Masashi Oya Tops the Counts in Day 1 of Event #39: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em
Day 1 of Event #39: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em (8-Handed) has come to end after eight 60-minute levels with 68 players managing to survive the day from the 134 entries. The tournament boasts one of the biggest buy-ins of the series and took place at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.
Japan's Masashi Oya sits alone at the top of the leaderboard after he accumulated 1,570,000 chips throughout the day and one was of only five players to break the million-chip milestone. Japan's number one ranked tournament player already has a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet to his name after the he took down the Ultra High Roller event at Atlantis Paradise Island last year for a cool $2,940,000 and will be looking to navigate his way through the field on Day 2 to set up a run at bracelet number two.
Another player that tops their country's all-time money list is James Chen, who bagged up big with a stack of 1,120,000 chips. The Taiwanese player emerged victorious in the Super High Roller event at the WSOP Europe back in 2019, so is no stranger to large buy-in events and will be looking to use his vast experience to make another deep run.
End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Masashi Oya | Japan | 1,570,000 | 131 |
| 2 | Marius Gierse | Germany | 1,516,000 | 126 |
| 3 | Johannes Straver | Netherlands | 1,467,000 | 122 |
| 4 | Alex Kulev | Bulgaria | 1,358,000 | 113 |
| 5 | James Chen | Taiwan | 1,120,000 | 93 |
| 6 | Artur Martirosian | Russian Federation | 1,015,000 | 85 |
| 7 | Philip Sternheimer | United Kingdom | 965,000 | 80 |
| 8 | Nacho Barbero | Argentina | 948,000 | 79 |
| 9 | Brandon Wilson | United States | 945,000 | 79 |
| 10 | Sergio Aido | Spain | 937,000 | 78 |
The top ten stacks feature players from eight different countries, demonstrating the WSOP's wide international appeal. This diverse mix of competitors highlights how the WSOP attracts top talent from all over the world, making it a truly global event.
With the huge price tag attached to the tournament, it was no surprise to see some of the world's best players clashing with each other on the felt. Phil Ivey, who just won his eleventh bracelet, managed to bag up a prosperous amount of 888,000 chips which puts him in a good position to make a deep run.
The likes of Viktor Blom (866,000), Ben Heath (859,000), Adrian Mateos (844,000), Andrew Lichtenberger (764,000), Isaac Haxton (740,000), David Coleman (613,000), and Daniel Negreanu (458,000) are just a few of the names who found a bag at the end of Day 1.
Bracelet winners Brek Schutten (151,000), Kahle Burns (110,000), and Justin Bonomo (79,000) all have some work to do when Day 2 gets underway as they find themselves at the bottom of the counts.
Play will begin at 12 p.m. on Saturday, June 15 at Level 9 (6,000/12,000/12,000) with the intention to play ten more 60-minute levels. Registration will remain open until the end of Level 10, which allows new players just over two hours to join the field once Day 2 starts.
Keep it right here with PokerNews for the latest updates in the high-stakes arena to see who can make a run towards the final table.