Bodog Beat

Bodog poker pro Jean Robert Bellande is near the top heading into Day 2 of Event No. 53 of the 2008 WSOP. (Bodog Beat Image)

We're just days away from the 2008 WSOP Main Event and deep into the party week that happens around this time every year as people start to arrive, so we're trying to fulfill our duties to bring you updates from the 2008 WSOP while nursing a brutal hangover from the party we went to last, on which we will fill you in later.

Anyway, the last event before the Main Event hits, $1,500 Limit Holdem Shootout, is heading into Day 2 and Bodog poker pro Jean Robert Bellande is looking strong. The Shootout format for a poker tournament is one of the toughest out there because players basically have to win several single-table sit'n'gos in a row in order to reach the final table or win the title. After each round, the chip counts are reset and players have to start over.

Bellande won his first table midway through the day yesterday and had to wait around for a bit before the rest of the tables crowned victors that would join him in the second round. His table for the second round features some familiar names, including Blair Rodman, Will Durkee and Cristiano Blanco, and is currently the chip leader at that table.

Play resumes at 2pm local time and will wrap when each of the nine remaining tables has a winner and we have our final table. Stay tuned for live WSOP updates courtesy of the Bodog Beat and our kick-ass party write-ups, too.