Home Victory

The main event may be dominated by Norwegian talent, but last night's warm-up event witnessed a home victory with Portugal's own Jose Esteves topping the podium.

The tournament, a $100 no limit Hold'em freezeout, took place after the Visions Show, and involved a number of familiar names including Rolf Woods, Andreas Hoivold and Orjan Holt. The latter of those three, however, may have been the first exit of the day, as he hit the deck within just a few hands and was met with sarcastic applause as he returned to his seat in defeat.

As the swift structure made short work of the competition, we witnessed more chops than a Jackie Chan film as the last ten struck a deal, before the final two, both of whom were Portugese, agreed to a two-way split in which they each received an additional $1,400. In the end, it was Esteves who was the last man standing, the hometown hero proving that evenin an arena commanded by Scandinavians, it would be foolhardy to count out the local talent.

Only time will tell if Esteves, or any of his fellow countrymen, can echo that sentiment as we head into today's much anticipated main event.