Last Updated on August 4, 2026 by Bala Kumar
The first day of the 2026 WSOP Main Event final table is in the books, and after nearly six hours of play, the leaderboard looks almost exactly like it did when the day started. Seven players remain, all still chasing the $10 million top prize, and the 22-year-old chip leader who came in with a mountain of chips is still sitting on top.
The Short Version
Lucas Jumalon opened Day 1 with a commanding stack and closed it in the same spot, first place , despite a rough patch that could have gone a lot worse for him. Two players were eliminated during the session, and the table is now set up for a tense Day 2 with four players sitting on fewer than 20 big blinds.
Where Everyone Stands
| Rank | Player | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
| 1 | Lucas Jumalon | United States | 212,000,000 | 85 |
| 2 | Han Feng | United States | 106,500,000 | 43 |
| 3 | Lauri Saaskilahti | Finland | 84,500,000 | 34 |
| 4 | Rami Hammoud | Canada | 45,500,000 | 18 |
| 5 | Michael Gagliano | United States | 42,000,000 | 17 |
| 6 | Jamie Shaevel | United States | 33,000,000 | 13 |
| 7 | Greg Mueller | Canada | 29,500,000 | 12 |
Jumalon’s Rough Patch
Jumalon came in with almost no live tournament pedigree but plenty of composure, and it showed early, he told reporters before the session that he wasn’t feeling any nerves and just planned to play his cards. That calm was tested when he ran a big bluff into Michael Gagliano, firing three streets on a hand where he’d missed everything, only to check himself out of the final barrel. Gagliano’s ace-high was good, and Jumalon lost a chunk of his stack in the process.
For the next couple of hours, the aggression that built his stack in the first place cooled off noticeably. But by the time the cards went in the rack for the night, Jumalon had essentially recovered, still parked at 212 million and 85 big blinds, still the man to beat.
Two Players Head for the Rail
The first elimination came almost three hours in, when Evagoras Evagorou, the shortest stack at the start of the day and the first-ever Cypriot to reach a Main Event final table, got his pocket jacks in against Jamie Shaevel’s ace-queen. An ace on the flop ended his run in ninth place for a $1 million consolation prize, but Evagorou left with his head held high, framing the run as a moment for his country rather than a defeat.
Mario Boos went next, busting in eighth when his pocket eights ran into a flopped king-nine two-pair from Lauri Saaskilahti. It was a quiet exit compared to some of the day’s fireworks, but it moved the table one step closer to the unofficial final six.
The Moments That Made the Session Memorable
Not every storyline was about chips. Han Feng, who nearly doubled up in a coin-flip situation against Mario Boos earlier in the day, spent the session in a pink feather boa and an open shirt a wardrobe choice that reportedly cost him $200 and one he says he wouldn’t have worn if he’d known he’d survive long enough to need an outfit for Day 2 as well.
Rami Hammoud, meanwhile, revealed one of the more unusual final-table prep routines in recent memory: he built cardboard cutouts of every opponent at his table and practiced playing hands against them at home, specifically to make the moment feel less overwhelming when it actually arrived.
And Greg Mueller, the most tournament-tested player left in the field, played almost nothing for the first twenty hands before picking up kings and four-betting Hammoud off ace-queen, a small but telling reminder that experience still counts for something at this stage.
What’s Next
Play resumes Tuesday at 5 p.m. PT (6 p.m. ET on the ESPN livestream), with four of the remaining seven players sitting below 20 big blinds. That’s a stack depth where things can move fast, a double elimination day wouldn’t be a surprise. Jumalon’s lead gives him room to play patiently, but with Han Feng breathing down his neck at 106.5 million, the gap at the top is far from safe.
FAQs
Who is leading the 2026 WSOP Main Event final table after Day 1?
Lucas Jumalon leads with 212,000,000 chips (85 big blinds), essentially unchanged from where he started the day.
How many players are left in the 2026 WSOP Main Event?
Seven players remain after two eliminations on Day 1: Evagoras Evagorou finished ninth and Mario Boos finished eighth.
When does the WSOP Main Event final table resume?
Play resumes at 5 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, streaming live on ESPN2 and the ESPN app.
What is the first-place prize at the 2026 WSOP Main Event?
The eventual champion will win $10 million, with all seven remaining players guaranteed at least $1 million for reaching the final table.
Who has the shortest stack heading into Day 2?
Greg Mueller enters Day 2 as the short stack with 29,500,000 chips (12 big blinds).
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