Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): End Of Day 1C Chip Counts

Day 1C
Total Players:	203	Players left:	39
Total Chips:	8,120,000	Average Chips:	208,205
Name	Last Name	Hometown	Chip Count
Igor	Borukhov	Queens, NY	719,000
Staffan	Lind	Vero Beach,FL	549,000
Mike	Woll	Manahawkin,NJ	490,000
Kevin	Lutz	Bellmawr,NJ	468,500
Kamran	Gulfraz	Flushing,NY	339,000
Philip	Yan	Princeton,NJ	306,500
Sandeep	Patel	Parsippany,NJ	293,500
Jesse	Letchworth	Colonial Heights,VA	288,500
Joe	Reddick	Bronx,NY	264,500
Terence	Smith	Frisco,CO	255,500
Kris	Gmerek	Midland Park,NJ	239,500
George	Abi-zeid	Miller Place	227,000
Thos	Martinson	Ft. Ann,NY	221,500
Sean	Byars	Fairfax,VA	205,500
Steven	Sarmiento	Queens, NY	200,000
Eric	Rivkin	East Hampton,NY	195,000
Vincent	Caesar	Newark,DE	194,500
John	Dascoli	Hatboro,PA	185,500
Pierre	Deissler	Mt. Laurel,NJ	179,000
Miguec	Borroro	Jersey City,NJ	176,500
Ray	Ross	Maple Glen,PA	175,500
Gaetano	Cantone	Valley Stream	169,000
Harry	Piacitelli	Plymouth Meeting,PA	166,500
Brian	grogan	New York,NY	165,000
Jeff	Wicker	Bristol,CT	156,000
Elan	Branas	Forrest Hills,NY	144,000
Joseph	Palma	Bensalem,PA	138,500
Jack	Duong	South Plainfield,NJ	136,000
Akin	Akimon	Havertown,PA	115,500
Ilya	Dyment	Brooklyn,NY	101,500
Sahu	Habibi	New York,NY	95,000
Rich	Peticca	Philadelphia,PA	93,000
Edmond	Petrella	Lumberton,NJ	83,500
Daniel	Rusanov	Forrest Hills,NY	74,000
Daniel	Walsh	Holmdel,NJ	73,000
Steven	Rodriguez	Staten Island, NY	65,000
Braden	Edwards	Doylestown,PA	61,000
Cameron	Shahab	Atlanta,GA	41,500
Tim	Bryan	Atlanta,GA	39,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Igor Bags The Lead

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 618

Igor Burokhov has bagged the Day 1C chip lead with 719,000, which mean the biggest Day 1 stack belongs to Justin Liberto (Day 1A).

Day 2 will resume 12:00pm on MONDAY...have a great day off, and happy Mother's Day to all the moms following the blog (and those who don't as well).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Final Five

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 618

The random draw has given the players five more hands in the night.  Once players have finished those hands and the counts are verified, the end of night bonus winner will be posted.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Bonus Hunting

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 618

Igor Burokhov & Staffan Lind

As of right now it looks like this bonus hunt is a two horse race, as Igor Burokhov (750,000) and Staffan Lind (620,000) are lengths ahead of the rest of the field.  The next closest opponent in third is hovering around 400,000 (Kevin Lutz), so it would take a massive level for another player to put his hat in.

With 10:00 remaining on the clock, the tournament floor will pause the clock and announce how many hands remain.  After those hands, the players remaining will bag their chip for Day 2, and chip counts will be posted shortly thereafter.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Final Break

Less than 60 active players now remain, and those left after the next five minutes will be going on the final (15) minute break.  When they return for the final level, the blinds will be going up to 2,000/4,000/500 (616 total entries).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Updated Chip Counts

Level 14 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/400)
Total Entries: 616

Here are the three top stacks in the room:

Igor Burokhov - 705,000
Staffan Lind - 600,000
Kevin Lutz - 430,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Level Up

Level 14 is about to begin, with blinds going up to 1,5000/3,000/400 (615 total entries).  Players will go on one final break at the end of this level, and then finish the night off with Level 15.  Updated chip counts will be posted shortly.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Marder Busts

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 613

Michael Marder once against busts a Day 1 from ahead.  There has been no confirmation of if he will be returning tonight:

And A8<K8dd aip to bust. #ParxBigStax
— Michael Marder (@MMarder86) May 11, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Himmelbrand Does It Again

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 612

He isn't peaking for the day just yet, but Greg Himmelbrand gets lucky to chip up over 140,000.  The action was caught on the turn, as Himmelbrand raised his opponents 10,000 bet.  The board texture was 3♦ 7♦ 8♣ 10♠, and his opponent then three-bet all-in.  Himmelbrand called and showed A 10, but he would be behind as he looked across the table at 7 8.  The river would bring an ace though, and Greg would scoop the pot and 143,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Twitter Updates

