History Made With Margets, Mizrachi, Hallaert At 2025 WSOP Main Event Final Table

2025 WSOP main event final table. Credit: WSOP / Spenser Sembrat.

The 2025 World Series of Poker $10,000 no-limit hold’em main event is down to just nine contenders from the massive turnout of 9,735 entries, which was the third-largest in the storied history of this tournament. The entire final table is ensured of earning at least $1,000,000 for their efforts, with $10,000,000 and the championship gold bracelet awaiting the eventual champion in just a few days.

The word of the day at the final table is ‘history,’ and there’s plenty of it to be had all around. Leo Margets is the first woman to make the WSOP main event final table in 30 years, and just the second woman in the more than 50 years this tournament’s existed to do so. Margets joins Barbara Enright in that distinction, with Enright having done so in 1995 with a fifth-place finish.

Then there are the two returning players to the WSOP main event final table. Michael Mizrachi already won his fourth WSOP Poker Players Championship and seventh career WSOP bracelet earlier this summer. Now, he adds a second career WSOP main event final table to his 2010 appearance and his exceedingly long list of career accomplishments. Kenny Hallaert is also back for his second bite of the apple, having made the 2016 WSOP main event final table.

Wasnock In The Lead

John Wasnock. Credit: WSOP / Austin Currington.

When play resumes on Tuesday, everyone will be looking up at chip leader John Wasnock. The 50-year-old from North Bend, Washington, who works full time in investment consulting, ended day 8 with 108,100,000 after scoring the final knockout of the day. In a three-way pot, Wasnock and Luka Bojovic both called an all-in from Joey Padron, and checked it down. The final board read J♥5♥5♣9♠J♠, and after Padron showed A♣6♦ and Bojovic tabled A♥K♦, Wasnock showed 8♠8♥ for the winning two-pair.

It was a long way from where Wasnock spent most of day 8. He started with the second-shortest stack of the 24 players who made it through day 7. On the very first hand of the day, Wasnock doubled through Mizrachi with A♦Q♦ against Mizrachi’s A♠J♦.

Wasnock still had to fight for every chip, and found himself the second-shortest stack heading into the dinner break. But having been a short stack for multiple days of this tournament, Wasnock didn’t panic.

“I think day seven, there was a report, ‘Wasnock grinded down to crumbs, and finally picks up a hand,'” Wasnock said. “I’m very patient when I’m playing a short stack, and this tournament allows for that.”

Wasnock slipped even further down the counts, until some signs of hope started to bubble up. He picked up a few chips when his A♠K♦ chopped with Adam Hendrix’s A♥K♠. Then, with 14 players left, Wasnock eliminated Ruben Correia as his A♥K♦ held against Correia’s A♦Q♥. Wasnock then picked off Joseph Ozimok in 12th, and started putting his chips to work with pressure on his shorter-stacked opponents.

A Run For The Ages

By the time the field reached a final table of 10, Wasnock was in second place. And with his elimination of Padron, the surge to the top was complete.

“Three hours ago I had 10 bigs, and I was shoving all in just to steal the blinds and stay alive,” said Wasnock.  “I took some blinds, got comfortable, and took a couple of shorter stacks out. I was playing pretty aggressive at that point and not showing cards, and so when I started getting played back on, and I had cards that was nice. So, yeah, hell of a run the last three, four hours.”

Wasnock has already far exceeded his previous best result, a $56,330 win in his home state of Washington earlier this year. His career earnings prior to this guaranteed score of at least $1 million were $121,539.

Two Second Chances

Michael Mizrachi. Credit: WSOP / Alicia Skillman.

Mizrachi’s last few weeks at the WSOP are absurd by any measure. The 44-year-old won the 2025 WSOP Poker Players Championship for the fourth time, and his seventh bracelet overall. By any measure, that would be an incredible summer. But it wasn’t enough for ‘The Grinder.’

As if things weren’t ridiculous enough, Mizrachi had to bake in a remarkable day 8 comeback. Reduced to just a few big blinds after losing to Wasnock, Mizrachi was all-in and at risk with A♦6♠ against Braxton Dunaway’s A♣7♥. Mizrachi ran out a four-flush in spades to double and survive. He doubled again with K♦J♥ to Dunaway’s pocket fives, once again rivering a flush.

Mizrachi won pots in almost every way there is to win them, and by the end of the day he was second in chips.

