We know we’re entering into that final phase of the Series … with One Drop, the $50k Players Championship, and holiday barbecue plans taking shape … Cue the fireworks: the Main Event is right around the corner, marking the next new year for poker!

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1. Nolan Dalla calling for Venetian boycott

Marco riles up an impassioned plea from the WSOP media director for poker players to unite in meaningful opposition to Sheldon Adelson. [source: YouTube/QuadJacks]

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The first-ever legal pay-to-play online poker website in the United States is expected to launch this morning when Station Casinos-owned Ultimate Poker flips the switch on a new era in Nevada gaming.

The site, UltimatePoker.com, can be accessed only on computers or mobile devices located in Nevada.

State gaming authorities signed off of the company’s technology last week and allowed Ultimate Poker to move forward in what is considered a test period.

Ultimate Poker was licensed for interactive gaming in October.

The site is expected to go live at 9 a.m. with limit and no-limit Texas hold ’em poker through single-table cash games, sit-and-go events, and multi-table tournaments.

The poker games will have buy-ins from a few cents to $100.

More…

Blair Hinkle
Photo: WSOP.com

Today’s Boxscore

Blair Hinkle $121,177 – WSOP-C Council Bluffs Main Event
Roger Campbell $131,681 – Heartland Poker Tour St. Louis
Terry Fan HK$1,771,000 – Red Dragon Main Event
Daniel Pidun €880,000 – EPT Berlin Main Event

A historic day here in the States for online poker with the live launch of the Station Casinos/UFC backed Ultimate Poker. The client was opened to the public this morning and the first hand was dealt shortly after 9am Vegas time. Which prompted someone to immediately complain about a bad beat after busting on that very same hand. Welcome back online poker to the States!

Some questions have been answered about the process involved with the Nevada based site. Players do not need to be located within the state to signup and create an account, thus preventing another unprofitable hack from stealing the AlCantHang username. Players can deposit on the site from outside Nevada, which will allow them to load up on the site before traveling and play as soon as they are within the state lines. Deposit options include MasterCard, echeck, real check, bank wire, and the option to walk up to the main cage in any of the 16 Station Casinos in Nevada.

It seems the only downside so far, besides the small player base currently offered, is the system judging a player’s geographic location based on their cell phone signal. Verizon customers are unable to access the site and word is coming out about other smaller carriers being blocked as well. I can only assume these issues are being dealt with to allow everyone access.

All things considered, it’s a pretty big day for online poker back in the US. The first step in the process which includes interstate compacts and hopefully Federal regulations as quickly as possible. WSOP grinders can start loading up their accounts because they now have a legal online solution for playing away from the Rio.

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In non-online poker news, poker good guy Blair Hinkle won his 2nd career WSOP Circuit ring at the Council Bluffs Main Event. He became the first player to win the same Circuit event twice with the first ring coming there in the summer of 2010. This 2nd ring will go along nicely with his WSOP bracelet for 2008, setting him nicely for a big run at the 2013 WSOP.

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Tweet of the Day – Ultimate Poker pro Antonio Esfandiari tweets a screencap of the first hand played on the site. For the record, I want to play every one of these min-raising (redacted) online players.

Could not be more excited!! @ultimatepoker deals FIRST HAND OF REAL MONEY POKER IN THE US! #pokersback #letsdothis ! twitter.com/MagicAntonio/s…

— Antonio Esfandiari (@MagicAntonio) April 30, 2013

Nate Silver: The man who correctly predicted US elections – The man just keeps getting interviewed. This time around it’s the BBC who sat Nat Silver down for a talk about statistics, the election, and some poker in the mix.

Two California men get prison terms in pro poker ‘sextortion’ scheme – Opening the door for bottom feeders all over the forums, the Joe Sebok extortion trial was finally wrapped up last week with the two men receiving time in the big house. Hopefully this closes a sad chapter in poker and Micon can go back to shilling his BitCoins.

Duke on Decisions – Seems my former Epic Poker boss has been making her rounds on the corporate speech circuit. Short-stack Shamus has a run down of a recent article about Annie Duke’s latest appearance.

PokerStars Blog turns eight years old – I remember running off to the Bahamas years ago to provide a little moral support to Otis during the PCA (and cause myself severe liver damage) and now the PokerStars blog has turned 8 years old. The site has long been a strong supporter of the poker writing community and deserves all the kudos they receive.

Phil Ivey is God – A deleted scene from the upcoming BET RAISE FOLD documentary, this one all about Phil Ivey. It’s good to see a flashback to Gloria Balding on camera along with Dr. Pauly and Jesse May.

Rio’s Bottle Package
Get The Party Started!
Two Night Min./ Rates Vary
www.riolasvegas.com

Station Casinos-owned Ultimate Poker, which has yet to launch its pay-to-play website in Nevada, has a brand ambassador.

The company, which has been licensed by state gaming regulators but is waiting for approval of its technology by testing laboratories, announced Tuesday that it has signed poker champion Antonio Esfandiari to promote the website.

Esfandiari has made a name for himself behind the microphone as a commentator for ESPN’s coverage of the World Series of Poker and at the tables for his victories on the World Poker Tour.

He made his biggest splash last summer when he won a record poker jackpot of $18.3 million in capturing the World Series of Poker’s $1 million buy-in “Big One for One Drop” at the Rio.

More…

Chris Reslock
Photo: WSOP

Today’s Boxscore

Chris Reslock $25,480 – WSOP-C Caesars NLHE Prelim
Martin Bader £56,000 – GUKPT London Main Event

There were less than 200 entrees into the WSOP Circuit $580 NLHE event at Caesars in Atlantic City, but the final results were worth notice. AC and east coast legend Chris Reslock joined a very small club when he won the tournament and captured his 5th WSOP-C ring. He joins Ari Engel, Kyle Cartwright, Mark Smith, and Kurt Jewel in the 5 ring club and just one victory behind Alexandru Masek. Reslock has one WSOP bracelet as well, in the 2010 $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. tournament, and over $1,000,000 in career tournament earnings.

Also underway this week is the price-reduced WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star tournament, the buy-in reduced from $10,000 to $7,500. It looks like the discount is producing similar results as seen at the Borgata when they dropped their price to draw in more people yet still end up with a larger prizepool. Moon Kim is the defending champion.

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Tweet of the Day – Tournament Director extraordinaire Matt Savage made it “official” with this tweet, the Bay 101 Shooting Star will top attendance and prizepool numbers from last year’s event.

Not too late to jump on a plane and get out to @bay101casino @wpt. Prize pool is bigger than last year already at a smaller buy in $7,500!

— Matt Savage (@SavagePoker) March 5, 2013

Casino Industry Opposes PokerStars’ Bid for New Jersey License – The American Gaming Association doesn’t seem too thrilled with the idea of PokerStars buying the Atlantic Club Casino in AC. The AGA sited PokerStar’s troubles with the DOJ and thinks this should prevent them from buying the old haunt.

PokerStars responds to AGA protest of bid to buy Atlantic Club casino – And PokerStars responds.

Daniel Negreanu & Antonio Esfandiari For Choice Center Las Vegas Scam-Cult – Say it ain’t so Daniel! Someone who uses all his might to shout down all the evil people in the world can’t possibly be a shill for a Las Vegas scam company. It’s just not possible, unless it is. Bryan Micon attempts to piece it all together.

2013 WSOP Registration is open – Avoid those crazy, small buyin, weekend registration lines at this summer’s WSOP by registering for your events early and online. Registration is now open.

The 2013 World Series of Poker will take place May 29 through July 16 at the Rio, tournament officials announced this week.

The slate of individual events still is being finalized, but the tournament is expected to include at least 60 events where the winners earn gold bracelets.

The $10,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em World Championship, often referred to as the Main Event, will be contested over 10 days beginning July 7.

Three starting flights will take place July 7 to 9, with the final table of nine being determined July 16. The nine players will return to the Rio in November to play for the title.

Greg Merson of Laurel, Md., won the 2012 World Series of Poker’s Main Event, earning more than $8.5 million.

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Discussing the weather is a national past time for the British. Entire friendships can blossom from the comparison of one year’s inclement summer with the previous year’s inclement summer. Weather is a pervading social lubricant that unites all classes, creeds, and religions. Simpy describe the current climate and you’ll be instantly engulfed by a torrent of meteorological exhortations. What I’m trying to say is, it’s become a bit colder lately. On with the news.

