As play got underway the field had swelled to 237 players, with the cap being 300. Each table will play somewhere between eight and ten-handed, with the spare spots being filled in with the late arrivals. There will be no balancing the end of day stacks if the tables are not even at the close of registration. The winner of an eight-handed table will take 72,000 chips forward to day two, the winner of a nine-handed table will take 81,000 through, and the winner of a full ten-handed table will take the full 90,000 chips through.
Day 2 players will all be in the money and they will play out ten three-handed tables. The ten winners will progress to a final ten-handed final table on Thursday.
The players are being let into the room to find their seats and play should be underway very soon. A short while ago 162 players had registered for the event, but we expect this number to rise to more than 200. The field is seriously stacked full of world-class players, so seat draw is going to be a crucial factor. Stay tuned, it's going to be a good one today.
Hello and welcome to picturesque Cannes where in around two hours time we will be bringing you all the action from Event #4 of the 2011 World Series of Poker Europe, the €3,200 No Limit Hold'em Shootout.
The shootout is a new event for this year's WSOPE and should attract a whole host of big names and well-known faces. For those of you not well versed in the shootout format the tournament will be on nine handed tables and but only the winner of each table will progress to the next round, making the event similar to a massive sit 'n' go, a sit 'n' go that has a coveted gold WSOP bracelet up for grabs!
The tournament kicks off at 1700 CET and PokerNews will be here every step of the way bringing you the very best in live poker tournament updates.
