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Maria Konnikova Bags Top-Ten Stack Heading Into Day 2 of $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em Championship
After ten levels of play, Day 1 of Event #68: $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em Championship has concluded at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
Attracting a total field of 1,475 entries, the event has surpassed last year’s turnout and has generated a total prize pool of $1,298,000. The eventual champion will take home the much-coveted World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet along with the top prize of $194,630.
At the end of the day, 337 players had secured their spot in Day 2, with only 222 guaranteed a share of the prize pool. Katherine Porrello bagged the chip lead with 382,500. Christy Cranford is close behind with 327,000, and rounding out the podium in third place with 322,500 is Linna Chu.
WSOP bracelet winner Maria Konnikova is well positioned to add another bracelet to her collection after finishing Day 1 among the top ten chip counts. With her experience and proven tournament success, she will be one of the players to watch out for as she hunts for her second WSOP gold bracelet.
End of Day Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katherine Porrello | United States | 382,500 | 191 |
| 2 | Christy Cranford | United States | 327,000 | 164 |
| 3 | Linna Chu | United States | 322,500 | 161 |
| 4 | Sumire Uenomachi | Japan | 305,000 | 153 |
| 5 | Heidi Hina | United States | 256,500 | 128 |
| 6 | Yingjie Qian | China | 238,500 | 119 |
| 7 | Elisa Nakagawa | United States | 234,000 | 117 |
| 8 | Maria Konnikova | United States | 225,500 | 113 |
| 9 | Amy Hoechstetter | United States | 224,000 | 112 |
| 10 | Yu Han | United States | 222,000 | 111 |
Several familiar faces remain in contention heading into Day 2. Ladies Champions Jessica Teusl (205,500) and Marsha Wolak (180,900) won the event in 2022 and 2011, respectively, and are both looking to add a second Ladies Championship title to their résumés.
Cherish Andrews (166,000), who shared the final table with Teusl in 2022, is another formidable contender as she looks to go one step further and finally capture the bracelet that eluded her.
Meanwhile, Lexy Gavin-Mather (205,000) is still in the running and continues her impressive summer after a deep run in this year's $500 Salute to Warriors. She will be hoping to keep that momentum going in the Ladies Championship.
Other notables still in the chase for their first bracelet are Rania Nasreddine (184,000), Ruth Hall (171,500), Kristen Deardorff (138,000), and Dusti Smith (92,000).
Defending two-time champion Shiina Okamoto had the honor of kicking off the tournament by delivering the traditional "Shuffle Up and Deal" announcement before taking her seat in the hopes of making history with an unprecedented third consecutive Ladies Championship title.
The Japanese pro received plenty of support throughout the day, but her bid for a historic three-peat ultimately came to an end when her two pair was outdone by Salima Dhanani's higher two pair. Okamoto fired a second bullet and was well-poised to stay alive after flopping top pair with the better kicker, but Sangsang He improved to two pair on the turn to send the defending champion to the rail for good.
With a mix of former champions, accomplished pros, and rising stars still in the field, the race for the Ladies Championship bracelet promises to become even more competitive as the tournament progresses.
Day 2 resumes at 12 p.m. local time with the remaining players all chasing a place in the money and, ultimately, the prestigious Ladies Championship bracelet.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continued live coverage as the field plays down toward the final table.