Quan Zhou Leads Final Seven in $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship
Out of a record field of 874 entries, only seven hopefuls remain to battle for the largest slice of the $8,128,200 prize pool in Event #74: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship. Some of the brightest minds among the four-card aficionados battled for three days to have a shot at the gold bracelet and leading the way is Chinese high-roller regular Quan Zhou with a stack of 16,750,000.
Zhou already has numerous deep runs during the World Series of Poker and recently finished seventh in Event #57: $50,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha for $294,013. With more than $12 million in live cashes, the coveted gold bracelet has still escaped him thus far. However, he went on a hot streak of knockouts throughout the day to earn the top spot, positioning himself for a shot at the gold.
Second in chips is Sean Rafael with 13,250,000, and the final spot on the overnight podium belongs to Michael Wang, who perhaps knows the highs and lows in this very tournament best after an incredible roller coaster ride. Wang was down to only 65,000 chips with the big blind at 100,000, but climbed back into contention to bag up 8,025,000 in chips.
Among the finalists is also three-time WSOP bracelet winner Alex Foxen, who was denied a fourth in Event #46: $250,000 Super High Roller No-Limit Hold'em when he finished runner-up to Seth Davies for a score of $3,060,314.
Seat Assignments for the Final Day
| Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Zulker | United States | 5,075,000 | 20 |
| 2 | Alex Foxen | United States | 2,725,000 | 11 |
| 3 | Sean Rafael | United States | 13,250,000 | 53 |
| 4 | Melad Marji | United States | 4,825,000 | 19 |
| 5 | Javier Francort | Netherlands | 6,825,000 | 27 |
| 6 | Quan Zhou | China | 16,750,000 | 67 |
| 7 | Michael Wang | United States | 8,025,000 | 32 |
Day 3 Action
The first two levels brought rapid-fire action and of the 56 returning hopefuls, nearly two dozen were sent to the payout desk early. Among the big names to fall were Daniel Perkusic, Alex Livingston, 2025 WSOP Player of the Year contender Scott Bohlman, Simon Lofberg and Stephen Chidwick.
Zhou went on a hot streak during which he sent several players to the rail, including Ray Attiyah and Brant Hale in a matter of minutes. Hale's exit was a cruel affair when Zhou's bottom two pair rivered a full house. Zhou remained near the top of the leaderboard for the next two levels, which brought the field quickly down to the final three tables. Among the notables to bow out thereafter were Robert Mizrachi and Thomas Taylor before the elimination of Marcello Del Grosso set up the sweet sixteen.
Javier Francort dealt the final blow to Del Grosso and jumped into the top spot. He was also responsible for the next knockout when his aces held against the double-suited kings of Ben Lamb. Moments later, Rafael made quads to crack the pocket aces of Stefan Lehner.
Next to bust was Michael Rocco, who made a rare appearance after his maiden gold bracelet win during the tail end of the 2024 WSOP. He was involved in multiple huge pots throughout the day and eventually ran out of steam, becoming the next casualty of Francort. David Paredes saw his hopes of an even deeper run vanish on the river when Zhou spiked a superior two pair.
Wang then continued his miracle comeback from fewer than one big blind, sending Erik Nordstrand to the rail and knocked out Isaac Kempton shortly after. Jorryt van Hoof lost a duel of Dutchies to Francort when kings ran into aces and Erik Seidel lasted only minutes on the unofficial final table when his pocket aces were cracked by Zhou.
Pocket aces were also involved in the final all-in clash of the night when Simeon Tsonev made a stand, but his jacks with a live suit could not get there against Michael Zulker to send the Bulgarian to the rail in eighth place.
Final Table Results and Remaining Payouts
| Seat | Player | Country | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,394,579 | ||
| 2 | $929,688 | ||
| 3 | $650,567 | ||
| 4 | $462,451 | ||
| 5 | $334,017 | ||
| 6 | $245,194 | ||
| 7 | $182,983 | ||
| 8 | Simeon Tsonev | Bulgaria | $138,863 |
The final seven contenders will be back on Tuesday, July 1, at 2 p.m. on the main feature table inside of the Horseshoe Event Center. All seven contenders have locked up $182,983 for their efforts. However, the huge top prize of $1,394,579 awaits the eventual champion. Blinds for Level 31 will be 125,000-250,000 with a big blind ante of 250,000.
The conclusion of the tournament is set to be streamed on PokerGO, on delay with cards-up coverage and commentary. PokerNews updates will be published on delay, in sync with the stream, to avoid spoilers. Stay tuned for the exciting finish!