It was a tough day for some, a better day for others. Halloween is supposed to bring all sorts of weird creepy things into the world for a day, so the hyper-superstitious may have been a little weary as they settled down for seven levels or elimination – whichever came first.

A typically stronger field for day 1b which found few tables getting an easy ride. The plight of Justin Francis and Tom Bentham was explored in depth before Tom found his tournament hopes quashed in a late hand when it seemed a trip back here for day 2 was all but in the bag. It was not to be.

The same went for Daniel Tarnapol who’s day was divided into two. The first part was his several hours of comfortable chip building. The second part was the two minute hand that saw him out and heading for the hotel, out in level 5.

But anyone finding themselves on the rail was in good company. Past EPT Dublin winners Ram Vaswani and Roland De Wolfe were out in the early stages, so too Thomas Wahlroos. EPT Baden winner Julian Thew was also out, his A-K falling short to his opponent’s pair which was good enough.

The day was beset with exits. Roy Brindley was forced out in the closing stages of the day, so too Patrick Bruel. But it plainer sailing for other, including Team PokerStars Pros Katja Thater and Luca Pagano. They had spent the day together watching as a flurry of others stopped by their table before moving on.

But opening days are always volatile and there will always be dramatic exits. Tomorrow tooas the 75 survivors from today join with the 48 who made it safely through day 1a. Day 2 is just around the corner with the money on the horizon. Cards will take to the air once more at 2pm.

To recap on the events of the day visit the links below:

Trick, cheat, check or bet

The who’s who

The age gap takes its toll

Industry hall and former lives

Leading the way

Back to where we started