Tsz Shing Bags Day 1b Lead in Foxwoods Main Event; Andrew Ostapchenko Overall Leader
The second flight of the World Series of Poker Circuit $1,700 Main Event in Foxwoods came to an end on Saturday night after 15 levels of play. A total of 307 registration slips were sold and when the last-chance saloon had closed for business only 57 remained, bringing the total number of Day 2 births to 88.
Leading the Day 1b pack is Tsz Shing, who bagged 345,000 after an up-and-down day of play. Shing started the day off slowly and grinded his average-sized stack out until the latter stages of the day when he catapulted to the top.
The New York native had upwards of almost 400,000 at one point before dropping down to a quarter of a million. He bounced back almost instantly, sending Robert Georato out the door with a flip that pushed Shing back into the lead and that is where he stayed for the rest of the night.
Giuliano Lentini is hot on the tail of the leader as he ended the day with 336,000. A few other stacks to round out the top five from Day 1b include David Plotkin (331,500), Michael Stashin (325,500), and Brandon Miller (305,000).
The end of the night saw a familiar face finding a bag in Gordon Wilcox, who is the defending champion. Wilcox took down this very event last year for an outstanding $169,052 which is his highest cash to date, as well as his only six-figure score to his name. The defending champion is in a decent position with his 218,500 stack and has the experience needed to maybe strike lighting twice.
Day 1b ended with Shing atop the leaderboard but it is Andrew Ostapchenko who will be holding the chip lead headed into Day 2. Ostapchenko surged to the top of the foodchain early in the first flight and finished with an overwhelming lead that carried over into the second day, having more than double that of Guang Li who sits in second. Ostapchenko will be looking to continue his hot month after he took down an event at Parx Casino in Philadelphia earlier this month for $97,220.
Top 10 After Day 1 Flights
| Position | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew Ostapchenko | United States | 736,000 | 184 |
| 2 | Guang Li | United States | 355,000 | 88 |
| 3 | Tsz Shing | United States | 345,000 | 86 |
| 4 | Giuliano Lentini | United States | 336,000 | 84 |
| 5 | Vinny Pahuja | United States | 332,000 | 83 |
| 6 | David Plotkin | United States | 331,500 | 83 |
| 7 | Michael Stashin | United States | 325,500 | 81 |
| 8 | Brandon Miller | United States | 305,000 | 76 |
| 9 | Vimy Ha | United States | 293,000 | 73 |
| 10 | Gregory Nerenberg | United States | 291,500 | 72 |
Day 1b started off much quicker than the first starting flight, having more to begin the day than the first flight had total. Day 1a had 161 slips sold with only 31 securing their spot on Day 2. The second starting flight escalated quickly and at the end of registration, there were 307 entries. Only 56 made it through Day 1b, bringing the total number of players to make 87 for Day 2.
A total of 468 entries were accumulated between the two flights, gathering a prize pool of $709,020, surpassing the half a million guarantee with ease. The tournament will see 71 players finding a payday for at least a min-cash of $2,481 with the eventual winner taking down the lions share of the money for $143,293.
Some regulars to the circuit to secure a Day 2 birth include Gregory Nerenberg (291,500), Leonard Sande (164,500), Andrew Lauer (128,000), Roland Israelashvili (115,500), Vincent Moscati (57,000), and Daniel Weinman (43,500). Other notables that took a shot but failed to make it are Allen Kessler, Robert Georato, Robert Pound, Darren Martin, Victor Ramdin, and Jonathan Little.
The second day will begin at noon on Sunday. Blinds will resume on level 16 at 2,000/4,000 and a 4,000 big blind ante. The levels will be 60 minutes in length with 10 levels on the schedule for tomorrow or until the final table has been reached. There will be a 15-minute break after every two levels of play and a 75-minute dinner break after level 21. The remaining players will return for Day 3 and play down until a champion is crowned.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be bringing the live updates throughout the event, so stay tuned as all of the action unfolds!