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 610

There was one more update via Twitter then during the last break, which means that soon #ParxBigStax will be trending:

27,500 coming back to 2400/300, 3 more levels tonight. #ParxBigStax
— Michael Marder (@MMarder86) May 11, 2014

Break at @parxpokerroom kinda rough lev. 150k. 1200/2400. Playing well. No PUNTAGE. #TPEdge
— Pierre Deissler (@PierreDeissler) May 11, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Break Time

Players are once again on a (15) minute break, as Level 11 comes to an end.  When they return for Level 13, the blinds will be going up to 1,200/2,400/300 (607 total entries).  Staffan Lind has done it before and he's looking to do it again, as he owns the second largest stack going into break with 370,000.  As mentioned earlier, Lind was the Day 1B chip leader of the Big Stax 300, collecting $1,000 as the bonus.

The man to beat at the moment is Igor Borukhov, who sits with over 460,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Still Alive

Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Entries: 604

The field still has a number of notables left, and of the 70 players remaining, here are some still alive:

Kevin Lutz
Jeff Wicker
Miguel Borrero
Keith Crowder
Paul Spitzberg
Edmond Petrella
Jack Duong
Ray Ross
Pierre Deissler
Greg Himmelbrand
Joe Black
Mickey Woll
Katie Stone
Jesse Letchworth
Ilya Dyment
Joel Gola
Alan Kraut
Michael Marder
Steven Sarmiento
Dawn Saddler
Philip Yan
Ben Scholl

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Level 12 Begins

Level 12 has players posting blinds of 1,000/2,000/300 (602 total entries) for the next (45) minutes.  There are now less than 80 players active in the field on nine separate tables, with an outer table breaking moments ago.

Players to be eliminated from the event (and not fire another bullet) include Sean Wallace and Tim Letouch.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Never Easy

Level 11 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Entries: 602

Greg Himmelbrand is in the tournament for numerous bullets, and focused on bagging chips for Day 2.  Himmelbrand got his starting stack in with A K against the J♥ 9♥ on a A♥ Q♥ 7♣ flop.  His hand would hold and he is now over 85,000.  Joel Gola (Philadelphia, PA) entered after dinner about the same time as Greg, and he has since busted and re-entered once more.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Brooklyn In The House

Level 11 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Entries: 601

Ilya Dyment (Brooklyn, NY) was primed to make a deep run in the Big Stax 300 until he ran into a slight cooler hand against Michael Wang.  Wang would go on to make the final table, while Ilya would go from being the chip leader late in Day 2, to out in 47th place.  Dyment has over $80,000 in career tournament earnings, mostly in non-NL hold'em events.  Since showing up right before dinner, he's built his stack over 100,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Blinds Moving

Level 10 is in the books, and the blinds are now going up to 800/1,600/200 (601 total entries).  Players are busting at a steady rate, including John Allan Bistro, who has decided not to fire another bullet.  Both Greg Himmelbrand and Joel Gola have also busted, but they decided to get right back in and are finding their new tables.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Some Chip Counts

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 601

Here are some updated counts of players pushing towards bonus contention:

John Dascoli - 285,000
Terry Smith - 255,000
Scott Davis - 200,000
Kevin Lutz - 195,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Borukhov Eyes The Bonus

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 595

Igor Borukhov

Igor Borukhov (Rego Park, NY) has close to 400,000, and is now leading the field by a solid margin.  Relatively unknown to the tournament circuit, Igor does have close to $60,000 in cashes, all in events with buy-ins over $2,000.  He's currently seated at Table 46 with Keith Crowder and Edmond Petrella.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Back From Break

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 594

Players have returned from dinner and the cards are now back in the air.  Players will continue through Level 15 this evening, when they will then bag for Day 2 on Monday.  Approximately 85 active players remain in the field, with the total prize pool pushing $300,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Counts Before Break

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 578

Here are some counts before dinner:

Igor Borakhov - 270,000
Staffan Lind - 235,000
Pierre Deissler - 140,000
Ben Coren - 115,000
Steven Sarmiento - 105,000
John Allan Bistro - 100,000
Philip Yan - 92,000
Ben Scholl - 88,000
Katie Stone - 50,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): A Light Dusting

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 575

Greg Himmelbrand was on an upward trend, getting his stack over 150,000...until:

Just threw a CLINIC on how to dust 150 bigs in 8 minutes (5 hands). I May be the worst ever. #parxbigstax
— Greg Himmelbrand (@GregHPoker) May 10, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Level Then Dinner

Level 9 is about to begin, and players will be going on a (75) minute dinner break at its conclusion.  The blinds will be going up to 500/1,000/100 (572 total entries).  Less than 100 players remain active in this field, as the outer tables have broken, and some of the interior tables just started to dissolve.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Nomberg And Duong Bust Simultaneously

Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 571

Staffan Lind

Jack Duong (South Plainfield, NJ) was just eliminated as he got his remaining chips in after turning a flush.  That same card that made Jack's flush would also make a full house for his opponent, and Duong is already back at a new table.

