$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 16: Blinds 2000/4000/400
Players Remaining: 110
Average Chips: 112,955
Paul Volpe gathering momentum at a quiet table.
He’s not one of the big stacks, but even giving anything to Paul Volpe is not a good idea.
We found the elite player on table 2, opening to a crisp 9600, and finding himself up against the button alone.
The flop came a favorable {as} {8s} {8c}, a lock for a continuation bet.
Volpe stared in stock stillness, sitting up in this seat, as his opponent found the inevitable fold.
On the next hand, he again popped it, but all players surrendered.
Volpe gathered up the blinds and antes. “If I can get some chips, I might have to start playing good,” the expert mentioned to a buddy at a nearby table.
He stood up and continued the conversation while a short stack picked up some much needed chips.
Then, he opened once more, again still and imposing until the blinds gave up meekly.
Three out of the four pots, no showdown.
After that hand, a new dealer was pushed – and commented on the rebound of Volpe’s stack.
“C’mon man, you’re not supposed to say that. It’s all luck,” Volpe explained.
Sure.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 16: Blinds 2000/4000/400
Players Remaining: 130
Average Chips: 95,577
Robson Barbosa looks tough after dragging several pots in the row. He has over 400,000.
There are two levels remaining in today’s first flight of Event 1.
Rohan Long, center, is coming off a strong 2016 featuring several firsts and many final tables. He is around 350,000 at the break and one of the biggest stacks in the flight.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 15: Blinds 1500/3000/400
Players Remaining: 140
Average Chips: 88,750
Brian Keane, right (Riverside, NJ) maintains his composure while his opponent, Jediael Pires, thinks through the turn barrel.
Brian Keane just powered through a surely unhelpful turn card.
Aggression, as they say, wins.
After a getting in a raise to around 16,000 preflop, Keane and Jediael Pires in the blinds saw a very dry {th} {5c} {6s}.
The action went a normal check, bet, call.
On the turned {2d}, a card that completed only one unlikely draw, Keane poured on the pressure, 45,000 in neatly stacked blues.
Pires fretted, waving his hand before settling it on his face.
“Forty-five?” Jediael questioned in frustration.
Whatever the bet was intended to accomplish, it was soon met with a fold, and Keane is cruising at around 200,000.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 14: Blinds 1000/2000/300
Players Remaining: 170
Average Chips: 73,382
Chuck Parrish (Chester, VA), pleased after showing down the winner.
It wasn’t another even headed monster, but a five way pot developed on 17, helping get Chuck Parrish back to chip health.
Two hands after the noted Jim Gilbert had to fold to a interesting lead on a river {ax}, we saw an early position player isolate an under the gun limp.
Despite the show of strength, this raiser picked up four callers, including Parrish in the high jack, the blinds, and the original limper.
After the three out of position players checked, it was somewhat natural that the raiser also checked an unpalatable {jc} {8d} {7s}.
Parrish, in absolute position, now bet 7,000.
Somehow this flop missed the blinds, and the original raiser found himself alone against Parrish.
The unhappy raiser called two streets, but when the board paired, Parrish had had enough.
He turned over {qx} {jx}, afraid of the trap and satisfied with two value bets.
He was good.
Parrish is back to even, around 70,000
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 13: Blinds 1000/2000/300
Entries: 498
Racing off the chips while the players take a pause.
With the conclusion of the break, reentries are finished for flight 1A.
We head to middle period of this flight, and will be looking out for big stacks as the players consolidate in the push for day two.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 12: Blinds 800/1600/200
Entries: 497
Aristoteles Neto, left, looking remorseful as Peter Fytras counts up his new chip stack- and about to create a giant pot.
It started with Peter Fytras bet, bet shoving and getting absolutely snapped on the river by Aristoleles Neto. Fytras showed down a disguised straight, holding the {td} {8d}.
However, that was nothing.
In the next hand, an early position player opened for the minimum- and picked up nearly everyone behind him.
Then Fytras, now in the small blind, having just doubled back to health, clicked it up for little more than a min raise. After the BB flatted the potbuilding bet, the preflop raiser and every other caller now came along!
Time to flop a piece.
On {8h} {td} {2d}, Fytras bravely now near min-bet again, putting two yellows into the bloated pot. The big blind folded, at a distinct disadvantage, but everyone else came along.
On the {3h}, which added to the available draws, Fytras quickly be a yellow, and this time the 5,000 bet again discouraged only one caller.
The river was another ten and a spade, an interesting card as the draws bricked but top pair was now nutted.
At last Fytras gave up, but Joel Deutsch now found a bet from the field.
After a fold, it was back to Neto – who has just been crippled by Fytras, and now found a shove.
Neto exposed his cards before Deutsch could act, but Deutsch couldn’t have called:
He had missed diamonds, which he flashed, and then mucked.
The huge pot belonged to Neto, now back in the tourney.
Fytras has about 50,000, Neto is up to 90,000, and Deutsch doubled immediately after to reach 30,000.
Aristoteles Neto, now feeling better just one hand later, while Fytras looks on after the unusual action.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 11: Blinds 600/1200/200
Entries: 492
Joshua Gingras (Charleton, MA) watches the board run out in his favor.
Fresh off his big pot, we found Dominick Sannino on his new table, number nine. However, he has competition in the one hole.
Joshua Gingras just made an easy call with top pair on {4h} {2c} {7d}.
Gringas wasn’t sure if he was ahead, but all he had to do was fade two overs, it turned out, once the cards were flipped:
His opponent had shoved a complete airball, queen high.
The dealer declared “straight!”” on the end, and at first, a startled Gringras wasn’t sure what had happened.
However, the announced pat hand was his, a nice runner runner for insurance, and all the chips coming his way surely eased his mind.
Gingras is now very strong at over 180,000.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 10: Blinds 500/1000/100
Entries: 474
Dominick Sannino (Mount. Kisco, NY) scoops it.
On table 29, another big stack just took a big hit.
Ted Way had comfortably led his table for several levels when a three way confrontation left Dominick Sannino in charge.
A flopped set of tens tripled Sannino, leaving him with a very comfortable 140,000.
The carnage also sent the third player, Jesse Cohen, to the rail.
Way, who had amassed a very healthy stack, is bruised, but thanks to his early success, is still right around double the tournament average.
$500+$60 Deep Stack NLH
$2 Million Guaranteed
Level 9: Blinds 400/800/75
Entries: 461
Jason Yoder (Collingswood, NJ) sees he’s ahead preflop versus a short stack.
With hundreds of entrants and dozens of tables here in this flight of the kickoff event, we took a quick pass at finding some early chip leaders, and stopped at table 16 to catch some of the action.
In one pot three players managed to reach the river on a very dangerous board, the
{7c} {9c} {2d} {9h} {2h}.
The small blind now found the heart to lead out on the blank, and the table’s big stack, Jaon Yoder, sighed and folded. However, the player in the position grimaced, counted out the chips, and made the call.
He was good, holding a better pocket pair, tens against sixes.
“You tried,” the big blind commented.
Two hands later, Yoder opened
{ah} {3h}, busting a short stack’s desperation shove with suited rags.
Yoder now has over 100,000 as we leave the break.