LIVE EVENTS

The leaderboard has gone through a major upheaval since the last update. The players with the top stacks at the last break have fallen back into the peloton, and we have a new group of leaders. David Bonneau leads the way with a stack of more than double the current chip average, which puts him comfortably ahead of his nearest competitor.

The tension is mounting now that the field is approaching the cut-off point for this flight. From the 21 remaining players, 14 will advance to Day 2.

The remaining field on Day 1B now fits on just five tables. The pressure of the blinds is beginning to creep up, as the chip average now provides just under 26 big blinds.

At this stage, the tension between two opposing dynamics is beginning to influence the players. On one hand, they know that patience is the key to surviving a multi-day event so staying tight is probably right. But on the other hand, they know that they have to stay out ahead of the blinds so now is a time to bluff, float and take risks in order to accumulate chips. Walking the tightrope between these two approaches will be the key to surviving this flight and making a deep run on Day 2.

Here’s an updated look at the field:

The players have just returned to the tables following the latest break in the action. The field is down to less than half of the total entries, with 59 players remaining.

The current chip average provides slightly more than 28 big blinds at this point, which leaves plenty of room to play for most stacks. But there are three players who are head and shoulders above the rest with stacks of more than double the current average.

As the timer winds down on the eleventh level of play, the field has been reduced to seven tables. The gap between the big and short stacks in the play has widened significantly, which has led to some interesting dynamics. The shorter stacks have been looking for spots to get in a three-bet shove, but the big stacks have enough chips to play with that they are making cold calls with relative ease, creating bloated pots and leading to lots of chips changing hands.

A hand that just played out on table 64 offers an illustrative example. With the blinds at 500/1,000, Kevin Messervier made a three-bet shove for 9,900 over a limp from early position. His raise was met by a cold call from Rejean Bourgogne, on the button, and Bang Tran, in the big blind. The original limper folded and the three players watched as the dealer brought out the flop. Tran led out with a bet of 8,000, which was met with quick “all in” from Bourgogne. After a while in the tank, Tran made the call. The cards were revealed to show that Bourgogne was well ahead of his opponents.

Bourgogne:

Tran:

Messervier:

Bourgogne rose from his seat and, after thanking Tran and Messervier for their chips, asked the dealer to not bring out an ace on the turn or river. There would be no ace to save Messervier and Tran, but the turn brought the ! The case eight gave both players three of a kind, putting them ahead of the pocket kings. The river was an irrelevant queen, and the dealer got to work chopping the main pot. Messervier gained a new lease on his tournament life, while Tran won a hefty side pot to increase his stack and send Bourgogne to the rail.

Play has just resumed in level seven, which means that the late registration and re-entry period is closed on Day 1B. Many players made a late rush to the cashier to re-enter this flight, pushing the number of re-entries to 24. In all, there were 136 entries to this flight, putting lots of chips in play for the 108 remaining players to go get.

At the moment, several players have more than doubled their starting stacks, but they all trail Robin Millette.  It will be difficult to catch up to the overall Playground 100 chip leader, Jason Teurquety who has 792,500 in chips waiting for Day 2, but with so many chips in play this afternoon, seeing a new overall chip leader emerge from this flight is not beyond the realm of possibility. Play will continue until 10% of the starting field remains so there is still lots of poker to be played this afternoon.

The air conditioning in the tournament hall is keeping the players cool. But nothing can stop the high-paced action from heating up the felts on Day 1B.

The players have shifted into high gear, now that the timer is winding down on the late registration and re-entry period. Players can still (re-)enter until 2:15pm so many have taken a “boom-or-bust” approach at this stage. There are lots of chips changing hands, as the players are taking big risks and the all in cards are making frequent appearances on the tables.

Day 1B of the Playground 100 is off to a great start.

As we approach the end of the third level of play, the field just surpassed 100 entries. There were six re-entries during the first hour of play, a sign that many more will follow before the end of the late registration and re-entry period at 2:15pm.

Players are permitted unlimited re-entries and can enter as many Day 1s as they please so it comes as no surprise that they are taking advantage of the affordable buy-in and firing multiple bullets to capitalize on the great value provided by this event.

Here’s a look at the field from the early levels.

Event #3 of the June Power Weekend, the $100 + $100 Playground 100, continues this afternoon with Day 1B. This exciting, multi-day event guarantees a prize pool of $50,000 and features five live starting flights. With the online Day 1 and Day 1A already in the books, this event has already brought in 188 entries with many more to follow throughout the weekend.

Players will start their Playground 100 journeys with 20,000 in chips, and each Day 1 will play until 10% of the starting field remains, at which point the remaining players will bag their chips for Sunday’s Day 2. Players can enter as many Day 1s as they like, as only the largest qualifying stack will advance to Day 2.

This event permits unlimited re-entries during the late registration period, which will be open until the beginning of the seventh level of play at 2:15pm.

Good luck to all!