The beginning of the end has begun. Monday marked Day 1A of the 2014 World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championship, the final tournament of WPT Season XII, one of the most prestigious events on the poker calendar. With a buy-in of $15,000 + $400, it won’t be the largest tournament on the tour, but it will be the most densely packed with ultra-skilled poker pros. This World Championship is unique in that it is the first one to be held at the Borgata in Atlantic City after eleven years at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
Day 1A saw 105 players register; leading the 62 survivors is Paul Volpe with 215,300 chips, the only player to top the 200,000 chip mark. And were it not for a late double-up of Miles Austin (yes, the former wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys), Volpe would have finished with around 300,000 chips. With blinds set to increase to 600/1,200 with a 200 chip ante for Level 9, it is a close race, as four players – Jerry Wong (198,000 chips), Brandon Steven (195,500), Scott Seiver (192,500), and Anthony Gregg (190,600) – all have over 190,000. After those gentlemen, the chip counts spread fairly wide, with stacks going all the way down under 130,000 once you scan past the top ten.
Volpe is no stranger to the big stage. He tied for second in last season’s WPT Player of the Year race, cashing four times on the tour with two final tables. He didn’t win a title in any of those events, but he came so, so close. Those two final tables included a second place finish at the L.A. Poker Classic ($651,170) and a third place finish at the Bay 101 Shooting Star ($435,610). Volpe also has 14 World Series of Poker cashes, though no bracelets yet. He is one of the hottest tournament players in the world, ranking 12th on the Global Poker Index and 24th in the PocketFives online rankings.
Anyone who busted out of the tournament yesterday can re-enter today if they want to pay another $15,000, as long as they do so before Level 7. Some players that might be considering throwing down another stack of cash are Chris Moorman, Dan Smith, Eugene Katchalov, John Racener, Nick Schulman, Jared Jaffee, and 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Ryan Riess.
Day 1B of the WPT World Championship will be getting started soon. If it is anything like most events with multiple starting flights, expect the field to larger than that of Day 1A, but considering the steep cost of entry, it still shouldn’t rival the largest WPT tournaments in terms of player numbers.
2014 World Poker Tour World Championship – Day 1A Chip Leaders
1. Paul Volpe – 215,300
2. Jerry Wong – 198,000
3. Brandon Steven – 195,500
4. Scott Seiver – 192,500
5. Anthony Gregg – 190,600
6. She Lok Wong – 177,200
7. Jordan Siegel – 163,500
8. Shannon Shorr – 151,600
9. Tom Dobrilovic – 131,900
10. Orson Young – 130,000