Time flies when you're having fun! It seems like just yesterday that Event 1, the Employees event, kicked off and here we are today starting Event 14: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'emShootout already.
We've had Mixed-Max tournaments and we've had Heads-Up tournaments that had a scent of shootout to them but today is the pure thing. Ten players will line up at each table today and only one will progress. Do the same thing three days on the trot and you have yourself a bracelet.
Here's a look back at previous year's winners:
Year
Player
Prize
# of Entrants
2007
Donald Baruch
$264,107
900
2008
Jason Young
$335,565
1,000
2009
Jeff Carris
$313,673
999
2010
Steven Kelly
$381,927
1,397
2011
Andrew Badecker
$367,371
1,440
Play is due to start at 12:00 PM local time. Join the PokerNews team back here then.
Play got underway right on time. This is the poker world though, and such, is filled with poker players who are never on time. There are a lot of stacks being blinded away as they wait for their owners to turn up. Still there are some interesting tabled emerging already:
Team PokerStars Pros Daniel Nengreau and Jason Mercier have each other for company in the far corner.
Christian Harder, Shannon Shorr, and Mathew Frankland are situated at the table right in front of our desk.
Chris Moorman will need headphones to block out the ever chatty Rob Perelman.
Olivier Busquet, Stephen Chidwick and David "Doc" Sands make their table formidable.
Matt Wood and Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein face-off.
McLean Karr will know all about European heavyweights Annette Obrestad and Davidi Kitai after spending a lot of time touring the European tournament circuit.
Two two Jasons, Koon and Sommerville, will surely lock horns at some point.
There are players that come along every so often that capture the imagination of the poker public so much so that almost become demi-gods. We're talking about your Brunsons, Iveys, Negreanus, and now your Bloms.
Viktor "Isildur1" Blom was an online mystical like figure until he emerged from the shadows of laptops and entered the live scene. One of his signature moves is the huge river bet that piles pressure on opponents. The young kid from Sweden hasn't let us down today of that front.
We reached the table when Blom was heads-up to the river of a board and around 2,500 had made it into the middle. Blom's opponent checked to him and he moved all-in for 2,975. Standard.
His opponent made the call with for a set but it was no good versus Blom's for a rivered flush. "Nice hand."
"Thanks," returned Blom who's already up to 10,500.
Rupert Elder is sat two seats along from Blom and he looked at me and then looked at the heavens. He and David "Bakes" Baker, who is two more seats along, will not have an easy ride today.
Jason Mercier has more than doubled his stack already despite losing a pot just now. He raised to 50 from the button and bet 25 on a flop. The big blind called both times and then led for 75 on the river after both players checked the turn. Mercier called and mucked when shown . He has 7,200 chips.
Tom Middleton picked off a river bluff from an opponent on a board. Middleton's bettered his opponent's .
Ludovic Lacay couldn't shake off an opponent on a board. He bet 125 and 400 on the flop and turn before both players checked the river. His opponent opened and the Frenchman mucked whilst saying to us, "They'll never learn!"
board and around 2,500 had made it into the middle. Blom's opponent checked to him and he moved all-in for 2,975. Standard.
for a set but it was no good versus Blom's 
for a rivered flush. "Nice hand."
flop. The big blind called both times and then led for 75 on the 
turn. Mercier called and mucked when shown 
. He has 7,200 chips.
board. Middleton's 
.
board. He bet 125 and 400 on the flop and turn before both players checked the river. His opponent opened 
and the Frenchman mucked whilst saying to us, "They'll never learn!"
