Action was caught when the 2022 Main Event champion Espen Jørstad and Daniel Negreanu flipped their cards preflop, with Jørstad being at risk.
Espen Jørstad: AxAx
Daniel Negreanu: Q♠Q♦
Jørstad had a few cards to avoid in order to take the pot. Unfortunately for him, one of the cards he didn't want to see came on the flop 6♣8♥Q♥, giving Negreanu a set. The 10♠ landed on the turn, followed by the 9♥ on the river, resulting in Jørstad's elimination just before the bubble.
Jesse Lonis opened 110,000 from early position and Gergely Kulcsar called next to act.
The dealer spread a flop of Q♣5♣2♣, and Lonis continued for 140,000. Kulcsar made the call.
The 3♥ turn was checked by both players to see the 8♥ on the river.
Lonis checked once more before being faced with a bet of 365,000 from Kulcsar. Lonis went deep into the tank, using multiple time bank chips before eventually making the call at two minutes. Kulcsar tabled A♣Q♠ and Lonis sighed as he mucked his hand.
Dan Heimiller was seen in the tank as he already had 245,000 across the line and was faced with an all-in jam from Stanley Tang for 860,000. Heimiller had 790,000 total and tanked for his entire allotted time bank before saying, "I think you have ace-king, I call."
Dan Heimiller: 10♥10♦
Stanely Tang: A♣K♠
Heimiller was correct but the A♥9♠7♠ flop paired Tang's ace as Heimiller let out a quiet "F*Ck."
The 7♦ turn and 5♦ river were no help as Heimiller exited the tournament.
Justin Saliba opened from early position and was called by Henrik Hecklen in the small blind and Johannes Straver in the big blind.
The dealer fanned a flop of 8♠K♥6♣, and Saliba made a continuation bet of 55,000. But Hecklen raised to 170,000.
On his left, Straver wasn't done yet and he prepared a three-bet to 300,000. But Saliba didn't back down, and decided to four-bet to 430,000.
Clearly unhappy, Hecklen folded. But it wasn't Straver's option as he moved all-in for 1,100,000 chips. Saliba took a few seconds to think about it and called.
Johannes Straver: 8♣8♦
Justin Saliba: 6♠6♦
Both players hit a set on the flop, but Straver had the better one. The 7♣ and the Q♣ didn't change anything, and Straver doubled up.
After the end of the late registrations, the total number of entrants was 176, generating in a prize pool of $8,404,000. This prize money will be divided among 27 players who will be in the money.
The players who finish in the money will earn a minimum cash prize of $80,920. However, every participant wants to win the first-place prize. The champion of the $50,000 High Roller event will receive $2,087,073, along with the prestigious gold bracelet.
Andrew Pacheco shoved under the gun for about 360,000 and John Hennigan called off his stack of 325,000 from a couple of spots to his left.
Andrew Pacheco: K♥10♥
John Hennigan: A♦K♦
The flop of A♥Q♥2♠ connected with both players, giving Hennigan top pair, and Pacheco a royal flush draw. The 9♥ turn completed Pacheco's flush, leaving Hennigan drawing dead and the 4♠ river was just a formality.
Moshe Refaelowitz opened 50,000 in early position before Alexandros Theologis moved all-in from the small blind. Jules Dickerson only had 95,000 remaining and called it off before Refaelowitz called off his 435,000.
Refaelowitz had the best starting hand in the deck and was able to hold when the board ran out K♣8♠5♠6♣2♠, eliminating Dickerson as well as collecting the double from Theologis.
It's time for Day 2 of Event #83: $50,000 High Roller at the 2023 World Series of Poker, hosted by Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
On Day 1, 133 entrants were registered by the end of the day, which is a new record for this event. However, only 44 players bagged their chips after Level 12.
Yang Wang finished at the top of the chip counts with 2,175,000 chips. He is the only player who will start Day 2 with more than 2 million chips, while Fedor Holz (1,990,000) and Stefan Schillhabel (1,915,000) ended Day 1 just below this mark.
Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Yang Wang
China
2,175,000
109
2
Fedor Holz
Germany
1,990,000
100
3
Stefan Schillhabel
Germany
1,915,000
96
4
Vlad Darie
Romania
1,830,000
92
5
Dylan Linde
United States
1,770,000
89
6
Jake Schindler
United States
1,740,000
87
7
Masashi Oya
Japan
1,430,000
72
8
Espen Jorstad
Norway
1,340,000
67
9
Brandon Wittmeyer
United States
1,330,000
67
10
Nacho Barbero
Argentina
1,305,000
65
Players like Jake Schindler (1,740,000), 2022 WSOP Main Event winner Espen Jørstad (1,340,000), or Nacho Barbero (1,305,000) also had their names in the top ten at the end of Day 1.
The competition will be tough, as Wesley Fei (1,295,000), Sergio Aguero (880,000), Daniel Negreanu (685,000), Jason Koon (650,000), Alejandro Lococo (645,000), 2020 WSOP Main Event champion Damian Salas (590,000), and David Peters (550,000) have all advanced to Day 2.
There will also be a competition in the competition for Leon Sturm (445,000) and Mikita Badziakouski (360,000), who aim to win another WSOP $50,000 High Roller in their careers.
Leon Sturm
Late registration is still open until the start of Day 2, so a few new players may join the ones already listed. One reentry is allowed, so it could be the the defending champion Joao Vieira, who was eliminated at the end of Day 1.
Day 2 will restart at Level 13 (blinds 10,000/20,000, ante 20,000) and will end when five players remain. To reach this goal, they'll play as many 40-minute levels as needed, with a 15-minute break every 3 levels. There will also be a 60-minute dinner break after Level 21 (around 7:30 p.m.).
Make sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for all your live WSOP tournament updates.
