WSOP Day 27: Hellmuth Advances in Razz, Big Names in Monster Stack

June 25, 2018

Sean Chaffin Contributor

Event #50: $1,500 Razz got underway on Sunday, and among those returning for Day 2 is 14-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth who has had plenty of success in WSOP razz events and will be hoping for an appearance on Day 3.

In Event #49: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed Championship, Ryan Hughes returns as chip leader for the second straight day. Meanwhile Event #48: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MONSTER STACK moves into Day 2, where 2015 Main Event Champion Joe McKeehen, Ben Lamb, Michael Mizrachi, and Stephen Chidwick are among those returning.

Event #48: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MONSTER STACK

After two monstrous starting flights in the MONSTER STACK, a total of 2,085 players return for Day 2 on Monday. The first starting flight on Saturday brought in 2,246 entries and only 723 survived. On Sunday, 4,014 entered the field from which 1,362 made it through. The event featured a grand total of 6,260 entries for a prize pool of $8,451,000 and a first-place prize of $1,037,451.

In the second flight, Kfir Ivgi finished the day as chip leader with 196,700, while James Karamanis bagged 163,600 in chips to lead the Day 1a flight.

Others returning include David Cabrera, (155,000), Andriy Lyubovetskiy (155,000), Joe McKeehen (129,800), Boris Kolev (108,300), Ronnie Bardah (68,000), DJ MacKinnon (56,500), Ana Marquez (52,100), David Bach (49,200), Veselin Karakitukov (350,800), Ben Lamb (314,100), Michael Mizrachi (275,100), Stephen Chidwick (245,300), six-time bracelet winner Layne Flack (206,400), Mike Leah (194,200), and John Monnette (57,500).

The event’s second day of play begins at 11 a.m. and PokerNews will be there. Click here to follow along with the live updates team.

Event #49: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed Championship

After two days of play, only 37 players remain with Ryan Hughes again on top with 2,366,000. Hughes is looking for his third bracelet after a runner-up finish already this summer in Event #40: $2,500 Mixed Big Bet for $75,477.

Hughes is followed by Rep Porter (1,700,000), William Kopp (1,618,000), Yan Shing Tsang (1,463,000), and Brandon Shack-Harris (1,200,000). Others also remaining include Scotty Nguyen (897,000), Joey Ingram (749,000), and Ryan Laplante (672,000).

The event attracted 476 players and the winner will take home a payday of just over $1 million.

The PLO resumes at 2 p.m. and PokerNews will have all your live updates. PokerGO will also be streaming this final table — click here to view.

Event #50: $1,500 Razz

The low-stakes lowball fun concluded Sunday with 118 players remaining from a field of 389 entries in the $1,500 razz event. Victor Shalom will return as chip leader with 76,600, followed by Richard Sklar (61,000), John Beringer (59,800), Kyle Montgomery (56,000), and Bijan Mirzasafi (54,000).

Others still remaining include Adam Owen (52,300), Ylon Schwartz (41,000), Max Kruse (40,200), Rex Clinkscales (37,900), Brandon Cantu (31,000), Chris Bjorin (13,300), and Barry Greenstein (7,400).

Player of the Year contenders John Hennigan (32,200) and Shaun Deeb (23,200) are also still in this one. So is Phil Hellmuth (17,500), who has two wins and a runner-up finish in razz tournaments since 2012. Hellmuth was pleased to have a shot at another title.

Heading to Day 2 of @WSOP Razz w a lot of swagger and positivity, and high hopes! #PHSwagger #JustDoIt #POSITIVITY https://t.co/qnUDoN91D0
— phil_hellmuth (@phil_hellmuth)

The winner will take home $125,431 and the gold bracelet. Day 2 restarts at 2 p.m. Check back with PokerNews for all the live updates.

Event #51: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Bounty

Saddle up bounty hunters, as each knockout earns a player $500 in this popular tournament. Late registration lasts eight levels, and players begin with 7,500 starting chips with levels lasting 60 minutes.

Chris Bolek, from Boca Raton, Florida took home this title last summer for his first bracelet and $266,646.

Cards are in the air at 11 a.m. and PokerNews will have all the bounty-busting fun in this three-day event. Check back for all the updates.

Event #52: $10,000 Limit Hold'em Championship

The old school limit hold’em returns to the Rio on Monday with a big buy-in and should make for a nice top prize. Players start with 50,000 chips and the event features 60-minute levels.

Last year Joe McKeehen took down this event in 2017 for his second bracelet and $311,817. McKeehen already has two huge finishes this summer, finishing third in Event #3: $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em SHOOTOUT for $101,766 and third as well in Event #21: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MILLIONAIRE MAKER for $538,276.

The event gets underway at 3 p.m., but late registration will be available until the start of Day 2. Be sure to stick with PokerNews for start-to-finish coverage of this and every bracelet event.

Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas. His work appears in numerous websites and publications. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions. He is also the host of the True Gambling Stories podcast, available on iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn Radio, Spotify, Stitcher, PokerNews.com, HoldemRadio.com, and TrueGamblingStories.com.

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