Esfandiari et al

Not so cold, both actually and figuratively, is everyone’s favourite magician-turned-poker player, Antonio Esfandiari. Fresh from his $18 million score in the WSOP’s One Drop event, the all-time leader in tournament winnings picked up his second bracelet in Event #2 at the WSOPE in Cannes, France. [Wicked Chops Poker]

The World Series also crowned its very first Tunisian tournament winner in the form of Ben Mahmoud. He picked up €147,099 for first place in WSOPE Event #1, a €2,700 six-handed NLHE contest.[ESPN]

Meanwhile Frenchmen all along the Croisette were tossing their berets in the air with joy as Gallic poker stalwart Roger Hairabedian picked up a bracelet of his own in Event #3. [ESPN]

WCOOP Main Event

If the WCOOP were a televised event this might have been another Moneymaker moment. A Russian player known as maratik battled his way to a $1 million score from beginnings so humble they make Oliver Twist look like a oiled-up oligarch. Despite typically sticking to buy-ins around the $1.50 mark, maratic managed to freeroll his way into the $5,000 main event and on to victory. [PokerNews]

PokerStars Announce Full Tilt Launch

Along with the announcement that PokerStars are preparing to re-launch Full Tilt in the first week of November the company also revealed their plans to reimburse every player whose money was locked away following Black Friday. Users from France, Spain, Denmark, Estonia, and Belgium will have to access their cash through PokerStars itself, while the rest of the world should be able to jump back into Full Tilt and see things just as they left them. That just leaves Italy, where the details are still a little hazy, and the U.S. – who need to have their reimbursements processed through the Department of Justice. [PokerStars]

Mickey Peterson Wins EPO

I first met Mickey Peterson two years ago when he was sleeping on a coach at my friends’ place. Since that day Mickey has gone on to win EPT Copenhagen and, most recently, the English Poker Open for a cool £78,660. Coincidence? You decide. [PokerPlayer]

Mixed News from India

Good news everyone! The Indian government has officially declared that poker is a skill game. Bad news everyone! They still won’t let you play it for money. This following a tentative enquiry by university graduates planning to start a website that allowed wagers on poker and other skill games, including chess. [India]

Now you’ll have to excuse me while I stare at some pegs and try to decide which thickness of coat to wear. It’s dangerously temperate out there and the wrong choice could cost me everything. If I survive exposure to London’s mild Autumn, I’ll be back next week with another sack full of poker news.

Ben Mahmoud
Photo: WSOP.com

Today’s Boxscore

Ben Mahmoud €147,099 – WSOPE €2,700 6-handed NLHE
Antonio Esfandiari €126,207 – WSOPE €1,100 NLH Re-entry
Ben Hamnett $818,847 – World Poker Tour Borgata Open
Jeff Gibralter $133,648 – WSOPC Bossier City Main Event
Michael Harris $245,078 – HPT Golden Gates Casino

The World Series of Poker Europe is finally underway in Cannes and it didn’t take long for the excitement to ramp up. Antonio Esfandiari had a pretty decent summer with his Big One for One Drop win for $18 Million (minus paying off backers), seven WSOP cashes including the Main Event, and one other final table. After Event #2 at the WSOPE he can now be called a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner. There were 626 registered for the 2-day No Limit Hold’em Re-entry event and The Magician was the last player standing. He picked up €126,207 for his win and now leads the WSOP Player of the Year race.

Still a week of events remaining but now Greg Merson will need to finish 4th or better at November Nine to grab 2012 Player of the Year award.

The rest of the poker world is still talking about the Lederer Interview on PokerNews (except when the degenerates are complaining of lousy NFL replacement refs) and everybody with a website has posted their opinion, reaction, and theories. Some are insightful and some are drivel and some are humorous. You can find a few of the better ones listed below.

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Tweet of the Day – Haralabos Voulgaris is usually commenting on the NBA or NFL but this time points out the recent WCOOP Main Event winner freerolled into the tournament after his usually game is $1.50 tournaments. Now the player has nearly $1 million to move up in stakes.

