It has been an exciting week for poker players in Las Vegas, as the legendary PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) made its return after a hiatus of 12 years.
Now, only seven players remain in the first NAPT Main Event since Black Friday, with Sami Bachahed leading the field into the final day of action, that will see one of the seven crowned as the new NAPT champion.
Bachahed will have his work cut out for him today, as he faces the likes of Nick Schulman and Sergio Aido, both accomplished tournament pros, along with several other prolific players who will stand between him and the title.
Yet, Bachahed enters the final day as a significant favorite, as his 10,570,000 stands well in front of the next biggest stack of 6,670,000 held by Spaniard Aido himself.
All final table action will be available via PokerStars media channels, starting at 1 pm local time, with every hand streamed with a 30 minute delay and broken down by Joe Stapleton, James Hartigan, Maria Ho, and others.
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Seven Remain in Fight for NAPT Glory
After six starting Day 1 flights, 1095 entries were made into the NAPT Las Vegas Main Event, breaking the $1.5 million prize pool by over $150k. 159 out of those made the money, with a host of big names busting both before and after the money bubble burst.
Now, only seven players remain out of hundreds of hopefuls, but the list of those still in play promises high quality of play on the final day.
The final table of seven was set when Day 2 chip leader, Anthony Dianaty, busted in eighth place after his pocket Jacks ran into the pocket Aces of our new chip leader, Sami Bachahed.
The California resident will enter the final table as an overwhelming chip leader, holding just over 100 big blinds to start the day, and hoping to add to his tournament poker resume which already includes a win at a WSOPC event in Dallas and a runner-up finish in a massive field of 5000 in a WPT side event.
An expert at surviving in huge field events, Bachahed now only has six players standing between him and the biggest title of his career, but the six in question will certainly not be pushovers.
Headlining the list is New York native Nick Schulman, one of the best known poker players in the world, whose tournament record speaks for itself. With nearly $17 million in tournament cashes, the four-time WSOP bracelet winner will be looking to run up his chip stack of 4,390,000 and add yet another trophy to his impressive list.
Spanish professional Sergio Aido sits in second place at the moment, and he will be no stranger to final table action. His tournament scores nearly match those of Schulman, and his numerous titles in both mid and high stakes events speak volumes as to the quality of this European player’s game.
Players like Ping Liu from Michigan, David Coleman, Jon Borenstein, and Sandeep Pallampati from New Jersey, will also be in the mix, boasting millions in tournament earnings among them and all looking for their first big victory on a major poker tour.
With Ryan Leng busting in ninth place to take home $24,885 and former chip leader Anthony Dianaty winning $32,355, here is what the remaining seven will be playing for:
- 1st Place: $268,945
- 2nd Place: $168,175
- 3rd Place: $120,130
- 4th Place: $92,410
- 5th Place: $71,080
- 6th Place: $54,680
- 7th Place: $42,060
It will be a final table worth every minute you spend watching the live stream, as we wait to see if one of the super-pros can run up a stack to threaten the chip leader or if one of the less known names can emerge from the dust and turn victorious at the end of the day.
Here are the chip stacks that the remaining seven will be working with at the start of the final day of action in the NAPT Las Vegas Main Event:
| Position | Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sami Bechahed | USA | 10,570,000 |
| 2 | Sergio Aido | USA | 6,670,000 |
| 3 | Nick Schulman | USA | 4,390,000 |
| 4 | Sandeep Pallampati | USA | 4,300,000 |
| 5 | Ping Liu | USA | 3,095,000 |
| 6 | Jonathan Borenstein | USA | 2,200,000 |
| 7 | David Coleman | USA | 1,610,000 |
Eli Elezra Lifts 8-Game Title on the Sidelines
It comes as no surprise that all eyes were directed at the NAPT Main Event yesterday, as the remaining 34 players worked their way down to a final table with cameras shooting and thousands of fans watching the live stream via PokerStars media channels.
Yet, there was another exciting event happening on the sidelines, as some of the best mixed games players in the world ponied up $5300 each for the 8-Game tournament that eventually saw a total of 32 entries, creating a prize pool of $155,200.
Poker veteran and five-time WSOP bracelet winner Eli Elezra came out victorious in that one, beating a final table that included the likes of David “ODB” Baker and Julien Martini before besting Michael Martinelli for the title and $53,540 in prize money.
While this event does not come anywhere close to being one of Elezra’s biggest career achievements, it certainly reminded us all of the immense skill this High Stakes Poker legend still has across all the different versions of our favorite game.
PokerStars Live Streaming Continues Today
While the early days of NAPT Las Vegas were played in the privacy of Resorts World Las Vegas poker room, yesterday marked the first day of filming and live streaming at the festival, which will go on through the entire weekend.
Today, poker fans from all over the world will get a chance to see every single hand of the NAPT Main Event final table with hole cards revealed and a delay of just 30 minutes for security purposes.
Make sure to tune into the PokerStars live stream via YouTube or Twitch and enjoy all the NAPT action from Main Event final day and NAPT High Roller on Sunday for free, with expert commentary from PokerStars’ legendary team of announcers and poker experts you have grown to love over the years.
If you happen to miss the live stream, come back tomorrow as we bring you the full Main Event results and summary of all the happenings ahead of the final day of action that will include the NAPT High Roller final table.
