WSOP 2026 Bracelet Winners (Daily Updates)

To see how this year’s results compare with the previous series, check out our complete list of WSOP 2025 winners.

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WSOP 2026 results

Event #1: $550 Mini Mystery Millions

• 🏆 Winner: Philip Chun
• 💰 Prize: $400,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♥ 3♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 20,488
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $9,352,772

Philip Chun captured his first WSOP bracelet and immediately doubled his lifetime live tournament earnings by winning one of the largest-field events of WSOP 2026. Chun is a coach at Chip Leader Coaching, and before the start of play at the final table, he was advised by Kristen Foxen.

Interestingly, Chun finished 571st in the Mini Mystery Millions last year and made the money. Prior to this victory, his biggest WSOP result had come in the Main Event, where he placed 91st in 2018 in a field of nearly 8,000 entries and earned $66,330.

The largest bounty in the Mini Mystery Millions, worth $1 million, was claimed by Andrew Shelton, who finished in 102nd place.

Event #2: $5,000 8-Handed No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Daniyal Gheba
• 💰 Prize: $502,985
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 5♦ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 570
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,622,000

American Daniyal Gheba won his first WSOP gold bracelet and a career-best prize of $502,985. Event #2: $5,000 8-Handed No-Limit Hold’em became the first event of the series where a bracelet was awarded on the new WSOP main stage — the Mothership, located inside the Paris Ballroom.

After the victory, Daniyal admitted that the prize money could change his life. At the final table, however, he wasn’t worried about the pay jumps, as any finish already guaranteed him a solid payday.

Thanks to this major win, Gheba’s plans for the near future have changed dramatically — he now intends to play higher buy-in events, including tournaments with a $25,000 buy-in.

Event #3: $500 Industry Employees No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Jerome Neppl
• 💰 Prize: $64,083
• ❤️ Winning Hand: J♥ 9♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 906
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $375,990

Event #3: $500 Industry Employees, reserved for poker industry workers, was won by American dealer Jerome Neppl from New Mexico. The victory earned him $64,083. Before this tournament, Neppl had recorded just one career ITM finish worth $613. The event attracted a total of 906 entries.

Jerome came to Las Vegas to deal cards at the WSOP. Now his coworkers are joking: “Wear the bracelet during your shifts — you’ll tilt the players.”

The newly crowned champion is preparing to move from New Mexico to Florida: “This money will change my life and help me get out of debt.”

Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better

• 🏆 Winner: Jason Daly
• 💰 Prize: $191,362
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ 9♦ 9♣ 8♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 828
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,099,170

Victory in Event #4: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better earned American Jason Daly his third WSOP gold bracelet and the third-largest payout of his career — $191,362. For Daly, the win was an especially nice way to start the summer: instead of chasing losses as usual, he begins the series well ahead.

Event #5: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Yang Wang
• 💰 Prize: $595,388
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♣ 10♣ 9♦ 5♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 716
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,293,600

Event #5: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha ended with a victory for China’s Yang Wang, who took home his first WSOP bracelet and $595,388. Thanks to this win, his total live tournament earnings surpassed the $6 million mark.

After the victory, Wang admitted that patience was the main factor that helped him get through the field of 716 entries and win the tournament. At the final table, he folded many strong hands while waiting for the right spot. But once play got down to two or three players, he became more aggressive. Wang entered heads-up play against Jesse Lonis with a 5-to-1 chip lead and quickly closed out the match.

Yang Wang has been playing poker for more than 10 years. He already has several major scores to his name, including a runner-up finish in the $50,000 Pot-Limit Omaha WSOP Paradise event, where he earned $1,006,680.

Event #6: $1,500 Seven Card Stud

• 🏆 Winner: James Cheung
• 💰 Prize: $103,185
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♦ K♣ 5♥ 2♥ K♠ 6♠ 8♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 359
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $476,572

First place in one of the few Seven Card Stud events at WSOP 2026 was claimed by cash game regular James Cheung. Cheung made his first trip to the World Series of Poker only in 2023 and immediately reached the final table of the $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better event, finishing in fourth place.

This year, Cheung defeated Brian Yoon heads-up, calling him the "final boss." Yoon is a five-time WSOP bracelet winner and captured the Seven Card Stud Championship title in 2023.

Event #7: $25,000 Heads Up No-Limit Hold'em Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Dimitar Danchev
• 💰 Prize: $800,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♦ 7♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 128
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,008,000

A well-known high roller from Bulgaria outlasted 127 opponents in one of the most prestigious WSOP 2026 events. In the final heads-up match, Danchev’s opponent was a young player from Russia, Nikita Kuznetsov, who qualified for the event through a $2,750 satellite. In the decisive hand, Dimitar made a full house on the river, while Nikita held trips.

For Danchev, this is his second World Series of Poker bracelet. He won his first in 2023 in the Heads-Up Championship Online on GGPoker. The live tournament victory also moved Dimitar up to 2nd place on Bulgaria’s All Time Money List.

Event #8: $1,500 Badugi

• 🏆 Winner: Michael Casella
• 💰 Prize: $141,963
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♠ 5♦2 ♠A♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 554
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $735,435

Michael Casella first cashed at the WSOP exactly twenty years ago. Until now, the biggest achievement of his World Series career had been a 127th-place finish in the Main Event for $40,288.