The kid who won Pokerstars WCOOP “Maratik” got in on a freeroll, his normal game was $1.50c tourneys He won 995,707 bit.ly/PVVltm

— Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) September 25, 2012

Barry Greenstein responds to Howard Lederer Interview – Greenstein is one of those on the list of players who were loaned money that wasn’t theirs, and now he pseudo-defends Phil Ivey while also hedging his comments with this beaut: “…I think that anyone who received disbursements after the company was insolvent, which was probably 18 months before Black Friday, got money that wasn’t theirs.”

PokerStars Details Plans for Full Tilt Poker Re-launch and Payment of $184 Million to Players – The title says it all, PokerStars released a statement about the FTP relaunch, who can play, and most of the real world players will have their money available at that time. The light grows at the end of the tunnel.

The Mis-Lederer Files – Shamus is a Pokerati favorite (as well as my non-Pokerati self) and he has a great take on the Lederer interview released by PokerNews, not so much the information revealed but how it was told.

Howard Lederer Confesses EVERYTHING – by @SrslySirius – It didn’t take long for a bunch of Lederer mashups to make the rounds and the latest is from SryslySiruis.

The Lederer Files Parts 5, 6, and 7 – Rini was there in the early days of FTP and has a good look at the Lederer interview. Some interesting inside information but I’m still unhappy with the glossing over of how the Phil Ivey lawsuit changed the how things played out. Plus Negreanu agrees with him so I’m required to automatically find issues with it.

Antonio Esfandiari wins The Big One for One Drop
Photo: PokerNews.com

Today’s WSOP Bracelet Boxscore

Neil Willerson $737,248 – Event #53 $1,500 No Limit Hold’em
Will Jaffe $500,075 – Event #54 $1,000 No Limit Hold’em
Antonio Esfandiari $18,346,673 – $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop

It was a big day at the WSOP with huge crowds in the Mothership and on the rail to watch Antonio Esfandiari capture the biggest prize payout in poker history when he won the $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop event. The loincloth guys were back in the room banging their drums and even some non-Elizabeth Berkley Showgirls came in time for the live launch on ESPN.

It took a while for the action to take off but picked up steam after Richard Yong was knocked out in 8th place. Guy Laliberté, brainchild behind the Big One, received one of the loudest ovations from the gathered crowd when he was eliminated in 5th place. The biggest cheer went up for The Magician when he defeated former chip leader Sam Trickett headsup for the bracelet, a $350,000 watch, and a huge pile of (mostly fake) cash worth $18,346,673. His friends hoisted him up in the air, he jumped up on the feature table, and then hugged it out with money.

I’ll reserve my opinion on throwing a $1,000,000 buyin tournament for later, but it was an exciting day around the room for the players, fans, and media. With just a few more days until the Main Event, the WSOP is hitting it’s stride at the right time.

I imagine this will generate a bunch of interest in Esfandiari’s Insta Poker Secrets to Winning Hand-Pack and the Instapoker mobile app. Some pretty good timing in addition to a dump truck full of money backing up to his house.

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Tweet of the Day – Idiot

Lol @jesswelman on a power trip. 3 of us from $3k plo8 watching one drop for 5 mins not in anyone’s way. She says “this is a press area.”

— allen kessler (@AllenKessler) July 4, 2012

Einhorn Set to Donate Millions to Charity After BIG ONE – If there was anyone worth cheering for during the $1,000,000 tournament, it was David Einhorn who stated before the event he would donate any money won to charity.

Full Tilt’s Ray Bitar in FBI custody – Vin Narayanan at Casino City Times has a more detailed rundown of all things Bitar. I wonder when I can start ignoring my Full Tilt NDA.

Off the Felt With Shaun the Dealer – Shaun (the Dealer) Harris is one of the more recognizable figures dealing at WSOP and has dealt some memorable hands in the past. PokerNews caught up with him for an interview.

Life as an Online MTT Pro by the Numbers (It’s Hard) – Yes, I realize it’s an old post but it began circulating again this week. NoahSD crunches some numbers and shows some math-porn to highlight the difficulties in grinding a large number of tournaments.

BLUFF Asks What’s the Best Poker Movie Ever Made? – Not very many surprises but there’s little doubt our Ms. Welman does not like Rounders.

