WSOP Main Event Day 1

All eyes are officially on the World Series of Poker, if they weren’t already. The main event began Monday and promises to bring an interesting finish to a WSOP that has already been surprising.

During day one play, former bracelet winners fell, and a number of celebrity players stayed in the game. 2003′s main event champion Chris Moneymaker ended the day with 100,000 chips, while notable favorite Greg Raymer was booted after just one round of play.

The celebrities didn’t fare as well as the pro poker players. Long time poker fan of Ray Romano did well until the evening, but after the dinner break found himself out of the game. Actor David Alan Grier made it through day one, but with only 6,000 chips. NBA player Shawn Marion, of the Dallas Mavericks, nearly made it through day one play but was booted at the end of the night.

The main event is the culmination of several weeks of poker play at the Rio Casino in Las Vegas. It is slated to end July 17. The event just prior to the Main Event was the Ante Up for Africa celebrity tournament, held over the weekend. Professional poker player Phil Gordon, who plays for Team Full Tilt Poker, took first in that charity tournament. Actress Shannon Elizabeth came in a close second.