A New World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Will be Crowned
Out of a field of 6,650 total entries, only three contenders remain in the hunt for the title in the 2021 WSOP Main Event. The biggest slice of the $62,011,250 prize pool will be up for grabs today and the next world champion will earn the top prize of $8,000,000.
Germany's Koray Aldemir retained his role as the overwhelming chip leader heading into the nine-handed final table and leads the trio of hopefuls by a wide margin. He returns with a stack of 264,600,000 and that represents more than his two final opponents have at their disposal combined.
After a dramatic end to Day 8 the previous evening, the UK's Jack Oliver claimed the second-biggest stack of 77,300,000 while Atlanta, Georgia's George Holmes returns with 57,400,000 in chips. While he is the shortest stack, Holmes still has 36 big blinds worth when the action resumes at 2 p.m. local time at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino.
2021 WSOP Main Event Chip Counts
| Seat | Player | Chip Count | Country | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Koray Aldemir | 264,600,000 | Austria | 165 |
| 2 | Jack Oliver | 77,300,000 | United Kingdom | 48 |
| 3 | George Holmes | 57,400,000 | United States | 36 |
No longer in contention for the title of world champion are Joshua Remitio (4th - $2,300,000), Ozgur Secilmis (5th - $1,800,000), Hye Park (6th - $1,400,000), Alejandro Lococo (7th - $1,225,000), Jareth East (8th - $1,100,000), and Chase Bianchi (9th - $1,000,000) as they were eliminated throughout the first 125 hands of the final table.
Final Table Results and Remaining Payouts
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $8,000,000 | ||
| 2 | $4,300,000 | ||
| 3 | $3,000,000 | ||
| 4 | Joshua Remitio | United States | $2,300,000 |
| 5 | Ozgur Secilmis | Turkey | $1,800,000 |
| 6 | Hye Park | United States | $1,400,000 |
| 7 | Alejandro Lococo | Argentina | $1,225,000 |
| 8 | Jareth East | United Kingdom | $1,100,000 |
| 9 | Chase Bianchi | United States | $1,000,000 |
The action resumes with one hour and 45 minutes remaining in Level 39 at blinds of 800,000/1,600,000 and a big blind ante of 1,600.000. All levels will last two hours each until a winner is crowned and the significant pay jumps among the final three spots will certainly play a pivotal role.
Stay tuned for the conclusion of the pinnacle live poker event of the year right here on PokerNews, as the live reporting team will provide hand-for-hand coverage until a winner is crowned. The final showdown can also be followed on the PokerGO streaming platform which provides cards-up coverage and commentary on a security delay of one hour.
flop kept Oliver in the lead with a pair of eights but the 
turn improved Holmes to the superior pair.
river and that spelled the end for Oliver in third place. He takes home $3 million for the efforts and there will now be a short break before heads-up play gets underway.
flop to the 
on the turn. It was checked again for the 
to complete the board. Aldemir showed the 
for Holmes to table the 
for the higher kicker to claim the pot.
was fanned out on the flop. Holmes check-called the 3,400,000 continuation-bet of Aldemir. The turn was the 
complete the board. Holmes took 39 seconds and then bet 9,000,000. Aldemir called to see the 
of Holmes who had a full house for Aldemir to muck.
flop, which went check, check. On the 
flop was checked and the 
followed on the turn. Aldemir now bet for 5,200,000 and Holmes called as the 
fell on the river. The check by Aldemir was followed by a check from Holmes who flashed the 
for a flush with the four. However, Aldemir had the 
for a straight flush to win the pot.
on the turn didn't bring any betting action either so the 
, Aldemir took a minute and barreled a bet of 10,000,000 out, Holmes raised it up to 28,000,000 after thinking about it for 44 seconds. Aldemir called after 47 seconds.