Sunday, July 30, 2006 | 11:36 a.m.
DAY: 3 (Officially known as Day 1C)
BIG NEWS: Sam Farha, the runner-up to Chris Moneymaker in 2003 and a well-known face in poker circles, was out of the tournament less than an hour after it started. He went out when his full house got beaten by four 6s. Greg Raymer, the 2004 champion, was struggling early, holding at about 8,000 chips almost four hours into the day.
STUDS OF THE DAY: Six-time WSOP winner T.J. Cloutier is a candidate, after some early wins pushed him to nearly 20,000 in chips. But maybe the real winner was an unknown 20-something guy named Matt Wilson. After bluffing his way to a win early, Wilson flipped over his pair of hearts and told the table he had really bad cataracts and couldn't tell that two of the three cards that came up on the flop were diamonds, not hearts.
BUSTED OUT: Farha, bracelet winner Benjamin Lin, self-proclaimed poker diva Liz Lieu.
CELEBRITY UPDATE: Actress Jennifer Tilly, widely considered one of the best stars and ladies to play the game, was down to about 3,500 chips after four hours. Louie Anderson was doing well with 14,000 chips, despite taking a 10-minute penalty for foul language. And there was a Martin Short in the room, but it wasn't THAT Martin Short.
POKER TALK: Dead Money: Money brought into games by unskilled amateurs who supposedly don't have a chance. Pros used to love to see lots of it. With a field of more than 8,600 players, though, and with unknowns having won the last three main events, it's hard to tell who the dead money really is anymore.
UP NEXT: On Monday, the final day of the first round, with more than 2,000 players taking the first step toward the $11 million first prize. Defending champion Joe Hachem is the headliner.
HE SAID WHAT?: "Better early than later, right?" -Farha, after he was eliminated less than an hour into the tournament.
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