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Qing Lu Leads Final Seven in Event #39: $5,000 Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold’em
After ten hours of play, Day 3 of Event #39: $5,000 Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold’em at the 2026 World Series of Poker has come to an end.
From the original field of 844 entries, which created a prize pool of $3,882,400, just 44 players returned to the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas for the penultimate day. By the time the chips were bagged, only seven players remained, all within touching distance of the WSOP gold bracelet and the top prize of $673,011.
Ending the night at the top of chip counts was Qing Lu with a stack of 9,455,000. Lu entered the unofficial final table as chip leader and remained one of the most active players, later eliminating Luke Graham in eighth place to help cement her position as the one to catch when cards are back in the air for Day 4.
2026 WSOP Event #39: $5k Seniors High Roller NLHE Final Table Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Qing Lu | United States | 9,455,000 | 39 |
| 2 | Arie Kliper | Israel | 7,875,000 | 33 |
| 3 | Chad Lipton | United States | 7,520,000 | 31 |
| 4 | Juan Rodriguez | Peru | 5,200,000 | 22 |
| 5 | Marc Rivera | Philippines | 4,810,000 | 20 |
| 6 | Kenneth Kim | United States | 3,940,000 | 16 |
| 7 | Nariman Yaghmai | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 3,600,000 | 15 |
Behind Lu is Arie Kliper with 7,875,000, while Chad Lipton rounds out the top three with 7,520,000. Lipton won a pivotal race against Gary Herstein with pocket tens against ace-king to send Herstein out in ninth place, and help send his stack up the chip counts.
Also advancing to the final day are Juan Rodriguez (5,200,000), Marc Rivera (4,810,000), Kenneth Kim (3,940,000), and Nariman Yaghmai (3,600,000). Rodriguez was on the brink of elimination on the final shuffle of the night with pocket jacks versus Rivera's ace-ten. A clean runout earned him a double-up and a spot on the final day.
Rivera is one of the most accomplished players remaining in the field. The Filipino is ranked third on his country's all-time money list with more than $4.2 million in live tournament earnings but is still chasing his first WSOP bracelet. Rivera was at risk when nine remained, but found a three-outer to survive and keep his chances of a first bracelet intact.
Several notable names managed to make deep runs before falling short of the final day, including Day 2 chip leader Manish Madan, Quoc Le, Ghassan Hoss, TJ Shulman, bracelet winners Andres Korn, Imari Love, and Julio Belluscio, as well as Matthew Davenport, Buck Bucceri, Shannon Peace, Donnacha O'Dea, and JJ Liu.
The final Day will start at 1 p.m. on Monday, June 15, at Paris Gold. Play will start on Level 31 with blinds 120,000/240,000 and 240,000 ante and will continue until a champion is crowned. Everyone returning has locked up $88,469 for their efforts, with eyes fixed on the staggering sum just a few spots away.
Final Table Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $673,011 |
| 2 | $448,634 |
| 3 | $314,158 |
| 4 | $223,439 |
| 5 | $161,446 |
| 6 | $118,541 |
| 7 | $88,469 |