2026 WSOP Day 45 Recap: Rezaei Leads the $50K as Main Event Bubble Bursts

Live Poker
Recap
WSOP
Callum Jury
Callum JuryLive Content & Social Media Specialist

Day 45 of the 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas saw a bracelet won, the $10,000 Main Event’s money bubble burst, and big stacks bagged across the rest of the schedule.

Event #82: $10,000 Main Event - Bubble Bursts

WSOP 2026
Chris Moneymaker

The field was cut down to 533 after Chris Moneymaker popped the bubble. Reigning champion Michael Mizrachi bagged a stack for Day 5, keeping his bid for back-to-back titles alive.

Event #86: $600 Ultra Stack - Eric Weber Wins First Bracelet

The only bracelet awarded on Day 45 was Event #86: $600 Ultra Stack No-Limit Hold’em. Eric Weber, who learned poker around the kitchen table as a child, took it down for $400,000 and his first piece of WSOP hardware.

Event #90: $50,000 High Roller - Daniel Rezaei Leads an All-Star Cast

wsop 2026
Daniel Rezaei

Event #90: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em drew 103 entries on Day 1. By the close of play, 51 players remained, and nobody had more chips than Austria’s Daniel Rezaei (2,010,000), the only player past two million. Lithuania’s Paulius Vaitiekunas (1,965,000) fell just three big blinds short of the same mark.

The field is stacked with pros, including Thomas Boivin (1,510,000), Eelis Parssinen (1,450,000), Kristen Foxen (1,220,000), Daniel Negreanu (1,085,000), Bryn Kenney (1,000,000), Jeremy Ausmus (480,000), Martin Kabrhel (350,000), and Aleksejs Ponakovs (295,000).

Day 2 starts at 1:00 p.m. local time on July 10, with late registration open until the end of Level 12, around 3:15 p.m.

Event #90: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em Day 1 Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1 Daniel Rezaei Austria2,010,000134
2Paulius VaitiekunasLithuania1,965,000131
3Thomas BoivinBelgium1,510,000101
4Zachary GrechUnited States1,465,00098
5 Eelis Parssinen Finland1,450,00097
6Aram OganyanUnited States1,440,00096
7Bill KleinUnited States1,325,00088
8 Kristen Foxen Canada1,220,00081
9Michael MacchiaUnited States1,140,00076
10 Biao Ding China1,100,00073

Event #87: $1,000 Mystery Bounty PLO - Unscheduled Day 3 Required

wsop 2026
Christopher Vitch

Event #87 was meant to crown its champion today, but the tournament director called time with 34 players still in for the $305,000 top prize.
Four players return with eight-figure stacks. Shawn Stroke (15,550,000) has the largest, ahead of Christopher Vitch (15,175,000). Wojciech Barzantny (11,050,000) and Sameer Batra (10,925,000) are the others.

Including Vitch, seven of the returning players have won a bracelet before: Travis Pearson (7,500,000), Noah Schwartz (4,485,000), James Chen (4,050,000), Alex Manzano (3,250,000), Mark Radoja (3,150,000), and Nick Pupillo (2,575,000).

Play resumes at 1:00 p.m. local time on July 10 and continues until a champion is crowned.

Event #87: $1,000 Mystery Bounty PLO Day 2 Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Shawn StrokeUnited States15,550,000104
2 Christopher Vitch United States15,175,000101
3Wojciech BarzantnyAustria11,050,00074
4Sameer BatraUnited States10,925,00073
5Brian RoffUnited States9,675,00065
6Paawan BansalIndia9,625,00064
7Matthew ShepskyUnited States9,425,00063
8Jeremy KerbelUnited States8,825,00059
9Sergio GihaUnited States8,150,00054
10Travis PearsonUnited States7,500,00050

Event #88: $300 Gladiators of Poker - Jolnar Teliani Tops Day 1b

Day 1b drew 2,174 entries, with 65 players advancing to Day 2. Canada’s Jolnar Teliani (3,265,000) topped the counts, the only survivor past three million chips. Teliani came into the WSOP off three low-stakes tournament wins.

Others through include Kevin Theodore (2,900,000), South Africa’s Sean Bloom (2,110,000), Justin Arnwine (2,060,000), and David Levi (545,000).

Day 1c, the penultimate flight, starts at 10:00 a.m. local time on July 10.

