Friday, May 8, 2015 5:55 PM Local Time
Level: 9
Blinds: 300/600
Ante: 75
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:54 PM Local Time
Ring winner DJ MacKinnon opens the pot for 1,100 from middle position. The player on his immediate left calls as does the button. They are three handed to the flop.
The dealer reveals a board and MacKinnon leads for 1,800. The player on his left folds. The button calls and they head to the turn.
Fourth street is the . MacKinnon ups the ante, sliding a bet of 4,500 into the pot. The button folds and MacKinnon wins uncontested.
DJ MacKinnon - 84,500
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:44 PM Local Time
With a raise in front of them, Andy Hwang (hijack) and Loni Harwood (button) call to take their spots in a three-way flop. It comes , and Hwang and Harwood each call another bet from the raiser.
That brings them to the turn, and the aggressor fires another 6,000 at the pot. Hwang flats, but Harwood raises to 19,000. The initial raiser calls and Hwang does too, the latter now all-in for his last 18,075. The river is the , and Harwood moves all in for about 20,000. Her remaining live opponent has slightly fewer chips, and he instantly calls to put himself in the same endangered position as Hwang.
Harwood has the goods. She tables , and her two opponents muck and head for the doors in tandem. It'll take a few minutes to stack that big pot, but Harwood has crossed the century mark, likely sitting with close to 120,000.
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:33 PM Local Time
A late position player opens for 1,000 and Allen Carter calls from the cutoff. It's on WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hui (pictured) on the button and he three-bets to 4,000. The small blind flats. The big blind and the original raiser fold. It's on Carter in the cutoff and he calls.
The flop comes and the small blind checks. It's on Carter and he checks as well. Hui shoves for his last 12,500. The small blind folds. After some deliberation, Carter calls and the hands are tabled.
Carter: for a pair of sixes
Hui: for ace-queen high
The turn brings the and the river completes the board with the . Hui is eliminated at the hands of Carter who now holds a healthy chip lead.
Allen Carter - 145,500
Phil Hui - Eliminated
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:24 PM Local Time
A player in middle position opens to 1,400, and Jacob Bazeley calls from the hijack seat. The cutoff calls as well, and the small blind squeezes all in for 7,775. The initial raiser folds, Bazeley moves all in for 15,000 even, and that gets him a heads-up showdown with the at-risk opponent.
Bazeley isn't too confident about his , but the news is favorable as the shorter stack tables his inferior .
"Nice hand," he says.
"Thanks," Bazeley answers. "It's not over yet, buddy."
The dealer makes it official with a board of , and Bazeley earns the knockout to chip his way back above starting stack.
Jacob Bazeley - 26,500
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:12 PM Local Time
Level: 8
Blinds: 250/500
Ante: 50
Friday, May 8, 2015 5:03 PM Local Time
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:56 PM Local Time
In middle position, Andy Hwang opens to 1,000, and Loni Harwood calls from the button. The small blind defends as well, and it's three-handed to the flop. It comes . When it checks around to Harwood, she bets 2,200. The small blind check-raises all in for his last 7,525, Hwang folds, and Harwood calls with the covering stack. She turns over , still drawing but ahead of her opponent's .
The turn is a momentary disaster for Harwood, but the river re-improves her to the winning flush. She earns the knockout, climbing closer to the 50,000-chip mark in the process.
Loni Harwood - 44,000
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:50 PM Local Time
Maurice Hawkins (pictured) is on the button heads up against the cutoff. The board is and Hawkins has a bet of 6,000 in front of him. Never one to shy from table talk, Hawkins makes it clear to his opponent that he holds the best of it and should fold. After some deliberation the opponent calls.
"Nice hand," Hawkins says calmly tabling for a pair of fives.
The opponent tables shows and to Hawkins' surprise, he wins the pot.
"Oh shoot! I guess I was telling the truth," Hawkins laughs as he rakes the pot.
Maurice Hawkins - 50,000
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:42 PM Local Time
Under the gun, DJ MacKinnon opens to 1,000. The player two seats to his left three-bets to 3,000, and MacKinnon comes back over the top with a four-bet to 7,000. His opponent calls this time, and it's heads up to the flop.
It comes , and MacKinnon continues out with a bet of 5,000. His opponent raises to 13,000, and MacKinnon moves all in for 17,050. The shove draws quite a pause from the raiser, and he shakes his head several times before dropping the small handful of calling chips into the pot. MacKinnon's tournament life is at risk, but he's well ahead. He tables his , two cards from a double against his opponent's .
