button in SafariDaniel Rezaei Leads a Field of Stars in $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em
An action-packed Day 2 of Event #90: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em concluded with just 13 players remaining at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
Top of the pack is Daniel Rezaei, who bagged up a massive 7,345,000. Hot on Rezaei’s heels is Daniel Smiljkovic (6,605,000) and rounding out the podium in third is Bryn Kenney (6,250,000).
Day 2 kicked off with 51 players who bagged up from Day 1, but with late registration open for the first two levels of play, the total entries soon swelled to 202 players. This generated a massive prize pool of $9,595,000 with the top 31 players getting paid.
After five levels of play, the bubble approached, and players tightened up a bit to secure a minimum payout of $100,497.
The bubble was a short affair with Santhosh Suvarna sent home as the unfortunate bubble boy when his jam with pocket tens ran into Sebastian Gaehl’s pocket kings and couldn’t improve.
One of the stories of the day was that of Tom Fuchs, who was left running on fumes with just half a big blind, managed to spin his stack back up to over one million in chips. Unfortunately, Fuchs’ luck couldn’t continue, and he was eliminated in 23rd place.
Start-of-day chip leaders Rezaei and Paulius Vaitiekunas (3,350,000) both made it through the day to find a bag into Day 3, with Rezaei holding the overall lead going into the third and final day.
End of Day 2 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Rezaei | Austria | 7,345,000 | 61 |
| 2 | Daniel Smiljkovic | Germany | 6,605,000 | 55 |
| 3 | Bryn Kenney | United States | 6,250,000 | 52 |
| 4 | Eric Yanovsky | United States | 6,095,000 | 51 |
| 5 | Erik Seidel | United States | 5,235,000 | 44 |
| 6 | Daniel Negreanu | Canada | 4,845,000 | 40 |
| 7 | Kristen Foxen | Canada | 4,750,000 | 40 |
| 8 | Timur Margolin | Israel | 4,444,000 | 37 |
| 9 | Jamie Dwan | United Kingdom | 4,100,000 | 34 |
| 10 | Josef Schusteritsch | Austria | 3,965,000 | 33 |
| 11 | Paulius Vaitiekunas | Lithuania | 3,350,000 | 28 |
| 12 | Sebastian Gaehl | Germany | 2,650,000 | 22 |
| 13 | Chris Brewer | United States | 1,090,000 | 9 |
As expected in a $50,000 event, a list of household-name players has bagged up and is in the mix to claim the title.
Daniel Negreanu (4,8450,000) is chasing down his ninth bracelet and second of the summer, while also looking to edge up close to the $65 Million in lifetime earnings, as per The Hendon Mob.
Kenney and Chris Brewer (1,090,000) are both looking for that third bracelet and to break the $90 million and $30 million marks in lifetime earnings, respectively. Should Kenney do so, he would become the first player in history to cross that monstrous threshold.
Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel (5,235,000) is still in the mix and really needs no introduction. He is looking for bracelet number eleven and to cross the $50 million in lifetime earnings mark.
Kristen Foxen (4,750,000) is also looking for her second bracelet of the summer and to cross the $20 million lifetime earnings mark, and would become the first female player to achieve that feat.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $2,276,691 |
| 2 | $1,517,782 |
| 3 | $1,041,908 |
| 4 | $731,733 |
| 5 | $526,030 |
| 6 | $387,298 |
| 7 | $292,221 |
| 8 | $226,086 |
| 9 | $179,480 |
| 10-11 | $146,295 |
| 12-13 | $122,526 |
Event #90: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em will continue on July 11 at 1:00 p.m. local time. The blinds will restart at 60,000/120,000 with a 120,000 big blind ante.
Levels will be 60 minutes with a 15-minute break after every two levels. Play will continue until a winner is decided.
All returning players have locked up $122,526, but will be eyeing up the mouthwatering $2,276,691 first-place prize, which of course comes along with the coveted WSOP gold bracelet.
PokerNews will be back on the floor tomorrow, July 11, for the final day of the event. Stay tuned for all the action from the floor as it unfolds, and the bracelet is awarded to the eventual champion.