PokerNews live coverage of this event will begin on Day 2 (June 15). Until then, we will be keeping readers informed with updates on chip counts and core event statistics, including entries and prize pool. Scroll down to see more.
Event #45: $2,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better; Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better
Day 1 Completed
A total of 587 players showed up for Event #45: $2,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better & Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better at the 2026 World Series of Poker, creating a total prize pool of $1,306,075.
The first day saw about one-third of them advancing, with 204 players punching their ticket for Day 2 in search of the top prize of $248,357. Two-time bracelet winner Justin Liberto — fresh off a bracelet win in the $1,500 Mixed Omaha event — kept up his good form and bagged a top-three overnight stack, according to the WSOP LIVE app.
Kevin Choi bagged the overnight chip lead and can be considered a very dangerous man on a mission. Twelve months ago, Choi lost heads-up to Jason Daly in this very event, at a podium that was completed by none other than Phil Hellmuth. Certainly, Choi's quest for redemption couldn't have started any better.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Bets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kevin Choi | Hong Kong | 280,000 | 35 |
| 2 | Jared Hyman | United States | 276,500 | 35 |
| 3 | Justin Liberto | United States | 263,000 | 33 |
| 4 | Walter Chambers | United States | 252,500 | 32 |
| 5 | Dekel Balas | Israel | 239,500 | 30 |
| 6 | Ryan Bambrick | United States | 229,500 | 29 |
| 7 | Brian Breck | United States | 226,000 | 28 |
| 8 | Masafumi Iijima | Japan | 207,000 | 26 |
| 9 | Yueqi Zhu | China | 205,000 | 26 |
| 10 | Neal Liptak | United States | 199,500 | 25 |
Ryan Bambrick and Yueqi Zhu also bagged big stacks to end the night, while Daniel Negreanu, Jesse Lonis, Jean-Robert Bellande, and Todd Brunson are among those advancing to Day 2 as well.
Here are the chip counts for the 204 players who progressed from Day 1, according to the WSOP LIVE app.
When Kristen Foxen won the 2026 WSOP $25,000 High Roller, it was her first outright victory in a major nosebleed event. It was also the exclamation point on one of the most sustained periods of elite tournament poker anyone has produced in recent memory.
Since finishing 13th in the 2024 WSOP Main Event for $600,000, the six-time bracelet winner has been making final tables so regularly they might as well reserve her a seat. Few, if any, have come close to matching her record in that time. And with the WSOP just two weeks in, there's no indication she's stopping any time soon.
Four seven-figure scores. Twenty-three final tables. Nearly $11 million in prize money. Almost all of it earned against the best players in the world, in the toughest tournaments.
According to the WSOP LIVE app.
Since 2023, Santhosh Suvarna has battled against the best players in the world. His fearless attitude, combined with his affable nature, has propelled him to over $20 million in career earnings, with the vast majority coming in just the last three years.
Fast forward to 2026, and Suvarna is now the first Indian to win three live WSOP bracelets. Here, PokerNews takes a look back at his WSOP history and how he's come to be a recurring fixture in these big buy-in events.
As per the WSOP LIVE app.
The poker community asked, and the WSOP listened.
In a major shake-up to the Poker Hall of Fame, the induction process is shifting away from its traditional "winner-takes-all" format. A brand-new voting system has been introduced, paving the way for up to six of the eight nominees to be inducted in a single year.
Nominations are now open for the 2026 Poker Hall of Fame. Once the public determines the top eight nominees, the final decision will rest with the 33 living Hall of Fame members.
According to the WSOP live app.
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