Event #36: $3,000 Nine Game Mix

The opening day of Event #36: $3,000 Nine Game Mix at the 2023 World Series of Poker has come to an end, and Andres Korn is the chip leader after 10 levels of play.

The tournament drew 361 entries for a prize pool of $963,870, and the winner will take home the top prize of $221,124. The top 55 of the 183 returning players will earn a min-cash of $4,800.

End of Day 1 Top 10 Chip Counts

Others notable players that progressed include Tamon Nakamura with 216,400 and Michael McKenna with 212,000. Anatolii Zyrin, Todd Brunson, Marco Johnson, and Viktor Blom, who were among those that bagged over 150,000.

Also bagging for Day 2 were Randy Ohel, Jared Jaffee, Christopher Vitch, Adam Friedman, David "ODB" Baker, Mori Eskandani, Yuri Dzivielevski, and Allen Kessler.

Day 1 Highlights

Korn vaulted towards the chip lead at the end of the night after spending time near the top of the leaderboard for most of the afternoon. He will return for another shot at a second gold bracelet after he came up short earlier in the series with a runner-up finish in Event #19: $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout. Valentino Konakchiev outlasted a field of 1,137 to defeat Korn in heads-up play and claim the top prize of $435,924. Korn took home $269,438 for his second-place effort. A deep run will boost him over the $3 million mark in career earnings, according to The Hendon Mob.

Blom quartered Dzivielevski in the final level of the night to move into contention for the chip lead. The game was Omaha Hi-Lo, and Blom took three quarters with a flush and a shared low with Dzivielevski. Blom — known to many online as "Isildir1" — will return in search of his first WSOP gold bracelet.

Also returning for his first shot at gold is McKenna, a California native that has come close before. McKenna previously ran to the final tables of the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Championship and the $10,000 Dealer's Choice Championship in 2019, as well as a runner-up finish in the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Championship in 2018 and a fourth-place finish in the $1,500 Razz tournament in that same year.

Vitch was near the top of the leaderboard in the opening stages of the day, thanks in part to a pair of kings in a Limit Hold'em hand with Kessler that continued his mid-day run. He could not keep the pace up to finish among the leaders, but Vitch will return with 124,300 for a run at his third WSOP title.

Play will resume in Level 11 at 1:00 p.m. Vegas time in the Horseshoe Silver section. There will be another ten 60-minute levels with a 15-minute break every two, as well as a 60-minute dinner break after Level 16.

Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for live updates from the floor of the 2023 WSOP at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.

The tournament clock has been paused and there will be four more hands at each table before the players bag up for Day 2.

No-Limit 2-7

Craig Chait was on the button after the first draw and bet 4,500 as action went on Michael Estes in the small blind.

Estes then raised to 26,000 and Chait tanked for a moment before tossing in a chip to signify a call. Estes showed       to win the big pot and become one of the largest stacks in the room.

Michael Estes	170,000	15,000
Craig Chait	75,000	27,000

Omaha Hi-Lo

Viktor Blom raised from under the gun and was called by Nitesh Rawtani, Yuri Dzivielevski, and Todd Brunson in the big blind.

The flop came     and Blom continued with a bet. Rawtani and Dzivielevski both called as Brunson got out of the way.

Blom bet again on the   turn, but Rawtani now raised. Dzivielevski called the raise before Blom reraised. Both opponents called to the   river.

Blom fired out another bet and Rawtani and Dzivielevski both called. Blom showed      for a flush and a low, while Dzivielevski had the same low holding      as Blom took three-quarters of the pot to approach 200,000.

Viktor Blom	195,000	45,000
Todd Brunson	125,000	-2,000
Nitesh Rawtani	65,000	33,000
Yuri Dzivielevski	60,000	20,000

The top 55 players from this field of 361 will each take home a min-cash of $4,800. The winner will pick up $221,124 and a WSOP gold bracelet for their efforts.

Seven Card Stud

Esther Taylor:   /    / 
Opponent:   /    / 

Esther Taylor bet on sixth street and was called by one opponent. Taylor bet again on seventh and her opponent flicked in a call.

Taylor turned over     for a pair of aces that was good enough to win the pot.

The next hand, a tablemate was the bring-in with an eight. "Wow, you're running like absolute dogshit," Taylor said as the unfortunate player couldn't help but break out into hearty laughter.

This table also includes Yueqi Zhu and Phil Hui.

Yueqi Zhu	90,000	58,000
Esther Taylor	56,000	16,000
Phil Hui	35,000	35,000

2-7 Triple Draw/No-Limit Hold'em

During the last hand of a triple-draw round, Allen "Chainsaw" Kessler saw an opportunity to make a suggestion.

"The coins should be out front," he said to a nearby tournament director, referring to the tokens that keep track of how many games are played in a round.

Kessler pointed at the spot just above the rectangle box where you'd find the board. They're normally kept in the well at the WSOP. He went on to say that other venues do it that way and there are hardly ever any mistakes.

"I just sent a picture to Jack [Effel], do you want to see?"

"I believe you, Allen," the tournament director replied earnestly.

"There's never a mistake that way," Kessler claimed.

The tournament director took "the over" on that number and a few others at the table agreed.

Meanwhile, the game changed to no-limit hold'em.

Andrew Kelsall raised to 2,200 from the small blind and Christopher Vitch paused before he made it 7,000. Kelsall responded with a jam and Vitch gave it up. Kelsall showed   and offered to show the other one. Vitch accepted and it was  .

Christopher Vitch	146,000	-15,000
Allen Kessler	75,000	28,300
Andrew Kelsall	44,000	44,000

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With late registration now closed, tournament officials have confirmed the prize pool for this event.

There were 361 total entries, generating a prize pool of $963,870, The top 55 finishers will be in the money and guarantee themselves $4,800, with the champion earning $221,124 and a WSOP gold bracelet.