Kenny Hallaert. Credit WSOP / Regina Cortina

Hallaert’s path to a second career WSOP final table was quite different. He began the day as the chip leader for the second consecutive day, and despite some dips along the way managed to bag the fourth-most chips, just outside the lead pack. Hallaert was simply elated in the afterglow of making a return to poker’s greatest stage.

“It’s just amazing to make it twice,” said Hallaert.

“Whenever you play the main event, you don’t think you can make it to the final table, but at the end of the day, there’s nine seats that need a butt in them. There’s a 1-in-1,000 chance that your name will be drawn out of the lottery, and in 2016 my number was drawn, happy days. And you never think you’re gonna make it twice, but of course, you dream about it. If you think about the chances, if it’s a 1-in-1000 chance, it’s a 1-in-1 million chance to make it twice.”

A Moment In History

Wedged between Mizrachi and Hallaert is Braxton Dunaway, in third. The Oklahoman spent the vast majority of the day in the chip lead before ceding it on the final hand. He knows something about outlasting a massive field for an incredible payday. Dunaway outlasted a field of 8,317 in the 2023 WSOP monster stack, winning $1,162,681 in the $1,500 buy-in event. With one more ladder on Tuesday, Dunaway would eclipse that prize.

Leo Margets. Credit: WSOP / Austin Currington.

And then, in fifth place, sits Margets (53,400,000). The 42-year-old from Spain long ago locked up last woman standing honors for the second time in her career. But by making this final table, Margets has made history, with a chance for so much more. She is just the second woman ever to make the WSOP main event final table.

With a finish of fourth or better, Margets would record the largest single live tournament result ever for a woman. That mark was set in 2024, with Liv Boeree’s fourth-place finish in the 2024 WSOP Paradise main event for $2.8 million.

History made. @LeoMargets becomes the first woman in the modern era to make a WSOP Main Event final table pic.twitter.com/JynE9U1kZJ

— Jeff Platt (@jeffplatt) July 14, 2025

Beyond the gender-specific records on the table, Margets owns a successful career by most any measure, including a 2021 WSOP bracelet win.

“It’s so unreal,” Margets said to Jeff Platt, moments after making the final table. “Right now, it’s a dream, and I’m so glad I’m sharing it with them,” Margets added, motioning to her friends and family on the rail. “How lucky am I to live this?”

A Bojovic Breakthrough

As if there weren’t enough intriguing contenders among the final nine of the 2025 WSOP main event, Bojovic, a CoinPoker ambassador, sits in sixth place overnight. Bojovic made a deep run in the WSOP main event run alongside a couple of his roommates and fellow CoinPoker ambassadors Sebastian Schulze and Stefan Nemetz, and was the last one standing among the crew.

Luka Bojovic. Credit: CoinPoker

The Serbian pro who now calls Austria home has a strong built-in support system on his rail for the final table. His history as a serious grinder in many different poker settings has prepared Bojovic well for the toll of eight straight days of poker, and hopefully two more to come.

“I can do even more,” Bojovic said. “I’m a heavy grinder. I can play for days. This is something that I have built up when I used to grind cash for days. So that’s not a problem. These eight days, it was all about keeping the good routine that I have, which includes the workout, meditation, and good food and good sleep, which is not easy to do every single day, because the schedule is tough. But I feel amazing.”

The Remaining Contenders

Behind Bojovic, in seventh place, is Hendrix. Long recognized as a top-level pro, with over $8.4 million in lifetime earnings before this event, Hendrix is still hunting for a signature victory. He’s made 12 WSOP final tables and two World Poker Tour tables, and there couldn’t be a better place to pull off a breakout victory, should Hendrix pull it off.

“I’ve not been in this spot before, but I’ve had plenty of final table experiences,” said Hendrix. “And ever since I started, I played with such different unique players that I sort of understand, you know, these different villains here, and I think I can adapt pretty well. The Grinder, he always throws some curve balls in there. It makes it interesting, definitely for the viewers, and it makes it interesting for my brain. A few unknowns, some studied pros.

“I mean, I was talking to the guy from Korea, and he said it was his first final table ever. That’s pretty crazy.”

Adam Hendrix. Credit: WSOP / Rachel Kay Winter

As Hendrix mentioned, Daehyung Lee of South Korea is in uncharted territory. He had nine notable career live cashes coming into this tournament. The largest came in an event at APT Taipei back in May, with Lee cashing for $34,241 in a 12th place finish. His previous live career earnings total $130,957.

