Rast’s Shot at History Blocked (For Now) as Yeh Forces Day 4 in Razz Championship
Bring In: 30,000
Completion: 100,000
Limits: 100,000-200,000
A third Poker Players Championship title in 2023. A Hall of Fame nod the following summer. And now, Brian Rast is one win away from joining another one of the most exclusive clubs in poker.
But standing in his way is Andrew Yeh, who has dominated much of the $10,000 Razz Championship and holds nearly a 3:1 chip lead heading into an unscheduled Day 4 at the 2025 World Series of Poker.
With play paused late on Day 3 inside Horsehoe Events Center, Yeh bagged 6,095,000 (25 big bets) to Rast’s 1,940,000 (8 big bets) as the two prepare to return and battle for the $306,644 top prize. Yeh has the chance to become a two-time bracelet winner alongside denying Rast entry into the seven-bracelet club, a milestone reached by just 13 players in WSOP history.
$10K Razz Championship Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $306,644 | ||
| 2 | $204,423 | ||
| 3 | Brian Yoon | United States | $142,579 |
| 4 | Joao Vieira | Portugal | $101,983 |
| 5 | Nikolay Ponomarev | United Kingdom | $74,857 |
| 6 | Christian Roberts | Venezeula | $56,424 |
| 7 | Ali Eslami | United States | $43,706 |
| 8 | Maksim Pisarenko | Russia | $34,817 |
Day 3 Action
Twelve players returned for Day 3, but Rast quickly reduced the field with back-to-back knockouts. He made an eight-seven to bust David Steicke in 12th, then eliminated Ray Fishman with a 7-6-4.
Yeh started second in chips and took the lead after busting 2023 Nine Game Mix champ Ryutaro Suzuki on the final table bubble. Yeh improved to a ten-five on seventh, while Suzuki bricked.
David Funkhouser lasted just one hand at the final table before Joao Vieira drew an eight to send him packing. With his exit, a third of the field was gone in under 90 minutes.
The final table was now official. It marked a first of the summer for Yeh, Rast, Nikolay Ponomarev, Ali Eslami, and Maksim Pisarenko, while Brian Yoon, Christian Roberts, and Vieira each made their second.
Level 20 ended with all eight players still in contention, including Roberts, who continued his miraculous run with a series of doubles and triples, mirroring his performance in the closing stages of Day 2. On Tuesday, the Venezuelan was down to a single T-5,000 ante with just a few hands left before bagging. Incredibly, he spun that lone chip into 230,000 by night’s end. With his refusal to go down, his pursuit of pulling off the greatest WSOP comeback ever remained alive.
Shortly after the break, Yoon eliminated Pisarenko in seventh place. Rast then scooped a big pot with a wheel against start-of-day chip leader Eslami who was sent to the rail on the very next hand by Roberts.
Roberts’ run came to an end later that level, chopped down by Yoon and Vieira. What should have been a $20,999 cash just a day earlier turned into a $56,424 payday. His survival instincts were a reminder for every player on just how precious one’s tournament life is.
The final four guaranteed themselves a six-figure score when Vieira downed Ponomarev in fifth. The pace of play then dramatically slowed down, with all four making it through Level 22, albeit barely, as Rast was whittled down to a single big bet.
Remarkably, Rast staged a comeback over the next three hours, taking the chip lead from Yeh just after Vieira was eliminated in fourth. Yeh soon regained control, and despatched Yoon in third with a six-five against a seven-five to hold a more than 2:1 chip lead going into heads-up.
Yeh had all the momentum, and had Rast down to less than four big bets, but a timely trip to restroom transformed Rast into a pot dragging machine, eventually overcoming the deficit that he initially faced. Yeh then overturned his disadvantage, with the duo coming to a stalemate after two levels of heads-up poker.
Yeh and Rast will return at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 19 to Horseshoe Events Center once again, and this time a winner will be crowned.
Play resumes on Level 26, where the limits are 120,000/240,000 (30,000 ante).
As always, be sure to stick with PokerNews to keep up with all the action from the 2025 WSOP.