PokerNews live coverage of this event will begin on Day 2 (July 1). Until then, we will keep readers informed with updates on chip counts and core event statistics, including entries and the prize pool. Scroll down to see more.
Event #72: $1,000 Mini Main Event
Day 1b Completed
The second of three flights in Event #72: $1,000 Mini Main Event at the 2026 World Series of Poker saw 4,053 entries, bringing total attendance to 6,652. By the close of play, only 295 of those starters had chips to bag, and Belgium's Bart Lybaert (2,600,000) had one of the largest stacks.
Belgium's Lybaert is a top-tier player, one with more than $4.1 million in live tournament earnings. Lybaert came close to capturing a bracelet in 2018 when he finished third in the $2,620 Marathon before crashing out of the $10,000 Main Event in 24th place.
Switzerland's Karim Ghozlani (3,750,000) claimed the Day 1b chip lead. Ghozlani finished 22nd in the $1,500 Millionaire Maker a couple of weeks ago and banked a $60,600 career-best prize.
Mohammad Habib Nia (3,650,000) and Bartlomiej Kijak (3,430,000) rounded off the podium places.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karim Ghozlani | Switzerland | 3,750,000 | 94 |
| 2 | Mohammad Habib Nia | United States | 3,650,000 | 91 |
| 3 | Bartlomiej Kijak | Poland | 3,430,000 | 86 |
| 4 | Maksim Petrov | Estonia | 3,215,000 | 80 |
| 5 | Bart Lybaert | Belgium | 2,600,000 | 65 |
| 6 | Ricky Flora | United States | 2,350,000 | 59 |
| 7 | Hyong Kim | United States | 2,290,000 | 57 |
| 8 | Kyle Hughes | United States | 2,265,000 | 57 |
| 9 | Seiji Sasaki | Japan | 2,120,000 | 53 |
| 10 | Guilherme Bernardino | Brazil | 1,965,000 | 49 |
Some of the other grinders who progressed from this flight included Maksim Petrov (3,215,000), Michael Moncek (1,535,000), Niall Farrell (1,400,000), Jim Collopy (1,220,000), Keven Stammen (1,055,000), Justin Vaysman (880,000), Matthew Wantman (870,000), Ilan Boujenah (771,000), and Michael Wang (575,000).
The Day 1b survivors are back in action on July 1, which is when Day 2 begins. Before them, there is Day 1c from 10:00 a.m. local time on June 30. Standby to PokerNews for updates from the Paris and Horseshoe Las Vegas.
Here are the chip counts of the 205 players who advanced from Day 1b, according to the WSOP LIVE app.
Day 1b of Event #72: $1,000 Mini Main Event has now concluded. Of the 4,053 entrants to the flight, 295 players have bagged to return for Day 2.
Standby for the full chip counts and recap.
There are 100 bracelet-awarding events on the 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) schedule, but every poker player dreams of becoming the champion of just one of those tournaments: the $10,000 WSOP Main Event. Unfortunately for some, the $10,000 buy-in puts the 2026 WSOP Main Event out of reach, which is where satellites come into their own.
In 2003, the aptly-named Chris Moneymaker, then an accountant from Atlanta, Georgia, won a $10,000 WSOP Main Event seat via an $86 buy-in satellite online at PokerStars. Moneymaker outlasted 838 opponents, including defeating seasoned pro Sammy Farha heads-up, to win the WSOP Main Event and kickstart the phenomenon that would be called the Moneymaker Effect.
Fast forward to today, and hundreds, if not thousands, of players will head to the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas hoping to win their way into the 2026 WSOP Main Event for a fraction of the $10,000 asking price. The 2026 WSOP Main Event satellites run from July 1-7 and come in buy-ins of $150, $260, $585, $1,100, and $2,200.
According to the WSOP LIVE app.
The WSOP Player of the Year race is being dominated by players you probably aren't too surprised to see at the top, while Shaun Deeb, the pre-series favorite, is still lurking.
Deeb came into the summer with a significant head start after booking two runner-up finishes and a ninth-place score at the WSOP Europe in April. But he's only recorded two cashes this summer.
The good news for the reigning and two-time Player of the Year is he's made the most of those cashes, finishing second and fifth. Deeb, however, has dropped down a bit in the standings since the WSOP began on May 26, while some other crushers have moved into the top few spots.
Brian 'Smitty' Smith would stand out in the $1,000 WSOP Mystery Millions anyway. A tall guy with a broad smile, fully decked out in purple, he jokes that he's a "walking billboard" for the pancreatic cancer charity Purple Pansies.
But he stood out even more on Sunday, as the grinder from Atlanta, Georgia, pulled a gold chest for $100,000 and immediately announced it was all going to the charity so close to his heart.
As per the WSOP LIVE app.
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