11.55pm: Break Time!
It's been an epic day and we are 8 levels into the second of the two days being played out today.
The players are taking their final 15 minute break of the day before resuming for the last four levels. Who will rise from the pack and challenge the current chip leaders? Back soon to find out.
11.48pm: It's SHOWTIME!
Regular patrons of The Hippodrome will be familiar with the Showgirls who appear at regular intervals to entertain inhabitants of the casino. It's always a good test of the poker players' powers of concentration.
Who will be lured away from focusing on the tournament by the glittering dresses of the scantily clad-girls dancing opposite?
We have to say - this looks like a pretty dedicated bunch. Remarkably few players paid the girls much attention.
Of course our photographer extraordinaire Mickey May is too on the ball to miss a photographic opportunity like that. She captured this moment...enjoy!
11.28pm: The Prizepool
Apologies for the tardiness of this information. Usually we are very un-tardy (you should see the state of the media desk.)
Anyway without further delay click here for the full payouts.
The main information to extract from this list of numbers is a prizepool totalling £141,135 - a first prize of £28,300 and the payout spots paying the top 39 players. Very juicy!
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 400-800-100
11.15pm: Torres topples towers
Alejandro Torres just had a moment of rage, the quiet Spaniard having sat and played his cards in reserved fashion for the rest of the tournament.
He was back at it with his sparring partner from earlier - Krisha Nagaraju - who was one river away from elimination.
This hand saw Torres raise to 1,500 from early position, called by Nagaraju in the big blind.
The board fell 9♦5♥4♣ - Nagaraju checked and Torres led for 1,400.
Check raise to 3,300 by Nagaraju. Call.
The turn was the 5♦. 4,800 from Nagaraju. Call.
The K♦ on the river saw Nagaraju pick up 8,300, around 2/3 of his remaining stack and fire it into the middle.
A long tank from Torres, punctuated by frequent eye rubs, saw him pick up the required chips and eventually make what looked like a reluctant call.
He got the bad news from Nagaraju - his J♦4♦ having made a backdoor flush.
Torres exploded momentarily, his hand smashing the chips down on the table, sending several of them flying into the pot and some into another player's stack, making it tough to see just where all the chips were.
The dealer looked a tad perplexed and called "Floor!"
After coming over, there was a long period reconstructing the pot and ensuring Torres had paid the correct amount into the pot. Once it was established he had, he was given a one round penalty for his lack of self control.
Once the dust had settled - Torres removed himself from the table to calm down - his stack cut to around 25,000.
Nagaraju meanwhile has made the most of his earlier fortune - now up to the 40,000 mark adfter being one card from elimination earlier.
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 300-600-75
10.58pm: Level 7 arrives We are entering that period of the tournament where the pots get to sizes that mean the only way to play them is by risking your tournament - for the smaller stacks at least.
Expect a host of shoves, bluffs, late position raises, squeezes and steals to occur this level.
The action is coming, hold tight!
10.45pm: Cody rack rubs
Look away Jake Cody fans, he has not had the best day of his largely stellar poker career - left wiht just a handful of chips from his second buy-in of the day.
Moments ago his table was broken and he picked up his chips in his hand to mvoe to a new table. "You have to put them in the rack," the dealer explained, Cody cracking a broad smile as he placed his 6 lonely chips into the rack.
If he needed a reminder of better times however, at that moment, a player grabbed him and asked for a selfie - Cody duly obliging before relocating to his new table.
10.37pm:No bad beat for bad beaten Joe Stapleton
Joe Stapleton is out.
We think he was unfortunate in his demise although he refused to reveal the exact circumstances of his fall from poker grace.
Immediately after his elimination he was offered comfort from Dave Curtis. "Would you like a hug Joe?" offered Curtis.
"If by hug you mean would I like to repeatedly punch someone in the face then yes I would very much like a hug," joked Stapes, struggling to come to terms with his bustout.
Later on, he calmed down enough to come over and talk to the blog. "Nobody cares," he said. "Write that...but make me look like a man, not just looking for sympathy, even though I am. Just write this whole conversation down."
Stapes has now gone to rail his partner in crime James Hartigan.
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 250-500-50
10.23pm: Paying the Bill If you thought the intrepid EPT commentating duo had the monopoly on incessant converation - believe it or not they have been eclipsed so far by William Kassouf, who has shown remarkable powers at maintaining interminable monologues during hands.
Let's give you an example. We joined Kassouf heads-up with Benjamin Winsor on the river of a Q♦Q♠7♦8♦9♠ board.
Action was on Kassouf. Verbal diarrhoea engaged.
"Time for a trip to value town....What year were you born...I was born in 1981, you were probbaly the same right....let's make this bet colourful [Kassouf counts out 8,100 in various denominations]....8,100 for 1981...that's a good bet...[Winsor goes into tank considering the bet]....what have you got?....you don't want to say?....I'm trying to help you...talk to me...I deserve to win this pot for the speech alone...got a queen right?...maybe queen-jack...[winsor folds]....wow after all that you fold...I deserved that."
Endearing or not? You decide!
