2023 WSOP Europe Main Event Sets New Attendance Record; Kabir Tops 191 Survivors on Day 2
It was a busy day in Europe's biggest poker arena at the King's Resort in Rozvadov and the sixth edition of the series on Czech soil resulted in yet another attendance record. The marquee 2023 WSOP Europe €10,350 Main Event attracted a field of 817 entries and generated a staggering prize pool of €7,761,500.
One year ago, a new record had been set at the very same venue with 763 entries, a figure that was easily surpassed. It follows into the footsteps of a successful summer series in Las Vegas, which culminated in 10,043 entries for the 2023 WSOP Main Event. The European edition continues the successful path of the World Series of Poker in the current year, which has been made possible thanks to nearly 400 qualifiers throughout major live events and satellites in Rozvadov.
"We sincerely thank each and every one of you for choosing to be a part of WSOPE Europe at King's Resort. Your game and emotions were the highlight of this wonderful festival. Special thanks also to our great staff and WSOP team for their invaluable contribution and hard work. We wish all the players in the main event the best of luck and look forward to seeing the new champion of the year, as well as looking forward to more festivals and records together in the future," Federico Brunato, Director of Poker at King's Resort told PokerNews after the new record attendance was officially confirmed.
https://twitter.com/WSOP/status/1723753676869669169
Seven levels were played on Day 2 and the late registration and single reentry option was available for the first five 90-minute levels, during which another 140 new entries emerged to sail past the previous record. When all chips were bagged up, Keneshka Kabir (1,600,000) and Andrea Radicchi (1,502,000) led the way ahead of the 2021 WSOPE Main Event third place finisher Alexander Tkatschew (1,277,000).
Among the big stacks for Day 3 are also Leon Sturm (1,030,000) and Kasparas Klezys (970,000), both of which can be found in the overnight top ten.
Top 10 Chip Counts After Day 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keneshka Kabir | Germany | 1,600,000 | 200 |
| 2 | Andrea Radicchi | Italy | 1,502,000 | 188 |
| 3 | Alexander Tkatschew | Germany | 1,277,000 | 160 |
| 4 | Max Neugebauer | Austria | 1,180,000 | 148 |
| 5 | Levan Rcheulishvili | Georgia | 1,170,000 | 146 |
| 6 | Leon Sturm | Germany | 1,030,000 | 129 |
| 7 | Bruno Desimoni | Brazil | 997,000 | 125 |
| 8 | Vito Vella | Italy | 980,000 | 123 |
| 9 | Alf Martinsson | Sweden | 976,000 | 122 |
| 10 | Kasparas Klezys | Lithuania | 970,000 | 121 |
Defending champion Omar Eljach (663,000) and last year's runner-up Jonathan Pastore (600,000) advanced with above-average stacks, which also applies for Maria Lampropulos (888,000), Viktor Blom (700,000), Dario Sammartino (681,000), the 2020 WSOP Online Main Event champion Stoyan Madanzhiev (672,000) and Anson Tsang (548,000) to name all but a few big names with plenty of chips at their disposal.
With 191 survivors after fourteen levels of play, the marquee tournament of the 2023 WSOPE is still quite far away from the money bubble. Nearly two-thirds of the remaining contenders will earn at least €16,500 for their efforts if they finish inside the top 123 spots.
A whole slate of WSOP bracelet winners saw their hopes of a repeat victory end prematurely such as Hossein Ensan, Alexandre Reard, Martin Kabrhel, Ilija Savevski, Alexandru Papazian, Besim Hot, Sokratis Linaras, Jerry Odeen, Jan-Peter Jachtmann, Jessica Teusl, and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier to name all but a few. Ensan first ran into pocket queens before he then came up second-best with king-jack against the ace-nine of Nils Pudel.
Many other notables of the international poker scene bowed out throughout the day with more than fifty percent of the field joining the rail. They have one more chance to take a shot at the coveted WSOP gold bracelet as the final starting day of Event #15: €550 NLH Closer awaits of 3 p.m. local time the following day.
The money bubble in the 2023 WSOPE Main Event is expected to burst mid-way through Day 3, which is slated to play a total of seven and a half levels of 90 minutes each as of noon local time on Monday, November 13, 2023. Recommencing blinds will be 4,000-8,000 with a big blind ante of 8,000 and there will be a break every level. Below are the full payouts at a glance:
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €1,500,000 | 14-15 | €59,500 |
| 2 | €891,000 | 16-23 | €49,300 |
| 3 | €639,000 | 24-31 | €41,500 |
| 4 | €464,000 | 32-39 | €35,500 |
| 5 | €341,000 | 40-47 | €30,700 |
| 6 | €255,000 | 48-55 | €27,100 |
| 7 | €193,000 | 56-63 | €24,300 |
| 8 | €148,000 | 64-71 | €22,150 |
| 9 | €115,300 | 72-79 | €20,600 |
| 10-11 | €91,000 | 80-101 | €18,000 |
| 12-13 | €73,000 | 102-123 | €16,500 |
Stay tuned for the conclusion of the record-breaking 2023 WSOPE Main Event at the King's Resort in Rozvadov, as the PokerNews live reporting team will be on the floor to provide as many key hands as possible en route to crowning a champion on November 15, 2023.