James Calderaro Bags Day 1 Chip Lead
After 22 levels of play, Day 1 of Event #17: $800 No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas has come to an end. A total of 4,732 joined the field throughout the action-packed day to create a massive prize pool of $3,331,328. The winner of this event will take home $368,977 and the prestigious WSOP gold bracelet.
When the day's action concluded, it was James Calderaro who bagged the chip lead with a staggering 2,440,000 chips. Calderaro has nearly $6,000,000 in live tournament earnings and is fresh off a third-place finish in the World Series of Poker Circuit Main Event in Cherokee, North Carolina, in May of 2024, good for $117,850.
End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Calderaro | United States | 2,440,000 | 81 |
| 2 | Min Zhang | United States | 2,075,000 | 69 |
| 3 | Matthew Laslo | Canada | 1,865,000 | 62 |
| 4 | Lei Yu | China | 1,750,000 | 58 |
| 5 | Anton Smirnov | Russia | 1,725,000 | 58 |
| 6 | Ryuta Ogawa | Japan | 1,615,000 | 54 |
| 7 | Yuvaraj Rai | United States | 1,611,000 | 54 |
| 8 | David Rosenbloom | United States | 1,580,000 | 53 |
| 9 | Tzahi Dagan | United States | 1,555,000 | 52 |
| 10 | Anatoly Korochensky | Russia | 1,540,000 | 51 |
Many notable names bought into the event, including WSOP Main Event champions Phil Hellmuth, Tom McEvoy and Jamie Gold, but none of that trio progressed to Day 2.
Other notable players including Ryan Depaulo, Jeff Platt, Matt Glantz and Dan Shak will all have to enter another event if they want to bag a 2024 WSOP bracelet.
Bracelet winners Rafael Reis (1,325,000), Shaun Deeb (770,000), and Ari Engel (450,000) fared better, with all three returning to the tables on June 6.
The final 310 players locked up a min-cash of $1,602, and the bust-outs were fast and furious once the bubble burst. Once time was called, only 310 players had chips requiring bagging and tagging.
Play resumes on June 6 with an 11 a.m. local time restart at the Horseshoe Ballroom. There will be 15-minute breaks every four levels and a dinner break that is to be decided.
The blinds resume at Level 23 with 15,000/30,000 and a 30,000 big blind ante. The plan is to play down to a winner, but depending on the speed of play, another day could be added to the schedule.
As always, be sure to stick with PokerNews for all your up-to-date coverage of this event and the rest of the 2024 World Series of Poker at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.