• Ray Bitar in Federal Custody – PokerStars Deal Imminent?
• Delaware Becomes Second US State to Legalize Online Poker
• Colorado Considering an Online Poker Bill
• John Campos Sentenced to Three Months for Black Friday Role
• Superseding Indictment Contends Bitar Instructed Employees to Lie About Player Funds
• Shuffle Master Terminates Deal to Purchase Ongame Network

Click to enlarge: Melanie Iglesias has her panties in a wad over something related to her break-up with the WPT.

Undercleavage: This stylish lingerie not available at K-mart offers a new way to look at Lacey Jones’ right boob.

Pot-committed: Survivorist Jim Rice found a more legal way to earn a living than online poker by selling weed.

Tenacious P: Jack Black is still kinda sorta into poker.

Baller beware: No TV show ever came of an idea about bar-bill wars between Kobe Bryant and Antonio Esfandiari.

A little poker gossip because sometimes in serious times we like the petty …

Melanie Iglesias vs. WPT (and QuadJacks?)
The guys at Quadjacks have called it “Flushgate” — and reportedly have received quite a bit of wrath from non-poker types over “the abrupt resignation of three Royal Flush girls” — 2010 Maxim Hometown Hottie winner and now MTV personality Melanie Iglesias, Michelle Banzer, and brand spankin’ new RF girl Mica Javier, who had only been on the job for a few weeks. The purging all went down last month right around the time of press announcements for the World Poker Tour’s new Season X … ooh, juicy! You could almost be certain somebody was gonna cry, if not more formally cry foul.

Catpacking in AC
We can only imagine how cut-throat that world can be — where looks absolutely are tied in with your success. Call us old-school here at Pokerati, Melanie is great and all, but she’s still no Lacey Jones, who recently did a lingerie photoshoot with power-model Katerina Van Derham. Meanwhile, here’s a new video featuring Lacey and Maria Ho helping Christina Lindley pick out a dress for her birthday party at the Borgata in Atlantic City this weekend … and New Jersey celeb-hunter Michael Berman interviews this threesome, being dubbed “the Cat Pack” here for the kickoff of WPT Borgata, where there may or may not be openings for three new Royal Flush Girls.

Auction Player?
Speaking of old school, Phil Hellmuth appeared last week on the A&E show Storage Wars — advising a group about strategy in their game of swag auctions, which apparently involves a combination of luck and skill. Not too familiar with that show … when do we get to hear someone say to Phil, “Going, going, gone!?”

Dealer’s Choice: From Poker to Pot
A relatively unknown poker player named Jim Rice is representing poker (whether he likes it or not) and pot on Survivor 23: South Pacific. Supposedly a pal (and business partner?) of Paul Wasicka’s, the 35-year-old from Chicago is now a medical marijuana dispenser in Colorado (woot!). His most recent cashes include a 3rd and a 23rd on the Heartland Poker Tour, this year and in 2008, respectively. And now with online poker more illegal than selling weed (in some US jurisdictions) … makes you wonder if certain poker pros would rather be Jim Rice or Jean-Robert Bellande.

Jack Black Rising or Falling Poker Celebrity?
There’s always new Hollywood celebrities getting in on poker — and hosting a charity tourney is often their first foray into niche hero-status and/or business opportunity around their personal poker addictions. Could Jack Black be the latest? The last-place finisher in the WPT’s 2009 Hollywood home game is hosting a charity tourney next month at the Commerce Casino in California, but otherwise still has much to prove before he becomes the next James Woods, whom you may recall back in 2004-05 kicked off his effort to become the Adam West of Poker.

Vegas Living: Closing Down Blush
The luxe but laid-back “boutique” nightclub Blush, at the Wynn, is closing after a four-year run. Ahhh … I remember this “ultra lounge” as the site of multiple VIP poker parties and the place where upon moving to Vegas I met a guy who explained to me the process of importing women to the US for a life of hooker-dom before having to excuse himself to go sell coke. But perhaps more famously, Blush is the place where Antonio Esfandiari “lost” a game of who’s got bigger ballers to Kobe Bryant — with the NBA star supposedly racking up a $21,000 champagne bill that had celebrity and sports media mocking some poker player being called “the magician” … even though he somehow got Kobe to pay for the last 15 bottles of Cristal.

