Day 1C Brings WPT World Championship Closer to the $40 Million Guarantee

It was another hectic day of poker action at the Encore Ballroom yesterday, as players started to line up in the WPT World Championship event as early as 10 in the morning, eager to jump into the biggest guaranteed poker tournament of all time.

Things started off somewhat slow in the early morning hours, with some 300 players showing up to play on time.

Yet, there was no reason for concern in terms of turnout, as hundreds more showed up and entered the event over the following hours, eventually making Day 1C the largest of the three initial flights.

With 973 players turning up to play on Day 1C, the grand total has now gone up to 2,312, putting the event some 1,800 players away from breaking the record $40,000,000 guarantee set by WPT.

With the interest for the event seemingly increasing with every passing day, and final Day 1 flights traditionally attracting the biggest numbers, there is a good chance that the Championship not only meets, but shatters the guaranteed prize pool by quite a bit.

A number of players who were busy playing poker in other venues these past days announced they would be turning up to play the final Day 1 flight of the WPT World Championship event today as well, making each new flight that lands in Las Vegas a potential boost to the overall prize pool of this unprecedented poker event.

Poker Champions Turn Out in Force: Kornuth and Ensan among the Chip Leaders

Compared to Day 1C, the two initial Day 1 flights seemed like just warm-up, as yesterday’s tables were all action, with many of the world’s very best players showing up and taking their seats throughout the day.

A number of former world champions were found among those, with the likes of Phil Hellmuth, Joe Cada, Hessein Ensan, Joe Hachem, and Chris Moorman only a few of the notables who entered and survived the day.

Both the 2019 WSOP Main Event champion Hossein Ensan (1,100,000) and former WPT champion Chance Kornuth (1,120,000) were able to break the 1,000,000 chip mark by the end of the day.

However, it was Canadian player Kyle Ho who finished the day at the top of the chip counts with 1,211,000, making him the overall chip leader leading into Day 2.

Here is a quick look at a few other notables and their chip stacks to finish the day:

Jeremy Becker: 504,000
Joe Hachem: 430,000
David Williams: 429,000
Alec Torelli: 397,000
Chris Moorman: 383,000
Brad Owen: 360,000
Bryn Kenney: 342,000
Phil Laak: 286,000
Alex Foxen: 254,000
Mike Matusow: 149,000
Maria Ho: 96,000
Ian Matakis: 79,000

Day 1C of the @WPT World Championship @WynnLasVegas @WynnPoker comes to a close!

Today's flight saw a total of 973 players enter the field with just 360 moving onto Day 2 on Saturday.

Here's a look at some of the notables we spotted in the field today 👇 pic.twitter.com/9D4tjKL7xM

— WPT Live Updates (@WPTlive) December 15, 2023

Hundreds of Day 1C Casualties to Get a New Chance Today

While it was a big day for the likes of Kyle Ho, Chance Kornuth, and Hossein Ensan, plenty of other were not as fortunate, as their Championship ended in an early bustout.

Some of the most notable names among those included the most decorated tournament player in the world, Phil Hellmuth, cash game crusher Garrett Adelstein, former WSOP champion Ryan Reiss, high stakes legend Justin Bonomo, and many others.

Fortunately for all of them, a new chance to play and qualify for Day 2 is already available, as Day 1D action rages in the Encore Ballroom as we write this.

Quite a few have already been spotted in the registration lines and sitting at their tables, as they look for their chance to join the 337 of yesterday’s survivors.

Day 1D Starts Off Strong with Over 900 Players at Level 1

Yesterday saw the tournament room buzzing with dozens of tables running mid-way through the day, but it’s a whole different vibe today, with well over 900 players turning up to play during Level 1 alone.

As the hours went by, hundreds more already entered the field, as WPT World Championship looks to fill its massive guaranteed prize pool and prove that live poker is truly alive and well.

Day 1D of the $10,400 @WPT World Championship $40,000,000 GTD is underway @WynnLasVegas @WynnPoker! 🏆

1A – 609
1B – 730
1C – 973
1D – ?

872 entries in the field so far with late registration open until the start of level 7 (approx. 6:45pm)!

Chip Counts & Live Updates:… pic.twitter.com/E0DHMlhdwM

— WPT Live Updates (@WPTlive) December 15, 2023

The likes of Adrian Mateos, Allen “The Chainsaw” Kessler, Kitty Kuo, Joey Ingram, Faraz Jaka, and Kathy Leibert are only a few of the big names already sitting at the tables, with plenty of others expected to show up and play for the first time or re-enter following an earlier Day 1 bustout.

Day 1D late registration will be open until the end of the dinner break, and with some 1,300 players in the running as of 2:00 pm, it will be a close race against the clock for the Championship in its pursuit to reach the $40,000,000 mark as the crowning jewel in a crown of one of the best run poker tournaments in the history of the game.

Tune In On Saturday for Day 2 Action

Saturday, December 16, is going to be a huge day at the Encore, as today’s survivors join the 804 players who made it past Days 1A, 1B, and 1C, starting their journey towards the final table.

The journey will take a long time, all final table players will need to survive a full week of grueling action before they can reach the finalized final table on December 21.

With well over 1,000 players guaranteed to make their way back to the Ballroom tomorrow morning, we expect the room to be abuzz with excitement, as the short stacks pursue the dream of building it up in the early levels and the chip leaders look to maintain their dominance and ride the wave straight to the final day.

Stay tuned for even more updates from the WPT World Championship in the coming days, as we cover all the action and keep you up to date with all the big stories, major bustouts, and big names building up notable stacks to watch out for.