Rounding out the remaining field of nine is Jarod Minghini. The mid-stakes pro from Reno, Nevada enjoyed the biggest successes of his career in WSOP Circuit events. He won the 2022 WSOPC Lake Tahoe main event for $153,368, and won a career-best $162,276 for a third-place finish in the 2023 WSOPC North Carolina main event.

Setting The Final Table

Day 8 began with 24 players, which meant that 15 eliminations were needed before the official final table was set. It didn’t take long for a major clash to arise, as Mizrachi lost most of his stack to Wasnock. But that story had a happy ending.

Instead, Brazil’s Richard Freitas was the first to hit the rail on day 8. He got all-in with K♥9♥ trailing Padron’s A♥9♣ after a flop of 9♠2♠2♣. The A♣ turn left Freitas drawing dead. The $135 satellite winner earned $360,000 as the 24th-place finisher.

CoinPoker ambassadors Schulze (23rd – $360,000) and Nemetz (24th – $360,000) soon followed, thanks to a pair of blind-on-blind battles. Schulze shoved 8-7 suited from the small blind into the A-4 of Muhamet Perati in the big blind. Neither player connected and the German headed to the payout desk to collect the second-largest score of his career.

Nemetz was on the other side of the coin in his last hand. Sergio Veloso ripped with 6-5 and Nemetz called off with K-8. Veloso flopped a pair and rivered a seven-high straight to end the 2023 Wynn Summer Classic $3,500 even winner’s run. Nemetz, of Austria, now boasts more than $1.4 million for his career.

Thinning The Field To The Last Two Tables

Tomas Szwarcberg made it down to day 7 in the 2024 WSOP main event, finishing 30th for $300,000. Incredibly, the Mexico City resident was able to improve on that run in 2025. His final hand saw most of his stack go in preflop with A♠8♣. Facing a cutoff min-raise to 1,200,000 by Hendrix, Szwarcberg three-bet to 7,700,000.

Hendrix called with A♥Q♣. The flop came down Q♠5♠4♥ and Szwarcberg check-called all-in for his one remaining big blind. Hendrix’s top pair remained best through the 3♥ turn and 8♥ river to send Szwarcberg’s second consecutive deep run in 21st place ($360,000).

Bracelet winner and 2008 Heartland Poker Tour Turning Stone champion Chris Dombrowski got the last of his short stack in with K♣J♣, dominated by Margets’ A♣J♦. Things got even worse for the Florida resident when Margets nailed top pair of aces on the flop. The turn and river were of no help to Dombrowski and he was sent packing in 20th place ($360,000).

Margets was not done adding to her stack, though. Soon after dragging that pot, she picked up pocket queens against the pocket jacks of Diego Ponce. Margets raised from the cutoff and then called off when Ponce shipped from the big blind. Neither player connected with a king-high runout and Ponce collected $360,000 as the 19th-place finisher.

No way out! 💥 Diego Ponce runs jacks into queens to bust in 18th place.

Watch LIVE on https://t.co/2RQh5ROjQG pic.twitter.com/oaAfci4RSW

— PokerGO (@PokerGO) July 14, 2025

Before the two-table redraw was complete, Mizrachi doubled up again. His pocket queens held up against the pocket nines of Tony Gregg, and Mizrachi continued his  incredible comeback.

Margets Surges As Field Dwindles

Muhamet Perati was not one of the short stacks heading into the final two tables, but he did end up as the next player to bust. The Italian lost a flip to double up the newly short-stacked Gregg. Peratis soon found himself involved in another preflop showdown. This time, he three-bet shoved for just over 21 big blinds with A♥Q♥ from the small blind.

Hallaert had opened for a min-raise to 1,600,000 from middle position with A♣K♦. Perati turned the tables when the flop came down Q♠7♦3♥, and remained ahead after the J♦ turn. The K♣ on the end gave Hallaert the winning hand, though, and Perati’s run concluded in 18th place ($360,000).

The first $450,000 payout of the event was awarded to Daniel Iachan, who lost a classic flip with 9♦9♣ against Bojovic’s A♠K♠. The Lutherville, Maryland resident stayed ahead through the flop, but an ace on the turn left him Iachan in need of a nine on the river in order to keep his hopes alive. A seven appeared instead, and Iachan was eliminated in 17th place.

