$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Prize Pool:  $113,520  |  Structure
Level 14:  2,000/3,000 with a 3,000 ante
Flight B Players Remaining:  45 of 194

Play has reached the last level of the evening. Five tables are in action, and we’ll probably drop to four before too long.

We mentioned Pierre-Xavier Laurent was in the game trying to defend his title from last year’s tournament. But his seat is now occupied by Carlos Bermudez, who won it the year before in 2023.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Prize Pool:  $111,870  |  Structure
Level 12:  1,000/2,000 with a 2,000 ante
Flight B Players Remaining:  72 of 189

The final break ended and players returned to their seats to grind through three more levels before survivors bag up their chips. We will get a few more late reg players this evening but most will wait till tomorrow for a free stack at 300 bigs.

Ariel Rosello has been among the leaders the entire day and is now the big stack with 274,000. Bryanna Martins is not far behind with 253,000 and Eric Kolodny is cruising with 220,000.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Prize Pool:  $111,210  |  Structure
Level 11:  1,000/1,500 with a 1,500 ante
Flight B Players Remaining:  72 of 187

Flight B players were sent on their final break of the day with 72 players remaining at eight tables. We will lose a few more before the survivors bag up their chips at the end of Level 14.

If they fall short or missed out today, the last flight get underway tomorrow at 11 am with late registration available until 11 am on Sunday.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Prize Pool:  $109,230  |  Structure
Level 10:  500/1,500 with a 1,500 ante
Flight B Players Remaining:  81 of 181

The entry count is creeping up towards 200 and each new one adds icing to the $100,000 cake. Time is running out if you want to play in Flight B but we have a big day with Flight C tomorrow at 11 am.

Pierre-Xavier Laurent is in the field this evening, trying to go back-to-back after winning last year’s tournament. He outlasted the 884-entry field in 2024 to take the top spot in a four-way deal for $36K.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Prize Pool:  $105,930  |  Structure
Level 9:  500/1,000 with a 1,000 ante
Flight B Players Remaining:  90 of 171

Players returned to action after the dinner break, and while they were gone, we added a few players to the field, including two-time Hollywood champ TK Miles.

Guy Naimi is the new big stack in the room with 175,000 and Ariel Rosello is not far behind with 171,000. Here are some more counts from around the room on dinner break:

Guy Naimi – 175,000 (175 bb)
Ariel Rosello – 171,000 (171 bb)
Santo Biddix – 128,500 (129 bb)
Anibal Pabon – 125,000 (125 bb)
Eric Kolodny – 78,500 (79 bb)
Paul Balzano – 72,000 (72 bb)
Carlos Bermudez – 71,500 (72 bb)
Steven Bennett – 61,000 (61 bb)
Pierre-Xavier Laurent – 60,000 (60 bb)
Michael Newman – 60,000 (60 bb)
Richard Leger – 56,500 (57 bb)
David Nathaniel – 55,000 (55 bb)
Greg Rosen – 53,500 (54 bb)
Lyle Diamond – 42,500 (43 bb)
Skip McDonough – 41,000 (41 bb)
Al Norman – 37,500 (38 bb)
Richard Whitebrook – 26,000 (26 bb)
Julio Delgado – 25,500 (26 bb)
Scott Levitt – 13,000 (13 bb)
Raul Jimenez – 12,000 (12 bb)

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 8:  400/800 with a 800 ante
Flight B Entries:  162

Flight B players were sent on their 40-minute dinner break at the end of Level 8 and will return at 5:30 pm to continue the march to a Day 2 bag.

When they get back underway, they will play three levels, take one last ten-minute break, and finish with three more levels before they end their day.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 8:  400/800 with a 800 ante
Flight B Entries:  156

Before they rolled into the dinner break, the entry count hit the magic number and then some. The prize pool officially surpassed the $100,000 guarantee and will continue to grow until we close registration at the start of Day 2 on Sunday at 11 am.

But before that happens, we have 14 levels to day and all day Saturday to build a huge prize pool.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 7:  300/600 with a 600 ante
Flight B Entries:  149

Players returned to their seats after the first break and now settled in for two more levels before the 40-minute dinner. They are closing to sliding over the $100,000 guarantee, and we’re watching the clock.

Anibal Pabon is the early leader with 136,500 followed by Eric Kolodny and Raul Jimenez as the other two players over 100K. Here’s a look a few counts from around the room:

Anibal Pabon – 136,500 (228 bb)
Eric Kolodny – 127,500 (213 bb)
Raul Jimenez – 123,900 (207 bb)
Santo Biddix – 97,200 (162 bb)
Julio Delgado – 76,700 (128 bb)
Skip McDonough – 68,700 (115 bb)
Lyle Diamond – 60,800 (101 bb)
Greg Rosen – 56,300 (94 bb)
Ariel Rosello – 55,000 (92 bb)
Richard Leger – 39,100 (65 bb)
Carlos Bermudez – 36,500 (61 bb)
Richard Whitebrook – 31,700 (53 bb)
Steven Bennett – 31,100 (52 bb)
David Nathaniel – 30,000 (50 bb)
Al Norman – 29,500 (49 bb)
Scott Levitt – 20,500 (34 bb)
Michael Newman – 10,800 (18 bb)

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 6:  300/500 with a 500 ante
Flight B Entries:  140

They won’t hit the $100,000 guarantee before the second break but it won’t take long after they return. They will take another breather in a few minutes and we will take our first look for the big stacks in early action.

$400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 5:  200/400 with a 400 ante
Flight B Entries:  125

Flight B is cruising through its day and the field is snowballing with 125 entries so far. Way beyond yesterday’s pace and we should hit a six-digit prize pool before much longer.

Some early friends include Julio Delgado, Scott Levitt, Lyle Diamond, Michael Newman, Richard Leger, Steven Bennett, Fred Dabus, Sergio Giha, and Eric Kolodny.