Photo Recap: Day 2 of WPT Hollywood Poker Open

By BJ Nemeth

When late registration closed at the start of Day 2, the total field size for the WPT Hollywood Poker Open had grown to 97 players. The top 12 will finish in the money, with $273,664 going to the winner.

The field played down to the final three tables (27 players) before stopping for the day. For a full list of chip counts in table-and-seat order, click here. These are the top five players from the leaderboard:

1. Andy Whetstone – 334,400 (278 BBs)
2. Shannon Shorr – 250,900 (209 BBs)
3. Steven Kelly – 233,000 (194 BBs)
4. David Anthony – 207,000 (172 BBs)
5. Steve Barshak – 193,600 (161 BBs)

And now, a photographic look back at Day 2 of the WPT Hollywood Poker Open:

Day 1 chipleader Ali Eslami was still stacking his massive pile of chips as action was underway on Day 2.

Bellagio Tournament Director Jack McClelland and WPT Commentator Mike Sexton didn’t have a lot of chips, but they were having a lot of fun in the early levels. Unfortunately, neither player survived the day.

Late registration remained open until the start of play on Day 2, and Andy Frankenberger was one of the six players who took advantage, creating a total field size of 97. Frankenberger is the points leader in the WPT Player of the Year race, and anyone who wants to catch him is running out of time, as this is the third-to-last tournament of the season. If Frankenberger reaches the money (final 12 players), he’ll be able to increase his lead even further, and he survived Day 2 with a healthy stack of 61,100.

Speaking of the WPT Player of the Year race, there was one player still in the field on Day 2 who could have taken the lead from Frankenberger — Gregory Brooks (left). But Brooks was eliminated halfway through Day 2, all in preflop with [8s7s] against the [QhQs] of Chris Bell (right). Bell, who final tabled this event last year, survived the day with a short stack of 40,700.

The Royal Flush Girls used some of their downtime today to do some impromptu hairstyling for one of their own, Katrina Topacio, while Ali Eslami (foreground, right) took a cellphone picture from his nearby table. The "stylists," from left to right: Melanie Iglesias, Jennifer Haley, and Michelle Banzer.

Mike Sexton smiles after doubling his short stack with [AdKc] all in preflop against the [KsQc] of Jason Koon (right). Both players were fairly short, and both were eliminated later in the day.

After a flop of [9d8h7d], William Johnson (right) moved all in, and Jonathan Little asked for an exact count before he called with [JdJs]. Johnson turned over [7c7h] for a set of sevens, and went on to double up. Little was eliminated about an hour later, while Johnson survived the day with a healthy stack of 61,700.

Shannon Shorr had a strong day and finished second in chips with 250,900. Shorr has been on a hot streak in recent WPT events, final tabling the WPT Southern Poker Championship back in January (finishing fourth), and nearly final tabling the WPT L.A. Poker Classic in February (finishing 11th).

ClubWPT.com qualifier Andy Whetstone (left) seemed to be unstoppable after the dinner break, as he eliminated three players in less than 15 minutes. Hoyt Corkins was the first to go when he check-raised a flush draw and found himself up against Whetstone’s [AcAh]. Dean Churches was the next victim when he flopped top pair, top kicker against Whetstone’s set of eights. Luke Staudenmaier (far right) was all in preflop with a short stack, watching helplessly as Whetstone and Larry Ormson (center right) bet back-and-forth on a board of [Jc6c2h9h5h]. Ormson turned over [QcJh] for top pair, and cringed when he saw Whetstone’s [5c5d] — Whetstone caught a set of fives on the river to win the pot.

As Whetstone stacked his chips, Terry Jacobs (not pictured) said, "If I start to play a hand against this guy, somebody stop me."

Andy Whetstone‘s post-dinner rush catapulted him to the top of the leaderboard, where he finished the day with 334,400 and was named the RISE Player of the Day. You can see Whetstone discuss his improbable day and what he likes best about playing at ClubWPT.com by watching his end-of-day interview with Jess & BJ — click here.

Day 3 begins tomorrow (Monday) at 1:00 pm ET. Return to WorldPokerTour.com for continuing live coverage, including hand updates, frequent chip counts, and another episode of the Jess & BJ Show.