Another action-filled day at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas saw two 2023 World Series of Poker bracelets awarded, and Dan Cates‘ quest for a three-peat in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship ended abruptly.
The first bracelet of the day came in Event #41: $1,500 Big O, a brand-new tournament for the 2023 WSOP. A field of 1,458 players started the event with high hopes, but only one of them walked away as a WSOP champion. Scott Abrams is that champion after they defeated Robert Williamson III heads-up to secure the event’s bracelet and $315,203 top prize.
Some 3,778 players may have bought into Event #42: $800 No-Limit Hold’em Deepstack (8-Handed) but it only took two days of poker action to find the tournament’s champion Qiang Xu is that player. Xu got their hands on a $339,033 payout plus their first gold bracelet.
James Obst Leads the Way in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship
Event #43: $50,000 Poker Players Championship saw 26 late entrants, taking the total attendance to 99, but only 32 players had chips requiring bagging and tagging when the curtain came down on the day’s action.
Dan Cates was one of the players who busted on Day 2. Cates, who had won this event in 2021 and again in 2022, played throughout the tournament dressed as The Terminator, as you do. All eyes were on Cates terminating the opposition, but it was he that was dismantled when Daniel Alaei made a wheel against him during a Limit 2-7 Triple Draw round in Level 10.
Cates announced, “I’ll be back,” but unless he can travel back in time like the real Terminator, Cates must be referring to the 2024 edition of this event.
Australia’s James Obst (2,972,000) leads a ridiculously stacked field into Day 2 of this event. Obst and the aforementioned Alaei (2,064,000) are the only two players armed with at least two million chips.
Phil Ivey (1,655,000), Talal Shakerchi (1,598,000), and Johannes Becker (1,387,00) round out the top five chip counts.
Day 3 commences at 1:00 p.m. local time on June 20, with PokerNews bringing you all of the action for another six levels.
Event #43: $50,000 Poker Players Championship Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Obst | Australia | 2,972,000 |
| 2 | Daniel Alaei | United States | 2,064,000 |
| 3 | Phil Ivey | United States | 1,655,000 |
| 4 | Talal Shakerchi | United Kingdom | 1,598,000 |
| 5 | Johannes Becker | Germany | 1,387,000 |
| 6 | Josh Arieh | United States | 1,365,000 |
| 7 | Brian Rast | United States | 1,306,000 |
| 8 | Lyle Berman | United States | 1,268,000 |
| 9 | Dzmitry Urbanovich | Poland | 1,196,000 |
| 10 | Nacho Barbero | Argentina | 1,158,000 |
Monster Stack Field Cut Down to 42
China’s Xuming Qi sat down on Day 3 of Event #39: $1,500 Monster Stack as one of the shortest stacks yet he heads into the fourth and final day armed with 24,300,000 chips, which are enough for the chip lead.
Marcos Exterkotter (23,575,000) and Steven Snyder (21,275,000) also bagged stack of more than 20 million.
Three bracelet winners remain in contention to add to their collections. Joe Cada (8,950,000), the 2009 WSOP Main Event champion, is lurking outside the top 20. Arash Ghaneian (6,575,000) is slightly shorter, while Jesse Rockowitz (2,250,000) is the second shortest stack.
Day 4 shuffles up and deals at 12:00 p.m. local time on June 20, and continues until one player has all of the chips in play in front of them. PokerNews is the place to discover who that champion is.
Event #39: $1,500 Monster Stack Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Xuming Qi | China | 24,300,000 | 97 |
| 2 | Marcos Exterkotter | Brazil | 23,575,000 | 94 |
| 3 | Steven Snyder | United States | 21,275,000 | 85 |
| 4 | Yuanjun Lu | China | 19,535,000 | 78 |
| 5 | Jonathan McCann | United Kingdom | 18,600,000 | 74 |
| 6 | Matthew Volosevich | United States | 16,350,000 | 65 |
| 7 | Joshua Adcock | United States | 16,125,000 | 65 |
| 8 | Nate Silver | United States | 13,275,000 | 53 |
| 9 | Ian Schechter | United States | 13,175,000 | 53 |
| 10 | David Vedral | Austria | 12,000,000 | 48 |
Petrone Bags Big on Day 1 of the $3K No-Limit Hold’em
Ramiro Petrone bagged up the biggest stack after Day 1 of Event #44: $3,000 No-Limit Hold’em. Petrone’s 367,000 chips place him narrowly ahead of Luis Pinho (360,500) in second, and Jiacong Zhang (348,000) in third.
