The first Day 1 of the Main Event is in the books, and 1,297 entrants joined the madness. Former Main Event winner Berry Johnston, "Miami" John Cernuto, Josh Arieh, Freddy Deeb, and many other pros were eliminated by the end of the night. Mark Garner is the day's chip leader, followed by Brandon Adams. Mark Vos and Jon "PearlJammer" Turner are also high on the leader board. The remaining 636 players will be back for Day 2A on Tuesday, when they will be joined by the Day 1B survivors.

Official chip counts and seat assignments at the end of Day 1A:

Day 1A is in the books, and 636 players will be back for the first Day 2.

Jonathan Little won't be among them. After missing a straight flush draw against Kings, he was down to 4,500. He got it all in with A 8, but he couldn't improve against pocket 9s and hit the rail before the end of the night.

Erica Schoenberg had been nursing a short stack all night. She got it in with pocket Tens and was called by Ellen Narkis with pocket Aces and another opponent with K-J. The board ran out K 7 4 2 3, and Narkis busted both players.

Luca Pagano met with tough luck when he moved in for 35,000 on a 7 4 3 2 board. Pagano tabled pocket 3s for the set. Too bad Wayne Brown called with 7s for a higher set. No miracle on the river, and Pagano is done for the Series.

Mekhi Phifer committed all of his chips on an 8 5 3 4 board with K 8 for top pair and a flush draw. Maurice Hawkins turned up 5 5, and his set held up when the river was a J. Too late to send Phifer to the ER. His tournament life is over.

Steve Sung is out after an opponent rivered a flush to beat his pocket 8s. Berry Johnston won't pick up a second Main Event bracelet this year. His A-T failed to improve against pocket ladies when a Queen spiked on the flop.

Mark Garner is the Day 1A chip leader with 205,000. Garner made the final table at the WSOP circuit event in Tunica in January and placed 25th in the 2006 Main Event. Brandon Adams is in second with 170,000, followed by Kellen Hunter with 154,000. Mark Vos and Jon "Pearljammer" Turner are also above 100k.

Congratulations to Poker School Online member John Dobbs, aka "dealmein." Dobbs finishes the day with 30,675 in chips. Dobbs and the rest of today's survivors will be back at 12:00 pm PDT on Tuesday for Day 2.

The field is down to 711, and tightening up big time as Day 2 is within sight. They are at the halfway point in Level 5, meaning players only have to survive one more hour to tell their friends they made it to the second day of the WSOP.

Not everyone still has that chance though. Former NBA star Jack Haley ran his pocket Tens into Aces. No matter how fast he is on the court, Haley couldn't outrun the rockets and headed home early. Hard to tell if his table will miss Haley's towering presence or the ESPN cameras that watched his every move.

Adam Katz is out after his Queens had an unfortunate encounter with Kings. Alan Smurfit's tablemate moved in pre-flop, and Smurfit called to find that his A-5 was in tough shape against the guy's A-T. The board came 8 8 6 T A, sending Smurfit to join his tiny blue friends.

Emad Tahtouh took down a big pot to move up the leader board. On a J 5 2 A board, Tahtouh bet out 3,500, and the SB made the call. After the King on the river, Emad fired out 15,000. His opponent hemmed and hawed but eventually threw his chips in the middle. Tahtouh tabled 4-3 for the wheel, and the SB mucked A-J and slammed his fist into the table.

Patrick Fortin is still in the lead with 145,000, followed by Stefan Mattsson with 139,000. Brandon Adams is close behind with 132,000.

The remaining 780 players are about to return from break to begin Level 5. But several famous faces won't be back for the last level of the night.

"Miami" John Cernuto got it in good from the button with pocket Kings, and an opponent called with A-K. The T 5 4 flop was no problem, and the 6 on the turn was safe too. But an Ace on the river meant Cernuto can head back east for the rest of the summer.

Josh Arieh won't be able to add to his WSOP winnings now that he's been eliminated. On a Q J 4 flop, Alan Nowak bet out 2,000, and Arieh called. Nowak made it 5,000 after the 6 on the turn, and again Arieh made the call. The river brought the 7, and Nowak fired out 10,000, enough to put Arieh all in. While cameras and fans croweded around, Arieh tried his best to tank in peace. Eventually, he committed his last chips. As soon as Arieh called, Nowak assumed Josh had him. Now was more surprised than Nowak when his J T for top pair was good for the pot. Arieh mucked and left the table quietly.

