On Friday, Season XI of the World Poker Tour rolled on with Day 1a of WPT Barcelona at the Casino Barcelona. Of the 106 entrants only 59 survived the flight, and no player accumulated more chips than Manuel Bevand.

The Frenchman bagged 141,200 in chips with help from a three-handed pot he played against Scott Baumstein and Artem Litvinov. Bevand fired bullets on the flop and the turn, forcing out Baumstein on the flop, but Litvinov called both times. On the river of a king-high board, Bevand opted to check, prompting Litvinov to bet. Bevand tank-called with a pair of kings, Litvinov tossed jack-high into the muck, and Bevand crossed the 100,000-chip threshold.

Kevin MacPhee also survived Day 1a with a healthy amount of chips, bagging 95,400. He eliminated WPT Champions Club member Philippe Ktorza when the two got all of the chips in the middle on an flop. Ktorza had a pair of aces, but MacPhee held queen-six for bottom two pair and held.

Gaelle Baumann, who bubbled the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event final table, survived Day 1a despite taking a big hit. She lost a very large pot against Lauri Varonen, where Baumann held pocket kings, and Varonen pocket jacks. The board ran out with four spades, and Varonen held the lone spade to double up.

Baumann bounced back, and ended the day with a knockout of her own. In one of the final hands played, Baumstein three-bet shoved with five-four off suit only to be called by Baumstein, who held queen-jack suited. Baumann won the hand, sending Baumstein packing.

Faraz Jaka came out of the gates strong, but lost a big pot to end the night, leaving him with just 14,000 chips. After firing out a bet on the flop (), and the turn (), Jaka was faced with a check-shove on the river () from David Konstandoff. Jaka tank-folded, and Konstandoff tabled for the nut-flush.

Frustrated, Jaka took to Twitter:

Other notables able to survive the day include Marcin Wydrowski, Bryn Kenney, Toby Lewis, Steve O’Dwyer and Daniel Cates.

Frenchman Guillaume Darcourt has had a tough few weeks, busting in the early levels of both Day 1a and Day 1b of WPT Venice. It was more of the same on Friday, as Darcourt found himself on the rail by Level 4. He lost a large pot with pocket queens against an opponent’s pocket aces, and was eliminated when he flopped trips on a board only for his opponent, who held , to fill up.

Joining Darcourt on the list of casualties were Lukas Berglund, Matt Salsberg, Michael Benvenuti, Arlo Dotson and Davidi Kitai.

Day 1b begins on Saturday at 14:00 CET. Stay tuned to PokerNews for a recap of the action once play has been completed.

Data and photo courtesy of WorldPokerTour.com.

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On Saturday, April 6, the Caesars Palace poker room in Las Vegas will host the 8th Annual Opportunity Village Celebrity Poker Tournament. The charity event is being held to help raise money for Opportunity Village, a not-for-profit organization that serves people with intellectual disabilities in the Southern Nevada community.

In addition to the charity tournament, the event will include a raffle which will offer an array of exclusive opportunities and prizes. The winner of the poker tournament will receive a seat in the 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event, which was generously donated by Caesars Entertainment.

There are a couple of ticket options available for those wishing to attend. The $300 registration fee includes one seat in the Celebrity Poker Tournament and entrance to the VIP Brunch inside Pure Nightclub for the player and a guest. If you wish to attend the VIP Brunch only, the ticket may be purchased for $50.

Want to outplay some of poker’s best players? Participants in the tournament will be sitting amongst top professional poker players such as Allen Cunningham, Melissa Hayden, Jon Friedberg, Karina Jett, Andy Bloch, Ben Lamb and Marco Traniello.

Attendees will not only be able to test their skills on the felt, but they will also be able to mingle with other celebrities such as Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller, Adrian Zmed of Grease 2, Omarosa Manigualt of Celebrity Apprentice, Tia and Tamera Mowry, NASCAR driver Taylor Barton, and many more.

“The interest we have received for the annual Celebrity Poker Tournament has been overwhelming and we are so grateful for the support of our community,” said Martin Wood, director of marketing for Opportunity Village. “With a few seats left we are still encouraging people to sign up and help Opportunity Village.”

The charity event will feature three separate gift packages. The “Royal Flush” package includes a full-sized poker table from Zen Entertainment signed by all the celebrities and poker players; a two-night stay in the Terrace Studio Room at the Cosmopolitan; and a three-bottle wine basket along with a gift certificate for Symphony’s Restaurant at the Pahrump Winery.

The “Cowboy” package will include an autographed poker table; a two-night stay at the Ravella at Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa with massage; and a signed Trace Adkins cowboy hat along with other Trace Adkins paraphernalia.

Finally, the featured raffle package suitably titled the “Full House” includes a visit for two to the Fox NFL Sunday Pregame Show. Winners of the package will have the opportunity to meet Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Curt Menefee, Jimmy Johnson and Michael Strahan. In addition to meeting the hosts, the winner will be able to view the game in the VIP room of Fox Studios in Los Angeles with breakfast and lunch buffet served all day. Lastly, the winner will get a photograph on set with the talent.

Check-in for the event will begin at 10 a.m. with the VIP Brunch starting at 11 a.m. The tournament, presented by VideoPoker.com, will kick off at 1 p.m. inside the Caesars Palace poker room.

“Caesars Entertainment is a great supporter of ours. They do a great deal to help our organization and we look forward to having our charity tournament inside their poker room,” Wood added in regards to Caesars Palace hosting the event.

Proceeds from ticket sales will go to programs and services within Opportunity Village such as day rehabilitation, programs assisting with social interaction, and employment training for local companies like Cox, Wells Fargo, and other businesses.

To register for the tournament or to find out more, visit OpportunityVillage.com.

Lead photo courtesy of Opportunity Village.

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Check out the original source here! Originally from PokerNews.com