Joseph Wagganer Leads the Way in Event #11: $1,500 Badugi
After 10 hours and 15 levels of play, Day 1 of Event #11: $1,500 Badugi is in the books here at the 2024 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. The second edition of the event brought out 487 entries, just shy of the 516 hopefuls that entered the prior year. This year’s event has created a prize pool of $650,145 with a first-place prize of $129,676. The top 74 players will receive a min-cash of $3,000.
Joseph Wagganer (268,500) bagged the chip lead, while Oscar Johansson (218,000) and Mark Roland (217,500) rounded out the podium.
Other notables to have bagged large stacks include Jerry Wong (191,000), Frank Kassela (175,000), and Alex Livingston (148,000) . Players who will not return tomorrow include last year’s champion Michael Rodrigues, Phil Ivey, Mike Matusow, and Eli Elezra.
End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joseph Wagganer | United States | 268,500 |
| 2 | Oscar Johansson | Sweden | 218,000 |
| 3 | Mark Roland | United States | 217,500 |
| 4 | Nicholas Marsico | United States | 215,500 |
| 5 | Hanh Tran | Austria | 203,500 |
| 6 | Maksim Pisarenko | Russia | 196,500 |
| 7 | Jerry Wong | United States | 191,000 |
| 8 | Frank Kassela | United States | 175,000 |
| 9 | Tomasz Gluszko | Poland | 174,000 |
| 10 | Lee Horton | United Kingdom | 171,500 |
The Day’s Action
As with most limit tournaments, play began slowly. However, as the limits increased, so did the action. Allen Kessler and Heather Alcorn were both recipients of large pots early. However, Kessler was unable to find a bag at the day's end. More and more notable players joined as the day progressed, and the action became fast and furious.
Later, Craig Chait was dealt a wheel in a four-way, three-bet pot in which he got maximum value across all four betting rounds.
In Level 13, Iman Alsaden was the beneficiary of a double knockout of Phil Ivey and Nate Silver when her king-ten badugi was good enough to eliminate both players.
Day 2 begins at 1 p.m. on June 3 in Level 16, with blinds at 2,000/4,000 and limits at 4,000/8,000. The action takes place in the Silver section of the Horseshoe Event Center, where ten sixty-minute levels are planned for the 139 returning players.
As always, stay tuned to PokerNews for continued coverage of Event #11: $1,500 Badugi and all other bracelet events at the 2024 World Series of Poker.