Erik Nomberg was eliminated by Staffan Lind (Vero Beach, FL) at the next table as Duong was walking away.  Lind would become one of the chip leaders after scooping that pot, reaching the 200,000 mark.  Lind was able to bag the chip lead on Day 1B of the Big Stax 300, and as of this moment would be in contention for that extra prize.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Escalating

Level 8 is about to begin, with blinds going up to 400/800/100 (567 total entries).  The trend today is multiple bullets, as players know that there is no tomorrow (for trying to bag chips).  Players do have the option to go the Ryan Eriquezzo route, and buy-in on Monday morning (Day 2) with eight big blinds.  Erriquezzo went on to take his six big blinds in the Big Stax 300 and turn that into a Day 3 finish in 17th place.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Tournament Tweets

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 566

One of the best way to get chip counts updated on the blog is to Tweet during breaks (or at any time during the event).  Don't forget to use the #parxbigstax or #bigstax when posting the updates.  Mr. Marder is a solid example:

68,100 coming back to 600/100. #ParxBigStax
— Michael Marder (@MMarder86) May 10, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Chip Counts Off Of Break

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 564

As the rain continues to come down outside, the field grows at a steady pace inside.  Here are a handful of updated chip counts from break:

Joe Palma - 160,000
Jeff Wicker - 135,000
Philip Yan - 106,000
Staffan Lind - 90,000
Michael Marder - 62,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Break Time

Players are about to go on their second (15) minute break of the day, and they will return to Level 7 and blinds of 300/600/100 (556 total entries).  After returning from the break, there will be three more levels of play before the (75) minute dinner break.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): New Additions

Level 6 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 553

Gola (Left) & Borrero

Two new additions were seated at Table 45, and both are coming off of big scores in the most recent Big Stax series.  Joel Gola (Philadelphia, PA) chopped the Big Stax 300 during the Big Stax V for $50,000, showing that his game is more than just cash suited.

Miguel Borrero (Jersey City, NJ) went on to take 6th place in the Big Stax 500 later in that series, taking home $13,906 for the finish.  Miguel has since went on to cash in six more major tournaments, reaching two final tables.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Level Up

Level 6 has just started and the blinds are going up to 250/500/50 (548 total entries).  New faces are taking their seats, including Keith Crowder and Jack Duong.  Crowder won the NLH/PLO Mix event that ran on Monday as the Big Stax 300 was finishing up, while Duong is coming off a west coast trip where he cashed for over $160,000.  Jack took home 5th place in the $1,675 NL WSOPC Main Event at the Bicycle Casino for over $58,000 on the tail end of his trip.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Century Mark

Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 541

One of the first players in the room to cross the 100,000 mark is Joe Palma (Bensalem, PA).  Palma, better known as "Worm," is a staple in the poker room throughout each week.  Joe won the Big Stax VI Series Deepstack Turbo event earlier this week for over $11,000, and continues to lead the way in total cashes at Parx.  Palma has 14 recorded cashes in this poker room, and is also ranked # 37 in total career earnings at this poker room.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Young Guns

Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 540

Players continue to show up on the later side, as a small rush has come in since returning from break:

Jonas Wexler
Sean Wallace
John Allan Bistro
Tim Latouch

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Wicker Wins A Nice One

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)

Total Entries: 536

Jeff Wicker (Bristol, PA) was in a multi-way pot and was faced with an 11,000 bet on the river.  The board read Q♣ 4♣ 7♠ 8♦ 8♣, and Jeff pushed his remaining 22,000 to the middle.  He was immediately called by the player next to act, and the original bettor would fold behind.  Wicker would show Q♠Q♥ for a rivered full house, and would pick up a pot worth close to 80,000.

Level 4 is going to be done in just a few minutes, and the blinds for Level 5 will be going up to 200/400/50 (538 total entries).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Warming Up

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 535

Lucas Picking (North Brunswick, NJ) won his first WSOPC ring just weeks ago, and he's using today's event as a warm up for Las Vegas and the WSOP.  Picking bested a final table in the $365 NL Hold'em Turbo event consisting of Julian Sacks, Matthew Chang, DJ MacKinnon, and Laurence Wolf.  Lucas took home $8,448 for the win, which is his biggest live score to date:

Playing the @parxpokerroom #bigstacks500 today. Love this poker room. Over 500 entries so far. warming up for @wsop
— Lucas Picking (@lucaspicking) May 10, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Scholl Joins The Field

