LIVE EVENTS

Eric Afriat still has a dominating chip lead over the field in the Playground 1000. He has held the top stack in play by a healthy margin all day long and managed to further increase his lead during the last two levels. As the only player with a seven-figure stack, he has nearly double the chips of his nearest competitor.

There are still two levels to go today before the players bag chips for tomorrow’s Day 2, the second of three days of play in this event.

The timer is winding down on level 12 in the Playground 1000, and 111 players still have a chance at the $55,000 prize at the top of the money list.

Even though the re-entry period ended some time ago, there has been little change in the approach of most players; everyone is out to build their stack as high as it will go. Simply surviving seems to be a low priority, as both the big and small stacks are taking risks to collect as many chips as possible.

The next break is around the corner, stay tuned for a leaderboard update.

Here’s an updated look at the field:

The Playground 1000 has exceeded all expectations by drawing a field large enough to more than double the prize pool guarantee.

The top 33 finishers will cash this event, but there is a long road ahead before that point is reached. This is a three-day event. Day 2 starts tomorrow at noon and will play twelve levels before bagging chips for Day 3, which will be held Sunday, May 26 at 1:00pm and play until there is a winner.

Here is the full prize pool breakdown:

Play has just resumed in level 10, with 174 players left in contention. The tenth level of play brought about the end of the late registration and re-entry period, as well as the final rush of players trying to get in on the action. The late additions brought the total number of entries up to 260, including 49 re-entries. The huge turnout for this event has built a prize pool of more than double the guaranteed amount of $100,000. The prize pool breakdown will be released shortly.

Eric Afriat has maintained his lead over the field, as the first player to break the 600,000-chip mark. There are many other big stacks in the field, however, no player has been able to approach Afriat since play began this morning at 11:00am.

As the Playground 1000 reaches the end of the ninth level of play, there is only 30 minutes left to register for this popular event.
The first eight levels brought out 249 entries, enough to more than double the guaranteed prize pool.

The action has been fast and aggressive since the first orbit, helping draw 41 re-entries during the early levels of play. Thanks to all the chips in play, the stacks are deep. The current chip average provides 70 big blinds, more than enough to take creative lines in any given hand.

Eric Afriat, the chip leader through the first two breaks, still has lots of chips at his disposal, but the rest of the field has caught up, making his stack less intimidating than it once was. The leaderboard will be updated following the next break in about 30 minutes.

A look at the field during level 8:

Play has just resumed in level 7, following the second break of the day. New players and re-entries continued to join the field over the course of the last three levels. With slightly more than two hours left in the late registration and re-entry period, the Playground 1000 has attracted 225 entries. So far 24 players exercised their option to re-enter and fired a second bullet. Considering that this event will award far, far more than the $100,000 guarantee, it comes as no surprise to see the re-entries pile up.

Eric Afriat found ways to maintain his chip lead from the first to second break, however, the gap between him and the rest of the field is (slightly) smaller than it once was.

The action continues in level 6 of the Playground 1000, with 183 players still in the running. The huge turnout of 210 entries means that this event has more than doubled its prize pool guarantee with roughly three hours remaining in the late registration and re-entry period. Seventeen players have already opted to use their single re-entry at this point, and many more are sure to follow in the levels ahead.

Although the current chip average provides over 100 big blinds, the all in card has been put to use early and often this afternoon. Players have taken a very aggressive approach up to this point, a trend that is likely to continue.

Check out some photos from level 5:

The Playground 1000 has surpassed its prize pool guarantee after only three levels of play.

Following the first break in the action, there are 162 players still in the running. This event has already attracted 174 total entries, helped along by 10 re-entries during the first three levels of play.

The fast action during the early levels helped several players amass imposing chip stacks, however, Eric Afriat has outpaced them all. He more than quadrupled his starting stack and has a two-to-one chip advantage over his nearest rival.

The Playground 1000 hit the ground running.

After nearly two levels of play, there have already been 135 entries, including 3 re-entries. With several hours left to go in the late registration and re-entry period and more players joining by the minute, this event is going far above and beyond the $100,000 prize pool guarantee.

Check out the field from the first level of play: