We just caught noted professional Blair Rodman walking by, presumably to take his seat as a late registrant in the tournament, and he quickly glanced at the TV screens overhead to assess the day's progress. After seeing that the starting field of nearly 2,200 runners has already been cut in half, in just four levels of play, Rodman broke into a grin that spoke volumes.
Many of poker's premiere players utilize the late registration process, or simply arrive during the third or fourth levels, to allow the amateur-heavy field some time to shrink. Rodman and the scores of other pros who are just now sitting down to play have already defeated half of the field without ever picking up a chip, and from the smile on Rodman's face as he passed, that was precisely the plan all along.
David Williams has had an up and down day all day, and after numerous double ups and losses, he has been eliminated. We came to the table when Williams and another player got all the money in preflop. Williams was in the lead, and was looking to hold to double up.
Williams:
Opponent:
The flop was safe for Williams, coming . But the turn was a dagger, coming the . The river was the , but one pair was not good enough to win, and Williams headed to the rail.
Cliff Lee raised to 375 before the flop and found one caller in the big blind. The flop came and both players tapped the table. After the fell on the turn, both players checked it around and a arrived on the river.
Lee's opponent led out for a bet of 875 and Lee reraised to 2,000. This prompted the opponent shove all-in for his last 4,000 and Lee snap-called with his for a flopped full house. The other player was stunned and turned over for a lesser full house made on the turn.
After being brought to down just 3,000 on a bad beat last level, Williams has doubled and has a little breathing room. In the hand, a player opened for 500 from the cutoff and Williams shoved his remaining 2,000 into the middle from the small. The original raiser asked for a count and called.
Williams:
Opponent:
The board ran out and ace-high was good for the double up.
[user197301]
Bernard Lee Has Built An Impressive Chip Stack Midway Through Day 1
After a player in middle position raised to 450 and the hijack called, Bernard Lee made the call as well. He was surprised when the player in the big blind announced a reraise, and shocked when he heard the amount of the bet. The big blind had shoved all-in for 5,375 and despite the massive overbet, Lee asked for a count and eventually decided to call the player down.
Showdown:
Lee:
Opponent:
Lee and his big slick were flipping against the opponent's pair of eights, and the coin fell in Lee's favor when he flopped a . This knockout padded his chip stack to just over 20,000 and Lee later told us that, in this type of tournament, a stack like his is one to be guarded and deployed with discretion.
Earlier we reported that Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier was knocked down to under 1,000, and now he has been eliminated. Grospellier put the last of his 850 in preflop, and action folded around to the big blind, who made the call.
Grospellier:
Big Blind:
Ali Eslami said he folded an ace, making the flop that much more burtal for Grospellier, as it came . The turn came the , and the river brought the , and Grospellier couldn't catch up, and he has been eliminated just in time to play the $2,500 No-Limit Holdem/Pot Limit Omaha at 5.
Phil Collins raised to 400 from middle position and a player holding the button three-bet for his last 725. Collins made the easy call and flipped up , which meant he was racing against his opponent's .
The flop was dry for Collins, coming and the turn of offered no help as well. Collins would need to spike a ten or a king on the river to eliminate the short-stacked player.
River:
With that, Collins had notched the win and sent a player to the rail. He pushed his stack to 14,200 with the knockout and has a healthy stack as we head to break.
After an opponent raised to 400 from the cutoff, Brandon Cantu reraised to 925 and the opponent called. The players saw a board of and checked it down the whole way.
Cantu showed down for a rivered pair of kings and his opponent mucked. The win pushed Cantu, who is most well-known for his deep run through the 2008 Main Event, to 6,000 chips as we head to break.
![[user197301]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
. But the turn was a dagger, coming the 
. The river was the 
, but one pair was not good enough to win, and Williams headed to the rail.
fell on the turn, both players checked it around and a 
arrived on the river.
and ace-high was good for the double up.
. The turn came the 
, which meant he was racing against his opponent's 
and the turn of 
offered no help as well. Collins would need to spike a ten or a king on the river to eliminate the short-stacked player.
and checked it down the whole way.