J.J. Liu won't be able to make any more fashion statements at the 2008 Series. She raised UTG, and the button called to see the T 8 5 flop. Liu bet out 2,300, then called when the button raised her all in. Liu tabled A-T for top pair, but her opponent's pocket 5s made a set that held up for the win. Tournaments won't be the same without J.J. and her hats.

Kevin "aBOVeBeLOW" Saul busted when his K-J couldn't improve against an opponent's K-Q. Rep Porter and Edward Sabat are out as well.

Patrick Fortin is the chip leader of the moment with 135,000.

The utg player raised and Brandon Adams called from the big blind. On the flop of T 8 T  Brandon bet 1,200, his opponent raised to 3,200 and Brandon made the call. Turn was the 9 . Brandon again bet, 4,500 this time, and got called. River was the 2 . Brandon bet 11k and against got called. Brandon showed A 7  for the flush and his opponent mucked. Brandon chipped up to ~75k.

Kido Pham is in firm control of his table. He raised and the big blind re-raised. Kido made the call and the flop came 7 3 2 . His opponent shoved for ~11k and Kido looked him up. His opponent’s pocket Queens were ahead, but Kido held 9 4  (no, that is not a typo) for the flush draw. The last two cards were A 5  giving Kido the flush and sending another WSOP hopeful to the rail.

Kido was later in a pot with (former LA Laker) Jack Haley. On the river, the board showed 7 6 4 2 4 . Kido bet 3k and Jack went into the tank. It must be hard to put him on a hand after the one he just showed. Jack finally opted to fold and Kido assured him “good laydown” as he slid his cards into the muck. Kido was up to ~110k with that pot.

On the river with a board of A 7 6 K 5, seat 4 bet 3k and after a bit of thought, Josh Arieh raised it up to 10k. Seat 4 mucked his KQ face up. Josh showed his 76 off for two pair as he dragged the pot.

Blair Hinkle’s AK won a race against a shorter-stacked player’s pocket Jacks. Another one bites the dust. Blair chipped up to ~75k.

Darrell Dicken called 3,500 on the flop of Q 7 2, then called 9k on the turn, which was an Ace, then called 25k on the river, which was a 3. He then showed A 3  for two pair and his opponent mucked. Darrell chipped up to 84k.

Jamie Pickering got his last ~4k chips in with pocket Aces. A player holding J9 suited looked him up. The board came Q J T 2 T and Jamie’s Aces-up were good for the double-up. It didn’t last lost as he later got his chips in with A3 and ran into A4 – which held up to bust him.

Seven players go to the flop, which is A 7 4. Chris Klodnicki fired 1,500 and Jordan Morgan called, as did the player on the button. Turn was a King and Chris bet 5k. Same two callers. River was a 3 and it was checked down. Jordan showed A9 suited for top pair and the others mucked. Jordan chipped up to ~39k.

Kevin Kim flopped quads with pocket 5s and got all his chips in on the 5-high flop. A player holding pocket Tens doubled him up.

On a flop of Q T 6, Linda Lee fired 4k and Erica Schoenberg called all-in with the last of her chips. Linda held 76 for bottom pair. Erica held AK and needed help – which she got on the river, which was a King. Erica doubled up.

On a board of Q Q T 5 6, Jamie Rosen paid off a player holding KQ. Jamie held QJ suited and had a kicker problem.

Patrick Fortin called an all-in and showed AJ. It was a good call as his opponent showed AT. The board came Q 9 5 T 8 and Patrick lost the lead on the turn, but caught the gutterball on the river to make a straight and take the pot. He’s up to 125k.

The official player count for today is 1,297. 

The 900+ remaining entrants are back from dinner for Level 4. Though action has just gotten underway, a few players are already back on break.

Mike Sowers was eliminated minutes after dinner. He raised to 800, two players called, and Jonathan Little made it 3,400. Sowers shoved, and only Little made the call. It was Mike's K-Q against Little's Aces, and when the board ran out Jack-high, Sowers was left with only 1,200, and his Paris Hilton sunglasses disappeared into the night a few hands later. At least he got it in with better than 9-4 off this time.

Juha Helppi and Roland de Wolfe also made quick exits. Roland ran his Queens into Aces, and with no help from the deck, his Series is in the books.

