Image courtesy of PokerGO.com
Last week at the World Series of Poker was filled with excitement, big moments, mandatory controversies, and so much more.
Of course, overshadowing everything else was the WSOP Main Event, which has now reached its final stage. From over 9,700 entries, the tournament has dwindled down to just nine. These nine make up the official final table, and will come back to play after a well-deserved day off.
The biggest story of the Main Event is certainly Leo Margets, the first female player to make the final table since 1995. Then, there is Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi, who is returning second in chips, ready to put those chips to work.
Nick Schulman was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame, and the fact that he made it into this elite poker club the very first time he was nominated speaks volumes.
Will Kassouf made a deep run in the Main Event as well and he once more made poker media headlines for all the wrong reasons. This time around, it would appear Kassouf took his antics a step too far, leading to his ban from the World Series of Poker for the remainder of 2025 (at the very least).
Before we dig into some of these stories, here’s a quick overview of all bracelet winners since our last week’s recap:
- Event #83 – $2,500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em – Cary Katy ($449,245)
- Event #84 – $1,000 No Limit Hold’em – Zdenek Zizka ($$232,498)
- Event #85 – $600 Ultra Stack – Justin Fawcett ($355,110)
- Event #86 – $1,000 Mystery Bounty PLO – Ferenc Deak ($329,890)
- Event #87 – $5,000 Super Turbo Bounty – Netanel Stern ($618,377)
- Event #88 – $50,000 High Roller – Khoi Le Nguyen ($2,686,913)
- Event #89 – Mid Stakes Championship – Ian O’Hara ($1,189,408)
- Event #91 – $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha – Kasparas Klezys ($280,214)
Leo Margets Making WSOP History
A few weeks back, we asked the question if a woman winning the Main Event could ignite a new poker boom. In a few days’ time, we could get a definitive answer to that question, as Leo Margets made it to the final table the Main and she has a real shot at winning the whole thing.
Margets has already locked up the largest cash by any female player in the Main Event, guaranteed to take home at least $1,000,000. She is also the first woman to make the final table since 1995. Last year, Kristen Foxen came close but ended up busting in 13th.
Back in 2012, Gaelle Baumann busted on the final table bubble, finishing in 10th spot and pocketing $590k for her efforts.
It’s worth noting that this isn’t Leo Margets’ first rodeo when it comes to Main Event deep runs. Back in 2009, she managed to outlive all but 27 players. That time, things didn’t go her way, but this year could change everything.
No matter what happens from this point on, Margets has locked up her place in poker history books. That said, once the action resumes on Tuesday, it is a safe bet that she’ll have a massive support coming her way. Could all that positive energy translate into the victory on poker’s biggest stage?
The Grinder Grinds On
Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi has already made history this WSOP, taking down the prestigious Poker Players Championship for the fourth time. But he is now in a position to really seal the deal as he, too, is one of the nine players making up the 2025 Main Event final table.
Mizrachi has really been on top of his game this summer, and he brought his signature style to the Main Event, making moves that often left his opponent confused.
“The Grinder’s” daring and unorthodox style of play can backfire sometime, but when it works, it works big time. This year, it led him all the way to the Main Event final table, and he is returning as one of the biggest stacks.
If Mizrachi bags the Main, maybe his name will finally find its way to the Poker Hall of Fame shortlist for the next year. By this point, it’s really hard to understand how he’s not been inducted yet, but if there was any doubt in anyone’s mind, his performance this year will surely put those doubts to rest.
The 2025 WSOP Main Event Final Table Chip Counts
Here’s the overview of the final nine players in the 2025 WSOP Main Event and their chip counts. Once again, they’ll get to enjoy a day off today (Monday), before coming back to resume the action on Tuesday and play down to the winner on Wednesday.
When the play resumes, blinds will be at 800,000/1,600,000, with a 1,600,000 big blind ante.
| Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
| John Wasnock | USA | 108,100,000 | 68 |
| Michael Mizrachi | USA | 93,000,000 | 58 |
| Braxton Dunaway | USA | 91,900,000 | 57 |
| Kenny Hallaert | Belgium | 80,500,000 | 50 |
| Leo Margets | Spain | 53,400,000 | 33 |
| Luka Bojovic | Serbia | 51,000,000 | 32 |
| Adam Hendrix | USA | 48,000,000 | 30 |
| Daehyung Lee | South Korea | 34,900,000 | 22 |
| Jarod Minghini | USA | 23,600,000 | 15 |
Will Kassouf Lands in Hot Water with the WSOP
If you’ve been following the Main Event, you may have missed some players running deep, but you certainly couldn’t have missed Will Kassouf.
Kassouf managed another deep run (eventually busting in 33rd), and he brought his signature speech play with him once more. Things escalated over several days, with Kassouf taking way too much time to act, leading to him being put on a 10-second shot clock.
The Brit has managed to make himself the story of the tournament once more, but he had to pay a price for it. Several full-round penalties and shortened time to act certainly didn’t help his chances in the Main.
And, when it was all done, Kassouf was notified that he was banned from the World Series of Poker events at least for the rest of the year.
The whole thing created quite a debate in the poker community, and could result in some tweaks to the WSOP rules moving forward. For the immediate future, though, UK’s loudest poker player won’t be frequenting any World Series events.
Nick Schulman Makes the Poker Hall of Fame
In other news, Nick Schulman was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame, edging out other big names on the short list, which included the likes of Mike Matusow, Jeremy Ausmus, and Scott Seiver.
Whether Schulman deserves a spot in the Poker Hall of Fame is not up for debate. However, the fact that really stands out is that he was inducted on the very first year he became eligible for the nomination in the first place.
With over $24 million in live tournament earnings, seven WSOP bracelets to his name, and now becoming a Hall of Famer, Schulman has achieved more by the time he turned 40 than most poker players dare dream.
What’s next on his career bingo card?
Deeb and Glaser Neck to Neck for the POY Title
As we are entering the final week of the World Series of Poker, two players stand out as candidates for the prestigious Player of the Year title.
Shaun Deeb is in the lead, with 4,194 points, while Benny Glaser is in the second spot with 3,911. Glaser got off to a very strong start, but Deeb caught up during the second half of the Series, and the two are neck-to-neck for the title.
The time is running out for Benny to catch up, though, with only a few more tournaments left on the docket. Deeb’s position seems fairly secure, but it’s certainly not beyond Glaser to make a last-minute effort and turn things around!
