The words that have defined the 2025 World Series of Poker aren’t “Shuffle Up and Deal,” call, raise, or fold. It’s the phrase “Not Like That!”
When those words are heard ringing throughout the Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas, it can only mean one thing: Martin Kabrhel is there, and he’s in fine form. The Czech high roller already has one bracelet this summer, in the Mini Main Event, and has his sights set on another deep run when he and thousands of others combine for Day 2abc of EVENT #81: $10,000 WSOP MAIN EVENT No-Limit Hold’em World Championship at noon local time.
Kabhrel begins the day with an above-average stack of 168,700 after an opening flight in which he was up to his usual tricks. It was a good start, but he’s still far behind the chip leader, two-time bracelet winner Andriy Lyubovetskiy (392,400). Victor Vo (352,000), Justin Yaker (348,000), Bin Weng (336,000), and Marc Spitaleri (309,500) round out the top five at the start.
Day 2abc Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andriy Lyubovetskiy | Ukraine | 392,400 | 491 |
| 2 | Victor Vo | United States | 352,000 | 440 |
| 3 | Justin Yaker | United States | 348,000 | 435 |
| 4 | Bin Weng | United States | 336,000 | 420 |
| 5 | Marc Spitaleri | United States | 309,500 | 387 |
| 6 | Eric Bunch | United States | 309,300 | 387 |
| 7 | Michael Mizrachi | United States | 297,000 | 371 |
| 8 | Jeremy Dan | United States | 282,000 | 353 |
| 9 | Dakota Baggett | United States | 270,400 | 338 |
| 10 | Raoul Kanme | Netherlands | 270,000 | 338 |
Day 1 is about the atmosphere, of homegame heroes achieving a lifetime dream and enjoying the moment while the seasoned pros try to navigate the minefields. Beginning on Day 2, it starts to dawn on players just how much of a grind and marathon the Main Event is. More than 2,500 begin the day, but thousands of others have already fallen, victims of the pitfalls that await on any given hand.
Among those who survived their opening flight and return today include Michael Mizrachi (297,000), inaugural WSOP Paradise champion Stanislav Zegal (256,400), Calvin Anderson (230,200), last year’s sixth-place finisher Andres Gonzalez (219,500), 2019 finalist Nick Marchington (217,300), and 2017 finalist Alex Lynskey (216,600). Further down the leaderboard are WSOP Europe champion Max Neugebauer (193,300), James Obst (178,300), Roman Hrabec (162,500), Yuri Dzivielevski (161,300), Michael Addamo (92,600), and last year’s fifth-place finisher Boris Angelov (82,500).
Phil Hellmuth, after making his usual flamboyant entrance a few days ago after months of claiming he wasn’t going to play the Main Event for the first time in nearly 40 years, has 85,000, but that is eclipsed by his son Phillip Hellmuth III (87,200), who is making his Main Event debut. Mike Matusow (158,200), Daniel Negreanu (122,500), and Johnny Chan (57,800) also headline the field today.
The four starting flights built up a field of 8,694. A total of 2,680 advanced from the first three days. Late registration remains open for the first two levels of today’s Day 2abc and tomorrow’s Day 2d, so there is a chance the field passes the 10,000-mark for a third straight year. The action picks up on Level 6 with blinds of 400/800 and an 800 big blind ante. Levels remain 120 minutes, with a 75-minute dinner break after Level 8.
The diamond-encrusted bracelet, the one thing every player dreams of having around their wrist, was unveiled yesterday. It is a tangible sign of just what is at stake in the biggest poker tournament in the world. The road to poker immortality continues today, and PokerNews will be following all the action and providing live updates.
