Arsenii Karmatchkii on Top After Day 1a of $888 Crazy Eights; Melanie Weisner Among Big Stacks
Day 1a, the first of four starting flights in Event 64: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold’em, has come to an end and 191 of the original 1,674 players have moved on to Day 2. Top Russian player Arsenii Karmatchkii, who finished 6th in Event #11: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em earlier this series, was the runaway chip leader with 1,323,000 in chips. Others that bagged impressive stacks at the end of play included Aleksa Pavicevic (1,036,000), Dennis Brand (999,000), Jake Steede (980,000), Alex Clark (960,000), and Melanie Weisner (924,000).
The day started off with around 600 players registered by the time the cards went in the air, but with the unlimited re-entry format, that number swelled to 1,674 by the time registration closed. That final number created a Day 1a prize pool of $1,337,861, and after the bubble burst late in level 18, 252 players had made the money with a min-cash worth $1,330.
Numerous players, including notables Will Failla, Jim Petzing, Joseph Cheong, and Dong Guo, found themselves taking full advantage of the unlimited re-entries option, while others such as Chris Moneymaker, Kristy Arnett, Marvin Karlins, and Matt Stout fired just one bullet, but all fell short of cashing.
Three more starting flights remain for players to join the 191 that bagged and tagged on Day 1a. Cards are already in the air on Day 1b. On Saturday, June 29, Day 1c will kick off at 10 a.m., followed by Day 1d on Sunday, June 30 at 10 a.m. All survivors from the four starting flights will continue their quest for the gold WSOP bracelet on Monday, July 1, at noon local time. PokerNews will be on the floor to cover all the action as the Crazy Eights rolls on!