At least Motoyuki "Moto" Mabuchi picked up an epic bad-beat story as a consolation prize (yes, I realize that's not really any consolation). Mabuchi raised to 800 and saw an Ax Q 9x flop with one caller. Check-check to the T on the turn. Mabuchi bet out 1,600, and his opponent called. The river was the A, and Moto bet 2,500. The other player raised to 8,500, and Mabuchi moved in. He showed A-A for quad Aces. Quad Aces! But his opponent tabled K J for the royal flush. Wow, that hurts.

On a flop of Q J 5 with two diamonds, Jamie Rosen got his chips in holding 85 of diamonds for bottom pair with flush draw. His opponent had pocket Queens for top set and Jamie would need help. Turn was a useless King, but the 3d landed on the river to give Jamie the flush and chip up to ~52k, sending another opponent to the rail.

Eric Froehlich had middle pair and paid off one short-stack holding top pair. Then E-fro moved his short-stack all in holding J6 and caught a Jack to double up. Then he got his chips in again with KQ, with action from three players. The board came T 8 3 K 5 and his opponent tabled KT for two pair to bust Eric.

Dan Harrington got his last chips in with QT on a flop of T 6 2. Unfortunately for Dan, his opponent held pocket Kings and Dan was done.

Rep Porter is busy spreading the wealth around his table. His KJ doubled up a player holding AK when the board came all blanks, then he paid Nick Ceci 3k and Nick showed him A9 with a board of 9 7 4 K K to take the pot.

Chad Brown got his last chips in with AK against Eric Crain, who held KQ of clubs. Chad caught an Ace on the flop, but Eric picked up the flush draw. A third club came on the river to ship the pot to Eric and flush the Chad right out of this event.

Phil Galfond had been nursing a 4k stack for a while and finally got those chips in with pocket 8s, only to run into pocket Tens. Phil’s hand didn’t improve and he was busted.

Jimmy Tran shoved with J7 suited and ran into AK of the same suit. The board bricked out and Jimmy was toast.

Gavin Smith got his last chips in with AK suited and Doug Cardoza looked him up with 75 off. The board came J T 7 J 2 and Doug took the pot, giving Gavin the shaft.

Shawn Rice got his chips in with AJ and ran into AQ – best hand held up and Shawn hit the rail.

Bob Feduniak got his last chips in withpocket 9s on a flop of 7 6 4, but his opponent held pocket Tens. Last two were 3 J and Bob was busted.

Ralph Perry got his last chips in with AT against pocket Kings. No help for Ralph and he’s gone.

Kido Pham turned a straight to bust a player holding top pair. Kido is up to ~87k.

Jon ‘PearlJammer’ Turner flopped a straight and busted a player holding top pair. Jon is up to ~52k.

Abe Mosseri moved in with pocket 9s, only to run into pocket Kings. No help for Abe and he was busted.

Tuan Lam got the last of his chips in with KQ, only to run into AK. Big Slick held up and there will be no repeat final table for last year’s runner-up. Tuan was busted.

Matt Glantz’ pocket Aces hold up against pocket Kings to send another player to the rail. Matt chipped up to 56k.

PokerSchoolOnline member John ‘dealmein’ Dobbs is doing well, up to 41k. He called an all-in with AK and his opponent held AT. Big Slick held up and John chipped up.

JC Alvarado got his chips in the middle with pocket Aces on a flop of K 7 5 with two spades. His opponent called with QJ of spaces. JC managed to dodge all the spades in the deck and double up to ~22k.

The rail is getting a bit overloaded. Players are busting out faster than they can break tables to fill in the empty seats.

End of level 3 and players have been sent on a 90-minute dinner break. That means our next update will be at 9pm.

As of dinner, Christopher Kero is the chip leader with ~119k. Patrick Fortin is second with 100k.

Players returned from break to begin Round 3, with blinds at 150-200. Antes will begin after the dinner break in an hour.

Eric Sfez has been doing his part to clear the big names from his table. First he took out Roy "the Oracle" Winston. On a J 8 7 flop, BB Winston checked the action to Sfez, who bet 2,300. "Miami" John Cernuto called from the button, and Winston moved in with his last 9,500. Sfez made the call, and Cernuto folded. Winston showed J-T for top pair, but Sfez' A-J had him out-kicked. The 3 on the turn and 5 on the river couldn't save the Oracle, and his Series is done. He should have seen that coming.