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 525

Benjamin Scholl 

Ben Scholl (Philadelphia, PA) is no stranger to Parx, but it was a surprise to see him in the tournament field.  Scholl primarily plays cash when he's in the room (75/150 H.O.E.), and this would be one of the first times he's entered a Big Stax event.  This doesn't mean Scholl is at all a stranger to tournaments though, he won a WSOP bracelet in 2012 worth over $206,000 ($5,000 Limit Hold'em).  Last year Scholl finished runner-up in the $5,000 H.O.R.S.E event at the WSOP, earning him $197,000.  Of the nine lifetime cashes that Scoll has recorded, only two of them have been in a no-limit event.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): First Break

Players are going on their first (15) minute break of the day, and when they return to Level 4 the blinds will be 150/300/50 (521 total entries).  Leonardo Palermo and Philip Yan have both gotten off to solid starts, already doubling their starting stacks to 80,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): The Eye's View

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 520

Going into today, 74 players bagged chips for Day 2 (out of 416 entries).  The chip average from those players who bagged is in the 190,000 range, so today's players have an idea of where they'd like to stand at the end of the night.  The camera caught some of today's field in action:

Katie Stone

Edmond Petrella

Leonardo Palermo

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Blinds Going Up

Level 3 is about to start with the blinds going up to 100/200/25 (509 total entries).  There are fourteen active tables at the moment, and some pretty difficult lineups as well.  Table 49 boasts one of those lineups, with Alan Kraut, Steven Sarmiento, Philip Yan, and DeeAngelo Seng.  There are also a couple of more names to add to the notables:

Mickey Woll
James Governa

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Hiding Out

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 509

The notables continue to pop up, some of those missed during the first view laps of the tournament area:

Greg Himmelbrand
Leonardo Palermo
Steven Sarmiento
Ron Vittello

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): The Gang's All Here

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 502

The first level of the day is in the book, and the outer tables are beginning to see some action as the Day 1C field grows.  The field currently consists of:

Michael Marder
Eileen Kustafik
Ben Coren
Ray Ross
Alan Kraut
Katie Stone
Jeff Wicker
Edmond Petrella
Jesse Letchworth
Joe Palma
Pierre Deissler
Philip Yan

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): Return Offenders

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)

Many of the players that make up this Day 1C field are those who did not bag chips on one of the first two starting days.  Mike Marder (Sewell, NJ) is one of those players, after getting his aces cracked late last night by Jason Rivkin.  Marder has already taken his seat at Table 45, and as the field settles in, a list of notables will be posted.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1C): The Time Is Now

Players will begin taking their seats in minutes, and it's the last opportunity for players to bag chips for Day 2 (Monday).  Justin Liberto (791,000) and Kevin Grabel (611,00) have set the bar on each of their respective starting days, and earned themselves an extra $1,500.  The Day 1C field is usually the largest, and today should be no different.  Live coverage will begin once cards are in the air, and last through the bagging process at the end of the night.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): End Of Day 1B Chip Counts

Day 1B
Total Players:	165	Players left:	30
Total Chips:	4,950,000	Average Chips:	165,000
First Name	Last Name	Hometown	Chip Count
Kevin	Grabel	South Hampton,PA	611,500
Michael	Borovetz	Pittsburgh,PA	577,500
James	Kaplan	Boca Raton,FL	550,000
Charles	Furey	Bridgewater,NJ	409,000
Trevor	Deeter	Langhorne,PA	391,000
Gaetano	Taormina	Warwick,NJ	352,000
Lawrence	Wolf	Annapolis,MD	335,000
James	Lillis	Robbinsville,NJ	302,000
TJ	Shulman	Boynton Beach,FL	286,500
Mike	Schoultz	Arlington,VA	273,500
Ed	Walsh	Langhorne,PA	255,000
Alex	Queen	Bethlehem,PA	253,000
Alli	Schultz	Philadelphia,PA	222,500
Jason	Rivkin	Bensalem,PA	167,500
Kirron	Chan	Yonkers,NY	163,000
Brian	Shaffer	Manalapan,NJ	152,500
Robert	Paventi	Brooklyn,NY	126,500
Joseph	Lopes	Barnegat,NJ	125,000
Jeffrey	Spence	King Of Prussia,PA	119,500
Alvan	Lubin	Watchung,NJ	112,500
Richard	Rossetti	Ventnor,NJ	112,500
Benjamin	Chan	New York,NY	106,500
Joel	Frank	Rocky Hill,NJ	96,000
Ricardo	Franco	Philadelphia,PA	93,500
Joseph	Montervino	Yardville,NJ	80,500
Alex	Katsman	Brooklyn,NY	76,500
Robert	Melo	Howard Beach,NY	68,500
Alex	Bolotin	Brooklyn,NY	66,000
Andrew	Tantisunthorn	Philadelphia,PA	62,000
Joel	Egan	Philadelphia,PA	60,500

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): And Grabel Gets The Bonus

Kevin Grabel bags 611,000 for the Day 1B chip lead, but not without a sweat on the final hand of the night. Mike Borovetz announced his amount after he folded, and with a player all-in (~70,000) Grabel took a good 4-5 minutes to count his stack. He folded once he knew he had over Mike's count and that would be the night.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Four More Hands

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 415

There will be four more hands in the night before players bag their chips.  Once the chip counts are verified and bagged, the chip leader's name will be posted.  The end of Day 1B chip counts will then be posted shortly thereafter.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Give It To Grabel?

