PokerNews live coverage of this event will begin on Day 2 (June 23). 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 #57: $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha
Day 1b Completed
Another 1,235 players piled into Day 1b of Event #57: $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha. After the completion of 16 levels, all but 77 had fallen by the wayside. According to the WSOP LIVE app, Craig Jones (1,004,000) was this flight's chip leader and the only player to end the night with a seven-figure stack.
Jones finished in the money of the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Five card event a few days ago, and is hoping to go two-for-two in Omaha events. If his chip count is accurate, he will be a firm favorite to go deep in this four-card Omaha tournament.
Bradley Butcher (869,000) and Steven Sarmiento (825,000) finished in second and third place as the curtain came down on Day 1b's proceedings.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craig Jones | United States | 1,004,000 | 100 |
| 2 | Bradley Butcher | United States | 869,000 | 87 |
| 3 | Steven Sarmiento | United States | 825,000 | 83 |
| 4 | Christopher Jacobson | United States | 810,000 | 81 |
| 5 | Paulo Villena Gini | Brazil | 650,000 | 65 |
| 6 | Robert Emmerson | United States | 644,000 | 64 |
| 7 | Davin Anderson | United States | 634,000 | 63 |
| 8 | Farhad Jamasi | United States | 573,000 | 57 |
| 9 | Wang Liu | United States | 559,000 | 56 |
| 10 | Stephen Hubbard | United States | 550,000 | 56 |
Utah's Stephen Hubbard (550,000) also got off to an impressive start, bagging enough chips for Day 1b's tenth place. Hubbard has seven cashes at the 2026, including a pair of top five finishes and a victory in the $1,500 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw event.
Dozens of bracelet winners, $25K Fantasy Draft picks, and combinations of the two navigated through to Day 2 from this flight.
They included David Prociak (497,000), Tyler Brown (472,000), Andrew Ostapchenko (456,000), Gary Benson (432,000), Jeff Madsen (421,000), Anson Tsang (142,500), Dennis Weiss (141,000), and Allen Kessler (83,000).
Day 1c gets underway at 12:00 p.m. local time, and should see another bumper crowd descend on the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
Here are the chip counts of the 77 Day 1b survivors, according to the WSOP LIVE app.
Day 1b of Event #57: $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha has now concluded. Of the 1,235 entrants to the flight, 77 players have bagged to return for Day 3.
Standby for the chip counts and recap.
The road to success at the World Series of Poker isn’t just built at the tables anymore. In 2026, players are increasingly turning to technology to sharpen their edge, streamline their schedules, and survive the grind of a long Las Vegas summer.
While real-time assistance during play is strictly prohibited, there is a growing ecosystem of tools that players can use away from the table to prepare, study, and stay organized throughout the series.
According to the WSOP LIVE app.
Texas Hold'em may be far and away the most popular variant of poker, but true grinders know the joy of switching it up with variants like Omaha, Stud and 2-7.
Some of poker's most decorated players have made mixed games their bread and butter. This includes Poker Hall of Famer Phil Ivey, who won three bracelets in a single summer way back in 2002, as well as Scott Seiver and Benny Glaser, who pulled off the same feat the last two summers.
From four-time $50,000 Poker Players Championship winner Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi to back-to-back-to-back Dealers Choice Championship winner Adam Friedman, here are some of the top mixed game players to look out for at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) this summer — and you can conveniently track them using the new PokerNews MyPlayers feed.
According to the WSOP LIVE app.
Brayden Lou managed to improve on an already outstanding year with a remarkable victory in the $500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em at the 2026 World Series of Poker.
After weeding his way through a field of 4,100, the inexperienced Lou wrestled the crown away from Jason Hoffman heads-up to claim the $196,066 winner’s share of a $1,701,500 prize pool.
“It’s pretty amazing,” Lou said. “I guess I can scratch this off my bucket list. I ran well, played well. That’s how it usually goes for tournament winners.”
Not that Lou would know, considering he won a gold bracelet in just his fourth ever live tournament.
As per the WSOP LIVE app.
button in Safari