Meanwhile, @KobeBryant’s Twitter account got suspended last week, and @MagicAntonio’s, who had a surprisingly similar number of followers, did not.

Buy clever/corny poker T-shirts at Les Shoppes du Pokerati.

The first major live poker tournament since Black Friday in the United States kicked off today with the World Poker Tour at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood Florida. One of the unknowns coming into the tournament was wether or not sponsored pros would show up wearing their patches.

With 406 players in the field today only 13 players were found wearing either a Full Tilt Poker or a Ultimate Bet patch. The one “big three” site that did not have a single patched up player was PokerStars, even though WPT regular and PokerStar Pro Jason Mercier was in the field.

Also in the field today not wearing their normal patch were Maria Ho (UB) and Antonio Esfandiari (Victory). The fact that these two are not wearing a patch for their respected site while Adam “roothlus” Levy (UB) and Jonathan Little (Victory) are patched up definitely creates more questions.

Here is a rundown of the players found in todays field that were wearing patches:

Since we are on the discussion of who is wearing what Tony Dunst, who is known for always being well dressed was not wearing his normal suit today due to a delay in dry cleaning. Instead he was wearing a V-Neck shirt and a pair of jeans. Dunst will be returning tomorrow, hopefully in his freshly cleaned suit, to grind out his short stack.

After 5 levels of play only 290 players remain with registration open until the start of play with Randy Dorfman at the top of the leaderboard with 160,000. Other players returning for day two are Vivek Rajkumar, Shannon Shorr, Annette Obstread, Mike Sexton, Kathy, Leibert, and Lauren Kling.

The players will return at 12 noon local time tomorrow for the start of day two of this six-day event to play another 5 levels.

Recapping Friday night’s WSOP tournaments with the two latest bracelet winners finally determined Saturday morning, but first some breaking news for Pokerati fans:

DonkeyBomber leads 1k Seniors’ field

Day 1 of the $1,000 Seniors’ No-Limit Holdem Championship concluded with 427 players remaining at the end of 10 levels of play. The reported chip leader is Team Pokerati/Loudmouth Poker pro Tom Schneider in front with 94,000 in chips. Other notables with chips when play resumes at 2:30pm: Berry Johnston (62,900), Lon McEachern (27,200) and Sam Simon (23,100). A full list of chip counts is now available at PokerNews.

Ellis wins bracelet #4 for the UK

The $1,500 No-Limit Holdem event reached a conclusion first as Mike Ellis overcame a large chip deficit heads-up against Christopher Gonzales to win the bracelet along with $581,851 as the Briton wins the fourth bracelet this year for the UK, moving them into second in the WSOP world standings. Gonzales earned $360,906 for the runner-up finish. Full results and Nolan Dalla’s tournament report are available at wsop.com.

Puchkov punches his way to HORSE victory

The $1,500 HORSE event finally concluded in the wee hours of the morning as Konstantin Puchkov defeated Al “Sugar Bear” Barbieri to earn $256,820 and a WSOP bracelet. Barbieri earned $158,647 for the second place finish. Full results and Dalla’s tournament report will be available at wsop.com shortly.

Lindgren, Nguyen feature final day of 5k NL 6-max

The final day of the $5,000 No-Limit Holdem 6-max event gets underway with 12 players remaining. Here’s how the field will be seated when play resumes at 3pm:

Seat 1: Orlando Delacruz – 301,000
Seat 2: Anthony Roux – 668,000
Seat 3: Evan Panesis – 299,000
Seat 4: Jeffrey “jpapola” Papola – 598,000
Seat 5: Mark Radoja – 1,493,000
Seat 6: Darren Elias – 841,000

Seat 1: Bruno Launais – 875,000
Seat 2: Men Nguyen – 264,000
Seat 3: Erick Lindgren – 1,165,000
Seat 4: Taylor Mcfarland – 848,000
Seat 5: Paul Sheng – 712,000
Seat 6: Lucas Greenwood – 425,000

Follow the updates of this event at PokerNews.