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 415

Kevin Grabel

Kevin Grabel knocks out a shortie once again, this time his QQ > JJ, and he is now over 500,000.  Grabel is beginning to run away with the chip lead, as time is not on the rest of the field's side.  The clock will be paused momentarily and the hand announcement will be made.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Grabel Grabs The Lead

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 415

Kevin Grabel knocks out a short stack as his AQ > 99, and he's added another 60,000 to his stack.  That will put him in the lead with exactly (35) minutes remaining on the clock.

Alex Queen picked up a pot to get him back over 100,000, this after grinding a below average stack throughout the day.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): How It Ends

Level 14 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 415

Going into this level, Michael Borovetz and Kevin Grabel are neck and neck, both over 400,000 and within 15,000 of each other.  Players will play down to the 10:00 minute mark on the clock, and the tournament floor will determine how many hands remain in the night.  Players will finished the allotted hands and then bag their chips for MONDAY.  Don't forget that there is no tournament on Sunday because of Mother's Day.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Final Break

Level 13 has just finished and players are going on their last (15) minute break of the night.  Players will be coming back to blinds of 2,000/4,000/500 (413 total entries).  Here are the four largest stacks going into the final level:

Kevin Grabel - 380,000
Allison Schultz - 370,000
Michael Borovetz - 365,000
Trevor Deeter - 365,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Here Comes Henry

Level 13 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/400)
Total Entries: 413

H. Michael Borovetz

Michael Borovetz has assumed the chip with over 425,000 after knocking out one of his table mates.  He's currently at what may be the strongest table remaining, with the likes of Jack Duong, Kevin Grabel, Rocco Luciano, and Dave Novack (Jonas Wexler also eliminated earlier).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Down The Stretch

Level 14 is going to begin in minutes, and the blinds will be going up to 1,500/3,000/400 (413 total entries).  Allison Schultz continues to lead the way as the players have two levels left in the night.  She just knocked out a shortie with aces, and is now clear of 320,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Rivkin v. Marder

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 413

Michael Marder opened the pot for 6,000 and Jason Rivkin was the only player to come along.  The flop would run out Q♦ 8♥ 8♦, and Marder would continue with another 6,000 bet.  Rivkin would raise to 13,500, and Marder would shove for another 25,000.  Rivkin dumped some chips in for a call and the hands were tabled.  Rivkin's A 8 > A A of Marder, and Jason would chip up to 110,000 on his third bullet of the day.

Jason Rivkin - 110,000
Michael Marder - Eliminated

Busto. AA<A8cc on the Q88ddx flop. Better put those chips to good use @jayriv2! Try again tomorrow. #ParxBigStax
— Michael Marder (@MMarder86) May 10, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Still Alive

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 413

About 50 active players remain in the tournament area at the moment, which means that there will surely be less people to bag than yesterday.  Here are some of the notables still alive with 2.5 levels left in the night:

Michael Borovetz
Kevin Grabel
Rocco Luciano
Frank Dire
Walter Taylor
Laurence Wolf
Joel Frank
Jimmy Lillis
TJ Shulman
Alan Kraut
Abraim Abraimovic
Jason Rivkin
Michael Marder
Jack Duong
Trevor Deeter
Alex Queen
Jennifer So
Philip Yan

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Big Stacks Going To Break

Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Entries: 411

Schultz, Deeter, & Wolf

Players will be going on another (15) minute break at the end of this level (10 minutes remain).  When they players return to Level 13, the blinds will be going up to 1,200/2,400/300 (411 total entries).  Three of the largest stacks going to break belong to Allison Schultz (305,000), Trevor Deeter (300,000), and Laurence Wolf (270,000).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Message From The Man

Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Entries: 410

Posted from Parx Poker's own Twitter account (and remember these numbers are only up to now):

Just hit 400 players in #ParxBigStax 500. Prize pool approaching $200k. Day 1c tomorrow at 11am. pic.twitter.com/QNGXrDIyY9
— Parx Poker Room (@parxpokerroom) May 10, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Going Up

Players are now in Level 12, with blinds going up to 1,000/2,000/300 (408 total entries).  This period in the event is definitely moving time, as players with below average stacks are sitting around 20-25 blinds.  The race for the chip lead bonus is too close to call at the moment, but the number to beat (791,000) is far from everyones grasp at this moment.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Getting Ex-Spence-sive

Level 11 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Entries: 407

The action was picked up on the river at Table 49 in a hand between Jeffrey Spence and Staffan Lind.  The board was J 10 J 4 7, and after Spence checked, Lind would fire out a bet of 20,000.  Spence would check-rasie all-in, making it another 40,200 for Lind to call (50,000 in the pot).  Lind would think for a few moments before folding.  Spence is making the most of what he said was the last bullet, and is now over 100,000.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): What's The Count?

