The Season XV World Poker Tour® Legends of Poker Main Event kicked off on Saturday, Aug. 27, with the first of two starting flights in the $4,000 buy-in tournament. Plenty of big names were in the field that reached 249 entries, and at the end of the day it was Jeremy Ausmus in the lead over the 97 survivors with 198,300 in chips.
Ausmus was the beneficiary of two boosts to his stack in the latter half of the day. First, his pockets aces held up against an all-in player’s 
. Then, in Level 8 with the blinds at 300/600 with a 75 ante, Ausmus was facing a single opponent on the 
board. There was about 80,000 chips in the middle, and Ausmus moved all in as the first player to act. His opponent had about 34,000 behind, tanked, and folded.
Others building big stacks were Paul Lee (186,300), Owen Crowe (160,000), Ray Qartomy (154,900), JC Tran (153,700), and Olivier Busquet (147,700).
Day 1A Top 10 Chip Counts
1. Jeremy Ausmus – 198,300
2. Paul Lee – 186,300
3. Owen Crowe – 160,000
4. Ray Qartomy – 154,900
5. JC Tran – 153,700
6. Gary Lent – 153,300
7. Olivier Busquet – 147,700
8. Eddy Sabat – 142,200
9. Alex Rocha – 141,500
10. Samantha Abernathy – 135,900
Players are allowed two entries per starting flight, with a last-minute entry available before the start of Day 2 on Monday. There are a maximum of five entries per player and players may play the second starting flight even if they finish the first with chips. Players who survive both starting flights will forfeit the shorter stack and begin Day 2 with only the larger stack.
The second starting flight will take place Sunday, Aug. 28, starting at 12 p.m. local time at The Bicycle Hotel & Casino. Click here to follow our continued coverage of the event.