Kal Raichura bagged up 68,100 to notch a slim chip lead over Konstantin Puchkov (65,800) here at the conclusion of Day 1 of Event #14: $1,500 Limit Omaha Hi-Low. Puchkov already has a World Series of Poker bracelet and more than $2 million in live cashes to his name, while the Canadian has $122,000 in cashes.
The winner of this one will take home $283,275 for outlasting a total field of 1,036 runners, a very slight increase over last year's field of 1,014, topped by Calen McNeil. McNeil returned to defend his title, and he had a very swingy day, ultimately gasping to the finish and bagging just 7,400. He'll certainly have his work cut out for him tomorrow.
Other notables bagging stacks included Eric Baldwin (43,000), George Danzer (39,300), Allen Cunningham (36,200), the legendary Phil Ivey (33,500), Stephen Chidwick (32,100), former WSOP Player of the Year Frank Kassela (31,600), Erik Seidel (29,600), David "Gunslinger" Bach (20,300), and former Main Event champion Greg Raymer (10,800).
A total of 220 survivors made it through the 10-level grind today, and they'll return for Day 2 tomorrow at 1 p.m. in the Amazon Room. Be sure to tune back in to PokerNews as we let you know what happens as the field is pared down and the money starts flowing.
George Danzer won a pot that had his tablemates laughing.
Yuebin Guo got his last 3,000 all in before the flop against a player who was under the gun and George Danzer in the big blind.
By fourth street, the board read , and Danzer got the rest of his live opponent's stack in the middle.
Danzer:
Guo:
Under the gun:
"I've got the freeroll," Danzer said, since he and the under-the-gun player both had wheels but Danzer had a higher straight draw. Guo, meanwhile, held the nut flush draw.
The dealer burned and turned the to give Danzer the nut straight to go with his nut low, quartering the under-the-gun player.
"Don't write that he played that hand," one of the players at the table joked of the sponsored pro. "He'll lose his sponsorship. Next time we see him, he'll be a free agent!"
The table erupted with laughter as Danzer stacked his chips.
Amnon Filippi and Dan Heimiller already had a few bets in front of themselves in a heads-up pot. Filippi bet fourth street with the board reading , and Heimiller called. The river was the , and both players checked.
Filippi flipped , followed by for a pair of aces and a live ace for low.
"I had a pair and a flush draw..." Heimiller trailed off as he studied his cards. "And I think I still have a pair and a flush draw."
He placed them face down, and Filippi scooped the pot.
Perry Green just scooped a three-way pot on the river by showing down on a board of . We didn't see his other cards before the dealer swept them up, but the 1981 Main Event runner-up has one of the healthier stacks in the room.
Jason Mercier joined the PokerNews Podcast to talk about the World Series of Poker, not engaging in bracelet bets, and the first time he ever played online poker. Then, all hell breaks loose. The crew rants about televised poker, Galen Hall and Jesse Martin break the live stream, and there are surprise visits by Allen Kessler, Matt Glantz and Matt Salsberg.
We found Jeff Madsen with bets in front of him on every street. He fired once more on the end after the community had come . His lone opponent called, and Madsen showed among his cards before the dealer quickly swept them up.
With one player already all in before the flop, Allen Kessler bet on the flop in a side pot against David Williams. Williams called and both players checked the turn. A hit the river and Williams check-folded to Kessler's bet.
Kessler showed for aces with a six-two low. The all-in player, however, had a scooper with for a flush and a five-four low.
There was a brief pause as the dealer tried to figure out where to send the pot.
"You get nothing, Allen," another player at the table said.
In truth, "Chainsaw" did win a small side pot against Williams.
Speaking of the former Main Event runner-up, one of the players who recently sat down in the Brasilia Room is Greg Raymer, the man who defeated Williams heads up in 2004.
We're set to kick off Day 1 of Event #14: $1,500 Limit Omaha Hi-Low here at the 2014 World Series of Poker at noon local time. This event is for the Omaha Eight-or-Better everyman, and we should see a sizable field here for this ever-popular game.
Last year, Canadian Calen McNeil scooped and chopped his way to a first-place prize of $277,274, topping a field of 1,014 runners to claim the gold bracelet. He prevailed over notable grinder C.K. Hua (over $3 million in tournament cashes) after a heads-up match that went so long, the players ended play on what was supposed to be the final day only to come back and play heads up for four more hours the next day. McNeil topped a final table that included the likes of Stephen Chidwick, Todd Brunson, and John Monnette.
Players will begin with 4,500 in tournament chips with the blinds at 25/50. We'll be playing 60-minute levels, with 20-minute breaks after every two levels, and a 90-minute break for dinner later this evening. Don't go anywhere, as we at PokerNews will bring you all of the relevant live updates from another WSOP event.
, and Danzer got the rest of his live opponent's stack in the middle.
to give Danzer the nut straight to go with his nut low, quartering the under-the-gun player.
, and Heimiller called. The river was the 
, and both players checked.
, followed by 
for a pair of aces and a live ace for low.
. We didn't see his other cards before the dealer swept them up, but the 
. His lone opponent called, and Madsen showed 
among his cards before the dealer quickly swept them up.
flop in a side pot against David Williams. Williams called and both players checked the 
turn. A 
