The season opener of WPT Season XXI kicked off in style at the Thunder Valley Resort Casino in Northern California, with 474 entrants in the $3,500 Main Event. After eight levels of play, players bagged up their chips for the night, and Albert Knafo emerged as the leader with a commanding stack of 425,000 chips, equivalent to 283 big blinds.
Knafo, who cashed in the 2022 WPT World Championship, is looking to carry that momentum into this week’s Main Event. Here’s a look at the top 10 chip counts heading into Day 2:
WPT Rolling Thunder Main Event – Top 10 Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Albert Knafo | 425,000 | 283 |
| 2 | Andrew Esposito | 377,000 | 251 |
| 3 | Eric Wong | 343,000 | 229 |
| 4 | James Turner | 338,500 | 226 |
| 5 | Derrick Geliberte | 302,500 | 202 |
| 6 | Vu Nguyen | 301,000 | 201 |
| 7 | Bilguun Odgerel | 274,500 | 183 |
| 8 | Dan Sarazin | 269,000 | 179 |
| 9 | Taylor Black | 266,000 | 177 |
ClubWPT Qualifier Makes Day 2
One standout story from Day 1 is Ray Stadelman, a ClubWPT qualifier who won a LearnWPT promotional event to earn his spot in this prestigious tournament. Stadelman, playing in the biggest buy-in of his life, bagged up 60,000 chips and will continue his run into Day 2 with 40 big blinds. A Kentucky native, Stadelman is in town with his wife, Robbie, to cheer him on.
WPT Champions Club Members in the Mix
Several WPT Champions Club members were also in the mix on Day 1, with notable names bagging chips including:
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Brian Altman: 107,500
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Andy Frankenberger: 102,500
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Eric Afriat: 86,500
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Tyler Patterson: 76,500
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David “ODB” Baker: 75,500
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Tony Dunst (WPT Ambassador): 57,500
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Anthony Zinno: 49,000
Other notables in the hunt include Conrad Simpson (215,000), Angela Jordison (201,000), Michael Wang (191,500), Nick Pupillo (184,500), and Allen Kessler (38,000).
Day 2 Schedule
Day 2 will kick off at 12:00 pm with blinds at 1,000/1,500 and a 1,500 big blind ante. Players can still buy into the event until the start of Level 11 (approximately 2:15 pm), and with unlimited reentries, the total entrants and prize pool are expected to grow.
For those interested, Day 2 seat assignments can be found on the local room’s blog.
It promises to be an exciting continuation as the field narrows down and the prize pool increases!