Sfez went on to eliminate Matt "All In At 420" Stout. Stout's Queens couldn't hold up against Sfez' A-K when Eric flopped a King and the rest of the board blanked. Sfez is now up to 71,000.

Katja Thater's also done for the summer. As they do every time she played a hand, ESPN cameras crowded around to see the 7 7 5 flop. An opponent bet out 3,000, and she raised to 11,000. Rep Porter moved all in, the other player got out of the way, and Thater made the call all in. She tabled pocket Jacks to Porter's T-7 for trips. As soon as she saw Porter's cards, she stood up from the table and starting taking off the socks she had been wearing to keep her feet warm. The dealer brought an 8 on the turn, and Katja continued to gather her things. A 2 on the river made it official, and she said her goodbyes to the table and the cameras. Rep Porter chipped up to 40,000.

Funnyman Jason Alexander is gone too. After raising wars on the flop and turn of a 9 4 3 5 board, the UTG player raised enough to put Alexander all in for 25,000. Another player called all in as well. The UTG had A-2 for the turned straight, Jason showed pocket rockets, and the other at risk player tabled 9-6. A 6 on the river wasn't what either needed to make their straights, and both headed for the exit.  Yada, yada, yada.

Jonah Rogers is the current chip leader with 86,200.

PokerSchoolOnline.com has six members who have earned sponsorships into the main event and one of them is playing today. John Dobbs is known online as ‘dealmein’. He’s currently doing well, up to 27,000 and all the folks at PSO wish him the best of luck!

On a board of K Q 7 9 , Benjamin Kang shoved and got looked up by Stephan Gerin. Benjamin’s J T  for the made straight an open-ended straight-flush draw, was ahead of Stephan’s KQ off (two pair) but the river was another King, giving Stephan the full boat and the pot. Benjamin was left with less than 1k in chips and lost those soon after, earning the rest of the summer off.

Eli Elezra went to the river where the board showed 9 7 6 5 2 . Eli fired a bet, his opponent shoved, Eli called, showing 9 6  for two pair. His opponent held 5 3  for the flush and the double-up. Eli was left with 13k.

On the turn with a board of K T 4 J Eli called all-in with KQ off for top pair. His opponent held KJ for two pair and barring a Queen on the river, it would be over. Well, the river was a 6 and Eli was busted. There will be no second bracelet for him this year.

David ‘the Dragon’ Pham moved all-in dark on the turn with a board of J 9 4. The turn was a 9 and his opponent insta-called, showing pocket 4s for the full boat. David’s pocket Aces were crushed and the river did not save him – he’s sunk.

Woody Deck’s pocket Aces morphed into a flush when four diamonds hit the board. Woody busted his opponent and chipped up to 40k.

Harry Demetriou flopped a straight with flush redraw and busted an opponent who had flopped a set of 5s. Harry chipped up to ~59k.

On the river with a board of K T 4 8 6, Nate Eaton checked and Vanessa Selbst moved all in for ~7k. Nate called, showing T9 for a pair of Tens. Vanessa mucked her hand, claiming a 4 for bottom pair on the flop, and departed the tournament floor.

On a board of K Q 7 , Lyle Berman checked, Robert Hauck fired 1,500, and Lyle called. Turn was the T . Lyle checked, Robert fired 3k, and Lyle check-raised him to 15k. Robert shoved and Lyle called, showing A J  for the Broadway straight with flush redraw. Robert held pocket 7s for the set. The river was another Ten, giving Robert the full boat and washing Lyle out of the main event.

Jonas Klausen was all-in and called on a flop of 9 8 7. His pocket Jacks were way ahead of his opponent’s AJ (gutshot and overcard). The last two were K 5 and Jonas doubled up.

On the river with a board showing Q 9 2 2 7, Noah Boeken called a ~6,600 all-in. His opponent showed pocket Tens, but Noah held AQ for a pair of Queens to take the pot, chipping up to ~54k.

Luis Velador, who was an early chip leader, is now without chips completely. On a board of Q 4 2 K, he moved in and Paul Hughes made the call. Luis held K5 for top pair, but Paul held KQ for top two pair. Luis was drawing dead and hit the rail.

Wizard Blake Cahail shove on the turn with a board of K 9 2 8 and got looked up. Blake’s K7 (top pair) was drawing dead to his opponent pocket 2s for the set. Blake was busted but you’ve got to give the guy props for paying off the prop bet he lost, even if it meant ESPN would film his final humiliation for air during the WSOP coverage.

