Event 31: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
Day 1 Started
2012 World Series of Poker
Event 31: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
Day: 1
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2012 World Series of Poker
Buy-in
$1,500
Prize Pool
$3,794,850
Entries
2,811
Level
32
Blinds
80,000 / 16,000
Ante
20,000
Event 31 About to Begin!
Welcome to our coverage of Event 31: $1,500 No Limit Hold'em! We are moments away from players hitting the felt to vie for the latest World Series of Poker gold bracelet.
Last year this event was able to attract an even 2,500 entrants and awarded a first place prize of $599,153. Last year's champion is the now two-time bracelet winner Andy Frankenberger. Frankenberger bested the field in last year's event to capture his first WSOP bracelet. Frankenberger seemingly had nowhere to go but up from there, as just last week he was able to defeat Phil Ivey heads up in Event 17: $10,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em to earn his second bracelet.
While we are sure that Frankenberger will return to the felt today to defend his title, he will be met by a number of skilled players and big name professionals. The $1,500 No Limit Hold'em events always have an eclectic turnout and the extreme field size means that anything can happen. That being said, while we expect a large number of players to show up for this event, the field will certainly be whittled down to a much smaller number by the end of the night as the players are playing a full eleven levels.
Be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for all of the updates as this massive event kicks off! Also be sure to check out our coverage of Event 28: $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em - Four-Handed as the final eight players compete for WSOP glory.
And if you need to brush up on strategy for large field tournaments like this one, be sure to check out our strategy page where Sarah Grant talks with William Reynolds about big field poker tournaments.
Level: 1
Blinds: 25/25
Ante: 0
Shuffle Up And Deal!
Level 1
: 25/25, 0 ante
Cards are officially in the air for Event 31: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em!
Holloway Doubles Immediately
PokerNews writer Chad "Birdshirt" Holloway has taken a day away from writing about poker to actually play in this tournament. It seems that good fortune has befallen Holloway already, as we caught up with him in the first ten minutes of the tournament staring at a board of 
against one opponent.
Holloway check-called a bet of 125 from his opponent and the 
came on the turn. Holloway checked once again and his opponent put out 275. Holloway raised to 600 only to find his opponent push out a re-raise to 1,375. Holloway made it 2,200 and his opponent moved all in. Holloway snap called and showed 
for a flopped full house. The 
completed the board and Holloway was able to double his stack immediately.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
9,000 | 4,500 |
Brasilia Room At a Glance
Here are some of the players that have been spotted with an initial pass through the Brasilia room.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 |
Level: 2
Blinds: 25/50
Ante: 0
Big Names in Past Main Events
Level 2
: 25/50, 0 ante
The Brasilia room is currently packed to the brim with players that are aggressively competing to become the next World Series of Poker champion. While winning an open event at the WSOP is one of the highest accolades possible within the poker world, everything seems to pale in comparison to the WSOP Main Event.
Currently seated in the Brasilia room are several players who have made it deep in the Main Event over the past few years. Here is a look at some of these players and their other achievements in poker:
Dutch Boyd - Boyd burst onto the poker scene back in 2003 when Chris Moneymaker astounded the world and defeated Sam Farha heads up at the WSOP Main Event. Boyd received much media coverage for his vivid personality during this tournament where he eventually finished in 12th place. Since then, Boyd has continued to hone his craft and currently sits on two WSOP bracelets. Boyd took down his first bracelet back in 2006 when he won a $2,500 Short Handed No Limit Hold'em event. Four years later, Boyd was able to conquer another field and win his second bracelet in 2010's Event #23: $2,500 Limit Hold'em / Six Handed. Boyd has had a successful 2012 so far, making deep runs in two Omaha events this year. Boyd recently had an 8th place finish in Event 26: $3,000 Pot-Limit Omaha
Martin Staszko - Staszko became the name on everyone's lips last year during the 2011 WSOP Main Event as he was the chip leader going into the final table. Staszko would eventually finish second to champion Pius Heinz, but that's probably something that you already know. What you may not know, however, is that Staszko had four cashes prior at the 2011 WSOP prior to finishing second in the Main Event. Staszko's astounding summer in 2011 has kept him on our list of players to watch and he already has one cash under his belt this year, finishing 116th in Event 21: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em
Matt Affleck - Affleck is known for making back-to-back deep runs in the Main Event in both 2009 and 2010. Affleck finished an impressive 80th place in 2009 and created quite a buzz about himself when he was able to top that in 2010. Affleck finished in 15th in the Main Event in 2010 when his pocket aces were cracked by eventual champion Jonathan Duhamel. This remains one of the most infamous hands in poker history and can be seen here.
More Names in Brasilia
We've spotted a few more notable names playing in Brasilia.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
4,500 | |
|
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 | |
|
4,500 |
Bonomo Loses a Little
We spied Justin Bonomo looking down at a board of 
and a bet of 300 from his opponent. Bonomo quickly tossed out a call and the irver brought the 
.
Bonomo's opponent checked to him and Bonomo checked right behind. His opponent tabled 
for two pair and Bonomo shot his hand straight at the muck.
Bonomo's is looking for more World Series of Poker success this year. Bonomo has already been able to lock up three cashes this year, most notably of which occurred a few days ago in Event 25: $1,500 Limit Hold'em Shootout. Bonomo was able to defeat his first table, earning him a cash. Bonomo then made it to heads up on Day 2 where, after a long and grueling match, he was eventually bested by Victor Ramdin.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
4,200 | -300 |