WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Day 1b: Nearly On Pace to Meet $5M Guarantee
On Friday, the World Poker Tour $5 Million Guarantee Seminole Hard Rock Showdown $3,500 buy-in Main Event continued with action from Day 1b, which attracted 542 entries, of which approximately 200 advanced to Day 2. Combined with the 479 entries from Day 1a, the current field stands at 1,021 entries with one starting flight to go. In order for the event to reach its $5 million guarantee, the field needs to reach 1,551 entries.
After ten levels of play, Melad Marji finished atop the Day 1b chip counts with 297,900, though several players aren’t far behind including Timothy Banks (246,800), Jonathan McCray (243,100), and Stuart Breakstone (238,300).
| Place | Player | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melad Marji | 297,900 |
| 2 | Timothy Banks | 246,800 |
| 3 | Jonathan McCray | 243,100 |
| 4 | Stuart Breakstone | 238,300 |
| 5 | Garrett Greer | 233,500 |
| 6 | Matt Stout | 215,900 |
| 7 | Fletcher McKinney | 213,100 |
| 8 | Ki Joon Nam | 189,700 |
| 9 | Mohsin Charania | 182,600 |
| 10 | Jennifer Tilly | 179,600 |
According to the WPT Live Blog, one player that got off to a hot start was Team PokerStars Pro and recent father Jake Cody. In Level 5 (150/300/50), an A♠K♣10♦ flop saw an under-the-gun player with 3,000 in front of him while Cody had 9,000 out in the hijack. The under-the-gun player proceeded to reraise to 19,000 and then called when Cody moved all in for 52,000.
Cody: Q♦J♠
UTG: K♦10♠
Cody's opponent had flopped two pair, but of course Cody’s straight was best. Neither the 8♥ turn nor 9♠ river changed a thing, and Cody took over the early chip lead. He’d eventually go on to bag up 154,500.
In Level 8 (300/600/75), Mukul Pahuja, who was recently featured in an in-depth interview here on PokerNews, found himself at risk in a hand against Garrett Greer. The details are a mystery, but what is known is that Pahuja was all in with the Q♥J♠ on a board reading 10♦9♠5♦4♦3♠. It looked as if Pahuja got it in with an open-ended straight draw, which was no good as Greer ended up with a flush with his J♦9♦.
Likewise, it was in Level 8 that Bubba Franks, who is a retired NFL tight end, limped under the gun only to have Dan Shak raise to 2,500. After action folded back to him, Franks shoved all in and Shak made the call.
Shak: 10♥10♦
Franks: K♥J♣
It was a flip, and it looked as if things would come down in Franks’ favor as the A♥J♥7♣ flop paired his jack. The 5♥ turn changed nothing, but the 10♠ river did! Shak, who finished the day with 103,800, tripped up while Franks was sent to the rail.
Some other players who joined him there and may try again on Day 1c are Kevin Eyster, Matt Waxman, Joe Serock, Jeff Madsen, Joe Kuether, Tommy Vedes, Calvin Anderson, Allen Kessler, Jared Jaffee, David Baker, and David Paredes.
Among the players who advanced from the Day 1b field were Dan Heimiller (168,200), Shawn Cunix (148,400), Kevin Saul (147,000), Matt Glantz (125,500), James Calderaro (121,400), Chance Kornuth (109,000), Phil Laak (93,000), Blair Hinkle (86,100), and Lily Kiletto (82,400).
Day 1c kicked off at noon ET on Saturday. Registration is open until the start of Level 7, during which time players can reenter as many times as they’d like. Of course, PokerNews will bring you a full recap of the action upon completion of play every day until a winner is determined.
*Data and photos courtesy of the WPT Blog.
Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and find us on both Facebook and Google+!
