The pinnacle poker event of the year has arrived and poker enthusiasts from near and far will be heading to their seats in the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino to take part in what may very well be a record-breaking edition of the annual World Series of Poker $10,000 Main Event.
Even before the cards were in the air for the first of three flights the previous day, the speculations by poker pros and recreational players alike were running high after a record-breaking 50th Annual WSOP has so far delivered truly astonishing numbers. Throughout the first 66 events, this year's anniversary edition of the WSOP shattered attendance records as 147,334 entrants have played in WSOP gold bracelet events.
Many further entries will follow, as a record-high total of 90 events are scheduled to award a coveted gold bracelet in the remaining two weeks of the poker festival of the year in Sin City. However, it is the Main Event that always remains at the center of attention. The hopes of turning $10,000 into a life-changing amount of money and the fame that comes along with becoming World Champion are what dreams are made of.
The trend continued on Day 1a of the $10,000 Main Event as well, which was over 400 entries higher than 925 players that took part in the biggest and most important poker tournament of the year in 2018. Defending champion John Cynn delivered the 'shuffle up and deal' at high noon yesterday and once the five two-hour levels were completed, more players bagged up chips than had taken part on Day 1a the previous year.
A total of 7,874 players took part in the 49th Annual WSOP Main Event, making it the second-largest turnout in tournament history, trailing only the 8,773 players of the mammoth 2006 edition. Both of these numbers have been mentioned a lot in the previous days when it came to estimations of the field size in 2019. With numbers up all across the board in the summer so far, it would be no surprise to see yet another record field set in Las Vegas.
Despite the festivities for the 4th of July, a bumper field is expected to join the action for the second of three starting days and the schedule for the day can be found below.
Day 1b Tournament Structure
At noon, players start with 60,000 in chips. Levels are 120 minutes long throughout with five levels on the schedule for Day 1a. After every level, players have a 20-minute break. The dinner break, 90 minutes long, takes place half-way into Level 4, around 8:00 p.m. to accommodate the ESPN live broadcast.
Late registration for this event is open until the start of play on Day 2 and Day 1b is expected to wrap up around 1 a.m. local time.
| Level | Estimated Start | Duration | Small Blind | Big Blind | Big Blind Ante |
|---|
| 1 | 12:00 p.m. | 120 minutes | 100 | 200 | 200 |
| | 2:00 p.m. | 20-minute break | | | |
| 2 | 2:20 p.m. | 120 minutes | 200 | 300 | 300 |
| | 4:20 p.m. | 20-minute break | | | |
| 3 | 4:40 p.m. | 120 minutes | 200 | 400 | 400 |
| | 6:40 p.m. | 20-minute break | | | |
| 4 | 7:00 p.m. | 60 minutes | 300 | 500 | 500 |
| | 8:00 p.m. | 90-minute dinner break | | | |
| | 9:30 p.m. | 60 minutes | 300 | 500 | 500 |
| | 10:30 p.m. | 20-minute break | | | |
| 5 | 10:50 p.m. | 120 minutes | 300 | 600 | 600 |
Players to survive today will return to the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino Saturday, July 6, 2019, to play another five levels on Day 2ab PokerNews will be there the entire day with live updates from around the convention center of the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino.
Will we see another fairytale story emerge such as the one of John Hesp in 2017, who showcased that anyone can make it to the final table? Will there be another epic heads-up battle for the most-cherished title in poker such as the one John Cynn and Tony Miles delivered back in 2018? Will a former WSOP Main Event champion pave his way to the final table once again and possibly have a shot at repeat victory?
The days to come will tell who makes it to the final table with life-changing seven-figure payouts, fame, and fortune on the line. Stay tuned to the extensive PokerNews updates from start to finish of the poker event of the year!
Tags:
John CynnJohn HespTony MilesWorld Series of PokerWSOP
flop, de Laat continued for 4,000 and Payne came along to see the 
turn. Both players slowed down and checked, and did so again on the 
river. De Laat turned over 
and Payne open-mucked 
to trigger some "wowwws" on the table.
