Apparently the 6,012 entrants in the $1,000 buy-in “Stimulus Special” no-limit hold’em event at this year’s World Series of Poker were a smidgen more than expected, as the four-day tournament was turned into a five-day event. That decision means that today will feature two WSOP final tables, including that of the $1,500 pot-limit Omaha event, each featuring a stable of notable pros.
Event No. 4 — $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em
The 6,012 players in the highly anticipated Stimulus Special dropped like flies on the two day ones and were in the money by day 2, but the size of the field finally caught up with itself, and there wasn’t much hope of reaching a final table by the end play. The final table of nine players was set on day 3 of the event, and among those nine are more than a few familiar faces, despite the sea of unknowns in the field.
Poker pro Dan Heimiller (pictured above right) will lead the final table today as the remaining players vie for the $771,000 first-place payday.
Here’s how the final table looks for the start of final-table play today:
1. Dan Heimiller — 4,155,000
2. Steve Sung — 3,395,000
3. Panayote Vilandos — 1,940,000
4. James Matz III — 1,885,000
5. Jeff Oakes — 1,680,000
6. Larry Sidebotham — 1,500,000
7. Phong Huynh — 1,310,000
8. Nathan Mullen — 1,210,000
9. Danny Fuhs — 965,000
Event No. 5 — $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha
No days needed to be added to the $1,500 pot-limit Omaha event, but that didn’t mean that the field wasn’t impressively large. The tournament had 800 casualties on its way to today’s final table of nine players, and despite the event’s relatively low buy-in, notable pros are still in the hunt for the $237,000 top prize.
The stacks of the final nine as they enter the final table today are:
1. Kevin Iacofano — 770,000
2. Jonathan Tare (pictured above right) — 639,000
3. An Tran — 435,100
4. Jason Mercier — 384,400
5. Victa Park — 341,000
6. Dario Alioto — 315,000
7. Matt Giannetti — 311,000
8. Steven Burkholder — 263,000
9. Chris Biondino — 182,000
