Mike Watson Among Top Stacks After Day 2 of $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Single Draw in Search for Triple Crown
An action-packed day of drawing at the 2024 World Series of Poker saw the 47 survivors of Day 1 being joined by no less than 57 new entries during the first two levels of Event #72: $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship. With the entries made on Day 1, they totaled 186 entries and created a prize pool of $1,729,800, setting new records for this event.
However, at the end of the day, only nine players remained standing inside the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, ending on the bubble of the final table. Among them was Mike Watson, who bagged 2,165,000 chips, good for second place on the leaderboard and 72 big blinds at the start of play on Day 3.
Watson, best known for his prowess in high stakes no-limit hold'em tournaments, has won the two other major titles required for the prestigious triple crown. However, a WSOP bracelet still eludes the Canadian superstar. If he converts his big stack into a win on Day 3, he will become only the tenth player in the game's history to capture the triple crown.
However, Watson will have plenty of competition on his way to victory, as David Lin held the chip lead throughout most of the later stages of Day 2, ending up with a bag filled with 2,295,000 chips. Not much is known about Lin, but he proved his prowess in the tough game of no-limit 2-7 single draw by navigating the field of superstars and coming out on top.
Completing the podium is Jeremy Ausmus with 1,740,000 chips. Ausmus is one elimination away from his sixth final table of the summer as he hunts the prestigious title of WSOP Player of the Year. Also making it through to Day 3 is Scott Seiver (1,215,000), who is looking for his third bracelet of the series and his seventh overall, as well as Robert Mizrachi (875,000), who won one bracelet this summer and is hunting his sixth in total.
Lower in the counts is six-time bracelet winner Jason Mercier (640,000), who is trying to capture his third no-limit 2-7 bracelet. Hall of Famer Jen Harman ended the day with 610,000 chips in her bag as she is looking for bracelet number three after not winning one for over 20 years.
End of Day 2 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Lin | United States | 2,295,000 | 77 |
| 2 | Mike Watson | Canada | 2,165,000 | 72 |
| 3 | Jeremy Ausmus | United States | 1,740,000 | 58 |
| 4 | Scott Seiver | United States | 1,215,000 | 41 |
| 5 | Jonathan Krela | Canada | 1,105,000 | 37 |
| 6 | Robert Mizrachi | United States | 875,000 | 29 |
| 7 | Jason Mercier | United States | 640,000 | 21 |
| 8 | Jen Harman | United States | 610,000 | 20 |
| 9 | Aaron Kupin | United States | 515,000 | 17 |
Day 2 Action
The day started with two levels of late registration still to go, and plenty of players took the opportunity to do so. Hall of Famers Todd Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, and Eli Elezra all showed up but failed to get to the money.
Erik Seidel did bag on Day 1 but would not receive a payday, nor would the likes of Ryan Riess, Joao Vieira, and Christopher Vitch. Eventually, Matt Glantz became the bubble player, after which the remaining 28 players were all in the money.
Once there, Nick Schulman, Ben Yu, and Shaun Deeb departed with a min-cash of $20,552 before the three-table redraw, while Mike Matusow was the first to leave thereafter.
Yuri Dzivielevski satrted the day as the second shortest stack, but his miracle run stranded in 17th place. Dan Smith was then eliminated just outside of the final two tables, while Hall of Famer and arguably the greatest-of-all-time no-limit 2-7 single draw player Billy Baxter fell in 14th for $25,757.
Japanese grinder Naoya Kihara said his goodbyes in 12th place near the end of the night, and ultimately it was Galen Hall who would be the final elimination of the night in tenth place for $31,617.
The remaining nine players bagged up, having guaranteed themselves $39,882. However, all nine will have their eyes set on the top prize of $411,041 and, perhaps more important to most of them, a shiny WSOP bracelet that comes along with it.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $411,041 |
| 2 | $274,217 |
| 3 | $187,177 |
| 4 | $130,794 |
| 5 | $93,615 |
| 6 | $68,672 |
| 7 | $51,661 |
| 8-9 | $39,882 |
They will return tomorrow, June 30, at 1 p.m. local time to the Horseshoe Event Center to fight out who will crown themselves the 2024 no-limit 2-7 single draw champion. They will restart the tournament in Level 21: 15,000/30,000 with a big blind ante of 45,000. Levels will remain 60 minutes in length until the end of the tournament, with 15-minute breaks after every two of them.
PokerNews will be present from the shuffle up and deal to the crowning of a winner, so be sure to check back tomorrow to find out who will top the stacked field in the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship.