The chase for gold heats up as Day 2 kicks off at Event #68: $3,000 No-Limit Hold’em. A massive 1,882 entries turned out on Day 1, all with one dream in mind: capturing a coveted World Series of Poker bracelet. Of those, only 641 players return to battle at the Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas, but the field is far from set, late registration remains open through the first two levels, and more contenders are sure to join the fray.
The 2007 Main Event champ Jerry Yang returns for Day 2 armed with 338,500 chips. With over $8 million in tournament cashes, he’s no stranger to pressure with large sums of money on the line, and he’s gunning for bracelet number two.
Yang will be chasing chip leader Petre Ionescu, who bagged a healthy 702,000 on Day 1. Rehman Kassam (691,500) and Valentyn Shabelnyk (570,000) round out the top three and have chips to work with as they enter Day 2.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Petre Ionescu | Romania | 702,000 |
| 2 | Rehman Kassam | United Kingdom | 691,500 |
| 3 | Valentyn Shabelnyk | Ukraine | 570,000 |
| 4 | Neng Zhao | Australia | 448,000 |
| 5 | Fabian Niederreiter | Germany | 433,000 |
| 6 | Armin Rezaei | Austria | 432,000 |
| 7 | Paawan Bansal | India | 388,000 |
| 8 | Kunal Patni | India | 382,500 |
| 9 | Rachid Amamou | Switzerland | 366,000 |
| 10 | Dan Sepiol | United States | 360,000 |
Several prominent players are among the top 100 stacks. Preston Mcewen (341,500), Alex Kulev (297,500), Adrian Buckley (270,500), Romain Lewis (241,500), Steven Jones (240,500), Dylan Linde (239,000), Jason Wheeler (223,000), Dong Chen (223,000), Marle Spragg (215,000), Tristan Wade (195,500), and Ken Aldridge (194,500) will aim to grow their stacks and mount a deep run as the tournament unfolds
Cards will be in the air at noon local time, with plans to play 10 levels, each lasting 60 minutes. Stay tuned to PokerNews for live and exclusive coverage of the 2025 World Series of Poker!
