Nozomu Shimizu Leads After Day 1 of Event #22: $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship
Day 1 of Event #22: $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship at the 2023 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, has come to an end with Nozomu Shimizu emerging as chip leader after bagging 334,000 in chips. The only other player to cross the 300,000 mark was Kevin Song, who bagged up 322,000 for Day 2.
Shimizu is coming fresh off a third-place finish from Event #12: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Freezout, where he won $287,106 a few short days ago. The Japan native also took down an EPT No-Limit Hold'em Hyper Turbo event earlier this year and is currently poised to continue his hot run in 2023.
End of Day 1 Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nozomu Shimizu | Japan | 334,000 | 86 |
| 2 | Kevin Song | United States | 322,000 | 81 |
| 3 | Koray Aldemir | Germany | 266,000 | 67 |
| 4 | Cary Katz | United States | 251,000 | 63 |
| 5 | Brian Lieberman | United States | 238,000 | 60 |
| 6 | John Elliott | United States | 238,000 | 60 |
| 7 | Carlo Van Ravenswoud | Netherlands | 220,000 | 55 |
| 8 | Nate Silver | United States | 199,000 | 50 |
| 9 | Joe McKeehen | United States | 194,000 | 49 |
| 10 | Ronnie Bardah | United States | 188,000 | 47 |
Just behind Shimizu in chips, Song has cashes dating all the way back to 1994 that have netted him over $4 million in career-tournament earnings. Song earned his first and only WSOP bracelet back in 1997 when he won a $2,000 Limit Hold'em event for $397,120.
Other names who bagged into Day 2 include Ronnie Bardah (188,000), Shaun Deeb (138,000), Chris Vitch (154,000), Cary Katz (251,000), Nate Silver (199,000), Daniel Zack (111,000) and Main Event Champions Joe McKeehen (194,000) and Koray Aldemir (266,000)
Some of the less fortunate souls who were eliminated on Day 1include Bryce Yockey, Jesse Lonis, Amir Shayesteh, Matt Glantz, Yuri Dzivielevski, Juha Helppi, and Mike Matusow.
Notably absent was defending champion Jonathan Cohen, who has not yet made an appearance at this year's World Series of Poker.
Day 1 began with 33 players and the field slowly filled out throughout the day to a final number of 104, which has already surpassed last year’s 92 runners. Late registration will remain open up until the start of Day 2, so that number is sure to go even higher. At the close of play, 46 players bagged and tagged their stacks.
Day 2 will begin on June 9 at 1 p.m. local time on Level 11, which features 2,000/4,000 blinds and 4,000/8,000 limits. Levels will last 90 minutes throughout the day, and play will continue for seven levels in total. Players will get a 10-minute break after each level and a 60-minute dinner break after Level 14.
Be sure to stick with PokerNews as we continue to bring you all the action leading to the next bracelet winner here at Event #22: $10,000 Limit Hold’em!