Event #88: $300 Gladiators of Poker Day 1b Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Jolnar TelianiCanada3,265,00065
2Kevin TheodoreUnited States2,900,00058
3Sumit KumarUnited States2,855,00057
4Thomas TranUnited States2,265,00045
5Sean BloomSouth Africa2,110,00042
6Gaetan BalleurFrance2,090,00042
7Justin ArnwineUnited States2,060,00041
8Jean-Paul DraytonUnited States1,825,00037
9Noah HarthcockUnited States1,815,00036
10Mark RolandUnited States1,810,00036

Event #89: $3,000 Mid-Stakes Championship - Stars Turn Out for Day 1b

Day 1b drew 951 entries, almost double Day 1a. 263 players advanced to Day 2.

Portugal’s Luis Faria (431,000) leads, according to the WSOP LIVE app, ahead of Agustin Naranja (413,000) and Yuxi Huang (399,500).
Also through: Maria Konnikova (298,000), Paulina Loeliger (282,500), Barry Shulman (230,500), Niall Farrell (177,500), Joe Serock (114,000), Martin Jacobson (110,000), Upeshka De Silva (98,000), Justin Vaysman (94,500), Michael Gathy (90,000), Brek Schutten (75,000), and Fahredin Mustafov (45,500).

Day 1c, expected to be the busiest flight, starts at 12:00 p.m. local time on July 10.

Event #89: $3,000 Mid-Stakes Championship Day 1b Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Luis FariaPortugal431,000172
2Agustin NaranjaArgentina413,000165
3Yuxi HuangChina399,500160
4James SileoUnited States387,500155
5Daemon RichardsonUnited States387,000155
6Tom KunzeGermany367,000147
7Maher AchourTurkey355,500142
8Robert Nemeskeri-KissUnited States344,500138
9Lucas CortijoArgentina343,000137
10Laith SheenaUnited Kingdom342,000137

Event #91: $1,500 Pick Your PLO - Eli Elezra Third in Chips After Day 1

Event #91 gave players a choice of Pot-Limit Omaha variants, including double board games. Poker Hall of Fame member Eli Elezra (701,000) bagged the third largest stack of Day 1, behind only Emory Peebles (752,000) and Jun Weng (719,000).

Other notable survivors include Samuel Rosen (673,000), Scott Abrams (621,000), Jeremy Harkin (586,000), Jon Kyte (558,000), Maxx Coleman (532,000), Blaz Zerjav (469,000), Justin Liberto (468,000), nine-time bracelet winner Benny Glaser (188,000), Bryce Yockey (163,000), Robert Mizrachi (102,000), and Mike Matusow (73,000).

Of 857 starters, 104 made it through to Day 2, which resumes at 1:00 p.m. local time on July 10 for another 10 levels of mixed PLO.

Event #91: $1,500 Pick Your PLO Day 1 Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
1Emory PeeblesUnited States752,000125
2Jun WengChina719,000120
3 Eli Elezra Israel701,000117
4Samuel RosenUnited States673,000112
5Scott AbramsUnited States621,000104
6Jeremy HarkinUnited States586,00098
7Jon KyteNorway558,00093
8Brennan BenglisUnited States558,00093
9Farhad JamasiUnited States558,00093
10Yunpeng BaiChina537,00090

What’s Coming on Day 46 of WSOP 2026

Day 1c of Event #88: $300 Gladiators of Poker starts at 10:00 a.m. local time on July 10, expected to be the busiest flight of the event.

Day 5 of the $10,000 Main Event begins at 11:00 a.m., with 533 players returning to play for the $10 million top prize. Day 1c of the $3,000 Mid-Stakes Championship starts at 12:00 p.m., with Day 2 of the $50,000 High Roller and $1,500 Pick Your PLO both resuming at 1:00 p.m. The unscheduled Day 3 of the $1,000 Mystery Bounty PLO also runs from 1:00 p.m., playing down to a champion for a $305,000 top prize.

One new event kicks off on Day 46, at 2:00 p.m.: Event #92: $3,000 T.O.R.S.E., essentially H.O.R.S.E. with 2-7 Triple Draw replacing Hold’em. Japan’s Ryutaro Suzuki won the title in 2025, beating 521 opponents for $273,385 and his second bracelet.

All figures, images and data courtesy of PokerNews and the WSOP.

About the Editor
Callum Jury
Callum Jury

Callum Jury is SoMuchPoker's Live Content and Social Media Specialist, reporting live from WSOP and Asia Pacific poker festivals including the APT and PokerStars LIVE series. Originally from the Lake District in the UK, he has covered the Southeast Asian poker circuit since 2025, combining day-by-day tournament reporting with the social and digital content that brings the action to fans.