Warning: Undefined array key "post_type_share_twitter_account" in /var/www/vhosts/casinonewsblogger.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/cryptocurrency/vslmd/share/share.php on line 24
Of the nine players who will take their seats on August 3 for the 2026 WSOP Main Event final table, 26 of the 27 previous final tables are split between Greg Mueller and Michael Gagliano.
Rami Hammoud has the other.
But that fifth-place finish in the 2024 Salute to Warriors for a shade under $60,000 is a million miles away from the $1,000,000 he’s locked up for final tabling the Big One.
“It’s amazing, man. It’s amazing,” he said. “But, look, listen, I think at the end of the day we’re just playing cards, man. You know, it’s just cards.”
Rami Hammoud Answers His Own Self-Doubt on His Way to the Final Table
Hammoud will start the final table second in chips, behind chip leader Lucas Jumalon, but in the final stages of Day 8, it seemed like he had the support of his entire native country of Canada behind him.
A regular at Playground Poker Club just outside Montreal, Hammoud grew up watching the Main Event on television, dreaming of one day competing on that same stage, but always wondering whether he would have what it takes. The money and guaranteed $1,000,000 he’s already locked up are part of the perks of being a Main Event finalist.
But money comes and goes, and for Hammoud, the legacy of his run will last the rest of his life.
“Financially, I haven’t thought that far through. There’s still a lot of job to be done, right?” he told PokerNews. “So that part, I don’t really think about. But, like I said, I’m always going to be a Main Event final tablist. No one can take that away from me. That’s it. I am a Main Event final tablist.
“It’s most poker players’ dream, if not all, right? And I’ve accomplished that. So what an accomplishment.”
Hammoud’s best career score prior to the Main Event came from a $1,150 event at Playground in 2023. That’s his home. It’s where he learned to play, where he made his friends in the poker community, and the place that shaped the player he is now on the cusp of poker immortality. That community from Montreal was there to support him today, and he returned it right back to them.
“But still, regardless, it’s cool to have all the support. You know, my game was born in Playground. I owe everything to Playground in terms of my skill set, my experience. My biggest score prior to this was at Playground. It would not be right for me not to mention Playground. Shout out to them. Shout out to them for making me the poker player that I am today.”
Hammoud was already expecting a significant change in his life, even without his Main Event run. He’s supposed to start a new job in just a week. Preparing for the final table is just part of what he expects to go through over the coming weeks.
“The younger version of myself would always watch the Main Event and would ask himself, like, can we actually pull this off? “
“Step one, sleep. I am lacking so much sleep. Step two: go back home. I really have a flight to catch now. Step three, I’m in between jobs. I left my old job on June 19, and I’m supposed to start my new job on July 20. But I have some preparation to do. Thankfully, I am surrounded by poker players who are significantly better than me from a technical ICM point of view. So I’m definitely gonna leverage their help. And, yeah, just take it from there.”
Looking forward to August 3, Hammoud can’t help but look back and see how far he’s come in his life and his poker journey.
“The younger version of myself would always watch the Main Event and would ask himself, like, can we actually pull this off? Would we be able to play, you know, like stress-free? Will we be able to pull off the bluffs? And I’m so happy to say that young Rami would be so proud of where I am right now. And so, a shout-out to young Rami. This one’s for me.”
Rami Hammoud’s 2026 WSOP Main Event
Entering the fray on Day 1c, Hammoud was likely just pleased to finish the night above starting stack, albeit by a mere 2,000 chips. From there, he steadily worked his way into the structure, hovering around the top 200 in chips before settling into the middle of the pack to close out Day 5.
Day 6 was where things truly took off, as Hammoud chipped up from 2,630,000 to a massive 17,400,000. Along the way, he cracked ace-king with ace-jack to eliminate former bracelet winner Darren Rabinowitz.
He could have had even more in a clash with Kyle Scott, where Hammoud picked up pocket aces against Scott’s pocket kings, yet somehow the chips didn’t all go into the middle.
“I should have been stacked,” Scott admitted at showdown.
“You’re freerolling now,” Hammoud replied, before navigating his way to bag the sixth-largest stack with 62 players remaining.
If Day 6 was his launchpad, Hammoud consolidated his position on Day 7, ending the night second in chips. Among his chief rivals was Lucas Jumalon, a heavyweight matchup that will obviously carry over to the final table with the pair occupying the top two spots in the chip counts.
Hammoud has already proven he can hold his own against the chip leader, famously burning multiple time extensions and “trusting his instincts” to secure a key hand from Day 7.
His deep reserves of chips proved vital in weathering a few late setbacks, including double-ups surrendered to both Jumalon and fellow final tablist Jamie Shaevel on Day 7. Although they’re hard to avoid when both opponents happen to wake up with pocket aces.
Throughout his deep run, Hammoud has demonstrated that timely aggression is key when deep in the Main. He fearlessly put Shaun Deeb all-in for his tournament life to force a fold, and later pulled off another well-timed shove to convince Michael Gagliano to fold the best hand.
But picking the right spots to fold is just as crucial, particularly when wielding a top-tier stack. Hammoud showed that discipline on Day 8, correctly laying down pocket queens to a shove from Antonio Galiana. By consistently amassing chips, he ensured that even when opponents occasionally doubled through him, his stack remained firmly intact.
Having bagged second in chips on back-to-back nights, Hammoud has developed a taste for life at the top of the leaderboard. He now has a three-week break to rest, strategize, and figure out exactly how to turn that second-place stack into a world championship come August 5.
| Day | Chip Count | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1c | 62,000 | 672/1,166 |
| 2abc | 281,000 | 221/1,260 |
| 3 | 697,000 | 218/1,389 |
| 4 | 1,490,000 | 121/533 |
| 5 | 2,630,000 | 89/174 |
| 6 | 17,400,000 | 6/62 |
| 7 | 41,500,000 | 2/21 |
| 8 | 79,000,000 | 2/9 |
2026 WSOP Main Event Final Table Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lucas Jumalon | United States | 194,000,000 | 129 |
| 2 | Rami Hammoud | Canada | 79,000,000 | 53 |
| 3 | Jamie Shaevel | United States | 56,000,000 | 37 |
| 4 | Greg Mueller | Canada | 48,500,000 | 32 |
| 5 | Michael Gagliano | United States | 46,500,000 | 31 |
| 6 | Mario Boos | France | 44,000,000 | 29 |
| 7 | Lauri Saaskilahti | Finland | 37,500,000 | 25 |
| 8 | Han Feng | United States | 25,000,000 | 17 |
| 9 | Evagoras Evagorou | Cyprus | 22,500,000 | 15 |
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000,000 | ||
| 2 | $6,000,000 | ||
| 3 | $3,750,000 | ||
| 4 | $2,750,000 | ||
| 5 | $2,250,000 | ||
| 6 | $1,750,000 | ||
| 7 | $1,500,000 | ||
| 8 | $1,250,000 | ||
| 9 | $1,000,000 |
Managing Editor