The first freezeout event of the 2025 World Series of Poker attracted a total of 1,027 entries to Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas, where the action was fast and furious on Day 1 of Event #35: $3,000 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em.
The total prize pool is set at $2,742,090, with 156 players returning on Wednesday on the stone bubble.
Leading the way is Hongru Zhang, who bagged 992,000 for a slim lead over David Cabrera Polop (986,000). They represent the only players bringing back more than 80 big blinds for Day 2, where all eyes will be on locking the $6,000 prize after one more elimination.
Among the notable names lurking just outside the top ten is Kristen Foxen, who used a double knockout in Level 11 to climb up the leaderboard before finishing the night with 677,000 chips.
Sitting in 11th place is John Hennigan, who saved some chips by checking back against Michael Mizrachi’s straight flush and collected 511,000 by the end of 17 levels. Mizrachi also bagged a healthy 304,000 to sit inside the top 50 for Day 2.
Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hongru Zhang | China | 992,000 | 83 |
| 2 | David Cabrera Polop | Andorra | 986,000 | 82 |
| 3 | Tony Huang | United States | 930,000 | 78 |
| 4 | Andrew Murphy | United Kingdom | 799,000 | 67 |
| 5 | Anil Jivani | United States | 798,000 | 67 |
| 6 | John Ciccarelli | United States | 771,000 | 64 |
| 7 | Erik Eisen | Germany | 727,000 | 61 |
| 8 | Hattori Lopez | United States | 709,000 | 59 |
| 9 | Matt Affleck | United States | 690,000 | 58 |
| 10 | Nicholas Marchington | United Kingdom | 680,000 | 57 |
The field remains full of WSOP bracelet winners looking to add to their collections. That list includes Yuri Dzivielevski (393,000), Brian Yoon (239,000), and Simone Andrian (234,000). Scott Bohlman also returns for Day 2 with 292,000, searching for his second bracelet of the summer.
Many other notables took their shot but failed to find a bag on Day 1, including Adam Friedman, Stephen Song, Alex Foxen, Jack Sinclair, and GG Poker Ambassador Felipe Ramos.
The tournament will award $451,600 to the eventual winner, and will begin Day 2 on the direct money bubble. Only the top 155 places will be paid, with a $6,000 cash waiting on a single elimination.
Action resumes inside the Horseshoe Event Center at 12 p.m. local time on Level 18, with blinds at 6,000/12,000 with a 12,000 big blind ante. The schedule calls for 10 more levels to be played before the penultimate day concludes.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be back inside the ropes to bring you all of the exciting action, so be sure to check our updates throughout the day as they battle into the money and beyond.
