Hublot WPT POY Contender James Romero Runs Strong on Day 1

Photo:  WPT Champions Club member James Romero finished second in chips with 153,600.

NOTE: The official chip counts and seat draw have been released for Day 2, and they can be found by clicking here.

The WPT L.A. Poker Classic is one of the premier events on the poker calendar, and as a $10,000 freezeout, it’s a bit of a rarity these days. But it always draws a big field and a massive prizepool, attracting the best players in the world and turning the winners into millionaires.

There are 498 players who have entered this event so far, and 306 of them survived to Day 2. Registration remains open until the beginning of Level 10, around 1:45 pm on Sunday. The prizepool is already worth more than $4.7 million, and will continue to increase as more players enter.

The massive prizepool also means the maximum number of points are up for grabs in the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race, with the winner earning 1,400 points. Current points leader Benjamin Zamani showed up to try and pad his lead, but he was eliminated late in the day, creating an opportunity for the other contenders to gain ground.

There are 13 players who are close enough to Zamani to catch him during this tournament, and reigning WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic champion James Romero finished Day 1 among the leaders. Romero currently sits third on the Hublot WPT Player of the Year leaderboard, and he can catch Zamani with a third-place finish here.

At the end of the day, Romero said: “I was running really good. I got aces six or seven times. It was a gradual build up. It’s a really good tournament with a great structure.”

Right now, Romero is focused on titles more than the Hublot WPT Player of the Year, and this is the first WPT event he has played since his victory in December. “I just want to win again,” Romero said. “I think winning two in a row would be insane.”

The overall chipleader is Nick Maimone with 187,000. Here is a look at the top of the leaderboard:

1.  Nick Maimone  –  187,000  (234 bb)
2.  James Romero  –  153,600  (192 bb)
3.  Sam Phillips  –  143,000  (179 bb)
4.  Daniel Strelitz  –  127,600  (160 bb)
5.  Marco Cavallaro  –  126,800  (159 bb)

Day 2 of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic begins at 12:00 noon PT, when the field will play five 90-minute levels with no dinner break. Registration remains open until the beginning of Level 10 (about 1:45 pm), so this field still has a chance of beating last year’s number of 515 players. Return to WPT.com for continuing coverage of all the action.

Photo:  Chipleader Nick Maimone

Photography by Joe Giron / PokerPhotoArchive.com