Defending Champ Among 1,299 Left Heading to Day 4 of $10,000 Main Event
Day 4 of action in the 2022 World Series of Poker $10,000 Main Event kicks off today at noon local time after an exciting and lengthy Day 3 that saw the money bubble burst. All 1,299 of the remaining players are guaranteed at least $15,000 of the $80,782,475 prize pool, while the top prize of $10 million awaits the eventual winner.
Defending champion Koray Aldemir, who less than a year ago won the 2021 Main Event at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino for $8 million, is now looking to win a Main Event bracelet in the WSOP's new home at Bally's and Paris Las Vegas as he enters the fourth day of play with a healthy stack of 67 big blinds.
The German poker pro will be joined on the felt by a handful of Main Event champions still in contention: Damian Salas (2020), John Cynn (2018), Ryan Riess (2013), Greg Merson (2012), and Chris Moneymaker (2003).
Topping the counts heading into Day 4 is Aaron Mermelstein, who bagged a stack of more than two million that is good for 250 big blinds as he looks to add to his $3.6 million in live earnings. Close behind is another crusher with millions in earnings, Michael Rocco, who ended Day 3 with 1,866,000 in chips.
2022 WSOP Main Event Day 3 Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aaron Mermelstein | United States | 2,059,000 |
| 2 | Michael Rocco | United States | 1,866,000 |
| 3 | Gabi Livshitz | Israel | 1,835,000 |
| 4 | Brandon Lulo | United States | 1,679,000 |
| 5 | Leo Zamarripa | United States | 1,643,000 |
| 6 | Jake Abdalla | United States | 1,615,000 |
| 7 | Thi Nguyen | Canada | 1,600,000 |
| 8 | Jordyn Miller | United States | 1,580,000 |
| 9 | Mathieu His | France | 1,565,000 |
| 10 | Ian Armstrong | United Kingdom | 1,563,000 |
Other well-knowns who will battle it out in Day 4 of poker's most prestigious tournament include Shannon Shorr, Brian Rast, Martin Zamani, Cliff Josephy, Mitchell Halverson, Jared Jaffee, Loni Hui, Phillip Hui, Angela Jordison, Joey Weissman, Max Pescatori and John Juanda.
The money bubble burst in the early Sunday morning hours on Day 3 and saw three players chopping up the $15,000 min-cash for $5,000 each, a nice rebate on their $10,000 entry. Those three players were Robert Lipkin, Ognjen Sekularac and Tom McCormick, who were fortunate enough to avoid going home empty-handed when they busted in unison.
Like previous days, Day 4 will consist of five two-hour levels of play with 20-minute breaks after every level and a 75-minute dinner break after Level 18, which is expected to be around 5:40 p.m. Play will resume on Level 16 with blinds of 4,000/8,000/8,000.
Stay tuned as the PokerNews live reporting team is on-site and ready to bring readers all the updates on Day 4 of the $10,000 Main Event at the 2022 World Series of Poker.
Former Main Event Champions on Day 4
| Rank | Player | Country | Year Won | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 339 | Koray Aldemir | Germany | 2021 | 537,000 | 67 |
| 505 | Damian Salas | Argentina | 2020 | 405,000 | 51 |
| 594 | John Cynn | United States | 2018 | 343,000 | 43 |
| 699 | Chris Moneymaker | United States | 2003 | 268,000 | 34 |
| 806 | Ryan Riess | United States | 2013 | 218,000 | 27 |
| 923 | Greg Merson | United States | 2012 | 168,000 | 21 |