Velador and Chiu top two in 2500 PLO/PLH

Day 3 of the $2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha/Pot-Limit Holdem resumes at 3pm with 14 players remaining. Jose-Luis Velador (455,000) and David Chiu (451,000) are the leaders, while Rob Hollink (423,000), Victor Ramdin (262,000) and Phil Ivey (207,000) also return. PokerNews will be there until a bracelet winner is determined.

10k NL Heads-Up down to final 64

Two rounds of play have finished in the $10,000 No-Limit Holdem Heads-Up Championship with 64 players remaining when the field returns at 3pm. The 32 round three winners will make the money, with some of the notables returning include: Phil Ivey, Gavin Smith, Phil Gordon, Antonio Esfandiari, Sorel Mizzi, Jonathan Little, Josh Arieh, Vanessa Rousso and Vivek Rajkumar. The full bracket for this event is now online at wsop.com.

Saturday’s tournaments

The 12pm tournament is day 1a of the fourth $1,000 No-Limit Holdem event of the WSOP, with a field of at least 3,000 expected over the weekend. The 5pm tournament is the $3,000 HORSE event, which drew a field of 452 players last year with Zac Fellows coming out on top for $311,899.

Two new bracelet winners were determined Wednesday night, two more bracelet events get underway this afternoon, so here’s a brief recap:

Phillips Wins $1,500 NL 6-Max

Carter Phillips became the 7th-youngest WSOP bracelet winner when he took down the $1,500 No-Limit Holdem 6-max event last night, defeating Samuel Gerber of Switzerland in heads-up play to earn $482,744. Phillips, who won an EPT event last year in Barcelona, has now earned over $1,800,000 in his 18-month tournament career. The full results, along with the tournament report from Nolan Dalla is online at wsop.com.

Gee, I just won a bracelet!

Steve Gee of Sacremento, CA defeated Matt Vance to take down the $1,000 No-Limit Holdem bracelet, along with $472,479. The full results and Dalla’s tournament report is now up at wsop.com.

DeWitt DeBest for Day 3 of 5k NL

Jason Dewitt (1,873,000) leads going into day three of the $5,000 No-Limit Holdem bracelet event, resuming at 2:30pm with the field of 18 playing down to a winner. Among the day 3 survivors: Jeff Williams (1,323,000), Antonio Esfandiari (883,000), Perry Friedman (361,000) and David Benefield (326,000). Chip counts and updates can be found all afternoon over at PokerNews.

$2,000 Limit Holdem

After ten levels of play on day one, Joshua Honegger leads the field with 87,000 in chips at the $2,000 Limit Holdem tournament. Others in contention for a bracelet include Matt Matros (53,700), Matt Glantz (50,700), Eric Buchman (39,400), Joe Serock (38,000) and Joe Serock (33,400). The field of 109 returns at 2:30pm with 45 making the money, with $203,607 going to the winner. The full list of chip counts is now online at PokerNews.

10k 2-7 NL Draw Day 1

Day 2 of the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball World Championship resumes at 3pm with 72 of the 101 starters returning. Homan Houshiar will start the day as chip leader, with 116,100 in chips. Following close behind include David “Bakes” Baker (104,000), Tom Dwan (64,100), John Juanda (54,050), Daniel Negreanu (46,800), Yan Chen (33,200) and Team Pokerati’s Tom Schneider (18,700). 14 players will make the money, with the winner pocketing $294,314. Chip counts are now available at PokerNews.

Thursday’s Tournaments

Starting at noon is the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha event, last year won by Jason Mercier for over $237,000 over a field of 809. Players will start with 1,500 in chips, along with three “rebuy” chips, each good for 1,000 additional chips used during the first four hours. The 5pm tournament today is the $1,500 Seven Card Stud event, won last year by Jeff Lisandro for almost $125,000, besting a field of 359. While waiting for the tournaments to start, check some of the links along the right hand side for more WSOP content than you ever thought was possible.

A review of this afternoon’s WSOP action:

Phillips builds chip lead in youngster $1,500 NL 6-max

The $1,500 No-Limit Holdem 6-max final table was reached this afternoon, and thanks to the research of Jess Welman and F-Train, the six who made up the final table was the youngest (or second-youngest) in WSOP history*, with an average age of 22.8.

