Jedryczka Bags the Lead on Day 1a; Peters and Bichon Among Bigger Stacks
The first of two starting days of the WSOP International Circuit �1,700 Main Event at the King's Resort in Rozvadov has concluded and the tournament is already more than halfway there to meet the �1 million guarantee. After the completion of nine 60-minute levels, a field of 354 entries emerged and 125 players advanced to Day 2 on Sunday, September 12.
It was a close race for the overnight lead as Andrzej Jedryczka (368,000) finished narrowly ahead of Karim Mzoughi (363,000), while Raul Gutierrez Talavera follows in third place (345,500). Other big stacks belong to Robert Ashelm (294,000), Marian Kubis (280,000), Thomas Hofmann (275,000), Aleksandar Tomovic (274,000), and Dominik Paus (272,000).
Well-known poker pros such as Tobias Peters (217,000), Thomas Bichon (216,500), and Michal Mrakes (211,500) all made the cut with above average stacks and can take the day off. The Day 1a field also featured three WSOP bracelet winners in Artur Rudenkov, Anatolii Zyrin, and Vangelis Kaimakamis but neither of them made it through. They were joined on the rail by the likes of Jaroslav Peter, Francesco Delfoco, Claudio Di Giacomo, Thomer Pidun, Alexander Dovzhenko and David Taborsky to name all but a new notables and King's regulars.
Top 10 Chip Counts After Day 1a
| Position | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrzej Jedryczka | Poland | 368,000 |
| 2 | Karim Mzoughi | France | 363,000 |
| 3 | Raul Gutierrez Talavera | Spain | 345,500 |
| 4 | Berend Hooijer | Netherlands | 329,000 |
| 5 | Shawn Morales | United Kingdom | 303,000 |
| 6 | Mihai Stinca | Romania | 296,000 |
| 7 | Robert Ashelm | Germany | 294,000 |
| 8 | Karol Bogusz | Poland | 294,000 |
| 9 | Marian Kubis | Slovakia | 280,000 |
| 10 | Sergio Somma | Italy | 275,500 |
Europe's biggest poker arena was almost back to its former glory as hundreds of poker players jumped into the tournament action. The cash games were buzzing early on and the satellite for Day 1a of the �1,700 WSOP Circuit Main Event paid out 14 entries. Once the cards were in the air for the flagship tournament, the field size quickly surpassed 100 entries and went up consistently throughout the entire day.
888poker ambassador Vivian Saliba was among the participants but saw her hopes of making Day 2 vanish twice. Her first attempt ended with pocket aces going down in flames when Shawn Morales flopped a set of kings. Saliba re-entered but found no fortune then either. The same also applied for Dorel Eldabach, who only played a few minutes on the first bullet before coming up short for a second time.
The Belgian and Dutch poker community had a strong showing in the field and among those to come and go without anything to show for were Fabrice Somers, Danny Covyn, Paul van Oort, Sandro Pitzanti, and Danny van der Meer who all hit the rail. A small Swiss armada of regular visitors at King's saw Emil Bise, Friedrich R?z, and Daniel Studer all come up short.
WSOP bracelet winner Vangelis Kaimakamis put his hopes on a flopped flush draw but the overpair of Robert Ashelm held when two blanks followed on the turn and river. Artur Rudenkov also missed out on making it to Day 2 just yet when he jammed a short stack with undercards into a pair of queens during the last hands of the night.
All those that came up short on Day 1a have another chance on Day 1b, which takes place on Saturday, September 11. Two re-entries are allowed and the late registration will furthermore remain open for the first two levels and following break on Day 2 as well.
Tune back in right here on PokerNews to follow all the action from the host venue of the World Series of Poker Europe festival.