Paul Klann Leads WSOP Circuit Canada Final 30

Paul Klann entered Day 5 of the CA$5,000 WSOP Super Circuit Canada Main Event at Playground with the chip lead as the field narrowed to its final 30 players. The event drew 2,844 entries and built a CA$13,082,400 prize pool, moving well beyond its CA$10 million guarantee.

Klann bagged 11.3 million chips, good for 113 big blinds. Guoyan Li followed in second with 8.1 million, or 81 big blinds, while Nicholas Palma held third with 7.6 million, or 76 big blinds. The remaining players were scheduled to return for six more levels before the tournament concluded on Thursday, September 10, 2026.

Klann Sets the Pace Entering Day 5

Klann's lead gave him a 3.2 million-chip advantage over Li and a 3.7 million-chip cushion over Palma. That separation mattered, but the top of the leaderboard remained competitive, with several experienced tournament players still holding playable stacks.

Chance Kornuth sat sixth with 6.6 million chips, Jack Salter was ninth with 5.7 million, and Rayan Chamas held 15th place with 4.5 million. Jack Hardcastle also remained in contention, positioned 24th with 3.3 million.

For Klann, the deep run represented a chance to add another major result to an already significant tournament résumé. He won the 2013 WPT L.A. Poker Classic Main Event for $1,004,090, and his reported live tournament earnings before this event stood at $1,170,830.

Seven-Figure Prizes Still on the Line

The champion was scheduled to receive CA$1.5 million and a WSOP Circuit ring. Second place was set at CA$1 million, leaving a CA$500,000 gap between the top two spots.

Every member of the final 30 had already locked up at least CA$51,000. The payout jumps ahead were substantial: reaching the nine-handed final table guaranteed CA$150,000, the final four guaranteed CA$600,000, and third place was worth CA$750,000.

Those jumps shaped the strategic landscape entering Day 5. Big stacks had room to pressure medium and short stacks, while the shorter stacks faced decisions influenced not only by chip equity but also by the escalating payout structure.

A Record Field at Playground

The 2,844-entry turnout made the tournament the biggest live poker event ever held in Canada. The final prize pool of CA$13,082,400 exceeded the guarantee by CA$3,082,400, underlining the scale of the event at Playground.

By the time the field reached its final 30, thousands of entries had been reduced to a compact group chasing the title, the ring, and the top seven-figure payouts. Klann, Li, Palma, Kornuth, Salter, Chamas, and Hardcastle were among the names still alive as the event moved toward its closing stretch.

Notable Eliminations Before the Final 30

Several established players exited on Day 4, including Daniel Negreanu, Michael Mizrachi, Rami Hammoud, and Will Givens. Their eliminations left the remaining contenders to navigate the last phase of the tournament with major payout pressure and a WSOP Circuit title still at stake.

Klann began Day 5 with the clearest numerical edge, but Li and Palma remained within range near the top of the counts. With six additional levels scheduled, the final 30 still had significant play left before the event reached its conclusion.