Carter Phillips 3,175,000
Craig Bergeron 1,214,000
Russell Thomas 1,075,000
Samuel Gerber 1,057,000
David Diaz 490,000
Hugo Perez 485,000

Perez ($124,690) Thomas ($84,256) and Diaz ($58,483) were the first to leave the final table, while the remaining three playing down to a winner. Phillips (3,615,000) has maintained his chip lead, followed by Bergeron (2,200,000) and Gerber (1,700,000). Find out which young gun takes the tournament down at PokerNews.

Gee vs Vance for 1k NL bracelet

The final table of the $1,000 No-Limit Holdem final table is down to two players, with Steven Gee (7,450,000) holding a chip lead over Matt Vance (1,550,000) battling for over $470,000 and the prized WSOP bracelet. David Baker, the leader at the start of the final table, finished in 3rd, good for $206,813. Updates and the rest of the final table results are at wsop.com.

Williams leads 5k NL

Day 2 of the $5,000 No-Limit Holdem returns from their dinner break with under 85 players remaining, 72 making the money. The current chip leader is Jeff Williams with 367,000 in chips. Other notables remaining: Peter Jetten (350,000), Day 1 leader Steven Goosen (295,000), Antonio Esfandiari (250,000) and Vivek Rajkumar (170,000). The field will play six more levels or to the final table, whichever comes first. See who makes the money, who’s the unfortunate bubble boy, and who breaks out of the pack at PokerNews.

Matts 1-2 in Limit Holdem

The $2,000 Limit Holdem event got underway at noon today to eventually draw a field of 476 entrants. After six levels of play, the field is already under 300, with Matt Glantz (24,500) and Matt Matros (22,800) reported as the top two in chips. Other notables: Sorel Mizzi (18,000), Maria Ho (17,000), John Phan (13,000) and defending champion Marc Naalden (10,000). Follow the raise, 3-bet and 4-bet action over at wsop.com.

NL 2-7 Lowball Underway

A field of 101 started at 5pm for the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball World Championship and only Dario Minieri has been eliminated in the first three hours. Among the dozens of notables in the field: Tom Dwan, Barry Greenstein, Phil Ivey, Tom Schneider, Yan Chen, Archie Karas and Doyle Brunson. Follow the pat wheels, drawing two, and breaking of good hands over at PokerNews.

* The 2009 $5,000 No-Limit Holdem Shootout final table had an average age of 22.2. However, that was a five-handed final table, and after consultation with BJ Nemeth, that was considered to not be a standard final table.

Bubble Burst in 50k

The $50,000 Players’ Championship reached the bubble earlier today with day 2 chip leader Kirk Morrison the unfortunate bubble boy, leaving 16 players guaranteed almost $100,000. At this time, Robert Mizrachi is the current chip lead with over 2.5m in chips, followed by John Juanda at 2.4m in 2nd. Michael Mizrachi is currently in 5th with nearly 1.7m while Nick Schulman, and Daniel Alaei have around 1m in chips with just 13 players remaining. The Mizrachi brothers are looking to be the first brothers to make the same final table since Ross and Barny Boatman performed the feat in 2002. (Thanks to a poster on 2+2 for that info).

1k Donkament Day 2

The $1,000 NL Holdem event reached the money within the first level this afternoon, and the pace has not slowed down, with under 200 players remaining at the end of level 14. The chip leader at the dinner break is Drew Crawford at 230,000. Play continues to the end of level 20 or the final table, whichever comes first.

Omaha 8 Day 2

Around 120 players remain in the $1,500 Omaha 8 or Better event as they head to their dinner break. Phil Ivey, Allen Kessler, David Bach, Brock Parker, Andrew Black and Team Pokerati’s own Tom Schneider are some of the familiar names looking to make the money bubble at 81 players and the eventual final table.

$1,500 NL Day 1

The $1,500 NL holdem event drew a field of 2,092, with 216 making the money and the winner getting over $500,000. 638 players will return after their 90-minute dinner break. The early leader appears to be online legend Shaun Deeb with 55,000 chips. Lauren Kling is unofficially in second with 45,000, while Antonio Esfandiari, Daniel Negreanu, Mark Seif and Joe Cada off to a fast start as well.

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