Event 57 - $10,000 World Championship No Limit Hold'em Day 1a | 2009 World Series of Poker

07-03-2009 06:21 UTC-12

The Main Event Approaches

[user33020]

Could Jeffrey Lisandro win a record fourth bracelet in a single year?

We're less than an hour away from the start of Day 1a action in the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, live from the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

It will be a short while before players are admitted to the Amazon Room, as tournament staff continues with last-minute preparations for the event. It's as yet unknown whether the Day 1a turnout will overflow into the Brasilia or Miranda rooms, but will likely occupy much or all of the available space in Amazon. Last year's Day 1a turnout was the smallest by far of the four opening sessions, and was not indicative of the overall turnout for the event. Nonetheless, well over a thousand players are expected to be on hand when play begins in just less than an hour.

Tags: 2009 WSOP Main Event

07-03-2009 07:06 UTC-12

Let's Go!

[user66118]

After a slew of introductions and announcements from Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack and Tournament Director Jack Effel, we're all set for the kickoff of Day 1a.

The Main Event bracelet is out on the podium for all to see, and with their goal fixed firmly in sight, the players look ready to go. Sasquatch is ready to go too, and the Jack Link's mascot had the honor of uttering the most famous words in poker. With a grunt came the, "Shuffle up and deal," and the Main Event is underway!

We're playing four levels today. Good luck, players!

Level: 1

Blinds: 50/100

Ante: 0

07-03-2009 07:08 UTC-12

How Things Got Kicked Off

[user75032]

We had some lengthy introductory remarks from Tournament Director Jack Effel. He thanked the fans, the players and everyone that's here.

"Without you this would not be possible," said Effel. He also made sure to thank the tournament staff and dealers who work so hard to ensure that everything goes as smoothly as possible.

In addition to the litany of pro forma remarks that Effel makes before the start of each tournament, Effel announced a promotion sponsored by Jack Link's Beef Jerky that will run during the Main Event. Every time a player gets four-of-a-kind jacks, that player will win a Jack Link's prize pack valued at $100.

07-03-2009 07:11 UTC-12

Cash?

[user108095]

While Day 1a action has taken over most of the Amazon Room, it hasn't overrun every table in the room.

Over in the red section, we're starting the day with about 40 tournament tables and about 10 cash games, just to keep things interesting.

07-03-2009 07:14 UTC-12

Early All in for Ray Masters

[user111541]

Ray Masters raised to 300 from the cut off and the small blind reraised to 1,000. The big blind smooth called and Masters moved all in for 30,000.

The small blind tanked for about two minutes before releasing his hand. The big blind mucked quickly and Masters took down the pot.

Tags: Ray Masters

07-03-2009 07:24 UTC-12

A Few Faces

[user66118]

Everyone's favorite foil Brad Garrett is with us here in the Blue section, though there's no sign of his funnyman counterpart Ray Romano just yet.

On the pro side of things, we have Jennifer Tilly, Ludovic Lacay, George Danzer, Davidi Kitai, Ciaran O'Leary, Antony Lellouche, and Thayer Rasmussen all within eyeshot.

Over on the main featured table, Eli Elezra is basking under the warm glow of the TV lights. We hear that Lex Veldhuis is slated to join that table, but there is still a seat empty over there. And on the other side of the Jack Link's Lounge, we find double bracelet winner Greg "FBT" Mueller trying to work his three-peat magic against a table full of unknowns at the secondary featured.

07-03-2009 07:26 UTC-12

Brasilia Room Bodies

[user80015]

With only a handful of tables placed in the Brasilia Room, we still manage to find a few notables.

Billy Baxter, Keith Sexton, Chris Moorman, Peter Rho, Zac Fellows, Jena Delk and Anthony Harb have all made an appearance.

While Jamie Pickering, Kristian Lunardi and Aleks Brkovic are waving the flag for the Australian contingent.

07-03-2009 07:28 UTC-12

Orange Crush

[user75032]

In addition to a Jack Link's Beef Jerky Sasquatch character who is moving between the tables scratching his head, here's who we've spotted so far in the Orange section of the Amazon Room:

Jason Mercier
Erik Cajelais
Beth Shak
Ivo Donev
Raymond Rahme
Bryan Colin
Dewey Tomko
Jeff Williams
Phil Laak
Jason Potter
Anthony Nardi
Peter Hedlund
Nikolay Evdakov
John Phan
Dan O'Brien

You might remember that last year, Laak played all of Day 1 in a full-on prosthetic mask, concealing his identity and appearing to the world to be a much older man. Laak was not able to pull off a similar stunt this year. The 2009 edition of the WSOP Tournament Rules includes a new Rule 44, aka the "Phil Laak Rule". It states in relevant part:

Players may not cover or conceal their facial identity. Tournament officials must be able to distinguish the identity of each player at all times and may instruct players to remove any material that inhibits their identification or is a distraction to other players or tournament officials.

07-03-2009 07:28 UTC-12

Notable Players

[user108095]

Some of the notable players located in the red section of the Amazon Room include:

Gavin Smith
Tony G.
Jerry Yang
Isaac Haxton
Jason Alexander
C.K. Hua
Shawn Keller
Sandra Naujoks