Ilkka Heikkila moved all in for his last 30,000 from the big blind and was up against Greg Mueller under the gun and Tyler Meservy in the cutoff.
Heikkila stood pat, while Mueller drew two and Meservy one. Mueller and Meservy checked, and Heikkila turned over a 9-7. Mueller had drawn a pair of fives, while Meservy tossed a pair of sixes into the muck as Heikkila tripled up.
Just over one year ago, accomplished mixed-game pro Ryan Hoenig was awarded his first-ever bracelet in one of his favorite events on the World Series of Poker schedule.
This year, Hoenig was one of the 135 players who registered on Day 1 of said tournament, Event #27: $10,000 Dealer's Choice Championship, and he bagged an above-average stack as 66 return for Day 2.
Hoenig will unload a stack of 127,000 onto the table when play resumes at 1 p.m. local time today at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, just over two starting stacks.
When Hoenig won in 2025, it was by far the largest field ever assembled in the history of the $10k Dealer's Choice Championship.
However, only 18 more entries are needed to smash that record and increase the current $1,255,500 prize pool to an unmatched level, which seems more than possible with one full level of late registration remaining.
Hoenig's fellow Dealer's Choice champions Ben Diebold (2022) and Chad Eveslage (2023) will join him on Day 2, both having bagged a top ten stack on Day 1 with 216,500 and 213,000, respectively.
The chip lead of 347,000, meanwhile, is in the hands of Chris Brewer, who registered straight after being eliminated from the final table of the $10k Stud Championship and is looking to make back-to-back final days in a mixed-game event.
Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chip Count
1
Chris Brewer
United States
347,000
2
Jesse Lonis
United States
339,500
3
Bryce Yockey
United States
268,000
4
Matt Glantz
United States
266,000
5
Matthew Valeo
United States
259,500
6
Owais Ahmed
United States
230,000
7
Ben Diebold
United States
216,500
8
Chad Eveslage
United States
213,000
9
Marco Johnson
United States
209,500
10
Ariel Mantel
Argentina
194,000
Chris Brewer
Todd Brunson, meanwhile, leads four Hall of Famers into Day 2 with 139,500 in chips. John Hennigan (111,000) and Eli Elezra (108,000) also managed to get above six figures, but Brian Rast will return as one of the absolute short stacks with 16,500. Josh Arieh continues his hunt for bracelet eight with a stack of 99,500 after a heartbreak third-place finish earlier this series, while poker legend Viktor Blom (70,500) and popular vlogger Brad Owen (158,000) still have hopes of capturing their maiden bracelets in this event.
The $10k Dealer's Choice Championship will resume in Level 11. Limits will be at 4,000/8,000, while the blinds in big bet games are 1,000/2,000.
Ten 60-minute levels are scheduled for Day 2, with a dinner break planned after Level 15, around 6:30 p.m. local time.
Stay closer than ever to the action with MyPlayers. This brand new, free feature on PokerNews puts your favorite poker players front and center. Whether
you're keeping tabs on legends like Daniel Negreanu or following a friend grinding their way through a Day 2, MyPlayers delivers real-time updates tailored just for you. No subscriptions, no paywalls - just the hands, chip counts, and bustouts that matter most.
It’s simple: log in, search for any player in our live coverage, hit the star, and they’ll be added to your personalized MyPlayers list. You’ll see their progress across all live-reported events, with chip counts and updates pinned right where you need them at the top.
From railbirds to backers, MyPlayers is the smarter way to stay connected to the game.
A full day of high-level mixed-game action is about to start, so be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for extensive coverage of the $10,000 Dealer's Choice Championship's second day.
button in Safari
