Phil Hellmuth's pursuit of an 18th bracelet will continue, after Jason Daly streamrolled his way to his second bracelet and the top prize of $244,674, after eliminating the last four opponents at the final table.
Last year's runner-up Jon Kyte and Tobias Hausen were sent to the rail before Daly eliminated the aforementioned Hellmuth in third place.
Kevin Choi fell just minutes later, with Daly a dominant force short-handed, just like in his first bracelet victory two years ago.
"When I get to these final tables, I'm boom or bust," Daly said. "I go for it. So when you get the momentum, you don't let off the gas. If they get back to even, then you worry about a strategy," he shared after his victory.
Event #47 Final Table Results
Place
Player
Country
Prize
1
Jason Daly
United States
$244,674
2
Kevin Choi
Hong Kong
$163,085
3
Phil Hellmuth
United States
$112,360
4
Tobias Hausen
Germany
$78,825
5
Jon Kyte
Norway
$56,327
6
Alexander Orlov
Russia
$41,013
7
Christopher Claassen
United States
$30,439
8
Ruiko Mamiya
Japan
$23,036
The biggest story for the majority of the day was Hellmuth's search for a record-extending 18th bracelet. Daly and Hellmuth were seated next to each other during the entire final table, and in classic Hellmuth style, the 17-time bracelet winner had some choice words for the eventual champion every now and then.
Daly had nothing but postive words for Hellmuth after his win, however: "It's to be expected. He's nice about it. If he crosses the line, he'll apologize. It's good for the game."
Hellmuth was, of course, not the only opponent Daly faced on his road to victory, and Daly stated that adapting to different opponents is a big part of his game. "I feel like I have a good sense for where I'm at versus other people. I think that's a big thing in this mix. Playing Hellmuth or Choi, the ranges are going to be vastly different."
Daly's Day of Domination
Daly started the day as third in chips and had climbed to second on the leaderboard once the final three tables were reached. He continued his run by eliminating poker legend Gus Hansen in 24th for $7,771. After the departure of Hall of Famer Brian Rast (22nd - $9,257), Daly sent out Gary Benson (19th - $9,257 and Eiichiro Teshima (17th - $9,257) to reach the final two tables.
Continuing to send players to the rail, Daly was also a part of the eliminations of Benny Glaser (16th - $9,257), who saw his hopes for a third bracelet this summer come to an end, and Lynda Tran (14th - $11,269). Eventually, Jon Turnerbubbled the unofficial final table in tenth place for $14,010, and William Flachsbartfinished in ninth for $17,784.
Daly started the final table even in chips with Hellmuth, but soon took a significant lead. After a relatively quiet period for Daly, he and Hellmuth knocked out Alexander Orlov in sixth, after which Daly's aforementioned streak of eliminations began. At one point during three-handed play, Daly had 85 percent of the chips in play, and he finished the job not much later to pick up his second bracelet in three years.
"The first one is great, but the second one brings a little more validation," Daly stated, carrying his newly acquired WSOP bracelet with him. "Especially as the final 27 of this field were sick."
Daly stated he was unsure if he would be playing more this summer, originally planning to leave after this event, which he deemed one of his favorites.
Whether Daly shows up to play more or not, PokerNews will be covering every event from the 2025 World Series of Poker straight from the tournament floor, so check out our WSOP hub for the most recent updates.
