The drama reached another level at the 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event as the money bubble burst, Chris Moneymaker suffered a heartbreaking elimination, and an extraordinary three-way cooler left players and railbirds in disbelief.
Day 4 began with 1,389 players chasing one of 1,382 paid spots, meaning just seven players would leave Las Vegas empty-handed. By night's end, only 533 players remained, with Sam Sweilem bagging the chip lead after amassing 3,665,000 chips. He heads into Day 5 ahead of Richard Freitas (3,500,000) and Santiago Plante (3,155,000), while Day 3 chip leader Sasha Liu also safely advanced.
One of the biggest headlines came when 2003 Main Event champion Chris Moneymaker became one of the tournament's bubble casualties. Holding A♠K♠, Moneymaker moved all in against Stoyan Madanzhiev, who woke up with Q♦Q♣. The board offered no help for the former world champion, ending his run just outside the money and denying him another WSOP Main Event cash.
The day also featured one of the most remarkable coolers of the tournament. Farah Galfond found herself all in with A♠A♥ against Ashish Gupta's 5♣5♥ and Julio Cesar Belluscio's 9♠9♣. The flop produced a set for both Gupta and Belluscio, while Galfond's pocket aces were drawing thin. By the river, Belluscio's higher full house had held up, allowing the Argentinian to scoop a monster pot and triple his stack in a spectacular "set over set over aces" confrontation that instantly became one of the defining hands of the 2026 Main Event.
With the bubble now behind them, the pace of play is expected to increase as players shift their focus from simply surviving to building a stack capable of reaching the final table. As the field continues to shrink, every pot carries greater significance in the chase for poker's most prestigious bracelet and a life-changing first-place prize.
Sources:
https://www.pokernews.com/news/2026/07/chris-moneymaker-bubbles-2026-wsop-main-event-51810.htm
https://www.pokernews.com/news/2026/07/set-over-set-over-aces-in-wsop-main-event-51825.htm
https://www.pokernews.com/news/2026/07/sam-sweilem-leads-wsop-main-event-day-4-51828.htm
