Kohei Arai raised to 500,000 from middle position with the K♦Q♠, Michael Mizrachi three-bet to 1,350,000 from the button with A♦10♥ for Daniel Iachan to four-bet to 4,000,000 from the small blind with the A♥K♠. Arai folded but Mizrachi needed more time to consider his options. In the end, Mizrachi folded and Iachan offered to show his cards. He did so for Mizrachi to smirk.
"Nice hand, if I shove, you fold obviously," Mizrachi commented. Iachan laughed.
Action folded to Michael Mizrachi in the small blind who raised to 600,000, prompting a call from Daniel Iachan in the big blind.
On the K♠5♥2♦ flop, Mizrachi continued for 475,000, and Iachan made the call.
Mizrachi didn't slow down on the 2♥ turn and fired another bet of 775,000, and Iachan made the call again.
When the 2♣ appeared on the river, Mizrachi checked and so did Iachan, who tabled 5♠4♣ for a full house of deuces over fives, and Mizrachi's cards found the muck.
Michael Mizrachi kicked things off with a raise to 400,000 from under the gun. Action folded to Joshua Beckenstein in middle position; he made the call with A♣A♠.
Kosaku Akashi on the button then decided to go all in for his last 3,550,000 with 3♣3♥, prompting Mizrachi to fold and Beckenstein to snap-call.
The flop came down 8♥J♦10♦, offering no help for Akashi, and the K♥ turn and the 4♠ river didn't improve his hand, sending him to the rail.
Michael Mizrachi opened the action with a raise to 400,000 holding A♠7♠ from middle position, and Kohei Arai made the call with 5♠5♥ on the button to see a flop.
The dealer spread 9♣7♥J♦, and Mizrachi continued with a bet of 200,000. Arai called without much hesitation.
The 5♣ hit the turn, and Mizrachi kept his foot on the gas with a larger bet of 675,000. Arai stuck around once again.
When the 2♣ completed the board, Mizrachi slowed down and checked. Arai seized the opportunity to take the lead, firing 2,200,000 into the pot. Mizrachi went deep into the tank but eventually slid his cards into the muck, conceding the pot to Arai.
Joey Padron raised to 450,000 from the button, and Adam Hendrix called from the small blind. Action checked through to the river, where the board read K♦Q♠Q♥7♣2♦.
Hendrix bet 300,000, but folded after Padron made it 1,400,000.
For the third hand in a row, Kyle Grupp and Michael Mizrachi clashed.
Grupp opened from the hijack with 9♣8♣ to 400,000, and Mizrachi, sitting on Q♥Q♣, fired back with a three-bet to 975,000.
Grupp made the call, and they went to a flop that came 6♣7♦8♠, giving Grupp top pair and an open-ender.
Grupp led out for 625,000, and Mizrachi responded with a raise to 2,100,000. Grupp came over the top with a shove to 7,800,000, leaving just 25,000 behind. Mizrachi moved all in, and Grupp took his time before the call, putting his tournament life on the line.
With the cards on their backs, Grupp needed a ten, nine, eight, or five to survive. The 2♥ turn offered no help, and the Q♠ river sealed it as Mizrachi improved to a set and sent Grupp to the rail after a dramatic three-hand saga.
Joey Padron opened from middle position to 400,000, and Adam Hendrix called in the hijack. Tomas Szwarcberg also called from the big blind.
They went to a flop of 6♥A♥A♠, where Szwarcberg checked and Padron continued with a bet of 250,000. Hendrix put in a raise to 900,000, which earned him the pot as his two opponents folded.
Szwarcberg took down the next two pots as he raised from the small blind and button consecutively without any competition.
From a field of 9,735 hopefuls chasing poker’s most prestigious title, only 57 players remain as Day 7 of the 2025 World Series of Poker $10,000 Main Event No-Limit Hold'em World Championship begins today at 12 p.m. local time inside Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. They’ve already locked up $165,000 apiece, but the real prize lies ahead: a spot at the final table, and a shot at the $10,000,000 top prize from the massive $90,535,500 prize pool.