More Goners: Allyn Jaffrey Shulman, Hilbert Shirey, Taylor Caby, Raymond Rahme, Jan von Halle, and Charles Kelley.

Level 2 came to a close at about 4:50pm and players were sent to enjoy another 20 minutes away from the felt.

For Devilfish, the swim in the Main Event sea is over. David Ulliott got his last 10,500 in pre-flop with 9 9, and his opponent made the call with Q Q. The A T 4 flop gave him a shot at a runner-runner flush, but the 3 on the turn ended that hope. His only shot at survival was a set, and the Queen on the river did make a set, just not his. As he gathered his things and left the table, the players all took turns making the obligatory "throwing the fish" back jokes.

There has been quite a bit of action over on table Green 64. Marco Johnson, Young Phan, and Chau Giang were sitting in a row, but that end of the table is a little lighter now. Johnson ran his A-K into pocket Aces to hit the rail. Dario Alioto slow played a set of 3s to pick up a big pot from Phan, dropping him down to around 13,000. A few hands later, Phan moved in on a 3 3 2 flop, tabling A K for the nut flush draw. His opponent held K K. Ignoring Phan’s request, the dealer turned the 3 to fill his opponent’s boat. The 4 on the river sealed Phan’s fate, and he made his way to the exit.

Maureen Feduniak's Main Event is also over.  She and opponent Ryan Jones both checked a 9 5 3 flop.  On the 2 turn, Jones moved in for 20,000, and Feduniak called him all in.  She held A A, but her pocket rockets were behind Jones' set of 5s.  The river was the T, not the Ace she needed, and Feduniak left to check on her husband's table.

Freddy Deeb ran his 7s into pocket Queens, ending his WSOP.  Manny Minaya managed a suck out with K-K against A-A when a King spiked on the turn.  But poker is cruel, and an Ace on the river sent Minaya packing.  James Mackey is out after Joe Sebok rivered a flush to beat Mackey's pocket Jacks.  Sebok is up to 28,000.   

At the beginning of the day, tournament staff announced that the first player to hit a royal flush would win a $100 gift certificate for a massage. Joe "The Show" Guahieri won the prize, but wasn’t exactly thrilled by it. Guahieri said that in an event with a $10,000 buy in, a $100 prize cheapens the tournament and is ridiculous considering the size of the vig. His opponent, who lost a chunk of change when his set of 7s encountered the royal flush, was not sympathetic to Guahieri’s complaints. "He won the hand," he said. "That should be enough."

Dawn Baleno got all-in against Luis Velador and her pocket Kings held up against his pocket Queens to double her up, knocking Luis off the leader-board. Dawn is now somewhere in the 50k range.

EG Harvin got all in with KJ on a Jack-high flop, only to get busted by a player holding pocket Queens.

Despite his valiant attempts to comeback from his early hit, Yequi ‘Rich’ Zhu has busted out, so the ESPN feature table has an empty seat. At the rate players are leaving, they are breaking tables and will fill that empty seat with another victim soon.

Lyle Berman’s pocket Kings held up and he pulled a nice pot, chipping up to ~29k.

The first 20-minute break of the day took place about 2:24pm and players streamed out of the Amazon Room heading for the Poker Kitchen, restrooms, smoking area, and the coffee stand.

Play resumed following the break with Level 2: Blinds 100/200.

Back-to-back pocket Kings spelled disaster for Axel Arvidsson. He lost a large pot to Mekhi Phifer, calling a 3k river bet on a board of K 7 5 6 8. Axel had flopped top set, but Mekhi held 64 for the rivered straight to take the pot. On the next hand, Axel moved in on the 9 3 2  flop and Mekhi made the call. Axel’s pocket Kings included the club, but Mekhi held A Q  for the bigger flush draw. The last two cards were 5 A  and Mekhi paired his Ace on the river to bust Axel.

On the river with a board of J 8 3 A 8, David Benyamine got his last chips in the middle. Avdo Djokovic made the call. David’s AJ for Aces-up was crushed by Avdo’s pocket Aces (Aces-full) and David his the rail early in level 2.

Svetlana Gromenkova has taken the chip lead with 51,600.

