Chris Moneymakers is making another run in the Main Event (photo courtesy: PokerGO)

Day 2cef of the WSOP Main Event saw strong performances from many big names as the field narrowed and some former champions enjoyed revisiting the WSOP felt on Day 2 of the Main Event for the first time in over two years.

Moneymaker and Nguyen Among Former Winners to Star on Day 2cef

Chris Moneymaker was one of the standout performers on Day 2cef as the 1,807 surviving players from Days 1c, 1e, and 1f combined to play out a dramatic day at the felt. Moneymaker, who now represents America’s Cardroom after over a decade at the felt wearing the PokerStars patch, had an incredible session of five two-hour levels, running up a huge stack of over half a million chips as he ended the day with 531,600 chips.

Moneymaker’s surge to the top of the chip counts came on two critical hands, both against the same opponent, Bryan Reyes. In the first, Moneymaker flopped a set of deuces against Reyes’ pocket aces for a pure double. Then when holding the bigger stack, the pair clashed again.

The cameras caught up with the action with the blinds at 800/1,600 (1,600 ante) after Moneymaker raised holding AsAd and Reyes put in a three-bet to 14,600 holding KhKd. Moneymaker went with the in position four-bet to 40,500 and after a trip in the tank, Reyes made the call. The flop came Qs6d6c and Reyes checked it over to Moneymaker who put in a small bet of 25,000 and Reyes again made the call. The turn was the 5h and Reyes, checked again. This time Moneymaker slid out 65,000. With 200,000 left in his stack and after giving it a thought, Reyes moved all-in sending Moneymaker into the tank. An anguished Moneymaker stood and paced, concerned that Reyes flopped a set of queens. “It’s no fun when the rabbit has the gun,” he said. Then suddenly Moneymaker called and the cards were on their back. The river came Td and Reyes hit the rail and Moneymaker shot to the top of the chip counts.

Moneymaker may have made the top 10, but he doesn’t lead the Main Event at this stage. That honor is reserved for Conrad De Armas, who bagged up an incredible 744,000 chips, and that’s enough for the overall lead above Day 2abd conqueror Rameez Shahid (731,000).

Hot on De Armas’ heels are several big names, with Adam Walton (673,100), Keyu Qu (664,900), Cameron Mitchell (642,000), and Daniel Lowery (625,200) the closest to De Armas’s stack. Behind them lurk dangerous top 10 chip stacks belonging to Matt Glantz (580,000), Artem Dedusha (577,100), Daniel Soltys (540,700), and the aforementioned Moneymaker, who won the 2003 WSOP Main Event 18 years ago.

Outside the top dozen players, big names are armed to the teeth with raising chips, with Tyler Cornell (487,000), 2016 world champion Qui Nguyen (479,100), Jake Daniels (340,000), Robert Campbell (327,000), Robert Mizrachi (311,300) and Liv Boeree (289,500) all finishing inside the top 50 players on Day 2cef. Phil ‘The Poker Brat’ Hellmuth was able to make Day 3, but only with a short stack of 25,400 and will return to a battle to make the money, let alone push for another deep run this World Series.

With 1,810 players taking to the felt on Day 2cef, just 915 players survived to Day 3, and they’ll join the 1,440 who made it through yesterday for a total field of 2,355 players who’ll play to the money tomorrow. With the World Series of Poker announcing that 1,000 places will be paid, here are the amounts paid out to the final nine players who reach the final table:

WSOP 2021 Main Event Final Table Payouts:

  1. $8,000,000
  2. $4,300,000
  3. $3,000,000
  4. $2,300,000
  5. $1,800,000
  6. $1,400,000
  7. $1,225,000
  8. $1,100,000
  9. $1,000,000

While all those players will be looking towards Day 3 with determination to dominate the money bubble, plenty of big names on the rail will be looking at the next day’s play with only envy for what might have been.

Vanessa Kade was an early bust-out, the popular player moving all-in on the river of a double-paired nine-high board with seven-four off-suit only to be called and eliminated by Jorge Ribeiro with JdJs in a pot worth over 100,000 chips.

Sam Greenwood was another to crash out early, his turned trip tens losing out to Abbas Moradi’s trip tens, with Moradi’s king kicker ahead of Greenwood’s jack. Plenty of other legends of the felt joined Kade and Greenwood on the rail too, as 2019 WSOP Main Event winner Hossein Ensan, Dash Dudley, Paul Volpe, Brandon Cantu, Kevin MacPhee, 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen, Brandon Adams, Erik Cajelais, David ‘ODB’ Baker, Nathan Gamble, 2018 Main Event runner-up Tony Miles, Mike Watson and 1988 Main Event runner-up Erik Seidel all busted on Day 2cef.

