LIVE EVENTS

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Event #1 of the World Cup of Cards, the $200 + $20 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry, brought out a huge field of players who made a total of 184 entries to this single-day event. The huge turnout put a massive amount of chips in play and allowed the prize pool to greatly surpass the $20,000 guarantee.

Many players rotated through the top spot on the leaderboard this afternoon. Especially in the late stages of play, it seemed like nobody was able to hang on to the chip lead for very long. This dynamic kept up all the way to the end of play, including most of the heads-up match between Dave Jeanneau-Cyr and Sebastien Hendren at the final table.

Jeanneau-Cyr and Hendren each maintained large stacks throughout the late stages of play, but Hendren held a slim lead when heads-up play began. These two players had a spirited match, exchanging three- and four-bets while avoiding showdown in most hands. Hendren had Jeanneau-Cyr on the ropes in a few spots, but Jeanneau-Cyr would not go away, winning several all ins while at risk. In the end, the blinds kept mounting and eventually forced the action, which led to a preflop all in. Hendren had the best of it, and this time his hand held up, to capture victory and the first trophy of the World Cup of Cards. Congratulations!

8-Max Deepstack Re-entry Champion: Sebastien Hendren, $7,926

Second Place: Dave Jeanneau-Cyr, $5,950

Last Hand of Play:

Although play tightened up briefly when the field was down to two tables, a combination of cards and conditions came together to createa  flurry of eliminations that has reduced the field to only seven players.

Here is the list of players who were eliminated along the way.

Play has just resumed in level 20, following the fourth break of the day.

The field is down to only 11 players, and they are led by Dave Jeanneau-Cyr, who is the only player with a stack approaching double the current chip average.

The blinds have reached dizzying heights, as an average stack provides only slightly more than 16 big blinds, which means that almost everyone still in contention is feeling the pressure.

Once the field reached the money, the action picked up to a frenetic pace and sent a series of players to the rail in short succession. The blinds had caught up to many in the field, leaving few options for the short stacks still in play. Once the payouts were secured, they shifted from survival mode back to trying to run up their stacks and make a run at the final table.

The following players reached the money but have since been eliminated.

The remaining players in the 8-Max Deepstrack Re-entry have just made the money, thanks to Christian Rho’s good fortune.

The bubble hand was a familiar tournament sight; middle pair against two over cards. Both players involved in the hand were relatively low on chips, but Michel Leblanc was the player at risk in this heads-up spot. It was a flip. Rho held against Leblanc’s . Rho was relieved to see the window card, and it only got better from there.

The remaining players are now all in the money, each assured of a payout of at least $360 for their efforts this afternoon.

The mounting blinds have provoked a major upheaval on the leaderboard, as the 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry is set to resume in level 15.

The current chip leader, Placide Junior Sanon, was holding steady in the middle of pack before he found ways to amass enough chips to set himself apart and is now the only player to have more than double the current chip average of 145K. Sanon’s stack of about 58 big blinds gives him plenty of breathing room, but most others in the field are feeling the pressure of the blinds now that an average stack only gets players about 20 big blinds.

What started with a massive field of 184 entries is now down to only 41 players after nearly five hours of play.

An average stack in the 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry is now worth about 21 big blinds. As the pressure of the blinds mounts, the remaining players are considering each decision carefully at this stage because tournament lives are at stake on almost every hand.

Here is an updated look at the field from level 13:

Play has just resumed in level 11, and the 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry has a new chip leader. Peter Liakopoulos went on a tear in the lead up to the second break to accumulate nearly triple the current chip average.

The blinds have caught up to many in the field, as an average stack now provides around 34 big blinds, which means that many in the field are well below that figure and are beginning to feel the pressure.

The 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry has just entered its ninth level of play, with 118 players left in contention.

The chip leaders at the last beak, Andreas K and Line St-Pierre, still have two of the largest stacks in play, however, the gap between them and the rest of the field is closing quickly. The chip average provides nearly 47 big blinds at this stage, which means that most players still in the field are enjoying significant depth of play.

Check out some of the action from level 8:

Play has just resumed in level 7, following the first break of the day and the end of the late registration period. A late rush to the cashier brought the total number of entries up to 184, putting slightly more 5.5 million in chips in play.

Two players, Andreas K and Line St-Pierre, jumped out ahead of the field in the early levels to amass the only six-figure stacks in play at this point. But they have their work cut out for them if they hope to stay ahead of the pack, as there are still over 140 players left in contention.

The timer has just sounded to indicate the beginning of the sixth level of play in the 8-Max Deepstack Re-entry, meaning that the late registration and re-entry period will soon come to a close. Players have until 1:15pm to get in on the action, so expect a late rush of players to the cashier shortly before then, as this opening event has already proven its merits thanks to 139 entries so far.

The large turnout has already surpassed the prize pool guarantee, the only question now is how big it will get!

Here is an updated look at the action from level 5: