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Billy Baxter, Keith Sexton, Chris Moorman, Peter Rho, Zac Fellows, Jena Delk and Anthony Harb have all made an appearance.
While Jamie Pickering, Kristian Lunardi and Aleks Brkovic are waving the flag for the Australian contingent.
2009 World Series of Poker
Event 57 - $10,000 World Championship No Limit Hold'em
Day: 1a
Billy Baxter, Keith Sexton, Chris Moorman, Peter Rho, Zac Fellows, Jena Delk and Anthony Harb have all made an appearance.
While Jamie Pickering, Kristian Lunardi and Aleks Brkovic are waving the flag for the Australian contingent.
On the pro side of things, we have Jennifer Tilly, Ludovic Lacay, George Danzer, Davidi Kitai, Ciaran O'Leary, Antony Lellouche, and Thayer Rasmussen all within eyeshot.
Over on the main featured table, Eli Elezra is basking under the warm glow of the TV lights. We hear that Lex Veldhuis is slated to join that table, but there is still a seat empty over there. And on the other side of the Jack Link's Lounge, we find double bracelet winner Greg "FBT" Mueller trying to work his three-peat magic against a table full of unknowns at the secondary featured.
The small blind tanked for about two minutes before releasing his hand. The big blind mucked quickly and Masters took down the pot.
Over in the red section, we're starting the day with about 40 tournament tables and about 10 cash games, just to keep things interesting.
"Without you this would not be possible," said Effel. He also made sure to thank the tournament staff and dealers who work so hard to ensure that everything goes as smoothly as possible.
In addition to the litany of pro forma remarks that Effel makes before the start of each tournament, Effel announced a promotion sponsored by Jack Link's Beef Jerky that will run during the Main Event. Every time a player gets four-of-a-kind jacks, that player will win a Jack Link's prize pack valued at $100.
Level: 1
Blinds: 50/100
Ante: 0
The Main Event bracelet is out on the podium for all to see, and with their goal fixed firmly in sight, the players look ready to go. Sasquatch is ready to go too, and the Jack Link's mascot had the honor of uttering the most famous words in poker. With a grunt came the, "Shuffle up and deal," and the Main Event is underway!
We're playing four levels today. Good luck, players!
It will be a short while before players are admitted to the Amazon Room, as tournament staff continues with last-minute preparations for the event. It's as yet unknown whether the Day 1a turnout will overflow into the Brasilia or Miranda rooms, but will likely occupy much or all of the available space in Amazon. Last year's Day 1a turnout was the smallest by far of the four opening sessions, and was not indicative of the overall turnout for the event. Nonetheless, well over a thousand players are expected to be on hand when play begins in just less than an hour.