WPT Five Diamond Keeps Phil Hellmuth Waiting!

It’s one of the jewels in the WPT crown but for Phil Hellmuth it will have to wait another day, as the World Poker Classic Main Event drew so many entries that long lines and waiting lists were the order of the day at the Bellagio Casino in Vegas!

The debate earlier in the week as to how the unlimited rebuy option would affect numbers seems to have been answered quite clearly, with 605 entries on Day 1 of the annual biggie, Daniel Negreanu opting to miss it to watch ice hockey instead…

…and soon afterwards likely regretting his decision as it was pointed out to him that Day2 in the Bellagio was probably going to be just as crazy as the first day…

It was Allen ‘Chainsaw’ Kessler, quoted by Liebert, who started the ‘unlimited rebuy’ discussion several days ago when he posted a Twitter poll which he said backs his calls for limiting the number of times players ca re-buy into the Main Event…

Although he had some support in general, it wasn’t only the almost certainly record-breaking numbers who flocked to the Bellagio to participate who disagreed with him, one reply sarcastically reminding him that extra bullets equals extra prizemoney…

…while fellow pro David ‘ODB’ Baker seemed singularly unimpressed with his whingeing, urging Kessler to follow his heart rather than his apparently missing backbone after serial min. casher ‘Chainsaw said he’d likely play anyway…

While Hellmuth was sat on the sidelines, and Negreanu swithered as to whether he’d come along at all, Antonio ‘The Magician’ Esfandiari had already blown his first shot at taking down the highly-coveted title, won last year along with $1,938,118 by James Romero who outlasted a record field of 791.

Others already out but with a chance to rebuy through the first 3 levels of Day 2 include WSOP Main Event winner this year, Scott Blumstein, as well as former WSOP Main Event winner and past WPT champion Ryan Riess.

Romero, however, is still in although way off the current chip lead held by Brandon Meyers who told reporters that the Classic Main Event is:

“One that I feel as a professional poker player in Vegas, you can’t really miss. It’s just too big — too big of an opportunity.”

Come tomorrow we’ll see if Negreanu shares Meyers’ view, but the clever money is on a record field regardless of the Canadian’s plans.