Davoudzadeh Dashes Ahead in Event #61: $1,000 Super Seniors No-Limit Hold’em
The action in Event #61: $1,000 Super Seniors No-Limit Hold’em was fast and furious early in the day, with players reaching the money after just four levels in. After 10 more levels of play on Day 2, Farhad Davoudzadeh will carry a sizeable chip lead as 109 players remain in contention heading into Day 3 at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
Davoudzadeh carried some 2023 World Series of Poker momentum into this event, fresh off a cash in Event #56: $500 SALUTE to Warriors. The native of Iran bagged 2,400,000, good for a lead of almost 800,000 over his closest competitor to begin the penultimate day of action. Davoudzadeh has amassed almost $600,000 in cashes over his WSOP career, including a third-place finish in Event #2: The COLOSSUS II - $565 No-Limit Hold'em back in 2016, and is clearly in the driver's seat for his first WSOP title.
The day began with 810 players returning from a starting field of 3,121, all chasing the $371,603 first-place prize and the coveted WSOP gold bracelet. Giving chase are Jeanclaude Perrot (1,615,000), Mark Gerecke (1,600,000), Ronald Lane (1,525,000) and Federico Trujillo (1,425,000) rounding out the top five.
End of Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Farhad Davoudzadeh | Iran | 2,400,000 | 120 |
| 2 | Jeanclaude Perrot | United States | 1,615,000 | 81 |
| 3 | Mark Gerecke | United States | 1,600,000 | 80 |
| 4 | Ronald Lane | United States | 1,525,000 | 76 |
| 5 | Federico Trujillo | Argentina | 1,425,000 | 71 |
| 6 | Rassoul Malboubi | United States | 1,310,000 | 66 |
| 7 | Brendan Byrne | Ireland | 1,285,000 | 64 |
| 8 | Scott Laird | United States | 1,190,000 | 60 |
| 9 | Andreas Boelling | Germany | 1,167,000 | 58 |
| 10 | Craig Jones | United States | 1,145,000 | 57 |
Day 2 Action
Players took their seats at 10:00 a.m. local time, and the 810 chairs had broken down to less than 500 in the first three levels of the day. The bubble was looming shortly afterwards, with hand-for-hand action seeing both William Dopico & Robert Fisher lose their all-ins to chop the 469th place min cash of $1,600.
From there, the field kept breaking tables at a brisk pace until the dinner break helped slow things down. In the end, just 109 players found a bag with one notable name still among them. Defending event champion Massoud Eskandari saw a late-night run boost his stack back up to a healthy 825,000, still very much in the running to repeat his performance of a year ago.
There was also a very touching moment later in the day, as Marshall Brenden received a round of applause in the room after playing his final hand. Brenden was the oldest remaining player in the field on Day 2, making a run into the money and finishing in 165th place at 91 years old.
Several notable names were unable to find a bag for Day 3, including Loren Cloninger, Barbara Enright, Everett Carlton and Poker Hall of Fame member Billy Baxter all coming up short of the money. Humberto Brenes and Steve Zolotow were among the names to cash before making their exits on Day 2.
Day 3 will begin at 10:00 a.m. local time on June 28, starting on Level 21 with the blinds at 10,000/20.000 and a 20,000 big blind ante. The field will again play 10 60-minute levels, with a 15-minute break after every two levels. The scheduled 60-minute dinner break will begin around 4:30 p.m. at the conclusion of Level 26.
The PokerNews team will continue to follow all of the action until the newest WSOP bracelet winner is crowned.
