Shortly after noon local time, Daniel Weinman stepped up to the microphone inside the Horseshoe Las Vegas Event Center and delivered the words every poker player had waited a year to hear: “Shuffle Up and Deal.”
That meant that the 2024 World Series of Poker Main Event had officially begun, with thousands of pros and home game heroes dreaming of following in Weinman’s footsteps and capturing the bracelet that forever makes you a world champion.
A total of 915 players showed up for Day 1a, the first of four opening flights. They included two past champions, Qui Nguyen and Greg Merson, who happened to share the same table throughout the day and both bagged, Nguyen with 39,000 and Merson with 36,800.
End of Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Feiger | United States | 311,900 | 390 |
| 2 | Assaf Zeharia | Israel | 276,600 | 346 |
| 3 | Frank Funaro | United States | 265,000 | 331 |
| 4 | Mark Stockton | United States | 260,700 | 326 |
| 5 | Jie Wu | China | 252,300 | 315 |
| 6 | Nan Li | United States | 247,500 | 309 |
| 7 | Vid Zagar | Slovenia | 241,300 | 302 |
| 8 | Jonathan Wong (NY) | United States | 239,800 | 300 |
| 9 | Naoya Kihara | Japan | 228,300 | 285 |
| 10 | Pedro Bromfman | Brazil | 224,600 | 281 |
Joshua Feiger is the player to catch after the opening flight as he was the only one to finish above 300,000. Feiger busted a player who was all in for 50,700 with queen-jack on a queen-high board, but Feiger had ace-queen to win the pot as he ended the day with 311,900. The Boulder, Colorado native has just over $110,000 in live earnings, his best result being a deep run in The Colossus at the 2018 WSOP.
Assaf Zeharia was on the right side of a number of big pots as he built up a massive stack. Zeharia busted poker content creator Abby Merk in a straight-over-straight cooler in the second level of the day, then eliminated David Williamson in a more than 100,000-chip pot with top set of queens. The Israeli also made a royal flush against Kahle Burns, capping off his dream day on the felt on his way to bagging up 276,600.
Approximately 620 players punched their tickets for Day 2 after five two-hour levels. Other players advancing include Frank Funaro (265,000), Rayan Chamas (162,000), Matt Affleck (161,700), Bin Weng (152,000), Kevin Gerhart (150,700), Rob Kuhn (130,700), Parker Talbot (106,700), Barny Boatman (70,000), and PokerNews' Chad Holloway (16,900). Jeff Platt was pulling double duty today, serving both as a player and host as he walked around the room conducting interviews when not in a hand. He managed not to put a curse on himself as he had 96,100 to end the day.
Then there’s Jon Pardy, the Canadian reality TV star, poker vlogger, and Twitch streamer. Pardy was at the same table as Zeharia all day, and in between taking videos, being interviewed by Platt, a few drinks, and plenty of laughs, he managed to bag up 161,700.
“Oh man, we had an absolute blast. The atmosphere was electric all day. You definitely know it’s Main Event day,” Pardy said. “We had an amazing table. The table was talkative the entire time. We had an absolute blast. It was almost like a home game. You would never know it was a 10K buy-in.”
The Main Event is the day poker players circle on their calendars. It’s a dream for many just being in this room, and it’s something Pardy isn’t taking for granted as he advances to Day 2.
“The Main Event is the pinnacle. The Main Event is what every single poker player dreams of. They dream of being in these seats. They dream of playing for eight or nine days straight. And to be able to sit here, I’m very grateful. There was a time in my life when I never would’ve thought I would get this opportunity, let alone be able to do it year after year. So I’m thrilled to be here, and I know from the atmosphere in this room, everybody else is as well,” he said.
The Main Event is usually poker’s ultimate grind, a test of endurance over days of action. But this year, it started off with a bang. Travis Darroch and Craig Issod were both eliminated on the first hand, Darroch in a full house versus quads massive cooler against Williamson. Pardy had a front-row seat for the carnage.
“I was here for the first hand when my buddy TJ busted the boat versus the quads. That set the tone for the entire day at our table. We had guys sending it, bluffing with underpairs for like 400 big blinds. Other guys just calling with ace-high. It was absolute madness out here today.”
The Main Event dream also ended for the likes of Brad Owen, Kahle Burns, Kyle Julius, Upeshka De Silva, Freddy Deeb, and several hundred others on Day 1a.
Those who were fortunate to survive the day will return for Day 2abc on Sunday, July 7, at noon local time. Three starting flights remain, and late registration remains open for the first two levels of Day 2. Judging by the massive turnout on Day 1a and the atmosphere in the room, last year’s total of 10,043 players stands a good chance of being matched.
PokerNews will return for Day 1b tomorrow at noon local time as a new crop of players start their journies that, they hope, eventually end with their face on a banner alongside Weinman’s.
