Eslami on Top as Rast Attempts to Cement Legacy on Final Day of Razz Championship
Of the 134 players who took part in the second-largest World Series of Poker $10,000 Razz Championship over the past couple of days, only 12 will return to the Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas today at 1 p.m. local time to battle for the title.
Leading the way is Ali Eslami, who surged into the chip lead late on Day 2 en route to bagging up 1,336,000 as he eyes a second WSOP bracelet. Hot on his heels are fellow WSOP champs Brian Yoon (1,240,000) and Andrew Yeh (1,231,000), who sit neck-and-neck just two big bets behind.
Day 3 Seating and Chip Counts
| Table | Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Bets |
| FT1 | 1 | Christian Roberts | Venezuela | 230,000 | 5 |
| FT1 | 3 | Ryutaro Suzuki | Japan | 741,000 | 15 |
| FT1 | 4 | Maksim Pisarenko | Russian Federation | 692,000 | 14 |
| FT1 | 5 | Andrew Yeh | United States | 1,231,000 | 25 |
| FT1 | 6 | David Funkhouser | United States | 361,000 | 7 |
| FT1 | 7 | Joao Vieira | Portugal | 461,000 | 9 |
| FT2 | 1 | Brian Yoon | United States | 1,240,000 | 25 |
| FT2 | 2 | Ali Eslami | United States | 1,336,000 | 27 |
| FT2 | 4 | Brian Rast | United States | 694,000 | 14 |
| FT2 | 5 | Nikolay Ponomarev | United Kingdom | 939,000 | 19 |
| FT2 | 6 | David Steicke | Australia | 47,000 | 1 |
| FT2 | 8 | Ray Fishman | United States | 94,000 | 2 |
Sitting sixth in chips is Poker Hall of Famer Brian Rast, who will be chasing a seventh career bracelet and further validation as one of the all-time greats. With 694,000 chips (14 big bets) entering Day 3, the high-stakes legend sits comfortably in the middle of the pack and is well within striking distance of winning it all.
Everyone remaining has already locked up a payday of at least $20,999, but a cool $306,644 awaits the eventual champion in addition to the coveted gold bracelet.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $306,644 |
| 2 | $204,423 |
| 3 | $142,579 |
| 4 | $101,983 |
| 5 | $74,857 |
| 6 | $56,424 |
| 7 | $43,706 |
| 8 | $34,817 |
| 9 | $28,547 |
| 10-11 | $24,112 |
| 12 | $20,999 |
The action will resume on Level 19, which features limits of 25,000/50,000 with a 5,000 ante. Levels will continue to last 90 minutes each and the plan is to play until a winner is crowned.
With so much at stake, the final 12 players are surely ready to Razzle! Stay locked in with PokerNews as we bring you all the action right up until a single player is left standing as the latest Razz champion!