Fawcett Claims Bracelet as Main Event Bubble Bursts; GGPoker Qualifiers Advance
Day 44 of the WSOP
Day 44 of the 2025 World Series of Poker saw continued action across multiple events at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. Four bracelet-awarding events were active throughout the day, with one champion crowned and several tournaments advancing toward their conclusions. Among the ongoing action, the Main Event bubble burst with numerous qualifiers from GGPoker, the official partner of the WSOP, advancing to Day 5, their progress tracked in detail below.
Justin Fawcett Wins First Bracelet
Justin Fawcett earned his first WSOP bracelet by winning Event #85: $600 Ultra Stack. He defeated Thai Dinh from Vietnam in the final heads-up battle to secure $355,110, marking his largest tournament cash to date. The victory gives Fawcett his first piece of WSOP hardware.
Main Event Bubble Bursts, 522 Advance
The $10,000 WSOP Main Event completed Day 4 with the money bubble bursting. From the starting field of 1,476 players, 522 survivors advanced to Day 5, each now guaranteed a minimum payout.
Harold Lam from Florida holds the chip lead entering Day 5 with 4,195,000 chips. The recreational player finds himself in the biggest tournament of his career as he navigates the Main Event’s later stages.
Several accomplished players secured strong positions for Day 5. Nick Pupillo sits second with 3,150,000 chips, followed by Josh Reichard (3,025,000) and Kenny Hallaert (2,805,000). Michael Mizrachi advanced with 2,270,000 chips, while Stephen Chidwick bagged 1,940,000. Greg Merson, who won the Main Event in 2012, remains active with 1,495,000 chips.
High Roller Elite Field Takes Shape
Event #88: $50,000 High Roller attracted 194 entries for Day 1, with 79 players surviving to Day 2. Japan’s Masashi Oya finished Day 1 with the chip lead, accumulating 1,956,000 chips. Oya brings substantial high-stakes experience to the tournament, having earned nearly $9.6 million in live tournament play.
The surviving field includes many established tournament players. Viktor Ustimov from Russia sits second with 1,900,000 chips, while Brek Schutten (1,762,000), Martin Kabrhel (1,514,000), and Sam Soverel (1,504,000) complete the top five chip positions.
Other notable survivors include Philip Sternheimer (982,000), Kristen Foxen (852,000), Arthur Morris (788,000), Chris Brewer (781,000), and Alex Foxen (741,000). Joe Cada advanced with 688,000 chips, while Sergio Aido (622,000) and Daniel Negreanu (532,000) also remain in contention.
Additional players still active include Joao Simao (480,000), Shaun Deeb (374,000), Yuri Dzivielevski (356,000), and Jason Mercier (152,000).
Late registration remains open for the first two levels of Day 2, with the tournament likely to exceed 200 total entries.
Mystery Bounty PLO Day 1b Concludes
Event #86: $1,000 Mystery Bounty Pot-Limit Omaha completed its Day 1b flight with 3,113 players participating. 467 players from this flight advanced to Day 2, joining survivors from other starting flights for a total of 792 players returning to action.
Pei Li from China topped the Day 1b chip counts with 1,175,000 chips. Li previously won a WSOP bracelet in 2022 in the $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Bounty event, bringing relevant experience to this similar format.
Other strong finishers from Day 1b include Pedro Rodriguez (982,000), Ludovic Geilich (918,000), and Rob Wazwaz (858,000). Lawrence Brandt (830,000) and Brandon Cantu (743,000) also secured advancement.
Notable players who made Day 2 include Erick Lindgren (609,000), Joe Serock (583,000), Ren Lin (523,000), Ryan Hoenig (483,000), Ryan Leng (418,000), Mike Leah (415,000), and Michael Wang (403,000). Max Pescatori (250,000), Phil Hui (208,000), John Monnette (117,000), Barbara Enright (85,000), and Brad Ruben (61,000) also advanced.
Mid-Stakes Championship Day 1a Complete
Event #89: $3,000 Mid-Stakes Championship began with Day 1a, attracting 1,215 players. After ten levels of play, 367 players advanced to Day 2.
Michael Wilklow finished Day 1a with the chip lead, accumulating 506,500 chips. Wilklow won the $1,000 Mystery Millions event that opened the 2025 WSOP, earning $1 million in that tournament.
Zdenek Zizka (352,000) secured a top-ten finish after recently winning his first bracelet in the $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event for $232,498. Alex Keating (338,000) also advanced with a strong stack. Keating won his first bracelet in the $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em event two years ago.
Other players who advanced include Upeshka De Silva (200,000), Nicholas Palma (188,500), Davidi Kitai (185,500), Mike Matusow (175,000), and Robert Wells (175,000).
Jake Schwartz (154,000), Adrian Mateos (150,500), Martin Kabrhel (126,500), Martin Jacobson (99,500), Huck Seed (93,000), Jonathan Tamayo (85,000), Stoyan Madanzhiev (58,000), Patrick Leonard (87,000), Faraz Jaka (40,000), and Eric Baldwin (29,000) also made Day 2.
