Day 1A of the WPT500 brought out a huge field of players that made a total of 183 entries this afternoon. As the first of eight starting flights for the WPT500, Day 1A provided a great start to the live action, which bodes well for the remaining starting flights.

The large turnout made for a lengthy flight, one that surprised most players in the field. The pace of play kept things moving along at a brisk pace until the end of the flight came into sight. Hand-for-hand play lasted for over an hour and led to significant changes in the balance of power. The players who led this flight at various stages – Ami Alibay, Robert Gariepy and Ara Asatoorian – each stumbled in the late stages and ended up bagging far fewer chips than they each had at their respective high points.

In the end, it was Mathyeu Provost who emerged with the chip lead, thanks to solid play and fortuitous timing. Provost managed to steadily accumulate chips throughout hand-for-hand play and ultimately put the remaining field into Day 2 when his pocket tens survived a pre-flop all in against Steve Fournier’s ace-king. Provost seized the overall chip lead with his performance on Day 1A, sending 715,000 in chips on to Day 2. Other prominent stacks include Ami Alibay with 570,000, Laurence Louie with 441,500 and Marc-Andre Yelle with 369,500.

There are three WPT500 starting flights scheduled for tomorrow. Day 1C runs at noon, followed by Day 1D at 5:00pm and Day 1E Turbo at 10:00pm. Day 2 will be held on Monday, October 28 at 1:00pm.