Saturday, November 10, 2018 12:20 AM Local Time
Wayne Lovell leads the pack
The first of two starting flights in the 2018 World Series Circuit Main Event at Choctaw Casino & Resort has come to a conclusion after 15 levels of play. There were 335 players who put up the $1,700 to enter the first flight of the tournament and only 60 players remained by the end of the night. The players that survived will return for Day 2 at 12:00 PM local time on Sunday along with all of tomorrow’s Day 1B survivors.
Gold Bracelet and gold ring winners littered today's field. Two of the Bracelet winners ended up sitting right next to each other at one point, Nick Seiken and Blair Hinkle (220,500).
Leading at the end of Day 1A is two-time ring winner Wayne Lovell (pictured) with 383,000 chips from Killeen, TX.
Other notables to advance chip stacks to Day 2 include Todd Rebello (357,000) Jeff Banghart (351,000), Boris Kasabov (338,000), Harry Arutyunayn (313,500), Mina Greco (194,000), Matt Bond (189,000) Justin Harvell (119,000), and Ryan Phan (92,500).
Players that were not fortunate enough to make it to the end of the day include Lauren Bunch, Trung Pham, John Richards, bracelet winner Sean Yu, and past winner Andy Philachack.
The second flight of the Main Event will begin tomorrow at 12:00 PM local time. With registration open until the start of level 13. Complete chip counts can be found in the 'Reports' tab above.
Friday, November 9, 2018 11:39 PM Local Time
The tournament staff has announced that the field will play five more hands before bagging and tagging.
Friday, November 9, 2018 11:26 PM Local Time
On a flop of , it checks to Harry Arutyunyan who bets 25,000 into a pot of 40,000. His opponent thinks about it shortly before laying it down.
Arutyunyan shows to cross the 300,000 mark and take his spot among the chip leaders.
Harry Arutyunyan - 335,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 11:22 PM Local Time
A player in middle position raises to 6,300 and Harry Arutyunyan calls on the button. Mina Greco calls out of the big blind and they are three-handed to a flop of . All three players check and the comes on the turn.
Action checks to Arutyunyan, who bets 8,000. Greco folds and the original raiser calls. The river is the . Middle position checks and Arutyunyan bets 20,000. Middle position check-raises to 20,000.
"Nice hand," says Arutyunyan as he commits the chips to call.
Middle position shows , good for a full house, and Arutyunyan flashes and tosses it into the muck. Arutyunyan loses the pot, but still has plenty of chips to work with.
Harry Arutyunyan - 275,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 11:21 PM Local Time
Level: 15
Blinds: 1,500/3,000
Ante: 500
Friday, November 9, 2018 10:58 PM Local Time
In a battle of the blinds, Blair Hinkle completes his small blind and the big blind checks his option.
The flop comes , Hinkle bets 3,000 and his opponent calls. Both players check the on the turn as well as the on the river.
The big blind says he has a four and tables , but is out kicked by Hinkle's .
Blair Hinkle - 190,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 10:35 PM Local Time
Lam Tran raises on the button and the big blind moves all in for about 70,000. Tran calls. He's in the lead with his against the big blind's .
The board runs out and Tran's bigger aces holds up to win the pot and eliminate his opponent. He's quickly surged up the chip counts towards the end of the night.
Lam Tran - 165,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 10:33 PM Local Time
A player limps from under the gun and Heinz Schluter raises to 11,000. Lam Tran moves all in for 44,000 from the big blind and Schlueter calls.
Tran tables and is in good shape against Schlueter's .
The board runs out and Tran's pocket queens holds to avoid elimination.
Lam Tran - 95,000
Heinz Schlueter - 116,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 10:26 PM Local Time
Level: 14
Blinds: 1,200/2,400
Ante: 400
Friday, November 9, 2018 10:22 PM Local Time
In a battle between WSOP bracelet winners Nick Seiken opens to 5,200 from middle position and Blair Hinkle calls from next to act.
The flop comes , Seiken checks and Hinkle bets 4,000. Seiken calls.
Both players check the on the turn. The river brings the , and Seiken bets 6,000. Hinkle moves all in for 26,000 effective and Seiken thinks shortly before laying it down.
Blair Hinkle - 115,000
Nick Seiken - 26,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:57 PM Local Time
Registration is officially closed. The clock reads 335 entrants with 89 currently remaining.
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:57 PM Local Time
Level: 13
Blinds: 1,000/2,000
Ante: 300
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:41 PM Local Time
Players are currently on their last fifteen minute break of the night.
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:40 PM Local Time
On a flop of , there is about 50,000 in the pot already and the player on the button is already all in. A player in early position bets 26,800 and Wayne Lovell calls from the cutoff.
The turn is the and early position moves all in for about 60,000 and Lovell calls with a covering stack. Lovell shows and has both of his opponents drawing dead. Early position shows , giving him the nut flush draw and the button shows .
The river is the irrelevant and Lovell wins the pot, knocking both players out and moves near the top of the leaderboard.
Wayne Lovell - 240,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:40 PM Local Time
Sung Kim
Ryan Phan, who finished in 11th place in this years WSOP Main Event, opens to 3,300 from early position. Sung Kim three-bets to 9,000 and Phan folds pocket eights face up.
"Thats the best hand I got so far and I had to fold it"
Kim says he had pocket tens as he rakes in the pot. It appears that Kim is the late night chip leader.
Sung Kim - 271,000
Ryan Phan - 35,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:17 PM Local Time
Will Pengelly
Nick Seiken moves all in from early position for about 20,000 and Will Pengelly calls out of the big blind. Pengelly shows and is in the lead against Seiken's .
The flop is , giving Seiken the lead, but the comes on the turn to put Pengelly back out in front. The river is the and Pengelly wins the pot with a pair of kings, eliminating Seiken in the process.
Seiken wishes the table luck and heads to the registration desk to fire his second bullet in the event. Pengelly is one of the top stacks in the tournament.
Will Pengelly - 190,000
Nick Seiken - Eliminated
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:04 PM Local Time
Level: 12
Blinds: 800/1,600
Ante: 200
Friday, November 9, 2018 9:04 PM Local Time
Jeremy Joseph is all in for 59,200 from the small blind on a flop of with . He's up against his opponent's .
His opponent chants "No diamond" as the turn brings the and the hits the river.
Joseph hits his flush on the river to avoid elimination.
Jeremy Joseph - 130,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 8:36 PM Local Time
A player in middle position opens and late position three-bets. The small blind moves all in for 26,000, Michael Pickett calls from the big blind as does late position.
Both players check the flop. The turn brings the and Pickett shoves. Late position calls all in for around 40,000.
Pickett is in the lead with against the small blinds and late position's . The river brings the and Pickett's pocket aces hold to eliminate both of his opponents.
Michael Pickett - 230,000
Friday, November 9, 2018 8:30 PM Local Time
Level: 11
Blinds: 600/1,200
Ante: 200