button in SafariJuha Helppi Leads 60 Survivors after Day 1 of the $25,000 PLO/NLH Mixed
NLH Ante: 6,000
The second edition of Event #64: $25,000 High Roller PLO/NLH Mixed got underway at the World Series of Poker, running at the Paris Las Vegas today. Combining the two most popular poker formats, this tournament attracted a wide range of professionals and recreationals to battle it out over ten hour-long levels. A total of 140 entries were made today, however, registration still remains open for the event.
By night's end, just 60 players put chips into a bag and will be moving on to Wednesday's Day 2, when the players will reconvene at 12 p.m. local time.
Leading the way from today's action was two-time bracelet winner Juha Helppi, who finished the night with 936,000. The long-time Finnish pro holds titles in Limit Hold'em and Pot-Limit Omaha, but No-Limit hardware has eluded him as he puts himself in position to add another accolade to his poker resume.
Others in the top ten include Pot-Limit Omaha crusher Sergio Martinez Gonzalez (751,000), POY candidate Naoya Kihara (635,000), Dylan Smith (585,000), and Chance Kornuth (558,000).
End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Juha Helppi | Finland | 936,000 | 187 |
| 2 | Sergio Martinez Gonzalez | Spain | 751,000 | 150 |
| 3 | Naoya Kihara | Japan | 635,000 | 127 |
| 4 | Klemens Roiter | Austria | 613,000 | 123 |
| 5 | Edward Leonard | United States | 590,000 | 118 |
| 6 | Dylan Smith | United States | 585,000 | 117 |
| 7 | Cary Katz | United States | 571,000 | 114 |
| 8 | Artem Maksimov | United States | 570,000 | 114 |
| 9 | Yang Wang | China | 560,000 | 112 |
| 10 | Chance Kornuth | United States | 558,000 | 112 |
The action started slow with only a few people registered in the first level. However, the tables would quickly fill up as many of the brightest minds in the poker world took their seats.
Early in the day, the red-hot Naoya Kihara won a massive pot against Omkar Pachimatla. His opponent held aces, and the turn gave Pachimatla a wheel while Kihara made the nut straight. All the chips got into the middle, and Kihara faded Pachimatla's flush draw to win.
In another hand, George Wolff and David Coleman both got their stacks into the middle preflop with aces playing Pot-Limit Omaha, but Wolff rivered a straight to double through Coleman in brutal fashion.
The controversial Maurice Hawkins was in the field today, and he doubled early on with seven-six-three-three, cracking the aces of Stephen Chidwick. Both players advanced to Day 2, with Hawkins bagging 323,000 and Chidwick 166,000.
There was plenty of action and reentries late in the day, particularly in Pot-Limit Omaha, as the players attempted to build a big stack for Day 2. Some notables who were unable to advance include Shaun Deeb, Alex Foxen, Seth Davies, John Racener, Santhosh Suvarna, Nacho Barbero, and Jean-Robert Bellande
Day 2 resumes at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, with registration remaining open until the start of Level 13 around 2:15 p.m.. Each player is allowed a total of three entries. Day 2 begins in Level 11 with blinds of 3,000/5,000.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for updates from the floor in Event #64: $25,000 High Roller PLO/NLH Mixed along with all events here at the 2026 WSOP.