Blinds are going up, and shorter stacks feel the pressure.

Mounzer Awada:
David Simard:

Board:

Eliminating Simard, Awada gained about 35K.

On a neighboring table, Sahar Khajavi and Justin Rabba also got it in.

Sahar Khajavi:
Justin Rabba:

Board:

Both players hit their desired card, but Rabba was way ahead, and held for the double up. Here is a photo of him, taken 1 second before he saw the flop:

Mitchael Ferguson raised to 9K from the cut off, and Ruben Perceval went all-in for a little over 50K. The player in the small blind considered his options for a little while, but in the end both blinds folded, and Mitchael threw a chip forward.

Mitchael Ferguson:
Ruben Perceval:

Board:

Ruben walked away calmly, and made his way to the cash side, where he also excels.

Meanwhile on the heavy table, former chip leader John Kim has suffered major weathering, and most of his chips are now in the hands of Valérie Vaillancourt.

Note that Day 1B welcomed 229 entries, an astounding success. 112 players are still at the tables with 3 levels to go, as the average count reaches 100K.

An escalation of raises on the flop got Julien Aubin and Justin Kuzmicki all-in.

Julien Aubin:
Justin Kuzmicki:

Board:

Justin doubled his 40K stack, reaching the average.

On another table, Peter O’Brian and Mustafa Hassanzada were in a seemingly peaceful hand. The flop and turn were checked by both players, and on the river, fireworks came out of nowhere.

Peter O’Brian:
Mustafa Hassanzada:

Board:

Mustafa raked in a pot of nearly 200K, leaving Peter with only 700. On the next hand, he was on the button, all-in under for his remaining chips. As per button ante rules, he could only get his own chips back.

After 8 levels of play, John Kim has managed to settle comfortably in the driver’s seat. His 234,600 chips are looking really good. On his table also sits Micheal Khan, second in chips.

Here are the top 5 stacks at the second break:

First Name | Prénom	Last Name | Nom	Stack | Tapis
John	Kim	234,600
Michael	Khan	188,100
Xin	Cui	183,200
Steven	Hearns	180,800
Devon	Bestard	166,600

The second segment is almost over, and players will take a break shortly. Mike Leah, an accomplished and respected tournament player, joined Day 1B. We are pleased to welcome him in the Playground 500.

A few more shots of the field:

 

Alexandre Gaudreau doubled his short stack. He managed to stay ahead of James Chauvin, after the hands were tabled pre-flop:

Alexandre Gaudreau:
James Chauvin:

Board:

Meanwhile, on table 53, Richard Sysko placed a 5K bet on the flop, which was called once before Sébastien Vézina shoved his 30K stack. Sysko committed his own stack, covering Vézina, and they went to the run heads-up.

Sysko’s set held against Vézina’s top pair with a straight draw, and he took down a sizable pot.