2012 World Series of Poker

Event 61: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event
Event Info

2012 World Series of Poker

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
k5
Prize
$8,531,853
Event Info
Buy-in
$10,000
Prize Pool
$62,021,200
Entries
6,598
Level Info
Level
42
Blinds
1,000,000 / 2,000,000
Ante
300,000

Three-Way Battle for the Gold Between Merson, Syvlia and Balsiger

The Final Three Players: Jake Balsiger, Greg Merson, Jesse Sylvia
The Final Three Players: Jake Balsiger, Greg Merson, Jesse Sylvia

Today is the day, folks! It's the day everyone in poker has been waiting for, and the day we crown a World Series of Poker Main Event champion!

The excitement in the air is absolutely unrivaled by anything in the industry, and you can feel the buzz pumping through your veins. Just walking into the Penn & Teller Theatre here on this Tuesday evening in Las Vegas, the fans are donning their appropriate attire in support of each of the three remaining players, and the chants have already begun. The only question left is: Will it be Greg Merson, Jesse Sylvia or Jake Balsiger walking away with the gold?

Each of the three remaining players has their own story. Sylvia entered the final table with the chip lead, but only Jonathan Duhamel was able to turn the chip lead into a victory since the inception of the final table delay. Greg Merson could become WSOP Player of the Year and complete the full 180 degree turn of his life after falling into a drug addiction. If Balsiger wins, he'd become the youngest Main Event champion since Joe Cada took the title in 2009. Each have a story, and each are hoping to successfully write the final chapter.

Merson will take the chip lead into three-handed play today, as he bagged up 88.35 million last night. Nearly all of that was thanks to Andras Koroknai in what some would call and early Christmas present. Sylvia sits in second place with 62.75 million, and Balsiger will be bringing up the rear with 46.875 million, but this is really anyone's ball game.

The blinds will start at 300,000/600,000/75,000, so all three remaining are still fairly deep. That means we'll probably be here for awhile, so hunker down and get ready for some amazing poker action. The cards are in the air at 5:45 PM local time, so stay tuned!

Tags: Jake BalsigerJesse SylviaGreg Merson