Another massive preflop race was soon run, with Portugal’s Veloso holding A♦K♥. Veloso was unable to outpace the J♣J♦ of Margets. She opened from the cutoff for a min-raise and called Veloso’s 32 big blind three-bet shove.

It was a wild ride for the two players. Margets was ahead to start, only for Veloso to surge in front with the A♣Q♣9♠ flop. The 3♣ turn gave Margets a flush draw to go with her outs to a set. The 2♣ on the end completed the Spanish pro’s flush, knocking Veloso out in 16th place ($450,000). Margets chipped up to 71,000,000 after the hand, moving into second chip position among the remaining 15.

Big hands collide! 🤯 Sergio Veloso all-in at risk with ace king against @LeoMargets.

Watch LIVE on https://t.co/2RQh5ROjQG pic.twitter.com/i4jR98o2eT

— PokerGO (@PokerGO) July 14, 2025

Down To A Dozen After  Two Bracelet Winners Fall

Lautaro Guerra established himself as a pot-limit Omaha tournament endboss during the recent boom for the four-card game. He is ranked third on the all-time PLO money list with more than $7.7 million in earnings, which accounts for almost all of his career haul. The 2024 WSOP Paradise $100,000 PLO winner recorded his biggest n0-limit hold’em cash so far with his deep run in this event.

It all came to an end, though, in 15th place, when his last 14 big blinds went in from the button as a three-bet shove with K♣J♠. Hendrix called with A♥K♦ after opening from the cutoff, and held through a 10♦6♥5♦A♦6♦ runout to send Guerra to the rail.

The next big clash was nearly a three-way all-in. Correia min-raised to 2,400,000 with A♦Q♥ from the lojack and Wasnock three-bet shoved for 26,300,000 from the cutoff. Joey Padron looked down at J♠J♥ and went into the tank. He eventually opted to fold and Correia called off his remaining 15,000,000.

Pocket jacks would’ve been best after the eight-high runout had Padron called, but instead, Wasnock’s ace-king high earned him the knockout. This 14th place showing for $450,000 was far and away the biggest score for Correia, who qualified for this event via an online satellite.

Maksim Pisarenko, the 2024 WSOP $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. championship winner, bowed out in 13th place when he committed his last six big blinds with A-5. He was unable to come from behind against Minghini’s pocket sevens. Pisarenko earned a career-best score of $560,250 for his strong showing in this event.

The Final Table Bubble

Joseph Ozimok was the short stack after Pisarenko’s elimination. The 22-year-old from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania pinned his hopes on A♣10♥. He was trailing the A♠Q♣ of Wasnock. Both players paired their side cards, with Wasnock’s queens earning him the pot. Ozimok, the fifth-place finisher in last year’s WPT Prime Championship, set a new personal best on the circuit with this $560,250 windfall.

Gregg, a WPT champion and the 2013 $111,111 One Drop High Roller bracelet winner, spent much of day 8 towards the bottom of the leaderboard after doubling up Mizrachi. He finally succumbed in 11th place when his A♦4♦ ran into the A♠J♠ of ‘The Grinder.’

Mizrachi raised from the button for 2,700,000, and then called Gregg’s small blind shove for 9,900,000 total. The Q♠7♠3♦ flop gave Mizrachi the nut flush draw on top of his superior side card. The K♠ on the turn left Gregg drawing dead. The Maryland native, now based in Hawaii, grew his lifetime earnings to more than $12.8 million with the $750,000 he earned in this event.

With Wasnock’s elimination of Padron in 10th place, the final table of nine was officially set.

What’s Yet To Come

An event that kicked off all the way back on July 2 with the first of four starting days, played through two day 2s, and then another six straight days of high-tension and drama, now takes a short break. The final nine have a day off on Monday, before returning at 1 pm on Tuesday, July 15.

Play will resume with 66:41 remaining in level 39, with blinds of 800,000/1,600,000 and a big blind ante of 1,600,000. The average stack of 64,900,000 is good for just over 40 big blinds. The intention for the first of two days at the WSOP main event final table is to narrow the field from nine down to the last three contenders.

On Wednesday, July 16, the 2025 WSOP main event champion will be crowned.

Final Table Chip Counts

Remaining Payouts To Be Awarded