Monday, July 2, 2012 9:23 AM Local Time
Direct from the WSOP staff!
| Brian Rast | 10,710,000 | 0  |
| Phil Hellmuth | 8,395,000 | 0 |
| Frederic Banjout | 7,070,000 | |
| Antonio Esfandiari | 6,880,000 | 0 |
| Gus Hansen | 6,800,000 | 0 |
| Sam Trickett | 6,700,000 | 0 |
| Guy Laliberté | 6,555,000 | 5,000  |
| Ben Lamb | 5,770,000 | 0 |
| Mike Sexton | 5,740,000 | 0 |
| Tom Dwan | 4,810,000 | 0 |
| Brandon Steven | 4,770,000 | 0 |
| Mikhail Smirnov | 4,680,000 | 0 |
| Bobby Baldwin | 4,225,000 | 0 |
| Jason Mercier | 4,210,000 | 0 |
| Bob Bright | 3,880,000 | |
| David Einhorn | 3,795,000 | 0 |
| Phil Ruffin | 3,750,000 | 0 |
| Tom Marchese | 3,740,000 | 0 |
| Philipp Gruissem | 3,600,000 | 0 |
| Richard Yong | 3,430,000 | 0 |
| Rick Salomon | 3,285,000 | 0 |
| Paul Newey | 3,225,000 | 0 |
| Dan Shak | 3,190,000 | 0 |
| Noah Schwartz | 3,120,000 | 0 |
| Roland De Wolfe | 2,960,000 | 0 |
| Phil Ivey | 2,840,000 | 0 |
| Cary Katz | 2,785,000 | 0 |
| Talal Shakerchi | 2,760,000 | 0 |
| Haralabos Voulgaris | 2,250,000 | 0 |
| John Morgan | 2,000,000 | 0 |
| Ilya Bulychev | 1,880,000 | 0 |
| Vivek Rajkumar | 1,270,000 | 0 |
| Tobias Reinkemeier | 1,220,000 | 0 |
| Bill Perkins | 885,000 | 0 |
| Chamath Palihapitiya | 635,000 | 0 |
| Daniel Negreanu | 470,000 | 0 |
| Phil Galfond | 445,000 | 0 |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:36 AM Local Time
The World Series of Poker has reached an all-time high, not just for its own history, but also for poker history across the globe. The $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop became the largest buy-in in poker history today as it kicked off with 48 players plopping down the massive seven-figure price of entry. At the end of the first nine levels of play, 37 players remained with Brian Rast on top of them all with 10.71 million.
Going into the day, the excitement was building and you could feel the electricity in the air. An elaborate Cirque du Soleil performance highlighted the introductions as each of the participants was announced one by one to the spectators as the ESPN cameras rolled. A little bit before 2:00 PM in the afternoon, the cards were in the air and the chips were flying.
The first player eliminated on the day was Justin Smith. He lost a massive hand for nearly all of his chips right before the first break when he paid off Frederic Banjout on the river with an eight-high straight. Banjout had backed into the nut flush to win the pot. On the first hand back from the break, Smith's lost to Rast's .
Rast then claimed the scalp of Andrew Robl when he made the nut flush against Robl's pair of kings. On the flop in a four-bet pot, Rast and Robl got all the money in. Rast held he versus Robl's and spiked as the board ran out with the and .
The other players that were eliminated on the day included Jens Kyllönen, Jonathan Duhamel, Paul Phua, Erik Seidel, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Nick Schulman, Eugene Katchalov, Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi and Giovanni Guarascio.
Mizrachi was the second-to-last player eliminated on the day, falling at the hands of Mike Sexton. On the board, Mizrachi moved all in for his last 180,000 with the . Sexton called with the . After the river landed with the , Mizrachi's million dollar tournament was over with.
Of those advancing to Day 2 are Jason Mercier, Daniel Negreanu, Antonio Esfandiari, Ben Lamb, Sam Trickett and Phil Ivey. Twelve-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth also survived and will be taking 8.395 million in chips to Day 2.
Action for Day 2 will begin at 12:00 PM PT and the plan it to play all the way down until the final table of nine is set. With over $18.3 million up for grabs for first place, everyone will be bringing their best game to the felt and looking to run it up. It's going to be an absolutely amazing day of poker and you won't want to miss out on any of it.
Be sure to join us right back here on PokerNews for all of the live coverage and until then, goodnight from Las Vegas!
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:30 AM Local Time
Table 445
| Seat | Player | Count |
|---|
| 1 | Frederic Banjout | 7,070,000 |
| 2 | Chamath Palihapitiya | 635,000 |
| 3 | John Morgan | 2,000,000 |
| 4 | Ilya Bulychev | 1,880,000 |
| 5 | Paul Newey | 3,225,000 |
| 6 | Mike Sexton | 5,740,000 |
| 7 | Vivek Rajkumar | 1,270,000 |
| 8 | --Empty-- | N/A |
Table 446
| Seat | Player | Count |
|---|
| 1 | Cary Katz | 2,785,000 |
| 2 | Bill Perkins | 885,000 |
| 3 | Guy Laliberté | 6,555,000 |
| 4 | Phil Galfond | 445,000 |
| 5 | Tom Dwan | 4,810,000 |
| 6 | Daniel Negreanu | 470,000 |
| 7 | Mikhail Smirnov | 4,680,000 |
| 8 | --Empty-- | N/A |
Table 447
| Seat | Player | Count |
|---|
| 1 | Tobias Reinkemeier | 1,220,000 |
| 2 | Noah Schwartz | 3,120,000 |
| 3 | Richard Yong | 3,430,000 |
| 4 | Robert Bright | 3,880,000 |
| 5 | Jason Mercier | 4,210,000 |
| 6 | Roland De Wolfe | 2,960,000 |
| 7 | David Einhorn | 3,795,000 |
| 8 | Phil Ruffin | 3,750,000 |
Table 448
| Seat | Player | Count |
|---|
| 1 | Gus Hansen | 6,800,000 |
| 2 | Haralabos Voulgaris | 2,250,000 |
| 3 | Brian Rast | 10,710,000 |
| 4 | Philipp Gruissem | 3,600,000 |
| 5 | Bobby Baldwin | 4,225,000 |
| 6 | Rick Salomon | 3,285,000 |
| 7 | Phil Ivey | 2,840,000 |
| 8 | Phil Hellmuth | 8,395,000 |
Table 449
| Seat | Player | Count |
|---|
| 1 | Antonio Esfandiari | 6,880,000 |
| 2 | Sam Trickett | 6,700,000 |
| 3 | Dan Shak | 3,190,000 |
| 4 | Tom Marchese | 3,740,000 |
| 5 | Brandon Steven | 4,770,000 |
| 6 | Ben Lamb | 5,770,000 |
| 7 | Talal Shankerchi | 2,760,000 |
| 8 | --Empty-- | N/A |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:29 AM Local Time
| Brian Rast | 10,710,000 | -40,000 |
| Phil Hellmuth | 8,395,000 | 255,000 |
| Antonio Esfandiari | 6,880,000 | 480,000 |
| Gus Hansen | 6,800,000 | 80,000 |
| Sam Trickett | 6,700,000 | -545,000 |
| Guy Laliberté | 6,550,000 | 150,000 |
| Ben Lamb | 5,770,000 | 370,000 |
| Mike Sexton | 5,740,000 | -160,000 |
| Tom Dwan | 4,810,000 | 1,600,000 |
| Brandon Steven | 4,770,000 | -530,000 |
| Mikhail Smirnov | 4,680,000 | -520,000 |
| Bobby Baldwin | 4,225,000 | -175,000 |
| Jason Mercier | 4,210,000 | -60,000 |
| David Einhorn | 3,795,000 | -1,395,000 |
| Phil Ruffin | 3,750,000 | 150,000 |
| Tom Marchese | 3,740,000 | 565,000 |
| Philipp Gruissem | 3,600,000 | -815,000 |
| Richard Yong | 3,430,000 | 455,000 |
| Rick Salomon | 3,285,000 | 185,000 |
| Paul Newey | 3,225,000 | 205,000 |
| Dan Shak | 3,190,000 | -200,000 |
| Noah Schwartz | 3,120,000 | 185,000 |
| Roland De Wolfe | 2,960,000 | 210,000 |
| Phil Ivey | 2,840,000 | -110,000 |
| Cary Katz | 2,785,000 | -390,000 |
| Talal Shakerchi | 2,760,000 | 260,000 |
| Haralabos Voulgaris | 2,250,000 | 250,000 |
| John Morgan | 2,000,000 | -550,000 |
| Ilya Bulychev | 1,880,000 | -295,000 |
| Vivek Rajkumar | 1,270,000 | -1,130,000 |
| Tobias Reinkemeier | 1,220,000 | -80,000 |
| Bill Perkins | 885,000 | -1,505,000 |
| Chamath Palihapitiya | 635,000 | -185,000 |
| Daniel Negreanu | 470,000 | -455,000 |
| Phil Galfond | 445,000 | -95,000 |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:20 AM Local Time
In the very last hand of the night, Brian Rast opened for 80,000 from middle position, Sam Trickett called from a seat over, and Giovanni Guarascio, sitting to Trickett's left, called as well.
