Bodog Beat

Poker pro Chad Brown emerged from Day 1A of the EPT Barcelona among the top ten chip leaders. (Image courtesy of europeanpokertour.com)

As we mentioned earlier, the EPT Barcelona is one of the most popular stops on the European Poker Tour and this was proved yesterday when Day 1A almost hit the maximum number of entrants possible, pulling in 297 out of a possible 300. The Casino Barcelona played host to poker champions from the world over and then ruthlessly dispatched many of them on its way to trimming the Day 1A field down to the 102 who were left standing.

Making it through to Day 2 near the top of the field was poker pro Chad Brown, who ends the day in eighth place, just 20k in chips out of first place. Other notables joining him will be Mark Teltscher, Rafe Furst, Isaac Haxton, November Niner Scott Montgomery, Robert Mizrachi and Jason Mercier.

Those who were sent to the rail to do some sightseeing in beautiful Barcelona include Michael Mizrachi, Bodog poker pro David Williams, Erica Schoenberg, Mike "Timex" McDonald, and Annette "Annette_15″ Obrestad. Might we suggest the famous Salvador Dali cathedral, La Sagrada Familia, as part of your tour of the city. It's beautiful.

Anyway, Day 1B is already underway and, while the numbers are not yet official, it looks like another capacity day at the Casino Barcelona, which should lead to an impressive prize pool and hefty first-place cash prize. Two rounds in and we can tell you that the field is already a little lighter in the star power arena, having lost Gavin Griffin, Daniel Negreanu, Isabelle Mercier, Bertrand "Elky" Grospellier and Bodog poker pro Jean-Robert Bellande.

Stay tuned to the Bodog Beat for more updates and if you want to qualify for an EPT event, then head over to the Bodog Poker room and check out the daily qualifiers for a $12,000 Player's Choice package.