Day 1A of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event played out on Saturday. When the smoke cleared, Brian Powell and Team PokerStars Pro member Jason Mercier led the field, which began with 156 players.
By the end of play in London, just 75 runners remained in contention. Packing the pack is Powell, who hails from Louisville. Powell made a deep run in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, finishing in 66th place and earning $90,000 for his $10,000 buy-in. He also finished 13th in the World Championship Mixed Event for $27,000. Powell owns a stack of 194,600 in London. Trailing him on the leaderboard is Mercier, a WSOP bracelet winner and newly-minted member of Team PokerStars Pro. Mercier holds 189,725 chips and will watch as Day 1B plays out today.
During a break in play, WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack awarded Jeffrey Lisandro WSOP Player of the Year honors. Lisandro won three bracelets during the 2009 festivities in Las Vegas, two in Seven Card Stud and one in Seven Card Razz. Lisandro recorded a total of six in the money finishes during the 2009 WSOP overall. As a result of claiming Player of the Year honors, Lisandro will be bought into the 2010, 2011, and 2012 WSOP Main Events.
Fittingly, Doyle Brunson issued the day’s “Shuffle Up and Deal” command to begin play in the third running of the WSOP Europe Main Event. Pollack told the gathered crowd, “Doyle was there in Las Vegas at the very start of the WSOP 40 years ago. Doyle was also with us when we started WSOP Europe three years ago in London. And, we are proud to have him with us today.” Brunson, a member of the Poker Hall of Fame, holds 10 WSOP bracelets, tied with Johnny Chan for the second most overall. The leader in that category is Phil Hellmuth, who has collected 11 pieces of hardware over the years and also won the 1989 WSOP Main Event.
Speaking of Hellmuth, a press release distributed last week by Ultimate Bet outlined his complex parade route around London leading to his entrance at the Casino at the Empire. WSOP officials painted the picture of Hellmuth’s arrival: “Hellmuth entered Empire Casino much like Nero burning through Rome, oblivious to the ongoing tournament and taking his seat at the televised feature table. The bizarre spectacle was ornamented by an army of faux Roman soldiers erect and pretty girls standing at attention, while trumpets blared.” Hellmuth entered dressed as Julius Caesar on Day 1C of the Main Event in Sin City.
Here are the Top 10 chip stacks after Day 1A of the 2009 WSOP Europe Main Event:
1. Brian Powell – 194,600
2. Jason Mercier – 189,725
3. Sami Kelopuro – 168,925
4. Viktor Blom – 163,175
5. Jonathan Aguiar – 160,100
6. Martin Hansen – 152,775
7. Christian Harder – 134,125
8. Tommy Pavlicek – 119,825
9. Richard Grace – 116,850
10. John Kabbaj – 104,500
Other notable players who will take to the felts when Day 2 plays out on Monday include:
13. Doyle Brunson – 92,900
15. Brandon Cantu – 89,000
19. Barry Shulman – 80,250
21. James Akenhead – 77,675
28. Liz Lieu – 65,600
37. Eric Friberg – 49,475
43. Todd Brunson – 46,050
45. Chad Brown – 44,975
47. Men “The Master” Nguyen – 43,200
58. Marco Traniello – 33,000
60. Alex Kravchenko – 31,100
62. Mike “The Mouth” Matusow – 28,900
71. Phil Hellmuth – 18,450
72, Scott Montgomery – 18,225
73. Erik Seidel – 9,925
Shulman and Akenhead are both part of the November Nine, the members of the final table of the Main Event in Las Vegas who will take to the felts in two months. Another November Nine member, Phil Ivey, was sent packing on Day 1A. Registration for Day 1B is expected to close around 3:40pm local time on Sunday.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from WSOP Europe.
