Vieira and Gorodinsky Lead the Way After Day 1; No Repeat Victory for Friedman in $10,000 Dealer’s Choice Championship
One of the most versatile competitions of the 2022 WSOP in its new home at Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas has kicked off today and gathered some of the most well-known poker pros entered Event #10: $10,000 Dealer's Choice 6-Handed Championship.
For the first time since 2018, the winner of the highly regarded mixed game contest will not be Adam Friedman after he was eliminated on Day 1 and won't be able to claim the title for the fourth edition in a row. The field has gathered 113 unique entries thus far, which makes it the third-biggest in the history but the registration remains open until the start of Day 2 on Monday, June 6, 2022 at 2pm local time.
By then, at least 51 players will return to their seats and a duo sits atop the leaderboard by a significant margin thus far. Joao Vieira ended the night with 425,000 in chips while Mike Gorodinsky follows with 401,500. Another trio of players is closely bunched together in Nacho Barbero (269,500), Richard Ashby (250,500) and Jean-Robert Bellande (249,000).
Top 10 Chip Counts After Day 1
| Position | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joao Vieira | Portugal | 425,000 |
| 2 | Mike Gorodinsky | United States | 401,500 |
| 3 | Nacho Barbero | Argentina | 269,500 |
| 4 | Richard Ashby | United Kingdom | 250,500 |
| 5 | Jean-Robert Bellande | United States | 249,000 |
| 6 | Matthew Schreiber | United States | 245,500 |
| 7 | Naoya Kihara | Japan | 223,500 |
| 8 | Ian O'Hara | United States | 188,000 |
| 9 | Maxx Coleman | United States | 187,500 |
| 10 | Jordan Siegel | United States | 182,000 |
Inside the overnight top ten are also Naoya Kihara and Ian O'Hara, while former finalist Jeff Madsen and David Benyamine are waiting just outside. In a field filled with dozens of WSOP bracelet winners, the former runner-ups Shaun Deeb and Phil Hellmuth will also aim to add the title to their resume with Friedman now out of the way. Unlike his late entry prior to the start of Day 2, 16-time WSOP bracelet winner Hellmuth this time entered in the final levels on Day 1 and made a small profit to advance with 87,000 in chips.
No Fourth Consecutive Victory for Friedman
The tournament takes place for the seventh time and three out of the six previous editions were won by Friedman, who also finished in fifth place in the inaugural appearance of the mixed game contest in 2015. Back then, Quinn Do defeated Rep Porter in heads-up to become the first Dealer's Choice Championship winner. Jean Gaspard and John Racener were the only two other players to life the bracelet for the victory shots but that list will likely see another name enter the fray.
Whether or not Gaspard or Racener will join the action prior to the start of Day 2 remains to be seen and the same also applies for notables such as Ben Yu, Phil Ivey and Brad Ruben. The latter just won his fourth career WSOP bracelet in Event #4: $1,500 Dealer's Choice 6-Handed a few days ago and didn't enter in the first ten levels.
History of the WSOP $10,000 Dealer's Choice Championship
| Year | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Runner-Up | Top Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 108 | $1,015,200 | Quinn Do | Rep Porter | $319,792 |
| 2016 | 118 | $1,109,200 | Jean Gaspard | William O'Neil | $306,621 |
| 2017 | 102 | $930,600 | John Racener | Viacheslav Zhukov | $273,962 |
| 2018 | 111 | $1,043,400 | Adam Friedman | Stuart Rutter | $293,275 |
| 2019 | 122 | $1,146,800 | Adam Friedman | Shaun Deeb | $312,417 |
| 2021 | 93 | $867,225 | Adam Friedman | Phil Hellmuth | $248,350 |
| 2022 | 113 |
Friedman was not among the first batch of entries but eventually took his seat to try and make it four in a row. However, he never really got much going and was confined to a short stack in the final stages of the night. Ultimately, Friedman first lost a flip with sixes against the ace-ten of Mike Matusow and was then scooped by Richard Bai in an Omaha Hi-Lo confrontation to bow out prematurely.
Other notable casualties throughout ten 60-minute levels included David Williams, David "Bakes" Baker, Daniel Negreanu, Frank Kassela, Bryce Yockey, Ray Henson, Todd Brunson, Phil Hui, Matthew Ashton, Carol Fuchs, Benny Glaser, and Jerry Wong to name all but a few of the mixed game specialists.
Baker got it in with flopped top two pair against the open-ended straight draw in a Pot-Limit Omaha hand. Fuchs bricked the turn but rivered the wheel to score the knockout. She was sitting in the middle of the pack for an extended period but bowed out in the late stages to miss out on an opportunity to add a second bracelet to her collection after her victory in the 2015 $1,500 WSOP Dealer's Choice.
Negreanu fell victim to the hot run of Joshua Ladines, who first made a straight flush in a small pot against Fuchs and then hit quads kings when Negreanu's hopes lasted on an open-ended straight draw and dominated flush draw. Many big names of the international poker circuit followed as the field was cut into more than half on the first of three tournament days.
Whether or not the event will set a new attendance record remains to be seen. Day 2 will include another seven levels of 90 en route to potentially reach the final table. Stay tuned right here on PokerNews to find out who follows into the footsteps of Friedman to claim the WSOP gold bracelet in the $10,000 Dealer’s Choice Championship.