Level 11 is about to begin, with blinds going up to 800/1,600/300 (405 total entries).  Jeffrey Spence (King Of Prussia, PA) is another player in for multiple bullets, having played one yesterday and sitting down to his second (today) after dinner.  In the field for the first time in this series is Jack Duong (South Plainfield, NJ).  Jack was one of the eight players to chop the Big Stax 1000 last August during Big Stax III ($31,301).

Players beginning to amass stacks:

Michael Borovetz - 225,000
Kevin Grabel - 185,000
Ray Ross - 140,000
Allison Schultz - 130,000
Kirron Chan - 127,000
TJ Shulman - 110,000
Laurence Wolf - 105,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Third's A Charm?

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 404

Jason Rivkin (Eatowntown, NJ) is giving things another shot, taking his seat at Table 47 on his third bullet of the day.  He is going with the glass half full Twitter post:

Really excited for #thirdbullet #parxbigstax only because it can't possibly go worse than the first 2 #runlikeLiberto pic.twitter.com/A2CbUYbVlB
— Jason Rivkin (@jayriv2) May 9, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Back From Dinner...Leading Lady

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 397

Allison Schultz (New York, NY)

Players have returned from dinner and are ready to play the rest of the night out.  Allison Schultz (New York, NY) is currently one of the players leading the way, as she sits with 220,000.  Schultz is a loyal Parx player, both tournament and cash, and has some deep runs in these Big Stax events under her belt.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Borovetz Gets A Gift

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 390

At Table 55, Paul Spitzberg announced himself all-in and Michael Borovetz made the call.  Borovetz said, "I'm on a draw," as he tabled his hand.  The flop was already out (3 5 9 rainbow), and once Paul saw that his A 3 was ahead of Michael's 6 7, he said it was the best news he could hear.  Spitzberg's grip on the hand would get a little better when he turned a spade draw, taking away some of Borovetz's outs.  When a non-spade seven hit the river (Borovetz would make a pair to win), it would send Paul walking away from the table.

Michael Borovetz - 105,000
Paul Spitzberg - Eliminated

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Last Level Before Dinner

Level 9 will be the last before players go on dinner break, with blinds being posted of 500/1,000/100 (390 total entries).  There has already been one table to break, as the field begins to shrink slowly.  Jonas Wexler (Southampton, PA) has seen better traction at his new table and is now close to 100,000 on the day.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): That Didn't Last Long

Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 388

In the last entry made, Jason Rivkin was updated as having just re-entered after being eliminated earlier in the day.  As Jason would phrase it on Twitter, it was insta-showers:

INSTA-SHOWERS #parxbigstax 800 bb. CO opens 2100, I 3bet SB to 6k w KK. He calls. Flop 543, I bet 7k, he jams, I call. KK < 52o, turn A 😵😵🔫🔫
— Jason Rivkin (@jayriv2) May 9, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Dinner Break

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 391

Players will be on dinner break in just ten minutes, and they will return at approximately 7:35pm.  The cards will be back in the air and the live coverage will resume at that point.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Kirron's Got Company

Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 387

Kirron Chan (Yonkers, NY) was the chip leader coming back from break with over 140,000, but he's been surpassed by TJ Shulman (Boyton Beach, FL).  Shulman has 185,000 in front of him at Table 48, and he has a new table mate as well.  Alan Kraut (Doylestown, PA) busted his first bullet and has been reseated with TJ, while Jason Rivkin has re-entered as well.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Level 8 Begins

The tournament floor has let the field know that they are now going to be posting blinds of 400/800/100 in Level 8.   There are currently 11 active tables, which means the field sits just under 100 players.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Chip Counts/Arrivals

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 379

Players are still showing up fashionably late, as Daniel Chan and Jonas Wexler take their respective seats.  Some other stacks updated from the room:

Kirron Chan - 140,000
Allison Schultz - 115,000
Joe Grodowski - 80,000
Michael Borovetz - 70,000
TJ Shulman - 65,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Twitter Counts

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 374

A couple of the players in the field are updating their chip counts during break:

48,300 coming back to 600/100. Trending up. #ParxBigStax
— Michael Marder (@MMarder86) May 9, 2014

Got 50K at break 2 coming back to 300/600/100 #ParxBigStax
— Dan Sewnig (@RedsoxNets5) May 9, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Break Time

Players are now on their second (15) minute break of the day, and when they return the blinds will be going up to 300/600/100.  Players will play through the next three levels before going on dinner break.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Wolf Arrives Off Big Score

