Petrillo Takes Huge Stack Into Day 2 With McEwen, Lowery, and Hawkins Amongst the Leaders
Everything is set for Day 2 of the Harrah��s Cherokee Main Event to get underway at 12 p.m. local time here in Cherokee, NC. The action will be hot and heavy as 162 players return to the felt to battle down to the money bubble at 150 and beyond until reaching the elite stages late in the day.
Entering the day as chip leader will be Ben Petrillo with a staggering chip stack of 768,000, which is good for well over 100 big blinds to begin the day. He brings back a sizable lead after bagging the massive stack on Day 1b
Second in chips to start the day will be Day 1a chip leader Michael McKinney with 480,000. He is closely followed by Preston McEwen with 472,000 and Fikret Kovac who has 454,000.
Top 10 Chip Counts
| # | Player | Hometown | Chip Count |
| 1 | Ben Petrillo | Athens, TN | 768,000 |
| 2 | Michael McKinney | -- | 480,000 |
| 3 | Preston McEwen | Nashville,TN | 472,000 |
| 4 | Fikret Kovac | Bosnia & Herzegovina | 454,000 |
| 5 | Dan Lowery | Peter Pender, AR | 451,000 |
| 6 | Maurice Hawkins | West Palm Beach, FL | 440,000 |
| 7 | Charles Davis | -- | 431,000 |
| 8 | David Prociak | Winter Park, FL | 407,000 |
| 9 | Abdul Amer | Columbus, OH | 402,000 |
| 10 | David Attride | Marietta, GA | 399,000 |
The top of the chip counts are littered with WSOP Circuit rings as two of the most successful WSOPc players are among the top stacks on Day 2. Nine-time circuit ring winner Dan Lowery has a sizable stack of 451,000 and right on his heels is all-time ring winner leader Maurice Hawkins who brings in a stack of 440,000 with him today.
There are many well known names still remaining in the field of 162 including, Richard Seymour (311,000), Aaron Massey (240,000), Spencer Champlin (215,000) and defending champion Jake Bazeley (102,000).
Play begins 1t 12 p.m. local time. The money bubble is expected to hit early and the action will only heat up from there. Levels are now 60 minutes in length. Breaks will be every two levels, with a dinner break up to the discretion of the tournament director during the day. Play will continue all the way until the end of level 26, accounting for roughly 10 hours of poker.
Make sure to keep yourself glued to PokerNews, who will follow all the action, track the eliminations and payouts, monitor the big hands and keep you up to date of the latest chip counts throughout Day 2.