19 September 2009
Phil Ivey and I...
Not only did Phil Ivey rock up most fashionably late, but within only moments of sitting down he had more than doubled-up. Then, shortly after the beginning of level five Ivey’s table was broken up and, as he looked for his new seat, he stopped and looked at me, obviously deducing that I looked like a knowledgeable and cool kind of guy and asked ‘Do you know where table 16 is?’
Shuffle up and deal… Day 1b commences
As tournament director Jack Effel announced the anticipated words of shuffle up and deal, players were still flocking into the Empire to take their seats for Day 1b of Event 1.
Day 1a of Event #1 comes to an end with Brits leading the field
After a grueling day of poker that saw a field of 329 whittled down to 40, JP Kelly, Richard Kellett and Ian Frazer are flying the British flag as they sit atop of the leaderboard.
18 September 2009
52 remain at the break as JP Kelly holds large chip lead
J P Kelly has been picking off the short stacks at his table and now sits with close to 100K. During the five minutes i stood observing his table, i saw him eliminate three opponents. In one hand he held pocket 8’ s that transformed into a set and in another he called a short stack all-in with Kd7d. His opponent held AsQc. But as the board brought a bunch of low cards, the 6 on the river filled Kelly’s straight sending his opponent to the rail.
We have a definitive chip leader
Having won a large pot not too long ago when his pair of tens held against AK to take him up to 30,000 chips, Richard Kellett has just won the largest pot of the tournament thus far.
The players are back from their dinner break!
As the 94 remaining players take their seats, some looking focused and others looking like they may have got a bit freaky with their servings of chicken dumplings, the introduction of antes is announced alongside the new blind levels of 150-300.
Chip leaders located
It appears i have finally found someone who looks like he could be the chip leader...oh no wait, there are a few of them.
After a traditional English tea break, action resumes...
Blinds are now up to 100-200 and whilst chip leaders at this stage are difficult to determine there are some who are making headway. Amongst these are Team Winamax’s Anthony Roux who sits comfortably on around 12K.
The action is picking up pace as the field is reduced to 207
As i wade my way through the jungle of tables here at the Empire, skipping up and down the stairs, i make some random observations that i feel may or may not be of interest to people...
Early Birds hit the rail on Day 1a of Event #1
After losing a third of his stack very early on - when his pocket sevens ran into pocket aces on a flop showing three kings - Phil ‘the Poker Brat’ Hellmuth sat patiently, cross-armed, and in his usual stiff upright position, waiting for his moment to offload his remaining 1,000 chips.