Deja Vu in Nottingham as Last Year's Finalists Vincent Meli and Patrice Brandt Eye Another Deep Run
After five starting flights in the UK and Ireland Poker Tour Nottingham Main Event, the final 193 players will merge today for the first time to make a run at the final table at Dusk Till Dawn.
A total of 1,282 entries were recorded, which sets the record for the largest field size seen in the Nottingham leg of the UKIPT. Leading the survivors is Ashraf Desai, who bagged up 632,000 from Day 1d yesterday.
Among the big stacks entering the day are last year's two finalists Vincent Meli and Patrice Brandt, who cut a deal before playing it out for the trophy. Meli won the heads-up battle, but it was Brandt who took home the largest slice of the pie as he had more chips when the deal was struck.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ashraf Desai | United Kingdom | 632,000 | 158 |
| 2 | Harrison Herbert | United Kingdom | 617,000 | 154 |
| 3 | Patrice Brandt | Germany | 551,000 | 138 |
| 4 | Ben Shannon | United Kingdom | 544,000 | 136 |
| 5 | Ishaq Ilaj | United Kingdom | 534,000 | 134 |
| 6 | Charles Combes | United Kingdom | 516,000 | 129 |
| 7 | Edward Quinn | Jersey | 502,000 | 126 |
| 8 | Vincent Meli | France | 497,000 | 124 |
| 9 | Yucel Eminoglu | Turkey | 493,000 | 123 |
| 10 | Arian Kashani | United Kingdom | 490,000 | 123 |
A number of PokerStars Ambassadors have made it into Day 2 including Lasse Jagd Lauritsen (328,000), Barny Boatman (306,000), Benjamin Spragg (226,000), Alex Romero (204,000), and Kenny Hallaert (180,000).
Play gets underway at noon with all players having locked up a min-cash. The prize pool and payouts will be posted on PokerNews shortly after play begins.
As Day 1a ended during Level 15 - 2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 big blind ante, the clock will start there on Day 2 and have longer 60-minute levels.
As always, PokerNews will be on hand to cover all the action from the baize so be sure to check back regularly for all the latest updates.