Some 1,511 players bought into the tournament, and 596 of those progressed to Day 2. Among those survivors are the likes of David Miscikowski (244,500), Michael Gathy (240,000), Grant Hinkle (235,000), Joseph Cheong (228,000), Ryan Leng (200,000), Brian Yoon (193,000), John Hennigan (162,000), Kristen Foxen (98,000), Maria Ho (97,500), and Daniel Negreanu (72,000).
Play resumes at 10:00 a.m. local time on June 20 with PokerNews being the only place to follow the action.
Event #44: $3,000 No-Limit Hold’em Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ramiro Petrone | Argentina | 367,000 | 184 |
| 2 | Luis Pinho | Portugal | 360,500 | 180 |
| 3 | Jiacong Zhang | United States | 348,000 | 174 |
| 4 | Lachezar Petkov | Bulgaria | 327,000 | 164 |
| 5 | Sebastien Grax | France | 305,000 | 153 |
| 6 | Colton Blomberg | United States | 296,000 | 148 |
| 7 | Harlan Karnofsky | United States | 280,000 | 140 |
| 8 | Alen Tenorio | Brazil | 268,000 | 134 |
| 9 | Daron Greenblatt | United States | 267,500 | 134 |
| 10 | Lyudmil Ivanov | Bulgaria | 266,000 | 133 |
Mixed Omaha Event attracts 1,091 Players on Day 1
Scott Clements (274,000) bagged up one of the biggest stack in Event #45: $1,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better as he hunts for the fourth WSOP bracelet of his long and illustrious career.
This event drew in 1,091 entrants, smashing last year’s 771 attendance by some margin, and continuing the theme of a record-breaking WSOP. Only 316 of those starters punched their Day 2 tickets, including Joey Couden (234,500), Allan Le (220,000), James Woods (212,000), Men “The Master” Nguyen (149,000), recent addition to the two bracelet club Ben Lamb (146,000), Omaha specialist Mike Matusow (116,000), and Sammy Farha (51,500).
Cards are back in the air from 1:00 p.m. local time, with ten 60-minute levels scheduled. Of course, PokerNews will be providing live updates every step of the way.
Event #45: $1,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yusheng Lin | Taiwan | 455,000 |
| 2 | Scott Clements | United States | 274,000 |
| 3 | Christopher Gallagher | United States | 241,500 |
| 4 | Jonathan Hart | United States | 235,000 |
| 5 | Joey Couden | United States | 234,500 |
| 6 | Caleb Furth | United States | 230,000 |
| 7 | Uzair Mulla | United States | 230,000 |
| 8 | Jeffrey King | United States | 227,500 |
| 9 | Allan Le | United States | 220,000 |
| 10 | Mark Erickson | United States | 212,000 |
What to Expect on Day 22 of the 2023 WSOP
Three new events, including an online affair, enter the mix on Day 22 of the 2023 WSOP. Event #46: $500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em should attract a monster-sized field, while Event #47: $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. will be packed with lovers of mixed games.
Online poker specialists will turn out in force for Online Event #8: $3,200 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller. Last year’s equivalent tournament awarded champion Julien Perouse a cool $324,767.
Day 21 also sees Event #39: $1,500 Monster Stack award its bracelet, Event #43: $50,000 Poker Players Championship inch towards crowning its champion, Event #44: $3,000 No-Limit Hold’em play its Day 2, and Event #45: $1,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Low 8 or Better make strides towards its final table.