WSOP 2021 Event #67 $10,000 Main Event Day 2cef Top 10 Chipcounts:

  1. Conrad De Armas – 744,000
  2. Adam Walton – 673,100
  3. Keyu Qu – 664,900
  4. Cameron Mitchell – 642,000
  5. Daniel Lowery – 625,600
  6. Jorge Arriola – 594,200
  7. Matt Glantz – 580,000
  8. Artan Dedusha – 577,100
  9. Aristeidis Moschonas – 555,400
  10. Daniel Soltys – 540,700

Brian Rast Among Big Stacks on Day 1c of Little One for One Drop

Event #68, the $1,111-entry Little One for One Drop, saw a dramatic Day 1c play out with Brian Rast near the top of the chip counts at the close of play. It was Oscar Alache (518,800) who grabbed the chip lead by the end of the third and final Day 1 flight, but Charles Lee (504,400), Thomas Eychenne (429,600), and Rast (459,000) will all hunt down the leader with hope and chips in equally large measure.

Others to survive the Day 1c action included Jason Wheeler (210,000), Kevin Song (206,500), Lily Kiletto (140,000), and Asi Moshe (49,700), all of whom will be hopeful of running up a stack on Day 2 with which to attack the later levels. Some who fell by the wayside on Day 1c and therefore won’t have the chance to do so include David Liu, Arash Ghaneian, and James Adkins.

WSOP 2021 Event #68 $1,111 Little One for One Drop Day 1c Top 10 Chipcounts:

  1. Oscar Alache – 518,800
  2. Charles Lee – 504,400
  3. Brian Rast – 459,500
  4. Paul Lee – 443,700
  5. Thomas Eychenne – 429,600
  6. Idris Ambraisse – 379,400
  7. Tomoya Matsumura – 376,800
  8. Sunny Wong – 376,700
  9. Peter Cross – 363,700
  10. Liran Betito – 322,200

Deeb, Leng, Racener all Survive Day 1 of Event #69

A busy day at the felt on Day 1 of Event #69, the $1,500-entry Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better event, saw players such as five-time bracelet winner Shaun Deeb, John Racener and Ryan Leng all make the cut to escape a day of terrific action.

With 372 entries in total, only just under half the field would make the cut, with players such as Benny Glaser, Brandon Shack-Harris, Joao Vieira, John Cernuto, David Williams, Gershon Distenfeld, Frank Kassela, and Scott Bohlman all failing to survive across a cut-throat session of poker.

Others thrived, however, with Jermaine Reid the pick of them, piling up 208,500 chips by the close of play, followed in the counts by James Hoeppner (167,000) and David Martin (166,000) who ran in second and third in chips respectively. Shaun Deeb (143,000) ended the day in the top 10, along with Mike Watson (137,000) and Matt Savage, the legendary poker tournament director bagging 126,000 by the end of Day 1.

Other big names hover ominously in Reid’s wake, with stars of the 2021 WSOP such as Ryan Leng (112,500), John Racener (109,500), and Brian Hastings (96,500) all chasing yet another deep run. Former bracelet winners Andrew Kelsall (40,000) and Ari Engel (32,000) have work to do but the skills to make up for a slower starting day when Day 2 kicks off tomorrow.

WSOP 2021 Event #69 $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Top 10 Chipcounts:

  1. Jermaine Reid – 208,500
  2. James Hoeppner – 167,000
  3. David Martin – 166,000
  4. John Hoang – 165,000
  5. Susan Genard – 165,000
  6. Eric Crain – 153,000
  7. Chip Jett – 148,000
  8. Shaun Deeb – 143,000
  9. Mike Watson – 137,000
  10. Matt Savage – 126,000

Michael Gagliano tweeted about a rather awkward situation in which standing up to take a stretch at the poker table led to laughter all round.

Alex Livingston may have made the Day 3 seat draw already, but don’t let that make you think he isn’t already thinking of the final table. Quite a lot.

Finally, after winning the WSOP Main Event and seeing his name – well, his 2003 name – give birth to an ‘Effect’, Chris Moneymaker is just like the rest of us and gets excited about a double-up in the Main Event. Who wouldn’t?