The 2019 WSOP Main Event field has trimmed from 8,569 players to 354 and while we don’t know who will claim the $10 million prize on July 16, we do know it won’t be a past champion. Qui Nguyen, the 2017 world champion, was the final former winner still standing on Day Four but was eliminated before the session concluded.
While most of the big name pros are gone, there are still some familiar faces coming back for Day Five. They include former NFL star defensive end Richard Seymour, Mike Matusow, Antonio Esfandiari, and Todd Brunson. And we certainly can’t forget about our own forum member and CardsChat Ambassador Jacki Burkhart who left the Rio on Tuesday with plenty of chips.
(Click here to follow her forum posts as she continues her journey toward the final table.)
Reunited with my buddy Tara from the ladies Final table….played our last 3 hours together tonight @WSOP #wsopME @CardsChat I bagged 1.5milly she bagged 1.25 @BJNemeth pic.twitter.com/eVRiTOUWub
— Jacki Burkhart (@jackiburkhart81) July 10, 2019
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie Part II?
In 2005, Joe Hachem put on a show when he won the Main Event. He quickly became a crowd favorite at the final table for his classy demeanor and energetic rail that chanted, “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oy! Oy! Oy!” after every pot he won.
The Australian poker champ busted on Day Three short of the money. But his son, Daniel, is still grinding, hoping to follow in his footsteps as a Main Event champion.
Daniel Hachem, whose appearance leaves no doubt he’s related to the 2005 world champion, bagged 2,450,000 chips. That’s good for 55th out of 354 remaining players.
Hachem isn’t the only son of a former Main Event champion still standing, however. Todd Brunson, whose Poker Hall of Fame father Doyle, finished Day Four with 1,151,000, which is around the average. The elder Brunson won the Main Event in 1976 and 1977. The Brunson’s are the only parent-child combo in the Poker Hall of Fame.
Other Notable Day Five Chip Stacks
- Antonio Esfandiari (2,583,000)
- Dario Sammartino (2,352,000)
- Olivier Busquet (2,041,000)
- Jacki Burkhart (1,503,000)
- Alex Foxen (933,000)
- Mike Matusow (726,000)
- Jay Farber (436,000)
- Cary Katz (200,000)
Dean Morrone, an 888poker online qualifier, has the biggest stack (4,980,000).
Cary Katz pulled double duty on Tuesday. He went back and forth from the Main Event to the $50,000 High Roller which was also running in the Amazon room. The Poker Central founder also cashed in the high roller, finishing 12th for $112,357.
Brandon Adams, who recently won a bracelet in an online event, leads heading into the $50k final table.
Rough Day for Past Champions
Chris Moneymaker making the final table would have made for an exciting story. But the 2003 champion, who cashed in the Main Event for the first time in 16 years, was eliminated on Day Four in 687th place ($20,200).
Moneymaker’s demise left two past champions – Qui Nguyen and Johnny Chan. Chan was nursing a small stack for most of the day and the 1987 and 1988 winner busted in 560th place ($24,560).
It was up to Nguyen to carry the torch. And for quite some time it appeared he was destined for another deep run. But after getting his kings cracked by a set, he lost a big chunk of his stack. On his final hand, he moved all-in pre-flop with pocket fives but ran into a slightly better pair – sixes. The 2016 Main Event champion was eliminated in 455th place ($30,780).
So, when Day Five kicks off at noon PT on Wednesday, every remaining player will by vying for their first Main Event title.
