| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
97,000
97,000
|
97,000 |
|
55,000
5,000
|
5,000 |
|
||
|
55,000
-4,000
|
-4,000 |
|
35,000
-15,000
|
-15,000 |
With about 3,000 chips already in the middle on a flop of 
, Pratyush Buddiga checked from under the gun and Tom Schneider bet 2,000 from the button. Buddiga called.
The turn brought the 
and both players checked.
The 
fell on the river and Buddiga checked. Schneider bet 3,000, Buddiga folded, and Schneider stacked the chips.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
53,100
6,100
|
6,100 |
|
||
|
52,700
-1,700
|
-1,700 |
David Greenberg raised to 800 from the cutoff and Matthew Kelly three-bet to 1,800 from one seat over. Greenberg called and the flop came 
, which Greenberg checked. Kelly continued for 2,200 and Greenberg folded. "I gonna show you one time," Kelly added and flashed over 
before also saying, "I didn't want you to catch an ace or king."
Greenberg is still up a nice amount early on Day 1a and the same also applies for Jean Raphael Boulos. He limped in and James Moore in the small blind raised to 1,200. Francisco Neto called in the big blind, as did Boulos. On the 
flop, Moore continued for 1,200 and Neto folded, Boulos called.
Moore bet the 
turn for 2,500 and the river for the same amount, picking up calls by Boulos both times. Moore rolled over 
and Boulos had that beat with 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
69,000
69,000
|
69,000 |
|
|
65,000
1,800
|
1,800 |
|
48,000
-1,000
|
-1,000 |
|
47,000
-3,000
|
-3,000 |
Leon Tsoukernik has a reputation for playing more than his share of pots and not being afraid to splash around. We followed him through an orbit of hands to see if he was living up to that rep.
Hand #1: Tsoukernik opened to 900 and got one called in the small blind. That player checked a 
flop, folding to a big continuation bet of 2,800 from the King's Casino owner.
Hand #2: Tsoukernik again opened for 900 and got a small blind call. He again fired 2,800 on the 
flop, taking it down.
Hand #3: Tsoukernik folded under the gun.
Hand #4: A player called in middle position and another raised to 1,100 in the cutoff. The player on the button called, Tsoukernik called in the big blind, and the limper mucked. With the board reading 
after a trio of checks, the preflop opener bet 2,400 and Tsoukernik folded.
Hand #5: Tsoukernik limped along from the small blind after a player in the cutoff opened the action with a call. The big blind made it 1,300, and Tsoukernik and the other limper both called. On a 
board, the preflop raiser took it down with a bet of 2,400.
Hand #6: Two early players limped and Tsoukernik limped along from the button. The blinds came along for the minimum, and everyone checked the 
flop. Someone bet 800 on the turn and Tsoukernik mucked.
Hand #7: A player under the gun raised to 600. He got one caller before Tsoukernik made it two in the cutoff. The three players checked down a 
board, and Tsoukernik announced jack high. The opener won it with for ace high.
Hand #8: Tsoukernik folded to a preflop raise.
All in all, after an explosive start, Tsoukernik slowed down a bit and didn't seem to push the action too hard. He certainly saw his share of flops, raising twice, calling raises two other times, and limping two others. He only folded twice preflop, so expect him to keep entering plenty of pots going forward.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
24,000
-600
|
-600 |
Jessica Dawley and Sorel Mizzi have joined the field over the last break and are just starting to get comfortable at their tables. The 50,000 chip stacks that players start with now make for an extremely deep starting day.
The WSOP Main Event often brings many entertaining people into the lights of the poker world. One man has a Superman costume on while sitting at his table, and another is trying to bribe dealers for good cards with $5 gratuities.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
50,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
|
|
||
|
50,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
With the TV cameras rolling, 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event Champ Qui Nguyen walked over to Table 109 and sat down in Seat 8, bearing a wide smile and clad in his trusty raccoon hat.
Nguyen conquered a field of 6,737 last year to claim a first-place prize of $8,005,310. Nguyen is already taking selfies with a few fans from nearby tables. However, his tournament poker activities since the Main Event last year have been anything but glamorous. He has yet to record a live cash since then.
We'll see if he can put together a strong run to defend his title, starting here on Day 1a.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
50,000
50,000
|
50,000 |
|
||
There aren't many women playing in the purple section of the Amazon room, but best-selling mystery novelist Jane Stanton Hitchcock is one of them, and she's off to a strong start.
On a completed board of 
with about 8,000 chips already in the middle, Hitchcock was on the button and heads up with the player in the hijack, who checked. She bet 5,000, sending her opponent into the tank. Ultimately, he called, and Hitchcock tabled for the rivered nut straight to take the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
64,500
64,500
|
64,500 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
110,100
43,500
|
43,500 |
|
53,450
3,450
|
3,450 |
|
|
||
|
51,400
3,800
|
3,800 |
|
|
||
|
50,000 | |
|
||
|
45,000 | |
|
36,000
-16,000
|
-16,000 |
|
||
|
24,500
-7,550
|
-7,550 |
|
|
||
|
21,475
-28,025
|
-28,025 |
|
||
|
|
11,700
-12,300
|
-12,300 |
Barny Boatman closes in on triple the starting stack, and Jerry Yang is still in the hunt to try and snag a second Main Event title to follow his win from 10 years ago.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
145,000
5,500
|
5,500 |
|
||
|
70,000
70,000
|
70,000 |
|
56,500
56,500
|
56,500 |
|
46,000
-5,000
|
-5,000 |
|
46,000
46,000
|
46,000 |
|
45,000
45,000
|
45,000 |
|
32,000
-16,000
|
-16,000 |
|
|
||
Mark Johnson bet 4,300 into a pot of about 7,000 on a completed board of 
. His opponent in late position called, and Johnson showed 
for a straight to take the sizable pot. He's still below the starting stack, though.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
40,000
-4,100
|
-4,100 |
|
||
