WPT Jacksonville, Day 2 Recap

Photo Recap by BJ Nemeth

Day 2 of WPT Jacksonville began with 168 players, and after seven 90-minute levels, the field was knocking on the door of the money bubble with 42 players left. (Only 40 will share in the $1.2 million prizepool.)

Here’s a photographic recap of the Day 2 action:

Dealer Brian Woods got into the WPT spirit by shaving a stylistic "WPT" into his hair. This is the first non-regional WPT event in Jacksonville, Florida, and in the spring of 2012, Jacksonville will get its first fully-televised WPT event.

Three former WPT winners were sitting side-by-side-by-side early on Day 2: Dwyte Pilgrim (2010 WPT Borgata), Jonathan Little (2007 WPT Mirage, 2008 WPT Foxwoods), and Nick Schulman (2005 WPT Foxwoods). Only one of these players would survive the day, but you’ll have to keep reading to find out which one made it.

Tommy Vedes began the day as chipleader with more than 200,000 in chips, but he had an up-and-down ride on the leaderboard before he was eliminated in the final half hour of Day 2 by the new chipleader.

Raw Deal analyst and WPT Live Stream Commentator Tony Dunst (right) is all in early against former WPT winner Jeff Forrest (left). Dunst moved all in with the board showing [AsJd5h4c8s] on the river, and Forrest eventually folded.

In the first hour of the day, Daniel Buzgon (pictured) eliminated a player in a hand that featured a reversal of fortune. Buzgon had flopped eight high with no draws against his opponent’s set of nines — but when they got it all in on the river, Buzgon had caught a runner-runner ten-high straight.

Buzgon said, "I was three percent on the flop and got there."

Buzgon, who finished third at WPT Borgata in September, survived to Day 3 with 131,500 (26 big blinds).

Allie Prescott (left) and ClubWPT qualifier Artie Rodriguez were grinding their way into the dinner break with fairly short stacks. Prescott did considerably better after the dinner break, building his stack up to 441,500 to finish sixth in chips.

As for Rodriguez, he is still below average with 163,500, but with 32 big blinds, he is likely to survive two more spots to become the latest ClubWPT qualifier to reach the money in a WPT tournament.

Brandon Steven was never near the top of the leaderboard, but he was laughing, smiling, and having fun with his table throughout the day. Steven, who bubbled the 2010 WSOP November Nine, finished the day with 131,000 (26 big blinds), hoping to survive the money bubble and reach his first WPT final table.

Unlike Nevada and most states in the U.S., Florida’s gambling laws require players to be 18 years old, not 21. So the Poker Room at Orange Park Kennel Club added a special prize — this customized surfboard — to the 18-21 year old who went deepest in the tournament.

John Riordan didn’t reach the money (he busted shortly before the dinner break), but he was all smiles as he received the surfboard and got his photo taken with Royal Flush Girls Angelique Velez (left) and Ivy Teves (right).

WPT Jacksonville had a pretty strong turnout among women, with 17 entrants in the field of 393 (4.3%), though only one would survive to Day 3 — 2009 WSOP Ladies Champion Lisa Hamilton (pictured).

Darryll Fish was chipleader for a while in the middle of the day, with about 500,000 in chips. In the second half of the day, he improved to "only" 579,000, though it was still good enough for him to finish fourth in chips.

The empty seat in the foreground belongs to John Liu, who skipped most of the final three levels after the dinner break, disappearing for about four hours. Liu, a former dealer here at the Orange Park Kennel Club, returned shortly before the end of the day, claiming he went home to shower and relax.

Dwyte Pilgrim won a huge pot in the first hour after the dinner break on a board of [AcQh10h10cJc]. Pilgrim’s [QdQs] gave him a higher full house than his opponent’s J-10, and Pilgrim stood up to watch as the dealer counted down the chip stacks.

When the stacks were finally counted, Pilgrim had doubled up into the chip lead with nearly 550,000. By the end of the day, Pilgrim would be the only former WPT winner left in the field, reaching Day 3 with an average stack of 284,000 (56 big blinds).

As a native Floridian from Tampa, former WSOP November Niner John Racener is one of the more famous players in his home state. Unfortunately, Racener was eliminated in the last level of the night.

Jeff Forrest (pictured) was one of the final two former WPT winners left in the field, but he was eliminated in the final hour as part of Vitor Coelho’s late-day steamroll.

When John Liu returned, his chip stack had weathered the night pretty well. Liu had more than 400,000 when he left, with about 74 players remaining. When he returned, the field was close to the money bubble, and his chip stack was still in the mid-300s. (Liu finished the day with 343,500 — still above average with 68 big blinds.)

In the final hour, Vitor Coelho (pictured) went on a hot streak, busting several players in quick succession to cross the million-chip mark. Coelho colored Joel Schmidt preflop with aces vs. kings, and then finished off former WPT winners Tommy Vedes and Jeff Forrest.

Coelho finished the day with 945,000, more than 56% more than anybody else in the field.

Day 2 came to an end with 42 players, just two spots away from the money. Here’s a look at the top five:

1. Vitor Coelho – 945,000 (189 BBs)
2. Connor Drinan – 605,000 (121 BBs)
3. Alexander Venovski – 592,500 (118 BBs)
4. Darryll Fish – 579,000 (115 BBs)
5. Sam Soverel – 510,000 (102 BBs)

Day 3 begins on Monday at 12:00 noon ET, with the players bursting the money bubble and continuing play until they reach the final six for Tuesday’s WPT final table, which will be streamed nearly live — with holecards — online.