Joao Simao Bags Day 2 Chip Lead, Frank Lagodich Follows
After 788 entries made it the biggest $5,000 Mixed No-Limit Hold'em/Pot-Limit Omaha event in World Series of Poker history, just 72 players are left, all in with a shot of winning a bracelet tomorrow.
Headlining Day 2 will be online WSOP champion Joao Simao. This is Simao's third cash of the summer, including a 4th place at Event #21: $1,500 Monster Stack. The Brazilian player and the rest of the field have guaranteed themselves $10,013, but all will be eyeing the $686,242 first prize that awaits the winner tomorrow.
Simao bagged a hefty 1,705,000 chips and behind him stands Frank Lagodich (1,530,000), while Daniel Hachem completes the podium with 1,090,000.
Other big stacks include Joni Jouhkimainen (1, 015,000), who finished fifth in this very event last year, Bryce Yockey (820,000), David Pham (695,000), and David Williams (695,000).
The pace of eliminations was quick throughout Day 1, with the fast structure incentivising players to jump in early. Players seated for the 'shuffle up and deal' included many bracelet winners such as Jan-Peter Jachtmann, Nino Ullmann, Dylan Weisman, Gaby Livshitz and Rob Wazwaz.
Many notables took a shot in this event but couldn't find a bag for tomorrow, including Rainer Kempe, Sylvain Loosli, four-time bracelet winner Anthony Zinno, Nacho Barbero, Jeff Hakim, Thomas Muehloecker and Chris Moorman.
Top 10 Chip Counts After Day 1
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joao Simao | Brazil | 1,705,000 |
| 2 | Frank Lagodich | United States | 1,530,000 |
| 3 | Daniel Hachem | Australia | 1,090,000 |
| 4 | Joni Jouhkimainen | Finland | 1,015,000 |
| 5 | Cody Rich | United States | 925,000 |
| 6 | Craig Mason | United States | 875,000 |
| 7 | Bryce Yockey | United States | 820,000 |
| 8 | Christopher Puetz | Germany | 810,000 |
| 9 | Aden Salazar | United States | 800,000 |
| 10 | Michael Rocco | United States | 770,000 |
End of the Day Action
Coming back from the last break of the night, the money bubble was on the horizon and wouldn't take long to burst. There were a few all-ins during the hand-for-hand process, and it was David Eldridge who ended up in the bubble boy seat after he found himself all in for his last two big blinds against four players, and Pieter Aerts hit a full house to send Eldridge to the rail. Antonio Lievano, on the other hand, managed to survive the tense process with only one big blind left and min-cashed for $8,010.
Once the bubble burst, the short stacks couldn't get their chips in the middle fast enough. The field went from 119 players down to just the 72 who will return tomorrow. Among those who made the money was 2009 Main Event Champion Joe Cada, who moved all in for less than 10 big blinds with king-nine and but was up against ace-four for Matthew Gonzales.
The action will recommence at 2 p.m. local time tomorrow, with the blinds resuming on level 21. The blinds will be 10,000/25,000 with a 25,000 big blind ante. The levels will be increased to 40 minutes on Day 2 with a 15-minute break after every three levels, and the goal is that play will continue until a winner is crowned!
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