It folded back to Frederic Banjout in the blinds who fired a reraise to 300,000, forcing folds around to Guarascio. He thought for a while, then finally shrugged and put his remaining chips out before him — a reraise to 365,000 total.
Banjout hesitated for a moment, unsure at first just how much Guarascio had shoved. When it was explained he only owed 65,000 more, he called.
"Wait!" said Trickett with a grin, pointing at a stack of his own lavender chips he had sneakily set closer to Guarascio before pulling it back with a grin.
The table chuckled, and the players tabled their hands — for Guarascio, and for Banjout.
The board came , and Guarascio won't be joining the 37 coming back for tomorrow's day 2.
| - | 7,070,000 | -100,000 |
| Giovanni Guarascio | 0 | -620,000 |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:13 AM Local Time
Phil Galfond and Paul Newey were heads up on a flop of . Galfond led for 115,000, and Newey raised to 275,000. Galfond called.
Both players knuckled after the turned, and the completed the board. Galfond checked, and Newey fired 275,000. Galfond took of his glasses, and studied both the board and Newey. Finally, he released his cards, and Newey raked in the pot.
A few hands later, Galfond raised to 80,000 from early position, and Roland De Wolfe three-bet to 225,000 on his direct left. The action folded back to Galfond who tank-folded, and De Wolfe told him it was a good fold.
"I thought I was going to go with that one," Galfond admitted.
| Paul Newey | 3,020,000 | 20,000 |
| Phil Galfond | 540,000 | -2,460,000 |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:13 AM Local Time
The tournament staff just announced the players will play three more hands at each table before bagging and tagging for the night. They'll then return at Noon PST on Monday to play down to a final table.
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:11 AM Local Time
Tobias Reinkemeier and Phil Ruffin created a pot of 280,000 preflop and proceeded to check the flop and turn. When the hit the turn, a seemingly innocent pot exploded as Reinkemeier fired out 350,000 only to have Ruffin snap-raise to 850,000.
Reinkemeier was a bit flabbergasted. "We were checking it down to the river?" Reinkemeier asked himself. He then asked the floor whether or not he could tell Ruffin his hand, but the answer was negative. Eventually Reinkemeier tossed in the call, and Ruffin rolled over for a full house. Reinkemeier flashed the and then sent his hand to the muck.
| Phil Ruffin | 3,600,000 | 900,000 |
| Tobias Reinkemeier | 1,300,000 | -855,000 |
Monday, July 2, 2012 12:08 AM Local Time
Michael Mizrachi raised to 100,000 from the small blind, and Mike Sexton called from the big. The flop fell , and Mizrachi led for 70,000. Sexton called.
The turn was the , and Mizrachi moved all in for 180,000. Sexton tanked for nearly a minute, then called.
"I've got nothing," Mizrachi sighed, flipping over .
Sexton had for a pair of jacks, and the completed the board, giving him Broadway and eliminating Mizrachi from the tournament.
| Mike Sexton | 5,900,000 | 400,000 |
| Michael Mizrachi | 0 | -525,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:59 PM Local Time
Eugene Katchalov was all in from the cutoff seat for 485,000 with the . Antonio Esfandiari called from the big blind with the .
The flop, turn and river ran out and Katchalov headed out the door. Esfandiari moved to 6.4 million in chips.
| Antonio Esfandiari | 6,400,000 | 280,000 |
| Eugene Katchalov | 0 | -835,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:59 PM Local Time
Mike Sexton raised to 100,000 from middle position and it folded to Rick Salomon who called from the small blind.
All three postflop streets went similarly, with Salomon check-calling Sexton each time. After the flop, Salomon check-called a bet of 150,000 right away. After the turn, Salomon checked and called a bet of 250,000, again without hesitation.
The river brought the . Salomon slapped the table with an open palm, indicating a check, and this time Sexton bet 400,000. Salomon paused a beat this time, then said "I call." Sexton quickly tabled for a set, and Salomon winced as he mucked.
| Mike Sexton | 5,950,000 | 1,550,000 |
| Rick Salomon | 3,100,000 | -400,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:56 PM Local Time
We didn't catch the action until the river on a board reading . There was around 1.1 million in the pot when Tobias Reinkemeier checked from the small blind and Talal Shakerchi moved all in for 1.2 million on the button.
