Java, Alexander Survive Day 1b and Look to Continue Monster 2017s
The wee hours of Saturday night saw 38 players bag up to end Day 1b of WinStar River Poker Series $2,500 Main Event, and two of 2017's hottest players were among that number.
Nipun Java finished fourth in the counts with 362,000. He's already pushing toward $500,000 in cashes this year and has three major wins to his credit. He pocketed two bracelets at the World Series of Poker this year, first taking down the $1,000 Tag Team and then the $1,000 Online Championship for about $312,000 combined. He followed that up by topping a four-way chop in a 3,173-entry field in the $570 Deep Stack at Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open for $230,848.
The aces were good to Java on Day 1b. As the dinner break approached about midway through, he had about double the 25,000 starting stack and doubled that up with a set of bullets that he slowplayed, successfully inducing an opponent to turn second pair into an all-in bluff shove. Later, Java won another sizable pile in what looked to be a three-bet pot, taking it down against two players on a queen-high flop and obliging an opponent who begged to see the blades.
What DJ Alexander lacks in trophies compared to Java this year, he makes up for in cash. He has three six-figure scores, headlined by a monster $754,499 for a runner-up finish in the WSOP $1,500 Millionaire Maker. He also has two fourth-place scores, one just an hour down the road at WSOPC Choctaw and another just this week at WPT Legends of Poker in California.
PokerNews' own Valerie Cross profiled Alexander here.
What's more, the Houston native pledged five percent of that $161,490 Legends score to the disaster relief fund for his hometown. Java said via Twitter he'll be following suit here, and since the players who advance from Day 1 are in the money, that means more help for Houston has been assured.
Alexander finished in the middle of the pack with 197,000.
Everyone who bagged is looking up at Mo Khan, who wound up with 656,000 after a late heater that saw him flop a set of jacks against a player who flopped top pair with ace-queen and then win a sizable preflop all in with king-queen against king-jack.
Others advancing included 2017 bracelet winner Gaurav Raina (461,000), Patrick Eskandar (403,000), WPT Player of the Year Ben Zamani (275,000), Mike Dentale (252,000) and Brandon Steven (164,000).
Among those firing and bricking were Kevin Eyster, Anthony Spinella, Will Berry, Aaron Mermelstein, TJ Cloutier, Grant Hinkle and WinStar Ambassador Maria Ho. Overall, the flight drew 312 entries.
They'll all have one more chance to punch Day 2 tickets when Day 1c rolls around at noon Sunday. PokerNews will be providing more coverage of that final starting flight, so come right back here to see who makes it through to Monday.
with 
against Daniel Lu, who limped 
early. Spinella checked his big blind and flopped a straight, check-called a flop bet and got it in with one card to come for about 26,000 fading hearts. Unfortunately for the WSOP bracelet winner, the river brought the 
.
, no help to the WPT champ.
and all three players checked. The turn was the 
and the first player to act led for 8,000. Java called.
and Java's opponent led again, immediately going all in.
.
flop, TJ Thondup bet 1,800 against three opponents from early position. One player shoved all in for 23,625, giving a player on the button a long pause before he folded. Aaron Mermelstein snap-called it off for 22,025 in the big blind, and Thondup mucked.
hit. However, it followed a 