Level 6 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 366

Laurence Wolf (Annapolis, MD) is coming off his biggest lifetime scores, finishing second in the Borgata Spring Open $2,500 Championship Event ($148,083).  Also in the field today, and at that final table was Paul Spitzberg (Tenafly, NJ).  Paul finished in 6th place for just under $48,000, but added to his career earnings of $672,000.  Laurence is on his first bullet of the day and has the starting stack, while Paul is on his second and has just arrived at his new table.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): New Level, First Chip Counts

Level 6 will now have players posting blinds of 250/500/50 (360 total entries).  With the field settled in for about the third of the day, the first updated chip counts have been acquired:

Bobby Pelligreno - 160,000
James Kaplan - 135,000
Philip Yan - 75,000
Kevin Grabel - 70,000
Alan Kraut - 63,000
Alex Queen - 50,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Rivkin Eliminated

Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 353

The Twitter-verse has provided one of the early eliminations from the day, and it's Big Stax I (Big Stax 300) winner Jason Rivkin:

Busto #parxbigstax I jam 11300 over a 600 flop bet at 300bb w 55 on 965hhh and get called by the mighty 8h. We don't win #bahhh
— Jason Rivkin (@jayriv2) May 9, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Continuing The Climb

Level 5 started just moments ago, with the blinds moving up to 200/400/50 (351 total entries).  Unlikely yesterday's early stages, we have not seen any players separate themselves yet from the rest of the field.  Just a few scheduling reminders in regards to the rest of the day:

Dinner Break - The (75) minute dinner break falls between 6:20-7:35pm, which is after the conclusion of Level 9.

End Of Day - After Level 15 (12:30am)

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Filling Up

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 344

Players continue to enter and tables continue to open, with some old and new faces showing up.  Joe Palma (Bensalem, PA) sat down last yesterday and doubled on the first hand, but that was the high point of the day as he failed to bag chips.  Palma is now seated at Table 50 and has once again started off by picking up the pot in the first hand he played.  Also new to the field:

Jennifer So
Michael Borovetz
Kevin Grabel

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Back From Break...It's The Roc

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 335

Players are seated once again, and Rocco Luciano (Philadelphia, PA) has arrived for the first time this series.  Rocco chopped the Big Stax 300 event during the most recent series in February, taking home over $74,000.  That was the largest score of Luciano's career, and almost doubled his lifetime earnings.  Luciano is currently seated at Table 55 with Abraim Abraimovic, and the cards are now in the air (they had to wait for an additional player to start).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Break Time

Players are taking their first (15) minute break of the day, and when they return the blinds will have gone up to 150/300/50 (329 total entries).  Alex Bolotin (New York, NY) is one of the first players to be eliminated from the field, after unsuccessfully bagging chips yesterday.  Jesse Letchworth (Colonial Heights, VA) has also added himself to the Day 1B field, this after making a nice run in the Big Stax 300 (109th place - $649).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): The Other Champ Is Here

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 328

Alex Queen (Bethlehem, PA)

Alex Queen has taken his seat at Table 53, coming off his chop of the Big Stax 300 with Justin Liberto.  More recognizable faces continue to add themselves to the group:

Ray Ross

Alan Kraut

Paul Sptizberg

Alex Bolotin

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): One Level...Then Break

Level 3 is about to begin, with blinds going up to 100/200/25 (319 total entries).  Late arrivals continue to take their seats, as Allison Schultz and Izzet Temel join the action at Table 53.  Both players attempted to bag chips on Day 1A, but were unsuccesful.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): New Tables Opening

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 312

Kevin McColgan

As players continue to enter the Day 1B field, new tables are beginning to open in the tournament area.  Table 49 is the most recent to open, and it already houses some notables, including Frank DiRe, Jeffrey Spence, and Kevin McColgan.

McColgan is a tournament pro who travels the country throughout the year playing different events and tours.  Kevin's most recent cash brought him another WSOPC ring, as he took down the $1,125 NL Hold'em event at St. Louis.  McColgan (Douglassville, PA) has over $468,000 in career tournament earnings and multiple WSOPC rings.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): One Down

The first level of the day is now in the books, and players are posting blinds of 75/150 in Level 2.  All of the buzz surrounding yesterday's play may be about Liberto, but there were a handful of other notables to bag chips.  Former Big Stax 500 winner Mike Sandler bagged 322,000, while Michael Wang (final tabled Big Stax 300 this series) was right behind with 309,000.  Other notables to bag included Patti Haggerty (243,500), David Inselberg (214,000), Nancy Martin (211,000), and Gordon Eng (127,000).

