The 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event kicked off on Monday with the first of four Day 1 starts. Greg Raymer was on hand to give the customary “shuffle up and deal” command and play was underway.
Unfortunately for Raymer, his Main Event run would be the shortest of his poker career as he was knocked out in the first level. He lasted less than 90 minutes. Other players that were on hand during Day 1a were Michael Mizrachi, Billy Baxter, Jimmy Fricke, Chino Rheem, T.J. Cloutier, David Allen Grier, Ray Romano, and 2003 Champion Chris Moneymaker.
1,125 players turned out for Day 1a and by the end of the day, Michael Mizrachi was 2nd in chips with over 142,000. Mizrachi still has a shot at Player of the Year, but only if he can win the Main Event. Chris Moneymaker, Beth Shak, Dutch Boyd, Tiffany Michelle, and Lacey Jones were among the players that moved onto Day 2a play.
Day 1b kicked off on Tuesday with a crowd of 1,489 players looking to work their way to Day 2b play. Liv Boeree, Phil Galfond, Dan Harrington, Robert Williamson III, Annette Obrestad, Barbara Enright, Erica Schoenberg, and Erick Lindgren was among the players in the Day 1b field. Among the players that made Day 2a play from Day 1b were Phil Laak, Brandon Cantu, Matt Stout, James Dempsey, Jason DeWitt, and Phil Galfond. DeWitt and Galfond finished among the chip leaders and both had over 140k.
Day 1c was a much more upbeat affair as this day saw the largest crowd out of the four days. Many of the big names decided to play on this day to avoid being shut out. Phil Hellmuth made his customary entrance to the Main Event heralded by hot women and rappers. Hellmuth was dressed as a UFC fighter and announced by UFC ring announcer and amateur poker player Bruce Buffer.
Others in the Day 1c field were Daniel Negreanu, Annie Duke, Tom Dwan, Johnny chan, Men Nguyen, Huck Seed, Jerry Yang, Howard Lederer, Tom Mcevoy, and Kathy Liebert. Phil Hellmuth was not able to make it through the day and was not able to extend his WSOP Main Event cash streak to three years in a row.
Johnny Chan finished the day 2nd in chips with 163,700. Lauren Kling held 149,650 and was the high woman so far through three Day 1’s. Robert Mizrachi was also among the chip leaders, making this yet another event both Mizrachi brothers were in contention.
Day 1d kicked off on Thursday with future NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith kicking off the event. The entire Brunson family played on this day with Doyle, Pam, and Todd all battling it out. Chris Ferguson, Vanessa Rousso, Barry Greenstein, Jennifer Harman, Scott Montgomery, Andy Bloch, Phil Ivey, Shannon Elizabeth, Josh Arieh, and Archie Karas were among those in the field. Jack Ury was also in the field. He is still going strong at 97 and actually finished the day with 39,000 in chips.
The final numbers for the Main Event were revealed on Day 1d. 7,319 players turned out for the Main Event, making it the 2nd largest Main Event in history. 747 players will cash in this event, and the eventual winner will take home $8,944,138. Several media members also determined that Harrah’s pocketed $4,391,400 from the prize pool, or the equivalent to finishing 3rd place in the Main Event this year.
By the end of Day 1d, several big names were at the top of the leaderboard. Steve Billirakis was the chip leader with 187,150. Archie Karas finished with 137,775, David Benyamine with 133,600, and Vanessa Rousso finished with over 111,000 in chips.
Day 1a and 1c combined to form Day 2a that kicked off on Friday. Day 1b and 1d will form Day 2b which will be played Saturday. There is still quite a ways before we reach the money in this event, much less the final table. Stay tuned as we bring you recaps from all of the action at the WSOP Main Event.
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