October 22 2011, Paul Oresteen

Day 1a of the World Series of Poker Hammond Main Event saw 912 entrants pony up the $1,600 entry fee. The Day 1a field eclipsed the 872 entrants that entered the 2010 event, and there is still Day 1b to account for; needless to say, it is going to be a huge field with an attractive prize pool. After 15 levels of play, Paul Bianchi ended the day as the chipleader with 358,500 after making a charge late in the evening. Joining him atop the counts are Tom Luce with 263,500 and Eric Crain with 251,500.

Other notables still alive include Chad Brown (87,000), Dwyte Pilgrim (137,000), Josh Brikis (147,500), Mohsin Charania (51,800) and Kenny Nguyen (125,000).

The starting field also boasted notables Kathy Liebert, Steve Brecher, Allen Kessler, 2010 WSOP Hammond Main Event winner Kurt Jewell, Faraz Jaka, Kevin Saul, Aaron Massey, Mark “Pegasus” Smith and Mark “P0kerH0” Kroon, all of whom did not survive the day.

With only 20 minutes remaining in the day, a hand unfolded that all the players at the table agreed might be the sickest hand they’ve seen. Pavlin Karakikov opened from early position and thought everyone folded and exposed pocket jacks to the table; however, Voytek Glab was in the big blind and made the call. The flop came and Glab bet 6,000. Karakikov called and the turn brought the . Glab then moved all-in for 44,600. Facing three over cards to his jacks and an all-in, Karakikov tanked, eventually making the call. Glab tabled pocket fives and was dead to rights from Karakikov’s hero call, but the river was a cruel sending the pot to Glab. To make matters worse, Karakikov was given an orbit penalty for exposing his hand.

The early part of the day saw Kenny Nguyen soar to the chip lead, at one point having 130,000 – a full 80,000 more than the next closest stack. But Nguyen’s wild style caught up with him and he was on an average stack shortly after dinner. Meanwhile, Dwyte Pilgrim was easy to locate in a tournament field with his loud, identifiable laugh and spent a good amount of time at the table with the equally boisterous Tim Vance. The pair squared off plenty of times with Vance getting the better of Pilgrim, although Vance was the one who wouldn’t return for Day 2.

We expected to see Dennis Phillips in the field after winning his first WSOP Circuit ring Thursday night, but he fell ill. Phillips’ appendix burst late last night shortly after winning and was rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery. We have been told he is stable and is expected to make a full recovery.

We should also note that any player who busted during Day 1a is allowed to re-enter into Day 1b. We expect to see many of the notables who busted on Day 1a with a fresh stack of chips at the start of play on Day 1b. After another 15 levels, both fields will combine on Sunday for Day 2 with the goal of playing down to a final table.

Follow all the Day 1b action in our Live Reporting Section when the cards hit the air at 1200 CDT (1700 GMT).

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October 22 2011, Josh Bell

Download Chilipoker and start raking hands for your chance to share in a free $2,000 prize pool just for playing!

Chilipoker Raked Hand Race Starts Now

This November, Chilipoker is giving away free money to any players who play a minimum of 11 raked hands. No, that isn’t a typo. All you have to do to be eligible to play in one of the exclusive invitation-only freerolls, taking place on Nov.11, is have a Chilipoker account and play a minimum of 11 raked hands between Oct. 11 and Nov. 10. If you meet these qualifications, you will be invited to play in an exclusive $600 freeroll. Those who manage to log 111 raked hands during the qualification period will be awarded with entry into a $1,400 freeroll.

With the rake race already under way, be sure to get to the tables and start raking those hands to qualify for your place in one the exclusive invitation-only freerolls!

Qualifying Is So Easy

Chilipoker has made it ridiculously easy for players to qualify for at least one of the exclusive freerolls. Players only need 11 raked hands to qualify for the Rookie November, and those who put in a bit more volume will be awarded entry into the Big November just for playing 111 raked hands.

The Rookie November

Do you know how long it will take you to rake just 11 hands? We here at PokerNews would set the line at under 10 minutes. That means for just ten minutes play at the tables, you could be winning free money in one of the Chilipoker raked-hand race freerolls.

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How to Qualify for The Rookie November: Play in 11 raked hands between Oct. 11 and Nov. 10.

The Big November

If you’re a player who will breeze past the 11 raked hand mark in no time, then don’t fret because players who manage to rake 111 or more hands will be awarded with an entry into the Big November where a staggering $1,400 will be given away to the qualifying players.

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How to Qualify for The Big November: Play in 111 raked hands between Oct. 11 and Nov. 10.

Players are only eligible to play in one of the two exclusive freerolls and invitations to the Rookie November and the Big November will be sent out on Nov. 11. Registration opens four hours prior to the kick off of the exclusive freerolls.

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