Day 1b of the PokerStars European Poker Tour Deauville main event attracted 429 players, almost a hundred more than yesterday's already impressive Day 1a turnout of 339.

The numbers crunchers in Deauville soon discovered this combined field of 768 runners, meant a total prize pool of EUR3,686,400 had been created, guaranteeing a first prize worth EUR847,000 (or about $1.2 million USD) for the final contestant in the event fortunate enough to still be holding chips.

Some notable Day 1b survivors with a good shot at that prize include Peter Eastgate, Jean-Robert Bellande, Shane "Shaniac" Schleger, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Juha Helppi, Dario Minieri and Team PokerStars  Pro Luca Pagano, currently sitting at or near first on the Day 1b leaderboard, with 193,100 in tournament chips.

A short list of the day's players already out of contention includes Greg Raymer, Vicky Coren, Antony Lellouche and Canadian Chess Master Jeff Sarwer.

For more information on how things are transpiring thus far at the beautiful Casino Barriere de Deauville, visit the PokerStars blog (www.pokerstarsblog.com).


Story by Mark Anderson