Loeliger, Shakerchi Among Final 14 in $5,200 PLO
The money has been reached and the day is done in SCOOP-110-H: $5,200 PLO [6-Max, High Roller], $400K Gtd. As usual in these high rollers, some notable names remain among the final 14 advancing to Day 2 out of 110 entries.
Perhaps of most note is high-stakes cash end boss Linus "LLinusLLove" Loeliger. While Loeliger is best known for his extreme no-limit hold'em prowess, he has been known to dabble in some PLO as well, and he was able to advance with the fifth-place stack after a late slide cost him the chance to finish among the leaders.
The Swiss phenom will be looking to add to a hot run of recent tournament winnings, including a $1.1 million victory in a recent online main event.
Another well-known player advancing was former SCOOP Main Event champ Talal "raidalot" Shakerchi. The high-stakes veteran was at one point the shortest stack following a stint as chip leader. However, he ran his last few blinds up to wind up in the middle of the pack.
No player was able to finish with as many chips on Day 1 as Jean-Francois "bmwmcoupe" Talbot. The Canadian caught fire with two tables left. First, he doubled through "Sira Al Aziz" with ace over kings, all in on a paired low flop. Then, he busted online PLO cash reg Joni "bustoville" Jouhkimainen when Talbot's own kings with a flush draw held against a weaker combo draw.
That was enough to push Talbot up to where he bagged just over 1.5 million, a bit better than five-time SCOOP winner Rui "RuiNF" Ferreira, who finished with 1,378,284.
Play resumes for Day 2 at 2:15 p.m. EDT on Friday with more time remaining at 10,000/20,000. Come back to PokerNews to find out who will claim the $123K that awaits the winner.