The World Series of Poker Main Event reached the final table on Tuesday after seven days of play in Las Vegas. The final nine players now return to action on Tuesday later in the afternoon to play down to the final four with a champion crowned on Wednesday.
The winner scores the championship bracelet and $8 million with all players at least earning $1 million. The final table includes several international players with Germany’s Koray Aldemir leading the pack.
Aldemir returns with 140 million chips, a deep stack of 175 big blinds. After a long day, Aldemir looked forward to resting up.
“The focus is on sleeping well,” he told WSOP.com after Day 7. “That’s going to be kind of important. It’s of course a big final table, but it’s still poker. So I’ll try to play well. Just normal poker. I’ll try to play it like any other final table and see where it brings me.”
In other events, several other international players were making big runs and winning bracelets. Here’s a look at the latest news.
Event 67: $10,000 Main Event
When play began in the Rio on Tuesday, 36 players returned to the action. After six starting flights and Day 2 registration, the event brought in 6,650 players for a $62 million prize pool.
The last man standings can look forward to a bracelet sporting 10 karats of yellow and white gold encrusted with 2,230 rubies and white and black diamonds.
Beyond Aldemir, a few other players from outside the US return. Argentina’s Alejandro “Papo MC” Lococo sits third in chips. The freestyle rapper has a big following in Latin America and recently signed as a PokerStars ambassador.
“What I enjoy most about poker is the different emotions that you experience while playing,” Papo told PokerScout in August. “Beyond this, poker has helped me get to know wonderful people and visit wonderful places. It’s given me great friends and amazing stories.”
DIOS 🔥🦅 Me voy a dormir🔥🦅 https://t.co/lShTE5cm8R
— BESTIA Papo MC 🔥🦅 (@PapoMcArg) November 16, 2021
Two players from the United Kingdom also return. Jack Oliver is fifth in chips with 24.5 million and Jareth East returns as the short stack in ninth with 8.3 million.
Turkey’s Ozgur Secilmis enters the final table in sixth with 24.5 million. Here’s a look at the final nine players:
- Koray Aldemir (Germany), 140,000,000
- George Holmes(US), 83,700,000
- Alejandro Lococo (Argentina), 46,800,000
- Joshua Remitio (US), 40,000,000
- Jack Oliver (UK), 34,000,000
- Ozgur Secilmis (Turkey), 24,500,000
- Chase Bianchi (US), 14,100,000
- Hye Park (US), 13,500,000
- Jareth East (UK), 8,300,000
Poker fans looking to follow the final table can check out PokerGO beginning at 4:30 pm (ET) on Tuesday. The four-player action continues on Wednesday at the same time.
Event 71: $1,500 Bounty Pot Limit Omaha
France’s Mourad Amokrane transitioned from final table chip leader to winner in this event. He scored his first bracelet and $132,844 with Matt Mamiya taking runner-up for $82,100. The tournament brought in 860 entries for a $1.1 million prize pool.
Event 72: $1,500 Mixed NLHE; Pot Limit Omaha
Several international players scored big in this event, which brought in 846 players for a $1.1 million prize pool. Japan’s Motoyoshi Okamura took down the tournament for his first bracelet and $209,716. Brazilian rounder Rafael Mota finished runner-up for $129,621.
“Winning the bracelet has been a dream of mine,” Okamura told WSOP.com afterward. “This is my first time playing the WSOP, and I will surely be back next time.”
Others in the top five were:
- 3rd – Nicolas Yunis (Chile), $91,989
- 4th – Leonid Yanovski (Israel), $91,989
- 5th – Mike Takayama (Philippines), $48,428
Two more online bracelets awarded
WSOP.com featured two more bracelet events on Sunday as the end of the series gets closer. Estonia’s Aleksejs “APonakov” Ponakovs took down the first one, the $7,777 Lucky 7s High Roller. He won his first bracelet and $432,491 for the effort.
Canada’s Jaroslaw “johnnyloveit” Jaskiewicz took the runner-up spot for $267,232 in an event featuring 183 entries for a $1.3 million prize pool.
In the $777 version of the Lucky 7s, Bulgaria’s Yuliyan “Dr.Feelg00da” Kolev came out on top for his first bracelet and $146,163. The tournament produced 1,122 entries for a $785,400 prize pool.
More tournaments on the horizon
The action at the Rio continues this week with several other events as the series winds its way to a conclusion on Nov. 23. Here’s a look at events in the coming days.
- 77: $1,500 Fifty Stack NLHE – Nov. 16
- 78: $10,000 Razz Championship – Nov. 16
- 79: $1,979 Poker Hall of Fame Bounty – Nov. 17
- 80: $3,000 Six-Handed PLO – Nov. 17
- 81: $800 NLHE Deepstack – Nov. 18
- 82: $250,000 Super High Roller – Nov. 18
* Lead image courtesy PokerGO