Day 1B of the World Poker Tour (WPT) Borgata Poker Open Main is in the books and, as expected, the field for the second starting flight dwarfed that of the first. A total of 707 entries were booked on Monday; added to the 271 on Sunday brings the entire field to 978 so far. Registration is still open through the first two levels of Day 2 and there are unlimited re-entries, so the Borgata Poker Open Main event should certainly see yet another four-figure field.

Shiraz Hasan bagged the most chips on Day 1B, just edging out Marcos Exterkotter, 227,500 to 222,200.

The second 2019 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open $3,500 Championship flight played out Monday night and it was Shiraz Hasan bagging the big stack of 227,500. That is a little behind Mukharji.

Like Sunday’s chip leader, Mukharji Uppalapati, Shiraz Hasan is a regional player. He has ten recorded cashes for a total of about $33,000. They came mostly in Atlantic City, with some scores in Delaware (his home state), Pennsylvania, and Maryland.

A number of former WPT winners are still alive in the tournament, including Brian Altman and Daniel Weinman, who both sit in the top ten on the chip count leaderboard. Other Champions Club members who will play today include Darren Elias, Andy Frankenberger, Jared Jaffee, and Will “The Thrill” Failla.

World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open

All told, 518 players will be sitting down shortly for Day 2 at the WPT Borgata Poker Open Main Event. As mentioned, they will be joined by anyone who wants to give it a shot early on Tuesday. Once registration closes after the second level of the day, we will know the total field and final prize pool. There is a guaranteed prize pool of $3 million, but that has already been eclipsed. The structure will continue with 60-minute levels until registration closes. After that, levels will be 75-minutes.

The record for the WPT Borgata Poker Open Main Event is 1,313 entrants, set in Season X. While this year’s edition will certainly hit 1,000, breaking the all-time mark might be a stretch. It’s not out of the question though, so it will be interesting to see if it can be done.

Mukharji Uppalapati’s Day 1A chip lead was good enough to make him the overall leader going into Day 2. In fact, the top three players came from Day 1A.

Borgata Poker Blog

2019 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open Main Event – Day 1B Chip Leaders

Borgata Fall Poker Open

1. Shiraz Hasan – 227,500
2. Marcos Exterkotter – 222,200
3. Brian Altman – 187,500
4. Daniel Weinman – 186,700
5. Felix Ma – 185,000
6. Peter Campo – 184,700
7. Tyler Phillips – 183,600
8. Ryan Van Sanford – 178,000
9. Kevin Garosshen – 176,700
10. Ami Alibay – 175,000

2019 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open Main Event – Combined Day 1 Chip Leaders

1. Mukharji Uppalapati – 252,400
2. Asher Conniff – 247,800
3. Ryan Olisar – 229,700
4. Shiraz Hasan – 227,500
5. Marcos Exterkotter – 222,200
6. Bruce Kramer – 211,600
7. Larry Ormson – 204,600
8. Lucas Drolet – 199,100
9. Brian Altman – 187,500
10. Daniel Weinman – 186,700

The World Poker Tour (WPT) Borgata Poker Open Main Event kicked off on Sunday with the first of two starting flights. 271 entries were tallied on the day, though expect loads more on Monday. Leading the 129 survivors into Day 2 is Mukharji Uppalapati with 252,400 chips.

The Borgata Poker Open is one of the few “old guard” stops on the World Poker Tour, having been part of the schedule since Season II (we are now in Season XVIII). It began as one of the biggies on the live tournament calendar, boasting a $10,000 buy-in. But like most of the WPT Main Events, the buy-in was decreased on a number of years ago to encourage more signups. In Season VIII, the buy-in was set at $3,500, which is where it has been ever since.

At the same time, unlimited re-entries are permitted all the way through the first two levels of Day 2. Thus, the WPT Borgata Poker Open can draw more players with the lower buy-in, but the re-entries can still goose the prize pool.

Day 1A was pretty darn competitive at the top of the leaderboard. Asher Conniff is close behind Uppalapati with 247,800. Three other players beat the 200,000 mark: Ryan Olisar (229,700), Bruce Kramer (211,600), and Larry Ormson (204,600). Lucas Drolet was also just a few hundred chips underneath the 200,000 chip plateau.

Uppalapati is essentially a regional player, hailing from Gaithersburg, Maryland. His $112,454 in live earnings are all fairly small, the largest of which is about $25,000. Most of his cashes have come at Maryland Live! Casino and all but one is at a Maryland venue. The lone holdout is his biggest cash, which came from a sixth place finish in a preliminary event at the WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open this past January.

The plan for today is the exact as yesterday. After all, it would not be fair to players in either starting flight if Days 1A and 1B differed. There will be eight hour-long levels with 15-minute breaks every two levels. Interestingly (or not, I don’t know), there will be no dinner break. The first two levels of Day 2, during which players can still register and re-enter, will also be 60 minutes. After that, they will be 75 minutes for the rest of Tuesday. The big blind ante is in effect from the jump.

Wpt Borgata Poker Open

The eventual winner of the tournament will have some big shoes to fill. Last year’s champ was Erkut Yilmaz who then went on to win WPT Rolling Thunder and the WPT Player of the Year award.

2019 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open Main Event – Day 1A Chip Leaders

1. Mukharji Uppalapati – 252,400
2. Asher Conniff – 247,800
3. Ryan Olisar – 229,700
4. Bruce Kramer – 211,600
5. Larry Ormson – 204,600
6. Lucas Drolet – 199,100
7. Jordan Fisch – 180,200
8. Connor Daum – 177,200
9. Andrew Ostapchenko – 165,800
10. Spencer Champlin – 163,000