
|
201,500 | -48,500 |
|
|
182,000 | |
|
172,500 | 127,500 |
|
165,500 | -89,500 |
|
157,500 | -2,500 |
|
154,500 | |
|
154,000 | 79,000 |
|
153,500 | 13,500 |
|
153,000 | |
|
146,000 | -64,000 |
|
136,500 | 14,500 |
|
|
130,000 | |
|
121,500 | -18,500 |
|
|
121,000 | |
|
112,000 | |
|
103,500 | 16,500 |
|
83,500 | -16,500 |
Elia From Behind, With A Candlestick, In the Kitchen
Level 15
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
Jason Kanel made it 9,000 to go under the gun in the first of the last three hands to play. Joseph Elia fired back with a raise to 24,000 right behind him.
It folded back to Kanel and he bumped it to 79,000. Elia shoved for a bit more than 200,000 total and Kanel snap-called with the 
.
Elia had the 
and Kanel looked like a shoe-in to bag a massive chip lead and send Elia home until the flop fell 
, making Elia quad queens.
The turn and the river bricked and it's now Elia who looks like the favorite to bag the Day 1a chip lead as play wraps up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
420,000 | 240,000 |
|
|
160,000 | -140,000 |
More For Billiteri
Level 15
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
After bucking the odds to get back in it, Julie Billiteri kept it rolling.
She won a big pot flopping a flush, then had the chance to four-bet jam aces. Only the three-bettor called with 
, and aces held.
After being down to around 20,000, Billiteri is now a favorite to bag close to 200,000 with just a few hands left to play in the flight.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
175,000 | 95,000 |
Billiteri is Back!
Level 15
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
Underdog satellite qualifier Julie Billiteri got down to the wood, but found a way top buck the odds and triple up back in it just moments ago.
Nathan Kross made it 5,500, and Nick Walker called before Billiteri shipped it in for under 25,000.
The player to her left pushed in for a little more with the , and Kross called. Walker folded and Billiteri turned over the 
.
Kross also had the giving Billiteri a better shot at winning, and sure enough, the 
flop gave her two pair. The 
turn filled her up, and after an inconsequential river card, she was back to 80,000 and suddenly looking to bag again.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
80,000 | 15,000 |
Level: 15
Blinds: 1,500/3,000
Ante: 400
Action, Big Time
Level 14
: 1,200/2,400, 300 ante
There's been a massive shake-up at the top of the leaderboard after a huge hand went down at Table 9.
Joseph Elia made it 7,000 before the flop and both Dave Paluch and Paul McLean called to see a 
flop.
Elia bet 9,000 and both Paluch and McLean called to see the 
turn. Elia bet 23,000 and after Paluch called, McLean raised to 50,000. Elia and Paluch both called. The river was the 
, putting three nines on the board and after Elia checked, Paluch shoved in.
McLean and Elia both folded with Elia showing the 
. McLean claimed the 
and Paluch showed he had rivered the full house with the 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
260,000 | |
|
|
250,000 | 145,000 |
|
|
180,000 | -90,000 |
My Stacker Iraci In Front
Level 14
: 1,200/2,400, 300 ante
Sammy Iraci is not only the first player up to 300,000, he's closing in on 400,000 now, into the last two levels of the flight.
He dragged a 140,000-chip pot off Nathan Kross making a sixes full of threes and told PokerNews he's picked up a bevvy of 10,000-20,000-chip pots without showdown on the way to building the biggest stack in the room so far.
Iraci's also got the My Stack App run good going for him, updating his stack regularly right into the blog with the App, and taking advantage of the uncanny luck associated with doing so.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
381,000 |
Level: 14
Blinds: 1,200/2,400
Ante: 300