Event #1: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Monster Stack

Josh Wilder, of Oklahoma City, has taken down Event #1, $400 No-Limit Hold'em Monster Stack, earning a $25,650 winner's payday. Wilder came from well behind during heads-up play to earn his first Circuit ring in what was also his first WSOP cash.

Wilder emerged as the winner of a protracted heads-up duel against Bentonville, AR's Matt Ellis, who dominated final-table action and built over a 4:1 edge over Wilder before Wilder slowly reeled him in. Ellis's strong showing was worth $15,860. Oklahoma City's Matthew Higgins, a prior Circuit ring winner, finished third for $11,570.

Wilder, a 44-year-old retiree, a native of Amarillo, TX, and a single dad, has played for a long time and is a frequent participant in poker tourneys at Oklahoma casinos. The big payday represents the second-largest cash of his poker career and the win is his most significant to date.

"He [Ellis] had me pretty good," said Wilder, "like a four-to-one chip count. I'd never met Matt before, and I give it all to him; he's a great player. We grinded it out. We've become friends sitting here at the table. You sit down for five hours and it's just you and him at the table by yourself, you kind of get to know each other.

Wilder, whose son is in the Air Force, plans to be around for the entire series, and he's got a leg up on the field in the Casino Championship chase. As for what he plans to do with his winnings, he quipped, "I'm to go put it all on red."

Action has ended on Day 1 of Event #1, $400 No-Limit Hold'em Monster Stack. 26 players remain from an original 338-entry field, and they're led into Thursday's Day 2 by Oklahoma City's Matthew Higgins. Higgins, a prior Circuit ring winner, bagged 901,000 to top the Day 1 counts, which are available under the "Reports" tab above.

The 26 surviving players return at 1 pm on Thursday to battle for the ring and the $25,650 winner's payday.