Whatever you think, it is working for Kassouf - he is up to 48,000...almost as many chips as words spoken during this tournament.
10.05pm: Hartigan looks to stop rot
Not a reference to some pre-existing medical condition, James Hartigan's poker chops are the ones showing signs of ill-fortune at the moment , having lost 2/3 of his stack over the opening four levels.
"I'm just playing badly," he explained glumly. Chin up James - a double-up is just one outdraw away!
10.00pm: Back in effect
Croissants consumed and jaegerbombs chugged by all(*), the players are back at the tables to cross swords once more. 95 players remain from the initial 101 entrants. We expect this to be confirmed as the final number shortly meaning the prizepool should be with us presently.
*Pure supposition. The bar does not serve croissants.
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 200-400-50
9.44pm: Four in the bag is worth 15 in the bar That's our cryptic way of saying it's time for a 15 minute break with the first four levels of the day having been played out.
The vast majority of the players have navigated these early stages with skill and guile and can discuss their various small victories and defeats over a cappucino. We'll be back shortly for level five. See you then!
9.30pm: Victims of fortune
Where there is glory, there must also be defeat. It is the way of the world - the ying and yang of life keeping the cosmos in order.
These are the men who have enabled greatness to flourish - by being eliminated.
Your sacrifice has not gone unnoticed.
Saman Rezapour
John Bassett
Stephen Whelan
Marco Lanni
Onur Guven
David Clarkson
9.12pm: 101 and counting!
We knew that 100 mark would be breached. With 101 official entrants so far, this is now the biggest of the three starting days.
Does that mean at the close, someone will have bested the impressive 189,400 chips accumulated by Bulgarian Andrey Dimitrov over Day 1B's twelve levels?
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 150-300-25
9.02pm: Ha-re moment for Krisha It's been an inauspicious start for Krisha Nagaraju, who had seen his 25,000 stack decimated in the early stages, reduced to a paltry 7,075.
Holding A♣J♥ he fired his remaining chips into the middle - Alejandro Torres making the call with the dominating A♥K♠.
It looked likely Torres would send Nagaraju on his way right up to the death - the board providing the classic sting in the tail as it peeled Q♠6♠8♣T♠K♣ to make Nagaraju the nut straight right at the death.
A tablemate drew in breath audibly to represent sympathy for the beat. Torres looked unmoved as he handed over a chunk of his stack.
Nagaraju meanwhile beamed at his good fortune - his game back on track somewhat as he rises to 16,000.
8.56pm: Stapleton bladders up
At the risk of neglecting the other players in the tournament - don't worry, we will come back to them - it seems a shame not to mention Joe Stapleton just challenged James Hartigan to a "bathroom last longer."
"No," Hartigan responded firmly.
"I stand no chance of winning." "I'll give you odds," countered Stapleton. "You might win enough for kidney surgery," he added.
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 100-200-25
8.38pm: The full set
Anyone playing EPT commentator snap* out there will be delighted with the news that both of the EPT double act have elected to take a shot at the tournament.
Also present is Stapes' co-host James Hartigan, another man renowned for his vocal skills - good luck to those who are in the vicinity of both - specialist ear doctors are on standby for emergency eardrum repair if (when) required.
*Given recent scientific discoveries in quantum mechanics and theories on parallel universes, somewhere this game must be playing out. UKIPT Floor staff top trumps is allegedly Saturn's most popular pastime.
8.24pm: You can't be serious!
Poker fans will be delighted to know Joe Stapleton has decided to bid for glory (donate his buyin) to the poker tournament and already the garrulous EPT commentator's dulcid (un-blockoutable) strains have been heard trilling through the poker room.
"You can't be serious!" he was heard saying (bawling liike John McEnroe in his pomp).
"5-3 didn't hold up!" Expect more outbursts from the engaging young comedian/ poker commentator as the day progresses.
8.12pm: Final chip standings from Day 1B
To see the full array of survivors along with their chip counts from day 1B, click here and enjoy!
LEVEL UP: BLINDS 75-150
8.10pm: Pushing toward a century With 100 players in the earlier Day 1B, it looks like day 1C might be on course to exceed even this. We currently have 95 official registrants and this number is on the rise all the time, shuffling toward that imposing three figure mark. Any guesses on the final number?
We're going for (arbitrarily) 106!
7.40pm: Cards in the air!
The whirlwind turnround is complete and a whole new* slew of players are seated and champing at the bit to be the next star crowned at the Hippodrome Casino.
*Well, new-ish. There will be at least a few double registrants, who played Day 1B, busted, and are back for a second bite of the cherry.
We'll have some of the big names gracing the felt shortly as well as the final chip standings from the end of Day 1B.
7.35pm: Day 1C begins
Welcome to the Hippodrome Casino for Day 1C of the UKIPT5 Super Series event. We are in the second part of this double-day - 12 levels of Day 1B having played out prior to day 1C starting.
We've already seen some exciting poker played out and there's no reason why this evening's events won't be equally as fascinating.
To read how day 1B played out, click here.
PokerStars Blog reporting team at PokerStars UKIPT5 Super Series London: Rod Stirzaker. Photos courtesy of Mickey May.
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