Maureen Feduniak is seated at table Blue 11 along with Michael Craig in the 2 seat and David ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott in the five seat. Michael took a bite out of the Devilfish early when he fired 1,500 at the pot on the river with a board of 7 4 3 8 9 . David folded and Michael took the pot.

The dealers have an All-In paddle and when they have an all-in that is called, they yell it out and hold up their paddles so that any nearby press can crowd around. The common theme in these all-in is an overpair versus a flopped set.

Along the same vein, a player got all-in on a flop of Q Q 6 and Jon ‘PearlJammer’ Turner looked him up. The player had pocket Kings and saw the bad news – Jon had pocket Queens for quads and he was dead to running Kings. A King hits the turn to make it exciting, but the river was a blank and Jon took the pot, sending his opponent home early with nothing but a bad-beat story to tell.

Jason Alexander of “Seinfeld” fame flopped top set with pocket 9s and got all-in and called by a player holding pocket Tens. The set held up and Jason doubled up.

Thomas Wahlroos gets his pocket Aces to hold up against a pair and a flush draw, picking up a pot and stacking up to 43k.

Juha Helppi busted a player when his 54 suited flopped a pair and rivered a wheel to beat AQ.

It would not be the Main Event of the WSOP without some poor sucker who lost a prop bet. Blake Cahail and Blair Hinkle had a bet that if Blair won a bracelet, which he did, Blake would have to play the main event in costume. So he is sitting at Blue-5 in full Wizard-wear.

John Gale is one of the early departures today. He got all in on the turn with a board of A J 2 J against Svetlana Gromenkova (who won a bracelet in the Ladies Event a couple of weeks ago). John held AQ off for Aces-up, but Svetlana held pocket ducks for the set to take the pot and send John packing.

Tom ‘durrr’ Dwan was playing most of the pots and being very aggressive. He lost a bunch to an opponent who flopped a set, then lost the rest to a player who held top pair, open-ender, and flush draw. Tom was ahead with two pair when the money went in on the turn, but his opponent caught the flush on the river to bust Tom. durrr

Luis Velador has moved into the chip lead with 50k. Svetlana Gromenkova is right behind with 49,500.

It is finally here! The 2008 WSOP Main Event day 1A began today at noon – well, shortly after noon. The crowds are still jamming the hallways here at the Rio Convention Center. Spectators were lined up at the spectator entrance starting at 11am, a full hour before cards hit the felt.

Mr. Las Vegas himself, Wayne Newton, escorted by the Jubilee girls and accompanied by the UNLV marching band playing Viva, Las Vegas, gave the order, “Shuffle Up and Deal!” at 12:24PM.

Level 1: Blinds 50/100. Players began with 20,000 chips. Levels last two hours and tables are 9-handed.

There is an ESPN feature table being filmed on the stage and Scotty Nguyen, the $50k HORSE World Champion, is at that feature table. Yequi ‘Rich’ Zhu is also at that table and early in the first round, he got all-in on a King-high flop holding pocket Aces. Unfortunately for Rich, his opponent held pocket Kings and had flopped a set. Rich was not busted, but was left short-stacked. He doubled up on a subsequent hand and then tripled up when he flopped a set of 3s to beat pocket Queens.

In other early action, an unknown player has already been eliminated, so everyone can now relax and loosen up. Rocco Lazazzao got all in on a 6 6 2 flop with pocket Jacks, only to face pocket Aces. A Jack on the river sent his hapless opponent home. I bet that was the fastest $10k they ever spent.

Dustin Dirksen has busted a player who had flopped a set of 4s, but Dustin turned Broadway to send the guy packing. Dustin is the early chip leader with 47,000.

Josh Arieh paid off an opponent who had the nut flush. Josh was left with only 7,500 chips.

Early number for today is 1,400 – players that is.  TJ Cloutier will be starting on Day 1C, but he stopped by Blue-11 to wish Bob Feduniak good luck. 

It's time for the big one! After 53 preliminary events played out over the last month, the time has come for the long awaited Main Event. Players willing to pony up the $10,000 buy-in will be spread out over four Day 1 flights starting Thursday and running through Sunday. All will be hoping to earn their spot in history; not to mention a sizable payday. Will last year's champ Jerry Yang make another deep run? Will we see a pro take it down? Be sure to stay right here at PokerPages.com as we bring you all of the live wire-to-wire action from the 2008 WSOP Main Event!

Live coverage of the Main Event - Day 1A begins Thursday, July 3rd.