Reinkemeier thought for about ten seconds and then released his hand. We took note because it marked the first time that we can recall a player had moved all in at the feature table.
| Talal Shakerchi | 2,500,000 | 500,000 |
| Tobias Reinkemeier | 2,155,000 | -1,025,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:54 PM Local Time
On the flop, Bobby Baldwin fired 225,000 and Roland De Wolfe raised to 575,000. Baldwin called and the turn was the . Baldwin checked and De Wolfe moved all in for 1.36 million. Baldwin folded and De Wolfe won the pot.
| Bobby Baldwin | 4,400,000 | -590,000 |
| Roland De Wolfe | 2,750,000 | 200,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:51 PM Local Time
Action folded to Brian Rast in the hijack seat and he raised to 85,000. Giovanni Guarascio made the call on the button and Frederic Banjout called from the big blind.
The flop came down and all three players checked to see the pair the board on the turn. Banjout led for 200,000 and Rast called. Guarascio also called.
The river was the and Banjout checked. Rast bet 525,000 and Guarascio folded. Banjout also folded and Rast scooped in the pot. He moved to over 10 million in chips.
| Brian Rast | 10,750,000 | 3,100,000 |
| - | 7,170,000 | -405,000 |
| Giovanni Guarascio | 620,000 | -760,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:47 PM Local Time
Phil Ivey raised to 90,000 from the cutoff and got a single caller in Vivek Rajkumar in the small blind. The flop came , and Rajkumar checked. Ivey fired 125,000, and Rajkumar called. Both players then checked the turn and river.
Rajkumar turned over his hand, showing , and Ivey tossed his cards away.
| Phil Ivey | 2,950,000 | -260,000 |
| Vivek Rajkumar | 2,400,000 | 200,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:46 PM Local Time
When we reached Table 411, Chamath Palihapitiya and Gus Hansen were heads up with the board reading . Palihapitiya bet 150,000, and Hansen called.
The turn was the , and Palihapitiya led again - this time for 275,000. Hansen called.
The completed the board, and Palihapitiya fired one last bullet worth 300,000. Hansen tanked for a bet before raising to 990,000, and Palihapitiya quickly called. Hansen tabled for trip queens.
"Wow," Palihapitiya exclaimed. "What a terrible f***ing kicker. You got me notched. Nice hand, Gus."
Palihapitiya mucked, and Hansen pulled in the pot.
| Gus Hansen | 6,720,000 | 982,000 |
| Chamath Palihapitiya | 820,000 | -1,415,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:43 PM Local Time
Roland de Wolfe raised to 85,000 from the hijack seat, Paul Newey called from the cutoff, and Mikhail Smirnov called as well from the big blind. The flop came and all three players checked.
The turn brought the and a bet of 200,000 from Smirnov, and de Wolfe called without much hesitation. Newey let his hand go.
The river was the , and Smirnov — acting quickly always — pushed out a stack of 385,000, and de Wolfe called again right away. Smirnov rolled over for aces up, and de Wolfe mucked.
| Mikhail Smirnov | 5,200,000 | 400,000 |
| Roland De Wolfe | 2,550,000 | -280,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:41 PM Local Time
Talal Shakerchi, who was a new edition to the feature table after an outer table broke last level, raised to 90,000 from middle position and cleared the field all the way around to Ilya Bulychev in the big blind. The 34-year-old businessman from Moscow, Russia has been quiet today, but he made the call to see the flop.
Bulychev proceeded to check-call a bet of 165,000, but then check-folded to a bet of 275,000 on the turn. It wasn't much of a hand, but it's the first hand we've managed to catch Bulychev playing, so we thought we'd pass it along.
| Ilya Bulychev | 2,175,000 | -245,000 |
| Talal Shakerchi | 2,000,000 | 425,000 |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 11:39 PM Local Time
From the cutoff seat, Tom Marchese raised to 90,000. Antonio Esfandiari reraised to 210,000 on the button and then play moved to Ben Lamb in the big blind. Lamb put in a reraise and made it 500,000 even with a little over 3.5 million behind. Marchese tanked for a bit with a little over four million behind and then reraised to 875,000. Esfandiari folded, but Lamb studied, then called.
The flop came down and both players checked to see the land on the turn. Again, both players checked.
After the fell on the river, Lamb checked and Marchese tanked. After a minute or two, Lamb asked, "Do you know I checked?" Marchese nodded.
Another minute or so passed and Marchese checked behind. "Queens," said Lamb, showing the . Marchese mucked and Lamb won the pot.
| Ben Lamb | 5,400,000 | 1,335,000 |
| Tom Marchese | 3,175,000 | -985,000 |