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Hossein Ensan Takes Dominant Chip Lead into Final Day of WSOP Main Event

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Day 2 of the 2019 World Series of Poker Main Event final table played out late Monday night into early Tuesday morning. Five players returned to the Rio in Las Vegas to play down to the final three. At the start of Day 2 play, Hossein Ensan started as the overall chip lead and that did not change.

In fact, Ensan’s lead increased but one player that failed to gain any traction during the day was Garry Gates. Coming in with a massive second-place stack, Gates had a somewhat epic collapse on Day 2 and will not be returning for the final day.

Below are the chip stacks at the start of Day 2 action:

  • Hossein Ensan – Germany – 207.7 million
  • Garry Gates – United States – 171.7 million
  • Kevin Maahs – United States – 66.5 million
  • Alex Livingston – Canada – 45.8 million
  • Dario Sammartino – Italy – 23.1 million

Kevin Maahs Out in Fifth

At the start of Day 2 action, Kevin Maahs was third in chips with 66.5 million. Maahs had the majority of the poker community rooting against him due to his slow rate of play. Others at the final table gave him grief for this and commentators and fans alike blasted him for his rate of play.

His rail embraced his style and even had a sign calling him the “Tank Commander.” Despite his solid start, Maahs remained relatively card dead for the majority of the day and slowly sank in the ranks until he became the short stack.

Eventually, Maahs decided to move all-in with Ah-10h and Hossein Ensan made the easy call with pocket nines. Maahs was unable to get an ace or a ten on the board and he finished in fifth to collect $2.2 million.

This was the first-ever WSOP Main Event for Maahs and he made the most of it. He didn’t even register until Day 2 and managed to make a run all the way to the final table. The life-long Chicago Cubs fan will have plenty of money to take in more games from here on out.

Garry Gates Nosedives to Fourth Place Finish

Starting Day 2 play, you’d think that we were destined to have a Hossein Ensan -Garry Gates heads-up battle. However, Gates steadily bled chips throughout the day and never was able to drag a pot of substance during the day.

For a time, some wondered if Gates would freefall to fifth place, but he did manage to hand on until Maahs was eliminated. Nine hands after Maahs hit the rail, Gates followed. Gates looked down to pocket sixes and shoved for his last 29.2 million.

Unfortunately for him, Alex Livingston woke up with pocket queens and made the easy call. The board failed to produce a six and Garry Gates was out in fourth place. His Main Event run culminated with a $3 million payout.

The shirts wore by Gates’ rail exemplify his Day 2 run. It started with LFG and ended with GG.

Three Best Players Return for Final Day

Fortunes changed dramatically for two of the final three players returning for the final day of the 2019 WSOP Main Event. Dario Sammartino started the day as the short stack, and while he is still the short stack, he tripled his stack. He has 33 big blinds to start the final day.

Alex Livingston also tripled his stack and has 120 million in chips to start the final day. He has 60 big blinds.

They are both chasing Hossein Ensan who managed to build his stack up to 326.8 million by the end of Day 2. He will take a 163 big blind stack into the final day.

The final day of the 2019 WSOP Main Event will play out on Tuesday night. The eventual winner will receive $10 million in prize money and the 50th-anniversary WSOP bracelet. We will soon know who will be the next World Champion of Poker. Stay tuned to find out who it is.

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