WSOP Day 9: Hellmuth's Pursuit for the 18th Bracelet Continues, Kabrhel's Bizarre Blunder, and a Dealer's Enormous Error

Deeb and Hellmuth Battle for the Title

The No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship with a $10,000 buy-in attracted a total of 198 entries. The star-studded field contributed to a prizepool of $1,841,400, with the winner set to receive, along with the golden bracelet, a reward of $428,923.

After a grueling second day, during which the money bubble burst, only 13 remain in the race for the title. American star Shaun Deeb leads the pack, with Japanese player Ryutaro Suzuki close behind. 

The most watched player of the final day will be Phil Hellmuth. The legendary "Poker Brat" had a rollercoaster day, knocking out defending champion Nick Schulman, surviving a three-way all-in, but eventually Shaun Deeb surpassed him by day's end.

Hellmuth enters the final from 12th place with a stack of 620,000 and admitted on social media platform X that winning this particular tournament has been a dream of his since 1990. A victory would extend his record-setting collection to a remarkable 18th golden bracelet.

In contention for the title is also Alex Foxen, who was among the short stacks before the bubble burst but finished the day in the top ten. In contrast, Daniel Negreanu, who fought for his tournament life on the bubble, finished in 20th place ($21,432).

Standings after Day 2 – Event #17: $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship

Dealer's Blunder Knocks Out a Player

The $10K GG Million$ witnessed one of this year's series' most controversial moments, described by commentators as "one of the worst things they had ever seen."

With 22 players left, shortstack Ricky Landais went all-in with A s K c against Bobby James' A d 9 s. The dealer made a fatal error by dealing a four-card flop without first burning a card.

The floor manager ruled that the four cards be shuffled, and one random card be selected as the "burn" card. Unfortunately, the selected card was the king, which would have given Landais top pair. Although Landais initially had the lead on the new flop, James managed a straight on the turn and river, brutally eliminating Landais in 22nd place with $41,942.

The tournament, which drew 627 entries and created a prizepool of $5,831,100, has narrowed down to its final eight. Naseem Salem from the USA enters the final day as the massive chipleader, close to winning the $1,089,964 prize.

Event #11: $10,000 GGMillion$ High Roller Standings

Ardire's Victory and Kabrhel's Bizarre "Celebration" of Defeat

A significant interest in Pot-Limit Omaha in the deepstack format resulted in 2,636 entries and a prizepool of $1,328,544. The overall winner, after a dramatic course, was American Philip Ardire, who earned $171,589 and his first gold bracelet.

The championship concluded with an almost hour-long heads-up against Randy Jacks, in which Ardire hit the "broadway" straight on the flop against his opponent's set and could begin celebrating victory.

The tournament also made headlines due to the curious elimination of controversial Czech professional Martin Kabrhel. Kabrhel, who made it to the 17th place, got into an all-in against two opponents. After the cards were revealed, Kabrhel misread the board and exuberantly celebrated victory, believing he had hit a winning straight.

His joy was promptly curtailed by tablemates, who pointed out that David Avina held a higher, "nut" straight. Kabrhel was eliminated, but he created one of the most viral moments of the series.

Final Table Results of Event #15: $600 Pot-Limit Omaha Deepstack  

Resai Leads the Titans' Encounter, Moncek's Bizarre "Surrender"

The first of two starting days of the prestigious $25K High Roller attracted poker's elite. The opening flight 1a saw 81 entries, raising the prizepool to $1,903,500, with late registration open at the start of day two. After eight levels, 25 players bagged chips, with Austrian pro Daniel Rezaei in the lead.

While stars like Stephen Chidwick, Jason Koon, and Jesse Lonis also advanced, others were not as fortunate, with Joao Simao, Artur Martirosian, and Jeremy Ausmus among the eliminated.

Michael Moncek provided the day's biggest peculiarity. After losing most of his stack, he exercised the rare "surrender the stack" rule, voluntarily giving up his remaining 5,000 chips to immediately use a re-entry just before the day's end. His second attempt lasted precisely one hand, as he went all-in blind and ran into Stephen Chidwick's A d 3 h with K d 6 h.

Top 10 Stacks after Day 1a – Event #19: $25,000 High Roller NLH 8-Handed

Justin Liberto Ends Long Wait for Second Bracelet

The combined Omaha tournament alternating between PLO Hi-Lo, Omaha Hi-Lo, and the popular "Big O", attracted 1,287 entries. Players created a prizepool of $1,708,492, with the winner awaiting $265,297. After three days of intense action, American pro Justin Liberto celebrated victory by defeating Chris Lee in a dramatic heads-up.

The decisive moment came in a Big O game on a board of 8 h 7 d 5 d K d T h, where Liberto with A d Q s 8 c 2 s 2 d hit the nut flush as well as the best low, decisively knocking out his opponent holding A c 9 s 6 s 5 s 3 c.

For Liberto, this win was of special significance. He captured his first gold bracelet back in 2015 and since then has reached many WSOP final tables, yet the title always narrowly eluded him.

Final Table Results of Event #14: $1,500 Mixed PLO Hi-Lo 8 or Better / Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better / Big O

When a PhD Student Defeats Pros

The ninth day of play at the WSOP delivered a captivating story in the dynamic 6-max format. Emerging victorious from a field of 1,840 entries was a champion hailing from the academic world. Honghao "Theo" Zhang, a 26-year-old PhD student at Georgia Tech, turned his very first ITM at the World Series of Poker into a golden bracelet win and a reward of $346,108.

Zhang, who has only been playing poker since 2023 as a hobby alongside demanding studies, didn't have an easy path to victory. There was a point when he even fell to the bottom of the standings at the final table. However, his analytical approach helped him remain patient and wait for crucial moments, such as a runner-runner flush that eliminated David Rees in third place.

Entering heads-up against Karnofsky nearly even, Zhang quickly built a dominant lead. In the final hand of the evening, Zhang's A d 5 c held up against his opponent's A h 4 c, definitively demonstrating that mathematical precision still holds sway in modern poker.

Final Table Results of Event #13: $1,500 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em

Antonio Vargas Heads Final Circuit Championship Lineup

The season's highlight of the Circuit, taking place during the summer WSOP, has concluded a challenging second day. Out of a total of 2,148 entries, which created a $3,231,666 prize pool, only 32 players are left vying for the gold bracelet and the top prize of $439,605.

Leading the field is American Antonio Vargas, who gained an edge thanks to a successful play where he read Antonius Samuel's bluff, setting him on a winning wave.

Top 10 Stacks after Day 2 – Event #16: $1,700 U.S. Circuit Championship 

The Start of a Massive Monster Stack and Dealers Choice

Complementing the ninth day's schedule were two newly launched events. The highly anticipated Event #18: $1,500 Monster Stack opened with flight 1a, featuring 1,514 entries. A total of 538 players advanced to the second day, led by Zhijian Zhang. High in the standings are Martin Kabrhel, as well as notable names like John Juanda, Qui Nguyen, and Patrick Leonard.

Running in parallel was Event #20: $1,500 Dealers Choice, which challenges players with the option of selecting from 20 different poker variants. The tournament recorded 656 entries, generating a prizepool of $870,850. After the first day, only 132 players remain competing for the bracelet and a winning prize of $161,057. Leading the pack is two-time WSOP winner Jose Velador, with Norwegian mixed games specialist Tobias Leknes on his heels.

Among those advancing to Day 2 are defending champion Benny Glaser, Nick Schulman, and Michael Mizrachi.

Sources: WSOP, X