Seventy-three players bought into Event #43: $50,000 Poker Players Championship, including back-to-back champion Dan Cates, and a certain Phil Ivey.
Cates entered the mix dressed as the Terminator, and was almost terminated early into proceedings, but fought back to finish with 305,000 and the chance of an epic three-peat.
Ivey fared much better than Cates; he crammed 944,500 chips into an overnight bag. Ivey made an incredible call that showed why many consider him the GOAT. Only Josh Arieh (1,088,000) bagged a larger stack than the ten-time WSOP bracelet winner.
Fifty-four players remained at the close of play, and the list reads like a who’s who of the poker world. James Obst (929,500), John Monnette (800,500), and Viktor Blom (784,000) finished in the top five, while Jeremy Ausmus (737,500), Bryce Yockey (634,000), Elior Sion (620,000), David Williams (585,500), and Matthew Ashton (565,000) find themselves in the top 10.
Play resumes on June 19 at 1:00 p.m. local time, and late registration remains open for the first three levels. Keep with PokerNews as we bring you all of the action from this incredible tournament.
Event #43: $50,000 Poker Players Championship Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Chip Count | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh Arieh | 1,088,000 | |
| 2 | Phil Ivey | 944,500 | |
| 3 | James Obst | 929,500 | |
| 4 | John Monnette | 800,500 | |
| 5 | Viktor Blom | 784,000 | |
| 6 | Jeremy Ausmus | 737,500 | |
| 7 | Bryce Yockey | 634,000 | |
| 8 | Elior Sion | 620,000 | |
| 9 | David Williams | 585,000 | |
| 10 | Matthew Ashton | 565,000 |
