by Craig Cunningham

By night, Table 168 is devoted to the lucrative NLHE cash games that go on at the Rio. It is a big part of the World Series of Poker experience, and spectators can become players for alot less than the $10k buy-in required to enter the Main Event. By day, this table was devoted to six PokerStars qualifers. John Rickard (1s, left) is from Blue Mounds, Wisconsin. When the glaciers retreated to form what is now Wisconsin, the land left behind formed chunky hills and depressions in the land. Kettle moraine is the geological term, and the cliffettes are quite distinctive. John was hoping to avoid any big spikes today, and he held fairly steady for much of the day. Tim Reynolds (2s, center) had doubled up early and looked to be a force.

David Rood, (2nd from left, Yankees cap) aligns himself with the Yankees since the Expos left his native Montreal. Unfortunately for David, he departed before the dinner break. FPP qualifier Raphael Doromal is a student at the University of Florida, majoring in Sociology. He doesn't miss the winters of Chicago, and the scenery can be pretty good on campus, too.

Arnaud Turpin from Paris survived something every poker player who's played for awhile has experienced: aces losing to kings. "He caught a king on the river for a set, and it knocked me down to $2,700 in chips." Arnaud had enough chips to keep playing, which can be the difference for those surviving Day 1. You want to have chips to weather the storm; without that, a bad beat can send you to the rail.

FPP Qualifier Jim Scherer checked out the iPod of Lynette Chan, an aspiring cash game player who's relocated to Las Vegas from LA this year. "I don't have much," said Jim. "I haven't bought a new pair of shoes in two years. If I make it the end of the day, I'm going to do something to my hair. If I make it to Day 4, I'll have some work done on my teeth." You can't help pull for someone like Jim, and we passed in the hall after the 11:00PM dinner break. Looks like I may need to set an appointment at the salon for him.