Online Poker

With nearly $15 million on offer, there is no better place to be right now than the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas. No wonder current tournament leader, Chip Jett, is all smiles. I would be to if I was on track to taking home a crisp $3.5 million.

However, with only the first day completed and still 535 of the original 610 entrants remaining, this championship is far from finished.

The tournament, which runs until April 24 and has a $25,500 buy-in, has attracted some of the world’s best players from over 40 different countries.

Among the players attending are the likes of Phil "The Unabomber" Laak, Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari, Barry Greenstein, Doyle Brunson, Jennifer Harman, Phil Ivey and Mike “The Mouth” Matusow.

In addition, the championship is playing host to a more personal battle, the 2006 WPT Player of the Year Title. Player’s Gavin Smith and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, are currently locked in a 1-2 race for this year’s title.

However, Smith’s current 400-point lead over Mizrachi, due to his recent performance at the Mirage Poker Showdown, could now be in jeopardy after today’s early departure.

All the action from the Bellagio Casino will be televised on the Travel Channel from June 28.

Player Chip Count
1 - Chip Jett $185,000
2 - Tony Bloom $160,000
3 - Anh Van Nguyen $100,000
4 - Erick Lindgren $100,000
5 - Mark Seif $100,000
6 - T.J. Cloutier $97,000
7 - Brian Wilson $85,000
8 - Todd Brunson $80,000
9 - Alan Goehring $75,000
10 - Greg Mueller $75,000
11 - Mike Matusow $75,000
12 - Phil Hellmuth $65,000

Busted Pro’s
Sam Farha
Gavin Smith
Gus Hansen
David Pham

(The pic is actually from the Aussie Millions after Chip busted out and we bought him a beer. He was surprisingly happy.....)

Liam @ Poker.com