Arieh Leads Stacked Field Heading into Day 2 of Event #80: $25,000 H.O.R.S.E. High Roller
Welcome to Day 2 of Event #80: $25,000 H.O.R.S.E. High Roller here at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. Josh Arieh bagged the chip lead last night after accumulating 621,500 through ten levels of play. The five-time bracelet winner was the only player to cross the 600k mark and is followed by Japan's own Motoyoshi Okamura, who will bring 565,000 with him to battle with on the felt today.
Plenty of poker talent remains, however, as is typical in any high-roller event. Some crushers Arieh will need to contend with in his pursuit of a sixth bracelet include Nacho Barbero (504,000), Paul Volpe (326,000), Viktor Blom (319,500), Mike Matusow (309,000), David "ODB" Baker (302,500), Jason Mercier (262,000), and Brian Hastings (254,500) to name a few.
Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh Arieh | United States | 621,500 |
| 2 | Motoyoshi Okamura | Japan | 565,000 |
| 3 | Yehuda Buchalter | United States | 511,000 |
| 4 | Nacho Barbero | Argentina | 504,000 |
| 5 | Hal Rotholz | United States | 478,000 |
| 6 | Matt Glantz | United States | 463,000 |
| 7 | Andres Korn | United States | 461,000 |
| 8 | Max Hoffman | United States | 451,000 |
| 9 | Michael Noori | United States | 445,000 |
| 10 | Michael Moncek | United States | 415,000 |
Michael Rodrigues (193,000) and Shaun Deeb (54,000) are also still in contention and currently sit in fourth and third place respectively in the WSOP Player of The Year race. A deep run from either player would keep the race tight against current leader Ian Matakis and a win would be enough to overtake first place.
Of the 100 entrants from yesterday, 56 are returning for Day 2 and more are expected to join as late registration will remain open until the start of play today at 1 p.m. local time. Play will begin on Level 11, which features 3,000/6,000 blinds for limit flop games and a 1,500 ante with a 2,000 bring-in and 6,000/12,000 limits for stud games. Play will continue for an additional ten 60-minute levels, and players will get a 15-minute break after every two levels. A 60-minute dinner break will be held after Level 16 (~7:30 p.m.)
Stay tuned to PokerNews as we continue to bring you coverage from this prestigious high-roller event leading to the money bubble and eventual next H.O.R.S.E. champion!