Dan Update Day 1b

Level 2: 100-200, ante

Andy Bloch Beat by Six-Four

Level 2: 100-200, ante

On a board of J436 and with just under 10,000 in the pot action is on the big blind. He thinks for several minutes before taping the felt twice with his index finger. Andy Bloch checks behind him. The river is the 2 and the big blind again takes his time before betting 7,000. Bloch looks like he can't decide to call, fold or raise. He toys with his chips for a while before opting to make the call. His opponent shows 64 for two pair. Bloch is reluctant to give up his hand and looks disgusted. He eventually removes the chips protecting his cards and slides them to the dealer.

John Phan Eliminated

Level 2: 100-200, ante

John Phan, who won the WPT Legends of Poker earlier this season (along with another WPT final table in the spring and two WSOP bracelets over the summer) has just been eliminated from the tournament. Phan's key pot during the first level was getting his pocket jacks cracked by another player's pocket nines. Phan led the entire way, until a nine hit the river and Phan snap-called his opponent's bet to see the bad news.

Table 16: Somerville Cracks Aces

Level 2: 100-200, ante

On a board of K3JJ Jason Somerville leads out for 8,500 and a player in Seat 2 moves all in for 21,000. Somerville snap calls and shows KK for a full house. His opponent shows AA and is drawing to the remaining two aces in the deck. The river is the 7 and Somerville takes down the nice pot. He is now over 60,000.

14 WPT Winners in Today's Field

Level 2: 100-200, ante

Today's starting field included about 244 entrants, and there are 14 former WPT winners among them (5.7% of the field). Here are all of today's WPT titleholders, broken down by the seasons in which they won: Season I (2002-03) Howard Lederer - PartyPoker Million, Foxwoods World Poker Finals, WPT Player of the Year Season II (2003-04) No Season II WPT winners are playing today. Season III (2004-05) Eli Elezra - Mirage Poker Showdown Carlos Mortensen - Bellagio's Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship Daniel Negreanu - Borgata Poker Open, Bellagio's Five Diamond World Poker Classic, WPT Player of the Year Season IV (2005-06) Gavin Smith - Mirage Poker Showdown, WPT Player of the Year Freddy Deeb - UB Aruba Poker Classic Nick Schulman - Foxwoods World Poker Finals Victor Ramdin - Foxwoods Poker Classic Season V (2006-07) Nenad Medic - Foxwoods World Poker Finals Johnny "World" Hennigan - Borgata Poker Classic Ted Forrest - Bay 101 Shooting Star Raj Patel - Foxwoods Poker Classic Carlos Mortensen - WPT World Championship Season VI (2007-08) Phil Ivey - Commerce L.A. Poker Classic Season VII (2008-09) John Phan - Bicycle Casino's Legends of Poker There were another four WPT winners in yesterday's field, for a total of 18 (4.4% of the total field). All four of these players won their titles during the WPT's Season VI: Jonathan "FieryJustice" Little - Mirage Poker Showdown, WPT Player of the Year Kevin "BelowAbove" Saul - Bellagio Cup III Mike Vela - Foxwoods World Poker Finals Erik Seidel - Foxwoods Poker Classic Of those four, defending champion Mike Vela was the only one eliminated on Day 1a. Seidel finished with an above-average chip stack, while Kevin Saul and Jonathan Little finished the day in fifth and sixth place on the leaderboard, respectively.

Table 16: Negreanu's Hand

Level 2: 100-200, ante

Daniel Negreanu and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson see a flop of 1073. Negreanu checks in the big blind and Ferguson bets out 700. He is quickly raised to 2,200 by Negreanu and Ferguson makes the call. The turn is the 5 and Negreanu leads out for 3,600. Ferguson folds. Negreanu then says "With ten-seven on the flop what are you even doing in the pot?" as he shows his favorite hand - 107. Negreanu continues, "I never lose with that hand."

Level 2 Begins

Level 2: 100-200, ante

The players return from break to begin Level 2, with increased blinds of 100-200.

15-Minute Break

Level 1: 50-100, ante

Level 1 comes to an end, and the players take a 15-minute break.

Eli Elezra Continues to Get Punished By Sang Kim

Level 1: 50-100, ante

After a series of raises, Sang Kim puts in enough chips to put Eli Elezra all in. Elezra decides to lay it down after a few minutes and shows AJ. Gavin Smith accuses Elezra of wasting his time to make the laydown. Sang Kim shows A-K to Elezra as he rakes in the pot. Elezra is now down to under 10,000 after the first level of play.

Unofficial Field Size: 244 Players

Level 1: 50-100, ante

Registration remains open, but today's field is up to 244 players. That creates a two-day total of 406 players. We'll report the official numbers (along with the prizepool) later today when they are announced by the tournament staff.