Kenny Hallaert leads the way after a late-night surge on Day 6 saw him eliminate two players with aces, which sent his stack soaring to 36,950,000. Hallaert, who was born in Belgium but now resides in the UK, is no stranger to this stage as he finished sixth in 2016, and now finds himself in familiar territory with a chance to make poker’s biggest final table once again.
Kenny Hallaert
Eric Afriat sits just behind with 31,200,000 after a dream Day 6 that included cracking aces and a set of queens in a 20-million chip pot when his combo draw came in on the river. Despite multiple major titles, Afriat’s lone WSOP final table came back in 2018 when he finished fifth in The Closer. He didn’t hesitate when asked if he’d trade it all just to make the Main Event final table, “100 percent,” he said. “Maybe this is the second magic that’s going to happen.”
Rounding out the top three is Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi, who bagged 19,925,000 thanks in part to a hero call with pocket sevens for a flush on a four-heart board late on Day 6. The seven-time bracelet winner famously finished fifth in the 2010 Main Event and says this run is déjà vu...except this time he said, “we’re gonna win it.”
Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Kenny Hallaert
Belgium
36,950,000
246
2
Eric Afriat
Canada
31,200,000
208
3
Michael Mizrachi
United States
19,925,000
133
4
Daehyung Lee
South Korea
18,675,000
125
5
Chad Power
United States
18,575,000
124
6
Richard Freitas
Brazil
18,500,000
123
7
Joey Padron
United States
16,675,000
111
8
Adam Hendrix
United States
16,125,000
108
9
Braxton Dunaway
United States
15,725,000
105
10
Muhamet Perati
Italy
14,950,000
100
Among the 57 players returning for Day 7 are several familiar faces and rising stars hoping to carve their names into Main Event history. Adam Hendrix (16,125,000) and Braxton Dunaway (15,725,000) both bagged healthy stacks as they look to parlay consistent series runs into career-defining results. Muhamet Perati (14,950,000), Derek Sudell (12,925,000), and Leo Margets (6,400,000) also made it through, with the Spanish player once again earning the label of last woman standing.
Tomas Szwarcberg, who finished 30th last year, is back for another Day 7 appearance with 11,500,000, while Joey Padron (16,675,000) and Daehyung Lee (18,675,000) sit comfortably in the top ten.
Greg Merson
One of the most intriguing storylines belongs to Greg Merson, the 2012 Main Event champion and the only Main Event winner still in contention. Merson bagged 3,025,000 and will return as one of the shorter stacks, but with his deep-run experience and Main Event pedigree, he's not a player anyone will be overlooking.
Remaining Payouts
Place
Prize
Place
Prize
1
$10,000,000
10-11
$750,000
2
$6,000,000
12-13
$560,250
3
$4,000,000
14-17
$450,000
4
$3,000,000
18-26
$360,000
5
$2,400,000
27-35
$300,000
6
$1,900,000
36-44
$240,000
7
$1,500,000
45-53
$200,000
8
$1,250,000
54-57
$165,000
9
$1,000,000
The 57 remaining contenders have secured at least $165,000. The next pay jump comes at 53rd place, where payouts rise to $200,000. As the field shrinks, so do the gaps between life-changing sums: $300,000 awaits those who survive to the final 35, while a spot in the top 11 is worth at least $750,000. Though the bracelet won’t be awarded today, every decision on Day 7 inches players closer to the $10,000,000 top prize and a place in poker history.
With the blinds starting at 100,000/200,000 and a 200,000 big blind ante, the pressure will be on from the beginning. The average stack sits at just over 10,200,000, giving players just over 51 big blinds. Every pot matters. Every decision could be the difference between a historic run and a heartbreaking exit.
Action gets underway at 12 p.m. local time, with cards-up coverage streaming on PokerGO on a one-hour delay starting at 1 p.m. Stick with PokerNews throughout the day for exclusive chip counts, hands, photos, and player interviews as the road to the final table continues.
