Gavin Smith Leads WSOP 2011 $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em Event 56

Canadian Gavin Smith tops the chips leaderboard on 864,000 after day two of the $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em event at the World series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas.

Event #56 started out with 3,389 entrants to create a prize pool of $4,575,150, with $777,928 and a gold bracelet going to the eventual winner – and it is Vegas-based pro Smith who is in charge of the 42 remaining players as he eyes up his second WSOP title following his $2,500 Mixed Hold’em (Limit/No-Limit) success for $268,238 last year.

Last night’s 10 levels were certainly exciting for the gathered crowds in the Amazon Room of the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino as chips flew back and forward to cut the 463 day one survivors down by 421 and reach the bubble after just 120 minutes’ play.

Among the big names to make the money but bust out included Noah Schwartz (57th for $10,156), Mikhail Shalamov (89th for $6,130), Brock Parker (100th for $4,575), Eddy Sabat (136th for $4,575), Randy Lew (203rd for $3,568), Deborah Worley-Roberts (218th for $3,568), Simon Charette (249th for $3,202), Kenny Nguyen (285th for $3,202), Tom McEvoy (302nd for $2,882) and David ‘The Dragon’ Pham (308th for $2,882).

Incredibly, nine of day one’s top 10 chip leaders also hit the rail, with David Eldridge (51st for $12,261), Aleksandr Mozhnyakov (54th for $12,261), Benjamin Volpe (55th for $10,156), Brandon Meyers (59th for $10,156), Tyler Patterson (108th for $4,575), David Zemel (113th for $4,575), Dan Kelly (117th for $4,575), Simon Lam (199th for $3,568) and Brett Jungblut (266th for $3,202) busting out.

Just fourth-placed Bryn Kenney, from Long Beach, made it from the first day’s top 10 to sit down in ninth place on 554,000 in chips after the second day’s play.

But the big news is Ontario’s Smith – who won the World Poker Tour (WPT) Mirage Poker Showdown in Vegas for $1,128,278 in 2005 – taking top spot as we head into day three of the event.

Maryland’s James Boyle is just 14,000 chips behind Smith on 850,000, while Ryan Goindoo, of Los Angeles, is third on 838,000, Tulsa’s Matt Lawrence (772,000) is fourth and Iraq’s Hasan Anter sits in fifth on 719,000.

Top 10 chip leaders after day two of the WSO 2011 $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em event:

1. Gavin Smith (Canada) – 864,000

2. James Boyle (USA) – 850,000

3. Ryan Goindoo (USA) – 838,000

4. Matt Lawrence (USA) – 772,000

5. Hasan Anter (Iraq) – 719,000

6. Lars Brobak (Denmark) – 592,000

7. Selim Oulmekki (France) – 585,000

8. Jason Gravatt (USA) – 580,000

9. Bryn Kenney (USA) – 554,000

10. Hasmukh Khodiyara (UK) – 471,000