Break Time; Nearly 300 Players Eliminated, Isaac Baron Takes Chip Lead
The first level of Day 3 has come and gone here in the Main Event with close to 300 players being eliminated in two hours of play. Approximately 1,566 players are remaining, and they are all now heading on a 20-minute break.
Once the cards hit the air it would be a slow first few orbits as players settled in for the day. Some short stacks doubled and were eliminated while some of the chip leaders began where they left off. WPT Champion Taylor von Kriegenbergh would soar up the leaderboard when he called an all-in holding second pair and a straight draw on the turn and got the on the river. NBA Superstar Paul Pierce then found a double holding 
on a 
against 
while a big pot for Isaac Baron saw a new chip leader emerge.
On a 
board, Baron and his opponent Anthony Denicco endured a raising war before Denicco was all in holding against Baron's . There would be no one-outer on the turn and river as Baron soared up to 674,000 in chips as Denicco hit the rail.
Joining Denicco on the rail included the likes of Dan Kelly, Humberto Brenes, James Calderaro, Nick DiVella, Nate Meyvis, Theo Jorgensen, and Daniel Negreanu. The 2013 WSOP Player of the Year chipped up early today, but then called a huge bet with 
on a queen-high board only to run into Jeffrey Chang's 
. Negreanu would then commit the remainder of his chips with two pair but would run into Chang's flopped flush to hit the rail just short of break.
As play ended for the level, it would be Baron still on top with 695,000 in chips, but start-of-day chip leader Phil Ivey — who made quads earlier — has seen his stack climb to 600,000 while Munir Shahin, Raul Mestre, Steve Tripp and Michael Aron are all among the top few counts as well.
Speaking of Aron, he knocked out Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué late yesterday, as he explained to our Caitlin Howe afterwards — take a look: