Event 17 (Day 1B): Chinni Bags The Bonus

Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)

Total Day 1B Entries: 107

Day 1B Players Remaining: 46

It would take a big pot won against Matthew Su to propel him to the top, but Jesse Chinni (Ellicott City, MD) is the Day 1B chip leader (193,500).  It's funny to mention that Jesse has coached Michael Rothbard in the past, who was last night's chip leader.  Jesse will come back tomorrow with assurance he will get paid $5,000 at the least, depending on how he does the rest of the way.  The payouts for Event 17 will be posted shortly, followed by the chip counts/table draw for tomorrow.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Can Lakatosh Hold?

Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Day 1B Entries: 107
Day 1B Players Remaining: 46

The tournament supervisor is going to be pausing the clock in (5) minutes and announcing how many hands remain in the night.  Lawrence Lakatosh is currently the chip leader with just over 160,000, but a few players are definitely within reach.  Once those hands are played, the remaining players will then bag and tag their chips for tomorrow's Day 2 at 12:15pm.  We will post the end of day chip leader for you, followed by the payouts for the event, and lastly the chip counts/table draw for Day 2.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Two Players Of Note

Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Day 1B Entries: 107
Day 1B Players Remaining: 50

You can rest assure that when rooms begin to run series, and the series gain notoriety for great value and good structures, you're going to get big named players from near and far.  There are two player still alive in the field that are well worth noting, as Jacob Bazeley and Chris Lee are getting their first mentions of the day.  Bazeley (Cincinnati, OH) is a well known BCP team member/tournament pro with over $1,667,000 (not to mention huge online earnings as well).  Bazeley has two huge scores to his name, the first coming when he finished runner-up in Event #2 ($1,500 No Limit Hold'em) at the 2012 WSOP ($322,294).  His second came only months ago when he final tabled the $3,500 WPT Hard Rock Seminole Main Event, finishing fourth for $371,931.  Bazeley is currently sitting with under 9,000, just over ten bigs at the moment.

The second player to mention is Chris Lee (Centreville, CA), with career tournament earnings over $600,000.  Lee also final tabled a WPT Main Event, the $3,300 NLH Parx Open Poker Classic, finishing in third for $158,000.  Chris also has a WSOP bracelet, winning the $2,500 10-Game/Six-Max in 2011 for $255,000.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Remaining Field Layout

Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 107
Day 1B Players Remaining: 50

Here is a table layout of the active players remaining:

Table 28:

1. Scott Bottcher
2. Matthew Aaron
3. John Gorsuch
4. Ulises Roman
5. Hieu Nguyen
6. John O'Brien
7. Jonathan Ivy
8. Fred Jafarzadeh
9. Charles Welch

Table 29:

1. Jesse Chinni
2. Matthew Su
3. Denis Gnidash
4. Tremayne Jernigan
5. Lawrence Pleggi
6. Lara Eisenberg
7. Philip Rinaldi
8. David Greene

Table 30:

1. Christopher McCoy
2. Awaise Dar
3. Adam Glasgow
4. Mark Taranto
5. Ethan Foxman
6. Eric Montemaggi
7. Stephan Oestreicher
8. David Tran

Table 31:

1. William Jacobini
2. Lawrence Lakatosh
3. Xuan Nguyen
4. Wesley Wyvill
5. Joshua Gordon
6. (A.Nonymous)
7. Clarence Senter
8. Kenneth Aldridge

Table 32:

1. Jacob Bazeley
2. Percy Mahatan
3. Eric Wirthwein
4. Jesse Yaginuma
5. Mike Dentale
6. Ketan Pandya
7. John Bassett
8. Jane Hitchcock
9. Bradley Yazici

Table 40:

1. Robert McLaughlin
2. Timothy Bryan
3. Eugene Curzio
4. Timothy Bishop
5. Ian Davis
6. Andrew Franklin
7. Chris Lee

Event 17 (Day 1B): Final Break/Bonus Contenders

Players have just headed out on their final (15) minute break of the night, and they will return to Level 9 and blinds of 400/800/100.  Registration will be closed once players return from break, meaning we will be able to bring you the final number for the flight/combined number, as well as payouts.

Looking at the end of Day 1B chip lead bonus, here are the top three stacks going to break:

Ian Davis - 168,000
Matthew Su - 163,000
Tremayne Jernigan - 135,000

Event 17 (Day 1B): Ladies Still Alive

Level 8 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Entries: 107

Lara Eisenberg (McLean, VA) & Jane Hitchcock (Washington D.C.)

