button in SafariNahum Leads Heading into Final Day
The opportunity to get one last shot at a gold bracelet at the 2026 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas is coming to a close, as there are only a few events left for players to etch their name into WSOP history. Event #98: $800 Deepstack No-Limit Hold’em attracted a total of 2,036 hopefuls, creating a prize pool of $1,425,200. A total of 129 players will make their return on Day 2 as they take their shot at the $196,659 first-place prize.
Kfir Nahum (2,030,000) topped the leaderboard after one day of play. Nahum was followed by Josei Kamei (1,790,000) and Atanas Pavlov (1,635,000) to round out the top three finishers.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kfir Nahum | Israel | 2,030,000 | 68 |
| 2 | Josei Kamei | United Kingdom | 1,790,000 | 60 |
| 3 | Atanas Pavlov | Bulgaria | 1,635,000 | 55 |
| 4 | Ivan Govorov | Russian Federation | 1,525,000 | 51 |
| 5 | Michael Stein | United States | 1,500,000 | 50 |
| 6 | Danette Smith | United States | 1,480,000 | 49 |
| 7 | Ryuta Nakai | Japan | 1,295,000 | 43 |
| 8 | Jonathan Little | United States | 1,280,000 | 43 |
| 9 | Brett Richey | United States | 1,225,000 | 41 |
| 10 | Tristan Mcmillan | Canada | 1,225,000 | 41 |
Nahum has been active this summer, accumulating a total of seven cashes before this event, with his highest finish coming in the $1,500 Mystery Millions event, where he finished in 31st place for $36,750. Nahum has a WSOP ring to his name, but is still in search of the first WSOP bracelet of his career. Nahum will bring with him a wealth of experience as he has racked up nearly three million in live tournament earnings, according to The Hendon Mob.
England’s Kamei had five total WSOP cashes this summer entering this tournament. Kamei’s high mark was a 38th-place finish in the $1,500 Five Card Pot-Limit Omaha Eight-Handed event, where he took home $7,410. Kamei is also in search of his first gold hardware.
Pavlov will enter Day 2 with nearly two million in career earnings, according to The Hendon Mob. Like the other competitors on the podium, the Bulgarian is still in the hunt for his first-ever WSOP bracelet and is looking to make his first final table at the WSOP.
Japan’s Ryuta Nakai (1,300,000) managed to crack the top ten chip counts with a strong Day 1. Nakai has had two deep runs at the 2026 edition of the WSOP with a third-place finish in both the $10,000 Super Turbo Bounty No-Limit Hold’em Eight-Handed event and the $25,000 Heads Up No-Limit Hold’em Championship. Despite knocking on the door a couple of times, Nakai is still looking to capture the first bracelet of his career, which includes nearly three million in live tournament earnings according to his The Hendon Mob profile.
Jonathan Little (1,300,000) is also still in contention with a top ten finish on Day 1. Little has a bracelet to his name as he looks to add a second piece of gold to his cabinet. Little is perhaps the most accomplished player to make the top ten with $9,750,050 in total live earnings according to The Hendon Mob. Little has had three cashes this summer, but is still looking for a six-figure score to round out his summer.
Day 2 will feature 30-minute blind levels, with the day scheduled to play down until a winner. Action is scheduled to restart at 11 a.m. local time with 15-minute breaks slotted after every four levels. The action will resume with the blinds at 15,000/30,000.
Stay tuned here at PokerNews for complete coverage of the action on Day 2 as a new WSOP champion will be crowned on the final day of the series at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.