World Series of Photos: French Figures, Sweats and Short Stacks

Throughout the summer, PokerGO will bring fans across the globe exclusive access to World Series of Poker final table streams and Poker Central will be following all the WSOP action. Each day, “World Series of Photos” will tell the daily stories from the Rio, so you don’t miss any of the sights of the WSOP. 

Event #73 – $10,000 World Series of Poker Main Event

While bracelet-winner Christian Pham and Ben Lamb are stealing the headlines and TV time on the first outer feature table, the player between them on the Day 7 chip counts is way out in front on the secondary outer feature table. Valentin Messina brings nearly 29 million chips into the restart and while four Frenchman return for Day 7, Messina is their best bet to get to the final table.

The two most experienced Americans at the main feature table are Michael Ruane and Bryan Piccioli. The former, pictured top, final tabled this event last year, finishing 4^th, but that doesn’t mean that Ruane doesn’t wear his heart on his sleeve when sweating the action.

There are plenty of ways to sweat your tournament life deep in the Main Event and even though you know the flop, turn and river are coming, sometimes you just can’t bring yourself to watch. Bryan Piccioli shows us how to sneak a peek though.

From big stacked Frenchman, to two picture-perfect sweats, we head to the bottom of the leaderboard. That is where Michael Sklenicka sits, returning for Day 7 with just under ten big blinds. He may be short and may have the odds stacked against him, literally, but if you still have chips this late in the Main Event, you still have a chance.

Follow all the WSOP action on Poker Central and watch exclusive WSOP live streams on PokerGO.