button in SafariQiang Xu Claims an Early Chip Lead in the $1,500 PLO Event
Day 1a of Event #35: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha saw 976 players enter the fray, but only 61 of them progressed to Day 2 after 17 levels of pot-limit action. China's Qiang Xu (1,188,000) fared the best of those surviving players, claiming the Day 1a chip lead and giving himself a solid platform from which to mount a charge for his second bracelet.
Xu won his bracelet in 2023 in the $800 No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack. The member of Team Trump Power in the $25K Fantasy Draft now finds himself in pole position to add an Omaha bracelet to his poker trophies.
The early leader was one of three players to finish Day 1 with at least one million chips. Jason Zipfel (1,097,000) and Amir Mirrasouli (1,000,000) were the other two.
Event #35: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Day 1a Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Qiang Xu | China | 1,188,000 | 119 |
| 2 | Jason Zipfel | United States | 1,097,000 | 110 |
| 3 | Amir Mirrasouli | United States | 1,000,000 | 100 |
| 4 | Jorryt Van Hoof | Netherlands | 996,000 | 100 |
| 5 | Shaun Gutta | United States | 924,000 | 92 |
| 6 | Sergio Martinez Gonzalez | Spain | 887,000 | 89 |
| 7 | Daniel Colpoys | United States | 854,000 | 85 |
| 8 | Ladarren Banks | United States | 808,000 | 81 |
| 9 | Martin Schamaun | Switzerland | 667,000 | 67 |
| 10 | Connor Belcher | United States | 619,000 | 62 |
Dutchman Jorryt van Hoof (996,000) came close to bagging up seven figures as the curtain came down on proceedings, and will be pleased with how he has started this tournament.
Among the 61 survivors were mixed game specialist Espen Sandvik (540,000), Artur Koren (503,000), Steve Zolotow (438,000), JC Tran (435,000), Toby Joyce (395,000), Uri Reichenstein (325,000), Ankush Mandavia (283,000), and former PokerNews favorite Mo Nuwwarah (264,000).
Day 1b of this event starts at 12:00 p.m. local time on June 11, with Day 2 scheduled to start at 12:00 p.m. local time on June 12.