The turn and river are safe for MacKinnon, and after a bit of a midday lull, his stack has rebounded back over the 50,000-chip mark.
DJ MacKinnon - 52,000
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:30 PM Local Time
Level: 7
Blinds: 200/400
Ante: 50
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:16 PM Local Time
Players are now on a 15-minute break.
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:13 PM Local Time
On the last pass through the room, a few faces were conspicuous in their absence. John Land, Warren Seaves, and Chris Conrad are nowhere to be found, and it's safe to presume they've been eliminated.
Players who are similarly unfortunate today have the option of re-entering one time, and they can choose to do so either today or during tomorrow's Day 1B. Registration and re-entry remain open through Level 12, or about 9:45 PM local time.
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:08 PM Local Time
Friday, May 8, 2015 4:07 PM Local Time
Randy Gordon limps from middle position. Alex Rocha is on the button and raises to 1,000. The small blind folds and the big blind defends. Gordon comes along for the ride and they are three handed to the flop.
The flop reads . The big blind checks as does Gordon. Rocha makes it 1,300. The big blind folds. Gordon calls and sees the turn with Rocha.
Fourth street is the . Gordon checks. Rocha bet 2,600. Gordon quickly raises to 6,200. Rocha calls leaving himself just under 10,000 behind.
The river is the . Gordon shoves for what appears to just less than Rocha's stack. Rocha claims his hand improved every street, but he doesn't feel he's best.
"It's a nice city with a lot of good food options," Rocha says alluding to the fact he may be looking for a bite to eat if he calls.
He eventually folds and Gordon takes the pot.
Randy Gordon - 27,500
Alex Rocha - 9,500
Friday, May 8, 2015 3:52 PM Local Time
Larry Wright raises to 750, and the button calls. Then Val Vornicu three-bets to 3,000 from the big blind. The loquacious Larry Wright, talkative as ever, says half to himself, half to the table, "I don't want to play this hand. I shouldn't be playing this hand." Then he calls. The button folds, and the players see the flop heads-up.
As the dealer taps the table, Wright asks, "Do you need a nine? I need a nine...Which one of us gets to bluff first?" The dealer then spreads , and Vornicu continues for 4,000. Wright raises to 8,050, and Vornicu folds.
Wright turns over one card, the . The says he has ace-queen, but doesn't reveal his other hole card.
Larry Wright - 65,000
Val Vornicu - 12,500
Friday, May 8, 2015 3:48 PM Local Time
WSOP bracelet winner Jonathan Taylor opens for 750 from late position. Paul Hebert defends his big blind and they are heads up to the flop.
The board comes . Hebert checks. Taylor bets 900. Hebert calls and it's off to the turn.
The dealer burns and turns the . Hebert checks a second time. Taylor bets 1,600. Hebert calls and they see the river.
The board completes with the . Both players check. Hebert tables for top pair top kicker. Taylor mucks and Hebert wins the pot.
Paul Hebert - 18,000
Jonathan Taylor - 15,000
Friday, May 8, 2015 3:35 PM Local Time
Level: 6
Blinds: 150/300
Ante: 25
Friday, May 8, 2015 3:34 PM Local Time
Six limpers see a flop, and Nancy Nguyen is the first to take a stab at the pot. She makes it 1,500 to go from middle position, and Loni Harwood calls on the button. In the small blind, Kevin Benoit check-raises to 4,500. That's enough to fold out the other stragglers, but Nguyen calls before Harwood reraises all in for about 20,000 total. Benoit tanks and folds, while Nguyen seems to be caught in a bad spot. She only has another 5,000 chips left, and she reluctantly tosses that remainder into the pot to put herself at risk.
Harwood rolls over for a set of sevens, and Nguyen is drawing at the diamonds with . The turn adds a couple more outs, but the river isn't among them.
Nguyen has been eliminated, while Harwood chips up to more than twice her starting stack.
Loni Harwood - 44,500
Nancy Nguyen - Eliminated
Friday, May 8, 2015 3:28 PM Local Time
Five-time ring winner Valentin Vornicu (pictured) was eliminated from the Main Event just a few hands after being crippled by Steve Bierman. As the structure permits, Vornicu re-entered the same flight and is back in action here on Day 1A.
Valentin Vornicu - 20,000