button in SafariDong Chen Among Leaders on Day 1 of $3,000 NLHE
Day 1 of Event #32: $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em saw 979 players buy-in and 295 progress to Day 2. Those numbers should increase because late registration remains open until the end of the first level on Day 2.
$25K Fantasy Draft pick Dong Chen (460,000) shouldn't need to take advantage of the late registration period because he finished Day 1 with a stack large enough for a place in the overnight chip counts' top five.
Chen already has two cashes at the 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP), reaching the money in the $550 Mini Mystery Millions and the $1,700 U.S. Circuit Championship. He is now on course to cash for a third time if he continues his early tournament form.
Belarusian Aliaksandr Shylko (895,000) is, according to the WSOP LIVE app, the chip leader. However, there's a chance his stack is actually 89,500; PokerNews will verify Shylko's stack on site going into Day 2.
Joao Coelho (695,000) and Yan Kan (595,000) were among the big overnight chipleaders as well.
Event #32: $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em Day 1 Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aliaksandr Shylko | Belarus | 895,000 | 358 |
| 2 | Joao Coelho | Portugal | 695,000 | 278 |
| 3 | Yan Kan | United States | 595,000 | 238 |
| 4 | Johan Schumacher | Belgium | 520,000 | 208 |
| 5 | Dong Chen | China | 460,000 | 184 |
| 6 | Christos Argyriadis | Greece | 455,000 | 182 |
| 7 | Antonio Vargas | United States | 442,500 | 177 |
| 8 | Jean-Robert Bellande | United States | 422,000 | 169 |
| 9 | Nishant Sharma | India | 415,500 | 166 |
| 10 | Niall Farrell | United Kingdom | 409,500 | 164 |
Dozens of top-tier players entered this event and punched their Day 2 tickets. Johan Schumacher (520,000), recent bracelet winner Antonio Vargas (442,500), Jean-Robert Bellande (422,000), and Niall Farrell (409,500) all bagged a top 10 stack.
Others safely through to Day 2 include Bradley Jansen (368,500), Barry Shulman (302,000), Nick Pupillo (274,500), Stoyan Madanzhiev (259,000), Joe McKeehen (214,500), Brian Yoon (179,000), James Obst (169,500), and Chance Kornuth (167,000).
Chris Moorman (60,600), Michel Molenaar (52,000), and David Peters (50,000) also made it through albeit with a little more than a starting stack.
Day 2 shuffles up and deals at 12:00 p.m. local time on June 10. The returning players will sit down in Level 11 with blinds at 1,000/2,500 and a 2,500 big blind ante. Late registration remains open until the end of Level 11, and PokerNews' traditional coverage begins at the start of play.