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Today's Make Up

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 300

Today's field is once again in the main poker room (tournament area), and at the moment there are seven active tables in the room.  There are players taking their second chance at bagging chips, and those here for the first time for the Big Stax 500:

TJ Shulman
Joe Simmons
Michael Marder
Joe Grodowski
Frank Conti
Philip Yan
Joe Spillane
Dan Sewnig
Jay Rivkin
James Governa

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Weekend Warriors

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 290

Players are getting their weekend started early as the cards are now in the air and Day 1B of this Big Stax 500 is now underway.  Two reminders for those playing today (or tomorrow), or for those who have bagged chips already.  Day 2 of this event is MONDAY (May 12th), with Sunday an off day for the players to observe Mother's Day.  For those still to play in today and tomorrow's field, there is still a $1,500 bonus for the player to bag the chip lead at the end of either starting day.

A close eye will be kept on the race for the chip lead bonus, and as the room begins to fill a list of notables in the field will be posted shortly.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1B): Liberto Love

Justin Liberto (Baltimore, MD) has been showered with Tweets and texts since chopping the Big Stax 300 earlier in the week.  The Tweets keep coming, but the subject matter has switched to him being the chip leader after Day 1A of the Big Stax 500.  Liberto bagged 791,000 to end the night, so the bar is now set pretty high for players in the following starting days.  Day 1B will begin just after 11:00am, and the live coverage of the event will commence at that time.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1A): End Of Day 1A Chip Counts

Total Players:	251	Players left:	45
Total Chips:	10,040,000	Average Chips:	223,111
Name	Last Name	Hometown	Chip Count
Justin	Liberto	Baltimore, MD	791,000
Sheldon	Gross	Hillsborough, FL	750,500
Tom	Belmonte	Staten Island, NY	496,000
Randy	Pludo	Plymouth Meeting, PA	420,500
Chris	Bloom	Philadelphia, PA	410,000
Frank	Loffreno	Staten Island, NY	355,000
James	Snyder	Enola, PA	348,000
Mike	Sandler	Maplewood, NJ	322,000
Federico	Ottenio	Brooklyn, NY	316,000
Michael	Wang	Livingston, NJ	309,000
Michael	Goldberg	Newtown, PA	291,000
Bobby	Sembler	Staten Island, NY	283,500
Frank	Ferrigno	Wayne, NJ	282,000
Vinny	Longo	East Hanover, NJ	276,000
Ido	Ashkena	New York, NY	262,000
Scott	Fitz-Gerald	Philadelphia, PA	251,000
Patricia	Haggerty	Scranton, PA	243,500
Louis	Russo	Brooklyn, NY	241,500
Mike	Lavenburg	Montville, NJ	232,500
David	Inselberg	Long Beach, NY	214,000
Nancy	Martin	Washington Crossing, PA	211,000
Dominic	Colonna	Wilmington, DE	205,000
Eric	Siegel	Melville, NY	179,000
Rand	Marsden	Sewell, NJ	171,000
Moshe	Dahan	Brooklyn, NY	169,000
Jason	Groelly	Mechanicsberg, PA	165,500
Kent	Wuethrich	Sugar Run, PA	137,500
Valerie	Novak	Perry Hall, MD	136,500
Robert	Miller	Nanuet, NY	132,000
Mike	Vails	Columbus, IN	131,000
Gordon	Eng	Cliffside, NJ	127,000
Joshua	Hertz	Philadelphia, PA	124,500
Richard	DeVivo	Phoenixville, PA	117,000
Thai	Ha	Factoryville, PA	113,500
Ariel	Albilia	New York, NY	112,500
Brian	Pagano	Hawley, PA	109,500
Paul	Shedaker	Croydon, PA	97,000
Jacob	Perry	Branchville, NJ	93,500
Joseph	Cappuccio	Hammonton, NJ	93,000
Matt	Glantz	Lafayette Hill, PA	87,000
Georoh	Netanelof	Rego Park, NY	87,000
Mohammad	Farah	Bensalem, PA	48,000
Judy	Bielan	Bayonne, NJ	47,000
Young	Oh	Blue Bell, PA	40,000
Unknown			8,000

Big Stax 500 (Day 1A): Run Like Liberto

The chip counts have been verified, and the chip leader at the end of Day 1A is Justin Liberto.  He collects $1,500 to tack onto the $62,000 he won just days ago. His Twitter said it best... #heatersgonnaheat:

Bagged day 1A chip lead @parxpokerroom for 1500 bonus. #heatersgonnaheat
— Justin Liberto (@JustinLiberto) May 9, 2014

Big Stax 500 (Day 1A): Finishing Strong

The tournament floor has determined how many hands remain in the night, and once those hands are done, players will be bagging chips.  Once the chip counts are verified, the player to win the bonus will be posted, with full chip counts to follow.

Big Stax 500 (Day 1A): Going The Distance

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/1,000)
Total Entries: 251

There is (15) minutes before the clock will be paused, and the field of 50 players still has a lot of notables remaining:

Joe Cappuccio
Nancy Martin
James Boyle
Gordon Eng
Mohammed Farah
Greg Himmelbrand
Patti Haggerty
Frank Ferrigno
Mike Sandler
Justin Liberto
Michael Wang
David Inselberg