There are currently two ladies remaining in the field, trying to follow in the footsteps of Sandra Boyd (who bagged 138,800).  Lara Eisenberg (McLean, VA) is currently in the better position of the two, sitting with 57,000.  Jane Hitchcock (Washington D.C.) hasn't yet been able to recover from an earlier hand with Jesse Yaginuma, and is trying to manage her stack of 13,000.

There will be no back to back main event win for Kevin Elia, as he just gets in all-in pre with AxAx against KxKx, but watches as his opponent flops quads to eliminate him from the flight.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Nguyen With The Win

Level 8 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Entries: 107

Hieu Nguyen (Fairfax, VA)

Hieu Nguyen (Fairfax, VA) just tripled up over at Table 28, as Nguyen and Jonathan Ivy were at risk against John O'Brien (all-in on the flop):

Flop: 4♠ 9♠ 10♥

Nguyen: Q♠ Q♦
O'Brien: A♠ 8♠
Ivy: K♥ 10♣

Turn: 2♥
River: J♥

Nguyen's pocket queens would hold against the two players, giving him the main pot worth over 75,000.  Ivy would win the side pot with his pair of tens, and ended up just breaking even (40,000).

Event 17 (Day 1B): Last Level For Entry

Level 8 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Entries: 106

The players are now posting blinds of 300/600/75 in Level 8, with this entire level (and break that follows) to enter/re-enter before the window closes for good.  Once the level ends, we will bring you the full remaining field, and hope to have payouts as well shortly thereafter.  Here are some updated counts from the end of Level 7:

Matthew Su - 161,000
Tremayne Jernigan - 140,000
John Gorsuch - 120,000
Ulises Roman - 92,000
Bradley Yazici - 79,000
Jesse Chinni - 70,000
Denis Gnidash - 62,000
Jesse Yaginuma - 52,000

Event 17 (Day 1B): Also On Top

Level 7 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 105

Tremayne Jernigan (Hampton, VA)

While we are beginning to see the departure of a handful of players, Tremayne Jernigan (Hampton, VA) is heading in the other direction.  Jernigan sits with just over 136,000 in front of him, and is currently second in the room in chips.  Tremayne was one of eight players to chop the $250 No Limit Hold'em Bounty event last week, collecting $4,309 for his efforts.  That was his largest career cash to date, and only his second recorded.

While Jernigan was pictured, Sean Wallace (Horsham, PA) busted his first bullet (AQ < AK).  Whether or not he will be firing another bullet is currently undetermined, but here are a few more players done for the day:

Viet Le
John Hirsch
Joseph Cashen
James Peters

Event 17 (Day 1B): Coming Back The Leader

Level 7 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 101

Ian Davis (Baltimore, MD)

Coming back there would be a player asking what the biggest stack in the room was, confident that his own was going to be the answer.  Ian Davis (Baltimore, MD) was correct, as he returned from dinner with just over 145,000.

Ian has over $23,000 in recorded tournament earnings, with all of his cashes coming in either Florida or Las Vegas.  Davis has played a few events during this series, but is still looking for his first cash at the Live! Poker Room.  He can't think of cashing until he makes Day 2, but at the moment he can have the $5,000 chip lead bonus in mind from here on out.

Event 17 (Day 1B): It's A Dinner Break

The players that are still active in the field are now going on their (60) minute dinner break.  There was a flurry of entries last night once player returned from dinner, so we will keep an eye out for any new notables.  When players resume, the blinds will have increased to 250/500/50 in Level 7, with the flight's play ended after Level 9.

Players will be returning to their seats at approximately 7:45pm, with live coverage picking back up one the cards are in the air.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Back To Business

Level 6 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 99

It will be back to the business of putting together great live poker television, as Todd Anderson was just eliminated by Ulises Roman.  The two players got the money in on a flop of K♣ 8♣ 5♠ (40,000 pot), with Anderson holding A♥ K♦ against the 5♥ 5♣ of Roman.  Todd would be drawing dead after the 10 on the turn, and he would push his stacks of chips towards the dealer before walking away from the table.  Roman is now over 100,000 and is one of the chip leaders with only (15) minutes until dinner break.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Updated Chip Counts

Level 6 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 99

The field is beginning to shrink as we are seeing some of the tables break for the first time today.  Some of the players to bust earlier have yet to return, including Justin Liberto, Viet Le, and Joshua Albin.  Here are some updated counts midway through Level 6:

Tremayne Jernigan - 113,000
Jonathan Ivy - 105,000
Ulises Roman - 80,000
John Gorsuch - 80,000
Wayne Griffin - 78,000
Matthew Su - 75,000
Joshua Gordon - 70,000
Christopher Grove - 58,000
Kevin Elia - 50,000
Jesse Yaginuma - 45,000
Sean Wallace - 18,000
Mike Dentale - 13,000