GGPoker Qualifiers Continue Main Event Push
Among the 522 Main Event survivors are numerous players who earned their seats through the extensive qualifying system of GGPoker, the official partner of the WSOP. The online platform offered multiple pathways to the $12,000 Main Event package throughout the qualification period. Players secured their spots through various satellite formats, including the popular $250 “MEGA Road to Vegas” satellites that provided lower-cost entry opportunities, and the $1,200 “MEGA Road to Vegas” satellites that awarded between 2-20 packages depending on the event.
The qualification methods extended beyond traditional satellites. Some players earned their entries through Mystery Bounty tournaments where WSOP packages were awarded as special prizes during events like the “Saturday Secret KO” series. Others qualified through promotional contests, including Reddit-based promotions and special regional events like the “Camino Vegas – México – Final” qualifier.
GGPoker also offered direct ticket transfers for certain players, along with “Last Chance Road to Vegas” satellites that provided final opportunities to qualify. The June 22 “Last Chance” event alone awarded 12 packages to players making late pushes for their Main Event dreams. These diverse qualifying paths demonstrate how online platforms have expanded access to poker’s biggest stage.
GGPoker Qualifiers Still in Contention
Several players who earned their Main Event seats through GGPoker’s qualifying system remain active after Day 5. Their chip positions and qualifying methods are detailed in the list below.
GGPoker Qualifiers – Start of Day 5 Main Event Chip Counts
| Name | Chip Count |
| Adrien Delmas | 2,860,000 |
| Alen Tenorio | 1,840,000 |
| Alexander Lynskey | 2,050,000 |
| Alexandros Kolonias | 350,000 |
| Amadeus Janotta | 1,400,000 |
| Andreas Staschewski | 555,000 |
| Andrius Tapinas | 535,000 |
| Antoni Gotarra | 740,000 |
| Arie Kliper | 1,430,000 |
| Arsenii Karmatckii | 3,445,000 |
| Brian Saslavchik | 750,000 |
| Colin Robinson | 645,000 |
| Conor Orourke | 1,000,000 |
| Dai Ishibashi | 3,080,000 |
| Eric Buchman | 330,000 |
| Gergo Hegedus | 1,385,000 |
| Giorgii Skhulukhia | 350,000 |
| Gustavo Morales | 405,000 |
| Guy Holtzman | 1,305,000 |
| Hayato Kitajima | 950,000 |
| Jasper Vanmoorsel | 1,050,000 |
| Jonathan Wolter | 1,495,000 |
| Jose Do Prado Valerio | 450,000 |
| Kajetan Renke | 375,000 |
| Kiyoshi Eda | 720,000 |
| Lucas Silva Bandeira | 390,000 |
| Maksim Paniak | 2,530,000 |
| Min-Sung Lee | 1,080,000 |
| Murilo Milhomem | 570,000 |
| Nils Pudel | 530,000 |
| Pedro Padilha Chaves | 1,850,000 |
| Ramiro Petrone | 1,190,000 |
| Ran Ilani | 1,655,000 |
| Rodrigo Jim | 1,380,000 |
| Rohit Mariwalla | 870,000 |
| Roman Korenev | 1,170,000 |
| Ruben Correia | 3,065,000 |
| Ryan Otto | 860,000 |
| Samuel Dray | 335,000 |
| Seungmook Jung | 1,335,000 |
| Sorin Morariu | 340,000 |
| Stanislav Zegal | 630,000 |
| Stefan Nemetz | 2,735,000 |
| Stephen Kehoe | 1,950,000 |
| Sviatoslav Belov | 1,530,000 |
| Thai Ha | 1,195,000 |
| Thomas Middleton | 1,905,000 |
| Tian Liu | 2,810,000 |
| Tomas Szwarcberg | 2,460,000 |
| Toni Bosch | 810,000 |
| Tyler Hirschfeld | 1,290,000 |
| Viktor Vladov | 675,000 |
| Vytautas Semaska | 655,000 |
| Yulian Bogdanov | 1,800,000 |
| Yuta Mutsuura | 840,000 |
Day 45 Schedule
Five tournaments will be active on Day 45. Day 2 of the Mystery Bounty PLO event begins at 11:00 a.m. with 792 players returning. Play is scheduled to continue until a champion is determined.
The Main Event resumes at noon with 522 players advancing to Day 5. Day 2 of the $50,000 High Roller also starts at noon, with late registration remaining open.
Day 1b of the Mid-Stakes Championship begins at 2:00 p.m., potentially attracting 2,000 or more entries.
Two events make their debut on Day 45. Event #90: $777 Lucky 7’s starts at 10:00 a.m., offering a $777,777 top prize for the $777 buy-in. This represents the first of three starting flights for the event.
Event #91: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha begins at noon. Last year’s winner of this event was Joseph Sanders, who defeated a field of 1,305 players to earn $269,350 and his first bracelet.
