We just bumped into that little bundle of energy that is James "Flushy" Dempsey at the table. "We're playing a game at our table," he enthused, "First person to win ten hands in a row wins! I managed to get to seven. So close!"
"What do you actually win if you do it?" we asked.
"Just acclaim!" he replied enthusiastically.
The bad news is that it's really difficult to keep a good eye on Phil Ivey stashed away in the poker room down the hallway, up the stairs, out past registration, down the hallway, down the stairs, and down the hallway from us.
The good news comes in two pieces, however. The first bit of good news is that Mr. Ivey is up to a very healthy 24,750 chips right now, putting him among the chip leaders. The other happy bit is that the tables in the poker room are finally starting to break, and the players are being relocated to a much more blogger-friendly location here on the main casino floor. One table has been removed from the poker room, and the other six will be following suit shortly.
Young Ben Vinson reached a flop of 
from the big blind. The small blind led for 600 and Vinson called.
On the 
turn, Vinson took the lead by firing out 1,075, only for his opponent to check-raise to 2,400. Vinson made the call.
The river was the 
, and after his opponent had deliberated, then checked, Vinson moved all in for around 6,000 to pick up the pot uncontested.
As the small blind threw his cards into the muck, Vinson nonchalantly flipped 
onto the felt.
Much to the annoyance of the wounded soldier, another player inquired as to what was shown.
"He had six-five, Madam," confirmed the defeated player with polite words disguising a harsh tone, "which is a bluff."
"Maybe you were bluffing too, nevermind," she replied, flustering him more.
"I can beat six high, though, Madam," he continued.
Nevertheless, a brave move from Vinson has reaped its rewards. He now has over 10,000.
Men Nguyen has just been eliminated from the tournament after getting all-in on a 
flop with 
but ran into the 
of his opponent. A 
turn and river couldn't change anything and the multiple bracelet winner had to hit the rail.
We caught up with Table 5 just as the dealer put out a flop of 
. A medium-stacked Stephen Chidwick got it all in with 
for the draw, and he was up against an opponent whose 
had flopped two pair.
The turn 
was not a diamond, but it did give Chidwick another few outs to play with. The river was a blank, however, and that takes care of the rest of the stack of "stevie444".
We're back in action with Level 3 as the blinds have moved to 75/150.
"We did manage to get every single player who wanted to play today's event into the field within the first two levels," Jack Effel said over the mic. "We'll have the final numbers and the prizepool for you in a few minutes."
We don't have the official numbers yet either, but we can tell you the board shows 271 as the cards go back in the air. It should be right about that number, plus or minus a couple of stragglers or no-shows.
Level: 3
Blinds: 75/150
Ante: 0
Well, the 2010 WSOPE is officially two levels old. Just about 270 players have turned up for Event #1, a veritable who's-who of professional poker as one gazes around the room. Even better, registration is still open until the end of this break, about 15 more minutes.
All eyes were on Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey to start the day, partially because of their -- shall we say, significant bracelet bets. And partly just because they're two of the most captivating personalities in the poker world. Things are all roses for Mr. Ivey right now, shooting out of the gate to double his stack within the first couple orbits. Our last count had him sitting comfortably at about 16,000 with the pesky Martin Kabrhel having already been sent off. Other names near the top of the counts include Andrew Lichtenberger, Joe Serock, and 2010 WSOP-bracelet-winning Brits Praz Bansi and James "Flushy" Dempsey.
Dwan, on the other hand, will have to sweat this one out from the rail. "Durrrr" was eliminated near the start of the second level, relegated to the online nosebleeds for the next two days.
Those who've managed to outlast Dwan are headed out of the room for their first break of the day, and T.D. Jack Effel says that he intends to have seats for all of the alternates by the time they return. Speaking of returning, we'll be back in twenty minutes for another two levels of poker, but it's leg-stretchin' time for now.
Don't wander too far!
The small blind raised to 250 and Dan Smith called from the big blind. The flop came down 
and the small blind fired 300. Smith made the call.
The turn brought the and the small blind fired 700. Smith made another call.
The river completed the board with the 
and the small blind fired 2,000. Smith made another call, but lost when his opponent tabled the 
and dropped to 12,500.
Huck Seed has been derooted and will have to wait until Event #2 before adding to his bracelet cabinet. According to former neighbour Tony Cousineau, he was short at the time and got it all in on the turn with a flopped top pair. Unfortunately for the '96 World Champ, his opponent had a turned a set to leave Seed drawing dead.
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