Event 17 (Day 1B): Level Up And Then Dinner

Level 6 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 96

The last seconds of Level 5 have just left the tournament clock, and players will now be posting blinds of 200/400/50.  The conclusion of this level will be followed by a (60) minute dinner break, and those remaining players will finish off the final three levels.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Yaginuma Doubles

Level 5 (Blinds 150/300/25)
Total Entries: 95

The action leading up to Jesse Yaginuma's double was not caught, but approaching the table, Jane Hitchcock would be cutting out the chips to match Jesse's stack.  The full board and hands were still table:

Yaginuma: 7♦ 7♣             Hitchcock: 6♣ 8♣

Flop: 7♠ A♣ 5♦

Turn: 9♠

River: 5♥

Jesse's rivered full house would trump the straight turned by Hitchcock, and Yaginuma would chip up to 48,000 after stacking up his newfound chips.  Jane would be left with just over 5,000 after absorbing the loss, but is still seated and active at the current moment.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Liberto Lands On The Rail

Level 5 (Blinds 150/300/25)
Total Entries: 93

Matthew Su (Washington D.C.)

Matthew Su would open the pot to 700, with Charles Welch and Justin Liberto coming along.  The three players would see a flop of Kx Kx 9x, with both Su and Welch checking to Liberto, who would put out a bet of 2,000.  Matthew would make the call, while Charles would fold behind.  The action would go check-check after the 10x on the turn, and the dealer would put out the 3x on the river.  Su would then take action, leading out for 6,000, with Justin going all-in for his remaining 12,500.  Matthew would make the call and Liberto would turn over 9x 9x (flopped a full house).

To Justin's dismay, Su would turn over 10x 10x (turned bigger full house), and Liberto would be done with his first bullet.  It has not yet been verified if Justin will be re-entering this flight.

Event 17 (Day 1B): New Names Laddering

Level 5 (Blinds 150/300/25)
Total Entries: 93

Ulises Roman (Huntingdon, WV)

There are different names that are beginning to separate themselves from the rest of the field, with Ulises Roman now pushing 80,000.  After some research we were able to find results from Roman, who has over $271,000 in career tournament earnings.

Ulises's best score came in 2008 when he finished runner-up in the Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza ($2,200 No Limit Hold'em) for over $98,000.  As the night continues, we will keep an eye on all of the players who are in contention for the end of Day 1B $5,000 chip lead bonus.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Taking A Break

Players are now going on their (15) minute break, and they will return to Level 5 and blinds of 150/300/25.  There will be two more levels played before those remaining at the time go on a (60) minute dinner break.  The cards will be back in the air for Level 5 at 4:46pm.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Updated Chip Counts

Level 4 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 90

At the end of this level (which is in 10 minutes), players will be heading on their second break of the day.  They will return to Level 5 and blinds of 150/300/25 (90 total entries), and have three more open levels of registration.  In a schedule reminder for those in the field (and those following the field), there is a (60) minute dinner break at the conclusion of Level 6.  Here are some updated chip count taken from the later stages of Level 4:

Jonathan Ivy - 88,000
Philip Rinaldi - 77,000
Tremayne - 74,000
Jesse Chinni - 70,000
John Bassett - 69,000
Ulises Roman - 66,000
Daniel Lupo - 63,000
Jane Hitchcock - 45,000
Charles Welch - 31,000
Jesse Yaniguma - 22,000
Todd Anderson - 21,000

Event 17 (Day 1B): Rinaldi Really Needed The River

Level 4 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 89

The action at Table 41 was picked up on before the flop, just as Philip Rinaldi was four-betting Joshua Gordon.  There was a third player involved in this hand as well (original raiser), and Hieu Nguyen would five bet rip his stack of 17,000.  After Gordon folded, Rinaldi would make the call and the hands would be tabled:

Rinaldi: 10♠ 10♣         Nguyen: A♦ K♠

Flop: 10♥ J♠ A♥

Turn: Q♦

River: A♠

It was a roller coaster hand for Rinaldi and he went in with the best hand, flopped a set to grab a commanding lead, and then watched Nguyen turn broadway.  Philip would need the board to pair in order to win, and that's exactly what would happen on the river.  Rinaldi would clench his fist in a small celebration and collect the pot, chipping up to 67,000.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Level Up/Look Back At Day 1A

Level 4 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 86

Level 4 started just moments ago, with antes being introduced into the tournament for the first time today (100/200/25).  As the level transitions, we take a look back at some of the numbers from yesterday:

Total Day 1A Entries: 71
Day 1A Players Remaining: 27

Top (3) Stacks:

Michael Rothbard - 174,200
Andrew Brokus - 164,900
Samuel Wasserman - 146,000

Bottom (3) Stacks:

Scott Blumenfeld - 19,000
Eric Ladny - 18,000
Sang Kim - 17,600

Event 17 (Day 1B): "It's Nice To Get Lucky"

Level 4 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 85

John Bassett (Kingston, NY)

The action at Table 33 would start with an open in early position to 525 from Lawrence Lakatosh.  He would get called in three spots (John Bassett, Sean Wallace, Robert McLaughlin), before action was on Denis Gnidash in the big blind.  Gnidash would iso to 2,850 will only Bassett and Lakatosh coming along.  After a flop of 7♣ 10♥ 6♣, Gnidash would lead for 6,500 and Lakatosh would fold behind.  Jon Bassett would announce himself all-in and Denis would make the call:

Bassett: 7♠ 7♦ (middle set)
Gnidash: K♥ K♠

Turn: A♠
River: A♣

Gnidash would quickly stand up when he saw John's hand, and after the river he would walk away from the table.  With that pot Bassett would chip up to 75,000, one of the top stacks in the room.

Event 17 (Day 1B): First Look At Chip Counts

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Entries: 84

There hasn't been a start by anyone quite like that of Michael Rothbard from yesterday, so a wire to wire chip leader won't be seen during today's play.  The early chip lead belongs to Jonathan Ivy, who currently sits with 68,000.  Here are some other early counts from the field:

Jonathan Ivy - 68,000
Jesse Chinni - 58,000
Philip Rinaldi - 55,000
Wayne Griffin - 53,000
Jesse Yaniguma - 41,000
Sean Wallace - 39,000
Mike Dentale - 39,000
Marcia Kuntz - 29,000
Joshua Albin - 23,000
James Peters - 23,000

Event 17 (Day 1B): Liberto Lands At Table 29

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Entries: 82

Justin Liberto (Baltimore, MD)

Justin Liberto (Baltimore, MD) walks in after the first break and lands at Table 29 with the likes of Jesse Chinni and Charles Welch.  At the moment, the total prize fund is already over $300,000, with the projected first place to be over $100,000.

Justin is another notable player to grow up in the state of Maryland, and after his recent success in 2013, is 12th on the all-time Maryland money list (tournaments).  Liberto finished 4th in the inaugural WSOP $1,500 Millionaire Maker for over $400,000.  Some other notables to show up late include:

Christopher Grove
Todd Jacobson
Ketan Pandya

Event 17 (Day 1B): Taking A Break

With each level that finishes, the window for registration for this event gets smaller and smaller.  Players are currently taking a (15) minute break and will return to Level 3 and blinds of 100/200 (75 total entries).  Today's number has already eclipsed that of yesterdays, as late arrivals continue to walk through the door:

Awaise Dar
Andrew Franklin
Jeremy Stein
Timothy Bishop
Adam Glasgow
Philip Rinaldi
Mark Taranto
Ian Davis

Event 17 (Day 1B): Poker Night Now In The Main

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 75

Todd Anderson

Todd Anderson may not look familiar to many of the players at his table, but that's only because he's usually on the business side of the felt.  Anderson is the President of Rush Street Productions and Poker Night In America.

Poker Night (which can be seen on CBS Sports Network) is making its second appearance here at Maryland Live!, and will be filming this upcoming Monday and Tuesday at Rams Head CS.  The filming is open to the public, and those coming to see the action will have a chance to watch some of the best and entertaining players live.  Some names that will be playing include Phil Hellmuth, Shaun Deeb, Layne Flack, Jessica Dawley,  and Matt Glantz.

Event 17 (Day 1B): The Names We Know (Part II)

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 72

Robert McLaughlin (Washington D.C.)

