Nguyen Leads; Moorman in the Hunt on Day 3 of Event #85: $1,500 The Closer
Welcome to the special extended edition of Event #85: $1,500 The Closer at the 2022 World Series of Poker. An extra day is needed in the Bally’s Event Center to find a winner in one of the last bracelet events before the Tournament of Champions brings down the curtain on this year’s WSOP.
Minh Nguyen of Brigantine, New Jersey leads the way with just over 20 million as 17 players return to play for their share of the $3,962,280 prize pool. The winner will take the $563,280 grand prize and their very own WSOP gold bracelet to keep forever.
Following close behind Nguyen is Michael Liang in second with 19 million and change. Liang was the runner-up in the 2021 $25,000 High Roller and he cashed in this year’s Main Event. In third with just under 16.5 million is Rudy Cervantes, who recently ran all the way to 48th in the 2022 Main Event.
Rounding out the players with over 10 million are Daniel Tabello and Zach Johnson.
Top Five Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minh Nguyen | United States | 20,275,000 | 41 |
| 2 | Michael Liang | United States | 19,200,000 | 38 |
| 3 | Rudy Cervantes | United States | 16,475,000 | 33 |
| 4 | Daniel Tabello | United States | 14,450,000 | 29 |
| 5 | Zach Johnson | United States | 12,050,000 | 24 |
Also returning for the Monday finale is Chris Moorman, the most accomplished player in the field with two previous WSOP championships. Moorman finished second in the $500 Freezeout earlier in the series, and he returns with the edge on the rest of the field in tournament experience with $6.5 million in career earnings.
Among the others that bagged for an extra day is Madelyn Carr, who crossed the 10 million mark at one point but returns just outside the top five with 9 million. Meanwhile, Day 1a chip leader Ahmed Karrin is still in the hunt after securing his six cash of the 2022 series.
Players return in Level 35 with blinds at 250,000/500,000 with a 500,000 ante. Blinds will go up every 30 minutes and play will continue on Monday until a winner is crowned.
Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team all day long for live updates from the floor of the $1,500 Closer at the 2022 WSOP at Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas.