Meanwhile the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open Main Event is down to 21 players out of the original 2,384 entries with poker pros Blair Hinkle, Griffin Benger and Justin Bonomo still among the contenders.
On the other hand the $100,000 buy-in Alpha8 event drew a total of 21 players yesterday although Isaac Haxton, Daniel Alaei and Daniel Perper all re-entered the event to help boost the prizepool up to $2.02 million.
Perhaps the biggest name at the nine-player Alpha8 final table is Floridian Jason Mercier who finds himself second in chips with 375,500 to Glantz’ 410,000.
The final table also includes Steven “Zugwat” Silverman, Jeff Gross, Joe Cheong and JC Tran. Interestingly Alaei and Haxton, who re-bought, are also in the mix.
The cash begins when just four players are left so there are going to be at least five fairly unhappy players today.
The final table of the inaugural Alpha8 event begins at noon EST today. Here’s a complete look at the chip counts heading into play:
1. Matt Glantz – 410,500 2. Jason Mercier – 375,500 3. Steven Silverman – 372,500 4. Daniel Alaei – 293,500 5. Isaac Haxton – 218,500 6. Jeff Gross – 140,500 7. Joseph Cheong – 106,000 8. JC Tran – 94,000 9. Bill Perkins – 89,000Hinkle, Benger, Bonomo Hunt $1.7 Million in SHRPO Main Event
While the Alpha8 may have garnered a very pro-heavy field, the SHRPO Main Event certainly isn’t looking bad either.
With 21 players left Blair Hinkle, Justion Bonomo, Griffin Benger, Amir Lehavot, Mark Rodoja and Doc Sands all still have a shot at the impressive $1.7-million first place prize.
They’re all looking up to Mukul Pahuja, who leads the final 21 players with 8.1 million chips.
The SHRPO Main Event easily surpassed its guarantee with a total of $11.92 million thanks to the 2,384 entries (it was a re-entry event).
The tournament even drew three bona fide celebs as Shannon Elizabeth, Danny Masterson and Nelly all played. Elizabeth and Masterson both made the money.
The final nine players are all guaranteed at least $174,525 and both first and second place will offer over a million dollars in prize money.
Action in the SHRPO Main Event also begins at noon. Here’s a look at the top 10 chip counts heading into play:
1. Mukul Pahuja – 8,125,000 2. Blair Hinkle – 6,550,000 3. Derrick Cutler – 5,345,000 4. Jeremy Kottler – 5,275,000 5. Amir Lehavot – 4,895,000 6. Griffin Benger – 4,670,000 7. Justin Bonomo – 4,215,000 8. Ryan Olisar – 4,120,000 9. Mark Radoja – 2,930,000 10. David Sands – 2,850,000Visit www.pokerlistings.com