Photo Recap: Day 1 of WPT L.A. Poker Classic

By BJ Nemeth

The WPT L.A. Poker Classic is usually one of the biggest events of the season, and this year is no different. Play began on Day 1 with about 450 players, but registration remained open all day, and when play ended the field size had increased to 666. With 507 survivors heading to Day 2, there were actually more players in the field at the end of play than the beginning.

Registration will remain open until the start of play on Day 2, potentially crossing the over-under line of 673 set on the LAPC preview episode of "The Jess & BJ Show." The official prizepool will be announced on Day 2 when the final numbers are crunched.

Here is the top of the leaderboard at the end of Day 1:

1. Mike Baxter – 125,400
2. Ronnie Ebanks – 121,575
3. Arkadiy Stekoeshchikov – 111,000
4. Gregory Brooks – 108,425
5. Jason Mercier – 106,625

And now, a photographic look back at Day 1 of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic:

Phil Ivey, who won this event back in Season VI, showed up near the end of Level 2. As is often the case, Ivey’s attention sometimes drifts elsewhere, but he finished the day with nearly the same stack he started with — 29,900. (Players begin with 30,000 in chips.)

In 2010, the WPT L.A. Poker Classic attracted a field of 745 players, but expectations were lower for 2011. Play began with about 450 players, but the field grew throughout the day until it reached 666. Registration remains open until the start of Day 2, so the official number will likely be a little higher.

The classic Frederic Remington statue "Broncho Buster" is used as the basis for the trophies here at Commerce Casino. Remington’s original statue was given to Theodore Roosevelt from his troops in the Rough Riders, back before he became President of the United States.

Eric Costa was one of two players in the field who earned their entry by playing online at ClubWPT.com.

Blair Hinkle (right) watches as Darryll Fish (left) plays a pot halfway through Day 1. Hinkle made big headlines in the poker world when he won more than $1 million by finishing second in a recent FTOPS tournament on Full Tilt. With three players left in that event, Hinkle negotiated a higher prize than the player who went on to finish first. Both Hinkle and Fish survived Day 1 with above-average chip stacks.

Phil Hellmuth didn’t take his seat until Level 3, which almost qualifies as early for him. Hellmuth made this final table back in Season VI, finishing sixth to Phil Ivey’s first.

Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi became a household name in the poker world after winning more than $1.8 million in this event back in Season III. Mizrachi won his second WPT title a year later at the WPT Borgata Poker Classic, and is currently fourth on the WPT’s all-time money list with total WPT earnings of $4,215,265.

Reigning WPT Player of the Year Faraz Jaka played the tournament on Friday while wearing a knitted bear hat. In this case, the photo says far more than a caption ever could.

Like Eric Costa mentioned earlier, Martin Woods earned his seat in this event in a satellite at ClubWPT.com.

Erica Schoenberg (far left) is having a good time as Daniel Negreanu (right) was leading the players at the table in a game of "Marry, Boff, Kill." (Somebody names three people, and the other person must choose one to marry, one to boff, and one to kill — all theoretical and in good fun, of course.) We’ll keep the specifics of the game off the record.

With less than five minutes left in the day, Daniel Negreanu (left) was all in preflop and facing elimination with [JJ] against Maria Ho’s [AA]. But the board came [976J5], and Negreanu turned a set of jacks to win the pot and double up. Both players finished the day with stacks that were about half the average, but still relatively deep compared to the blind structure.

Jason Mercier is often ranked among the best players in the world, with a WSOP bracelet, an EPT title, and more than $5 million in live tournament earnings. What he doesn’t have — and what he’d really like to win — is a WPT title. Mercier finished Day 1 with 106,625 in chips (5th overall), and was named the RISE Clothing Player of the Day.

Day 2 begins tomorrow (Saturday) at 12:00 noon PT. Return to WorldPokerTour.com for continuing live coverage, including hand updates, chip counts, video interviews with Kimberly Lansing, and another episode of "The Jess & BJ Show."