button in SafariJosh Arieh Bags a Big Stack on Day 1a of the $800 Summer Celebration
The first of two flights in Event #81: $800 Summer Celebration saw 2,584 players flock to the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas at the 2026 World Series of Poker. However, after the completion of 22 levels, each spanning 30 minutes, all but 124 of those starters had fallen by the wayside.
Seven-time bracelet winner Josh Arieh (1,295,000) claimed his 12th cash of the summer by progressing to Day 2 from this flight. Arieh's stack was enough to make the top 20 in the Day 1a chip counts.
Georgia's Nino Papava (3,095,000) is, according to the WSOP LIVE app, the Day 1a chip leader, although his stack looks unrealistically large. Canada's Frederick Robitaille (2,745,000) and Sander Ressler (2,365,000) complete the podium places.
Event #81: $800 Summer Celebration Day 1a Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nino Papava | Georgia | 3,095,000 |
| 2 | Frederick Robitaille | Canada | 2,745,000 |
| 3 | Sander Ressler | United States | 2,365,000 |
| 4 | Vladyslav Shovkovyi | Ukraine | 2,180,000 |
| 5 | Eric Ladny | United States | 1,830,000 |
| 6 | Joseph Cutler | United States | 1,820,000 |
| 7 | Bruno Souza | Brazil | 1,690,000 |
| 8 | Graham Cowan | Australia | 1,595,000 |
| 9 | Matt Solano | United States | 1,590,000 |
| 10 | Noah Curhan | United States | 1,575,000 |
Others who punched their Day 2 tickets included Tom Fuchs (1,3500,000), Rich Alsup (1,210,000), Craig Varnell (1,200,000), David Daneshgar (755,000), Howard Mash (745,000), and Matthew Beinner (730,000).
Day 1b shuffles up and deals at 10:00 a.m. local time on July 3, with Day 2 scheduled for an 11:00 a.m. local time start on July 4. Standby to PokerNews for updates from the WSOP.