Eugene Portlen is an example of that old poker adage a chip and a chair. Down to just 375 chips in the early stage Portlen got a little lucky and found some good spots to put his chips.
He not only survived, but thrived, so much so that after the sixty-second and final elimination of the day, he would be the one man left standing.
Portlen was a very happy winner, and told us early in the day that he expected good things having rebounded from 375 chips. He was right.
The event itself is a credit to Crown for trying to add variety to the tournament schedule and not just throwing in a Hold'em loaded roster of tournaments.
We hope you enjoyed the coverage of the $550 PokerPro event. We still have coverage of the Main Event and some updates from the High Stakes Cash Game action to keep you going tonight.
Tomorrow it's Main Event Day 1C from around midday Australian Eastern (GMT+11) and the $550 PokerPro Stud Hi/Lo tournament in the afternoon.
Dave Morton was just eliminated by Hassan Kamel, to go out in third place. Morton had been hoping to make the low with his combination of , but there was no low and Kamel made a flush to take the pot and make things pretty even going into heads up play.
Morton will go home with $5,040 AUD for his efforts.