Second Epic Poker League Event Draws 97 Players

The Epic Poker League’s second Main Event kicked off on Tuesday, featuring a smaller field – though one that was still filled with many of the world’s top players. A total of 97 players came to the Palms to play in the league’s first 8-handed no-limit hold’em tournament.

While the turnout may seem disappointing to some, many observers expected a drop off from the first event, which drew 137 players. The tournament is taking place at the same time as the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker, which is likely drawing many players from outside the United States – and even some American pros who moved out of the country to have the opportunity to play. In addition, there have been major tournaments taking place in Europe during the past two weeks, including a European Poker Tour event in Barcelona and a World Poker Tour event in Paris, which is being played concurrently with the Epic Poker Tour event.

The leader at the end of Day 1 was Jamie Kaplan, who almost didn’t get to play in the tournament at all. Kaplan finished 10^th in the Pro/Am qualifying tournament, leaving him just out of the qualifying position (the top nine players get exemptions into the EPL event, along with a free entry). However, the withdrawal of Michael DiVita – reportedly due to questions over a prior criminal record – caused the league to award Kaplan a spot in the tournament instead. He took full advantage of this opportunity by moving out in front of the field, just slightly ahead of Dan O’Brien, with the rest of the field sitting far behind the two leaders.

In total, 50 players have made it into Day 2 of the tournament. As intended in the EPL format, many of the remaining players would qualify as notables, including Phill Hellmuth, Erik Seidel, Ben Lamb, Huck Seed, Tom Dwan and Mike Matusow.

The players will face two more days of play before reaching the final table of eight. Play on Wednesday will consist of five 90-minute levels. A total of 12 players will make the money, with the winner ultimately taking home $782,410, while the minimum cash is $46,020.