As I elbowed my way through the crowds, poker hostesses, schwag vendors, and looky-loos, I ran into a friend. As he munched on a plate of french fries, he said, "I think I'm almost in."

Two blind levels had passed and my friend was alternate #378 (or somewhere in that neighborhood). And, yes, he was "almost in."

The early word (no relation to the early bird) was that the event was capped at 2,200, including alternates. The field has obviously grown much, much larger. It now appears, three hours into the event, we have finally reached the cap. Exactly what that cap is still remains to be reported.

The degree of "needle in the haystack" searching is more than I can properly express. It took me three trips through the room to find the ever-recognizable Terrence Chan. As it turned out, he was sitting near the rail, but not yet on it. Knowing Terrence, he won't be on the rail any time soon. For those who don't know him, Terrence went deep in several events last year and looks to do even better this year.

In the early going, Greg "Fossilman" Raymer cracked an opponent's ace's with trip-nines. As reported earlier, Steve Paul-Ambrose made an early exit. Scottjf8 was quick to report he was short-stacked, but happy to have his picture taken earlier. Other PokerStars players and W$ entries sat among the throngs, raking as many pots as they could find.