Ray Qartomy Bags Chip Lead in Flight B; 143 Advance from Flights A and B
The first two flights of Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed are in the books. Flight B drew a total of 1,664 entries. Combined with the 1,506 entries from Flight A, there are 3,170 entries in the event with two starting flights to go. A total of 143 players bagged chips in the first two flights; 58 from Flight A and 85 from Flight B. These players will join the survivors from flights C and D for a Day 2 restart Monday at 2 p.m. in Miranda.
Ray Qartomy bagged the top stack in Flight B after getting a big double up late in the night and adding on to his stack in the last few levels of play. He finished the day with 444,000, which he deems a lucky number indeed. The other two players to finish with at least 400,000 in Flight B were Nick Stowell (423,000) and Edwin Lee (400,000). Rounding out the top five in the flight were the only two players to bag stacks in the 300,000-chip range: Angel Fernandez with 367,000 and Iannis Angelou Konstas with 364,000.
Seville Hale bagged the chip lead in Flight A and is also by far the overall chip leader for the first two flights after amassing an impressive stack of 713,000 chips from a starting stack of 8,000. Hale has cashed three times already in this series and is surely looking for a deep run in this one.
The top four stacks advancing so far all came from Flight A. In addition to Hale, Jamie Rosen (589,000), Marius Pertea (514,000), and Jason Wheeler (491,000) all bagged more than any player in Flight B. Jeffrey Bozier II (438,000), Eric Baldwin (424,000), and Joshua Kays (423,000) also bagged notable stacks in Flight A.
Other notables to bag in Flight B were Ben Yu (275,000), Bart Hanson (254,000), JJ Liu (201,000), Nadya Magnus (176,000), Steve Karp (152,000), and Chris Ferguson (66,000).
After bagging a healthy stack at the end of play, Ben Yu mentioned that he felt uncomfortable. Bagging in this event means that he will not be playing Event #62: $50,000 Poker Players Championship because both events will have a Day 2 restart on Monday. With seven cashes in the series including two final tables and a bracelet, he was surely looking forward to playing in the elite Poker Players Championship event. Perhaps a deep run in this one could help him feel better.
A total of 333 players busted out in the money so far in the Crazy Eights event for a payout of at least $1,334. Of the 333 cashers, 168 were from Flight A, and 165 cashed in Flight B. Many big name players busted in the money today including Ivan Luca, Ebony Kenney, and Jon Turner from Flight B.
With unlimited re-entry and two more flights Sunday, there are still plenty of more chances to get in on the Crazy Eights action. PokerNews will be covering the event through its conclusion on Tuesday, so check back often for updates.