After the cutoff opened with a raise to 8,000, Ron Baltazar three-bet from the button to 30,000. Andrew Bart, in the big blind, came back with a four-bet to 70,000, forcing the original raiser to fold.
Baltazar gave it some consideration before also folding.
Bart is up to 450,000, while Baltazar currently sits with 214,000.
Leo Abbe and Juan Carlos Latuff tangled again, and for the second time Abbe came out the victor.
Picking up the action on a board of , Abbe bet 45,000 from under the gun. Latuff, from the big blind, replied by shoving all-in for Abbe's remaining 150,000, and Abbe snap-called.
Abbe showed for the turned set, while Latuff mustered up for top pair and a gutshot.
The river came the and Abbe doubled up to 415,000. Latuff, the chip leader not long ago, was left with around 60,000.
For the first time in 26 months, the poker world came together at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino for the start of the 2021 World Series of Poker.
The $500 Casino Employees Event took its traditional role as the opening event of the WSOP, with 419 entries generating a prize pool of $175,980. After 17 40-minute levels on Day 1, around 50 players survived to Day 2 with their dream of capturing the coveted gold bracelet still alive.
Leading the way is Leo Abbe, a Sportsbook Promotions Associate with DraftKings. Abbe took two big pots off former chip leader Juan Carlos Latuff towards the end of the night to finish with 537,000.
Other big stacks include Shawn Weintraub (474,000), Roberto Reyna (461,000), Andrew Bart (422,000), and Akash Desai (415,000). PokerNews' Jesse Fullen survived the day with 223,000. A full listing of the chip counts will be made available later tonight.
Not everyone was fortunate enough to make it through to Day 2. Chad Holloway, the 2013 champion of this event, busted on Day 1, as did 2019 Main Event fourth-place finisher Garry Gates and WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart. PokerNews team members Connor Richards, Matt Hansen, and Dannah Kamp also hit the rail.
The remaining players will return at 12 p.m. PST tomorrow in the Amazon Room. The schedule calls for them to play down to a champion. Be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for what will surely be a packed day of action.