He may not have grown up in Maryland, or be considered part of the crew from the state, but Robert McLaughlin (Washington D.C.) now calls the area home.  McLaughlin has over $1,230,000 in career tournament earnings, with three of his biggest scores coming at the Borgata.  The three events range from a $1,000-$3,000 buy-in, and his finishes have earned him over $550,000 combined.  Here is a continued list of the familiar faces in the field:

Viet Le
Sean Wallace
Joshua Albin
Kenneth Aldridge
Joshua Gordon
Jane Hitchcock
Joseph Cashen

Event 17 (Day 1B): The Names We Know

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 66

The Day 1B field continues to grow at a steady pace, with many familiar faces taking their seats.  The trend of players take a little hike to get here continues, as Mike Dentale (Brooklyn, NY) takes his seat for the first time this series.  Dentale is a well known East Coast pro with over $691,000 in career earnings.  Dentale played on Poker Night In America during the sessions at Turning Stone Casino, but it has not yet been confirmed whether he will be playing when filming begins in two days at Rams Head Center Stage.  Here are some of the other notables currently in the field:

Jesse Chinni
Charles Welch
James Peters
Eric Rivkin
Giuseppe Serio
Wesley Wyvill
Wayne Griffin
Xuan Nguyen

Event 17 (Day 1B): Repping MD At The WSOP

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 61

Marcia Kuntz (Tacoma Park, MD)

When you watch the ESPN coverage of the WSOP Main Event, you're going to now recognize this name.  Marcia Kuntz (Tacoma Park, MD) made a super deep run in this years $10,000 WSOP Main Event, finishing in 91st place and outlasting all but two other ladies in the tournament (Maria Ho and Mikiyo Aoki finished 77th and 83rd respectively).

The finish would earn Marcia $61,313, capping off a great summer where she would win close to $75,000 during tournament play.  Kuntz is one of a few females in the field this afternoon, and is joined at the table by Lara Eisenberg.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Defending His Title

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 59

Kevin Elia (Edgewater, MD)

Kevin Elia (Edgewater, MD) hasn't been seen over the course of this series, but it looks like he didn't want to miss the opportunity to defend his Main Event title.  Elia was the winner of the inaugural Live! $1 Million Poker Classic this past March.  Elia would collect $56,370 for his share of the eight way chop, but he would then win the $1,000 Freezeout (SNG) for the trophy and $8,000 after the final table.

Although a really solid score, that was not the largest of Kevin's poker career.  He final tabled Event #44 during the 2012 WSOP ($1,000 No Limit Hold'em), finishing in sixth place for $79,464.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Another Local Beast

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 57

Jesse Yaginuma (Silver Spring, MD)

When you take a look at the all-time money list (tournament) for the state of Maryland, it's literally a who's who of the poker world.  Rounding out the top ten is Jesse Yaginuma (Silver Spring, MD), with just over $1,057,000 in career tournament earnings.

Jesse has over (55) recorded results since 2008, with his breakout score coming in February of last year when he finished third in the  $10,000 WPT L.A. Poker Classic for over $429,000.  Yaginuma had a solid resume going into that event, and even bubbled that same final table just two years earlier.

Jesse played in yesterday's field, but was eliminated late in Level 9 (final level of the night).  Yaginuma sat down only moments ago and is right at the 30,000 starting stack.

Event 17 (Day 1B): Day 1B Play Underway

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 55

Play is now underway after the rules announcement by tournament supervisor Jason Heidenthal, with (6) active tables at the moment (and growing).  The number to beat from yesterday is 174,200, set by end of day chip leader Michael Rothbard.  There are some faces that were unsuccessful in bagging yesterday currently in the field, and some that we haven't seen yet.  As the field behind to settle in, a list of the notables in the crowd will be posted shortly.

Event 17 (Day 1B): The Time Is Now

Today is the last chance to get into the $2,200 Live Summer Series Of Poker Main Event, with play beginning in under and hour.  Yesterday saw (71) total entries throughout the day, with (27) players successfully bagging chips for Day 2 tomorrow afternoon.  There were a handful of big names to grace the felt, and today should be no different.  The cards will be in the air at 12:15pm, with live coverage picking up the moment the cards are pitched.

Event 17 (Day 1A): End Of Day 1A Chip Counts

Player Name		Chip Count
Michael	Rothbard	174,200
Andrew	Brokus	164,900
Samuel	Wasserman	146,000
Arnold	Dinio	145,300
Sandra	Lewis Boyd	138,800
Faramarz	Firoozabadi	125,900
Brian	Hastings	109,400
Mathew	Shafmann	107,100
Joe	Wagner	101,000
Brian	Kurrus	95,700
John	Moore	89,200
Christian	Harder	87,100
Gang	Tao	77,900
Roger	Low	76,400
Vichien	Siprajim	69,500
Cliff	Goldkind	67,000
Matteo	Menna	58,300
Eric	Rivkin	55,600
Joshua	Pollock	38,100
Elia	Ahmadian	33,700
James	St. Hilaire	31,700
Jason	Deutsch	29,200
Taylor	Honkofsky	28,200
Chris	Kojack	24,300
Scott	Blumafeld	19,000
Eric	Ladny	18,000
Sang	Kim	17,600