After the first weekend of this 2021 World Series of Poker, everyone seems to have gotten into more of the traditional groove. There were the initial kinks of long lines to verify vaccinations and online accounts and figuring out the most optimal ways to register for tournaments. Players and staff alike seem to be working through it.
Further, early worries about players willing to attend – complete with the vaccination mandate, the autumn time frame instead of summer, the still-present worries about Covid-19 – have eased, at least for the time being. Players are there.
PokerGO is also up and running with its with its livestreamed coverage. It started yesterday with the final table of Event 6, with Ali Nejad and Maria Ho calling the action. Much of the coverage of this type moving forward will be available via a PokerGO subscription. But possibly to show poker fans and players what to expect, the video of this one is public on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGgS5TGYTtU
The WSOP got its groove back.
Event 4: $500 The Reunion
Once the three starting days finished, Day 2 brought them all together. Hundreds of them earned payouts, and the bustouts were so fast and furious that the final table began before the night ended.
The day’s starting chip leader, Robert Brobyn, ended his run in 28th place for $14,861 well into the evening hours. As the field thinned to just a few tables, Ryan Laplante busted in 19th place and Adrian Buckley in ninth, both missing their shots at a second bracelet.
Five remaining players will compete for the bracelet and first-place prize of more than $500K.
Event 4: Day 3 of 4
$500 buy-in
NLHE Reunion (1 RE/flight)
Total entries:
12,975
Registration still open?
no
Total prize pool:
$5,449,500
Players paid:
639
Minimum payout:
$1,540
Winner payout:
$513,604
Chip leader:
Long Ma
Long Ma 260.1M chips
Players remaining:
5
Giuliano Lentini 133.9M chips
Day 3 start:
4pm Tuesday
Alex Vasquez 114.6M chips
Max Tavepholjalern 114.3M chips
Michael Eddy 27.6M chips
Event 6: $25K NLHE High Roller
Only five players returned for the final day of this high-stakes event, but all had something to prove. Adrian Mateos of Spain sought his fourth bracelet, but all of the other big names in poker sought their first. It was the first live final table of this year’s WSOP with several international players – Mateos of Spain and Mustapha Kanit of Italy – and it was the first livestreamed one of the series.
In the end, Tyler Cornell picked up his first bracelet. He told PokerNews:
“It feels amazing. I’ve been trying to do this for a long time and finally got a win.”
There were 20 games from which to choose in this multiple-variant tournament. Mixed game players had fun with it, though only 11 made it through the second day of play.
Late into the evening, several previous bracelet winners departed short of another piece of WSOP gold. Mike Wattel busted in 22nd place, Eli Elezra in 20th, and Phil Hellmuth in 18th. Several remain in contention, though, including Adam Friedman, Noya Kihara, Nathan Gamble, and Andrew Kelsall.
Event 7: Day 2 of 3
$1,500 buy-in
Dealers Choice 6-Handed (1 RE)
Total entries:
307
Registration still open?
no
Total prize pool:
$409,845
Players paid:
47
Minimum payout:
$2,400
Winner payout:
$97,915
Chip leader:
Ray Henson
Players remaining:
11
Restart:
3pm Tuesday
Event 8: $600 NLHE Deepstack
This one was for the masses, a bit of a faster structure but a lower buy-in and deep stacks. More than 4,500 entries catapulted the prize pool past $2.3M. The 2019 WSOP offered the same event and attracted 6,150 entries. This year’s offering saw a 37% decrease.
Some players already made the money, but several hundred of them will return on Day 2 to play for the win.
Those with deep pockets and a penchant for Omaha-8 lined up to play the Omaha Hi-Lo Championship yesterday, the first official $10K “championship” event of this series. Registration remains open until the start of play today, though with 126 thus far, it doesn’t look like it will meet or exceed the 183 number of the 2019 WSOP.
Event 9: Day 1 of 4
$10K buy-in
Omaha Hi-Lo 8-or-Better Championship
Total entries:
128
Registration still open?
yes
Total prize pool:
TBD
Players paid:
TBD
Minimum payout:
TBD
Winner payout:
TBD
Chip leader:
Michael Noori
Players remaining:
72
Restart:
2pm Tuesday
Highlight of the Day
Great story about a player who traveled to Vegas via train to play the game he loved for so many years. And he overcame a lot in his life to get to the WSOP.
https://twitter.com/ChadAHolloway/status/1445222211414020098?s=20
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