The World Series of Poker expanded across the Atlantic for the first time in 2007. In the nearly two decades since the WSOP Europe was created, just two players, both legends, have managed to make the Main Event final table twice. Today on Day 4, there are not one, but two players with a chance to make their own history.
Max Neugebauer, the Austrian former pro basketball player who literally towers over the rest of the field, won this event in 2023. Ran Ilani, meanwhile, finished third last year. They are both among the 37 players who will return to King’s Resort in Rozvadov at 1 p.m., local time to battle for the final table as they try to join Daniel Negreanu and Jason Mercier as two-time WSOP Europe finalists.
To get there, they and the rest of the field will have to try to silence Martin Kabrhel. The loquacious, flamboyant five-time bracelet winner put on a show yesterday on his way to taking the chip lead with 4,815,000. Kabrhel already won the €10,000 Omaha event this series, and another in Las Vegas during the summer.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Martin Kabrhel | Czechia | 4,815,000 | 120 |
| 2 | Claudio Di Giacomo | Italy | 4,520,000 | 113 |
| 3 | Lulei Hu | Italy | 4,185,000 | 105 |
| 4 | Gerald Karlic | Austria | 3,465,000 | 87 |
| 5 | Murilo Garcia | Brazil | 3,105,000 | 78 |
| 6 | Jan-Willem Nijmeijer | Netherlands | 2,995,000 | 75 |
| 7 | Artem Kobylynskyi | Ukraine | 2,900,000 | 73 |
| 8 | Teemu Jaatinen | Finland | 2,490,000 | 62 |
| 9 | Dimitrios Gkatzas | Greece | 2,330,000 | 58 |
| 10 | Bastian Gallitzendoerfer | Germany | 2,175,000 | 54 |
Claudio Di Giacomo, the Italian veteran pro with more than $2.5 million in live earnings, is his closest challenger with 4,520,000. Colossus third-place finisher Lulei Hu (4,185,000), Gerald Karlic (3,465,000), and Murilo Garcia (3,105,000) round out the top five.
Ilani begins the day with 1,800,000, while Neugebauer is further down the leaderboard with 930,000. Also still in the hunt are Artem Kobylynskyi (2,900,000), 2013 EPT champion Daniel Pidun (1,945,000), Vlastimil Pustina (1,890,000), Ferdinando D’Alessio (1,825,000), Jonas Lauck (1,570,000), and Aliaksandr Shylko (1,160,000). Mini Main Event champion Yuhan Wang (960,000), Josef Gulas (780,000), and Cheng Zhao (575,000) return as short stacks; Gulas is trying for the unprecedented feat of joining his son as WSOP Europe Main Event champions.
The action on Day 4 picks up on Level 22 with blinds of 20,000/40,000 and a 40,000 big blind ante. The remaining 37 players are guaranteed €31,000 for making it this far out of the 659-entry field, while a spot at the eight-handed final table is worth at least €110,000. The eventual champion earns €1,140,000 and the coveted Main Event gold bracelet.
All the action will be streamed on King’s Resort’s official YouTube channel. The plan is to play down to the final table today before a champion is crowned tomorrow.
A spot at the final table and in the poker record books awaits, so stay tuned as PokerNews follows all the action here in Rozvadov.
