Split-Pot Hopefuls Return at 1 p.m. to Chase $205,333
A total of 910 entrants came out to play Day 1 of Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better at the 2025 World Series of Poker yesterday at 2 p.m. From that sizable starting field, just 224 players survived to make it into the second day with the hope of collecting a piece of the $1,255,117 purse. Once the field hits the money today and a minimum cash worth $3,027, the goalposts will shift and eyes will be set upon bagging up for Day 3 and claiming the massive first place prize of $205,333.
David Shmuel (249,000) leads the field and is hunting for his first WSOP bracelet, with Jon Kyte (247,000) following behind him also looking for his first after finishing second last year in the $2,500 Omaha 8/Stud 8-or-better tournament. With defending champion James Chen having been eliminated yesterday, his throne remains empty for a new player to take their seat.
Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Shmuel | United States | 249,000 | 42 |
| 2 | Jon Kyte | Norway | 247,000 | 41 |
| 3 | Jason Bral | United States | 225,000 | 38 |
| 4 | Chuning Tan | China | 225,000 | 38 |
| 5 | Joe Ford | United States | 224,000 | 37 |
| 6 | Joseph Bertrand | United States | 224,000 | 37 |
| 7 | Richard Mirin | United States | 219,000 | 37 |
| 8 | Jeremy Trojand | Germany | 218,000 | 36 |
| 9 | Douglas Lorgeree | United States | 217,000 | 36 |
| 10 | David Thurston | United States | 216,000 | 36 |
Also securing bags are plenty of other WSOP veterans like two-time WSOP bracelet winner Alex Livingston (215,000), WSOP Online Main Event Champion Stoyan Madanzhiev (179,000), four-time WSOP bracelet winner Mike Matusow (174,000), and bracelet winner Scott Bohlman (154,000), just to name a few. Each will be looking to start their summer off strong with a claim on this title and the glory of the WSOP bracelet.
With Kyte, Livingston, Matusow, and Bohlman all being drafted in the 25K Fantasy Draft, the heat is on as other fellow gladiators take part in the fight further down the leaderboard. The list of the remaining 25K Draft players is as follows: Brad Owen (154,000), Yueqi Zhu (153,000), Tomasz Gluszko (144,000), Chris Hunichen (141,000), David Funkhouser (137,000), Yuval Bronshtein (132,000), Christopher Vitch (125,000), Andrew Brown (121,000), Robert Mizrachi (104,000), Kane Kalas (103,000), Brad Ruben (95,000), Michael Moncek (80,000), Ismael Bojang (80,000), Ari Engel (76,000), Jon Turner (71,000), and Scott Seiver (50,000). All teams will be looking on as very interested observers as the day progresses.
Play will begin at 1 p.m. in Horseshoe Red with blinds sitting at 3,000/6,000 with 6,000/12,000 limits. Levels will last one hour each and players will go on a 15-minute break at the conclusion of every two levels, with a 60-minute dinner break at the conclusion of Level 21. After that, play will continue until the conclusion of Level 25 and the remaining players will bag up before returning to play Day 3 on Friday.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for all of the exciting updates on the ground of the 2025 WSOP.