Big Field Expected for Day 1c of the Main Event
In just under half hour from now at 11 a.m. local time, the iconic Hippodrome Casino calls players from near and far for the third starting day of the £990 Main Event of the 2017 PokerStars Festival London. The flagship tournament boasts a guaranteed prize pool of £400,000 and the event is well on the way to beat that after 169 and 164 entries respectively on the previous two starting days.
All players receive 30,000 in chips and the levels last 45 minutes each. Registration remains open until the end of level six and it is expected that the scheduled dinner break will be shortened to bag and tag around 8.45 p.m. local time similar to yesterday's Day 1b. Snooker superstar Stephen Hendry will be taking to the felt and won the media event last night.
So far, there are at least four tournament areas prepared and a soft cap of 310 entries is enabled, but everyone that wants to take part will be seated in order to take a shot at becoming the first PokerStars Festival champion on European soil. All players that bust have a further chance as of 10 p.m. local time as well, when the 1d turbo flight kicks off with 20-minute levels. Only those that participated in any of the three previous starting days and failed to bag up chips will be allowed to enter.
Main Event Day 1 blind structure
| Level | Ante | Small Blind | Big Blind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50 | 100 | |
| 2 | 75 | 150 | |
| 3 | 25 | 100 | 200 |
| 4 | 50 | 150 | 300 |
| 5 | 50 | 200 | 400 |
| 6 | 75 | 250 | 500 |
| 7 | 100 | 300 | 600 |
| 8 | 100 | 400 | 800 |
| 9 | 100 | 500 | 1,000 |
| 10 | 200 | 600 | 1,200 |
| 11 | 200 | 800 | 1,600 |
| 12 | 300 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
The PokerNews live reporting team will be to cover both flights today and provide all the action until a winner is crowned on Sunday.