In 2026, Michael's perseverance was finally rewarded in the Badugi event. After a three-hour heads-up battle against Nick Schulman, Casella captured his first WSOP bracelet and the second-largest payout of his career ($141,963).

Another renowned poker professional, Scott Seiver, finished in third place. Like Schulman, Seiver is also a seven-time WSOP bracelet winner.

Event #9: $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Scott Clements
• 💰 Prize: $450,176
• ❤️ Winning Hand: T♣ 6♣ 5♦ 2♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 204
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,897,200

The first Championship event on the WSOP 2026 schedule attracted a star-studded field. Phil Hellmuth finished in seventh place, while Todd Brunson took third. The title ultimately went to fellow American Scott Clements, an Omaha specialist and one of the most consistent WSOP grinders. The victory earned Clements his fourth WSOP bracelet, while the $450,176 payday became the second-largest cash of his career.

Since 2005, Clements has recorded more than 80 WSOP cashes and over 30 final-table appearances. Beginning in 2009, he reached the final table of the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship twice. After receiving his bracelet, Scott quickly jumped into the $1,500 Mixed Omaha event, which was still open for late registration.

Event #10: $600 Deepstack No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Karapet Galstyan
• 💰 Prize: $259,829
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♥ 6♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 4,622
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,329,488

Event #10: $600 Deepstack, like many low-buy-in events at the WSOP, became a battleground for lesser-known players outside the United States. The last bracelet winner in the field, Isaac Hagerling, was eliminated in 38th place.

At the final table of the event, the largest stack was only 22 big blinds, so it took just around four hours to determine the winner. In the final stages of the tournament, Karapet Galstyan got quite lucky: he won a three-way all-in with 99, doubled up in heads-up play with J♣7♣ against K♥T♦, and in the decisive hand won with 9♥6♦.

Karapet immediately increased his best cash by five times. Before this victory, his largest payout was $50,000, earned for a 5th-place finish in the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions in 2025.

Event #11: $10,000 GGMillion$ High Roller No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Naseem Salem
• 💰 Prize: $1,089,964
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ Q♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 627
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,831,100

Another WSOP event has been won by a cash game specialist. Naseem Salem was introduced to poker during his college years, but he always preferred high-stakes mixed-game cash tables. He rarely played tournaments, and his biggest result prior to this victory was a $208,919 payout for a runner-up finish in the Poker Hall of Fame Bounty event at WSOP 2024.

Salem started the final table as the chip leader. However, Chad Lipton quickly eliminated three opponents and then won a massive pot against Nazim with A♥Q♠ versus J♦J♣ to take over the lead. Three-handed, Chad lost a huge pot after an unsuccessful bluff against Alexis Cruz, and shortly afterward Salem knocked Lipton out with 7♥7♦ against A♦J♣.

The heads-up match lasted an hour and a half. The pivotal hand came when Salem, holding T♥6♣, flopped two pair on a 6♦T♣3♦ board, while his opponent made top pair with Q♦T♥. Another ten on the river

improved both players' hands, after which Cruz committed nearly his entire stack.
In the final all-in, Salem's A♦Q♠ improved to a pair of queens on the turn against Cruz's pocket jacks.

Event #12: $1,500 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw

• 🏆 Winner: Stephen Hubbard
• 💰 Prize: $155,819
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♦ 7♦ 6♥ 3♠ 3♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 626
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $831,015

Stephen Hubbard considers himself an Omaha specialist, but after finishing fifth in Event #5: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha, the American decided to test his skills in a 2-7 Lowball Draw tournament and ultimately captured his first WSOP bracelet.

At the end of Day 2, Stephen eliminated David “ODB” Baker, a four-time bracelet winner, and took over the chip lead. From that point on, none of his opponents were able to catch Hubbard in chips, and he maintained his advantage all the way to the title.

Event #13: $1,500 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Honghao Zhang
• 💰 Prize: $346,108
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ 5♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,840
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,442,600

A first WSOP cash and a bracelet right away — that is exactly what 26-year-old Georgia Tech graduate student Honghao Zhang accomplished. Prior to this breakthrough, Zhang had spent the last three years primarily playing WSOP Circuit events and cash games.

After his victory, Zhang said: “I’m still a student. Poker is not my full-time job. It’s a hobby, but it’s one that I really enjoy.”

Zhang entered three-handed play as the shortest stack, but managed to survive the pressure and ultimately outlast his more experienced opponents to claim the title.

Event #14: $1,500 Mixed: Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better, Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better, "Big O"

• 🏆 Winner: Justin Liberto
• 💰 Prize: $265,297
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ Q♠ 8♣ 2♠ 2♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,287
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,708,492

Justin Liberto had to wait 11 years for his second WSOP bracelet. He captured his first title in a No-Limit Hold'em event back in 2015, while at the 2026 WSOP he came out on top in an Omaha mixed-game tournament. During that span, the American reached nine final tables and finished runner-up once.

Among Liberto's opponents at the final table were Brandon Shack-Harris (two WSOP bracelets) and Brad Ruben (five WSOP bracelets). Both players were eliminated by Chris Lee, who would eventually face Liberto heads-up.

The heads-up battle lasted just over an hour. In the decisive hand, Lee got all his chips in with a made straight and a strong low draw, while Liberto had turned the nut flush and also held the better low. The river brought the 10♥, changing nothing and securing the title for Liberto.

Event #15: $600 Deepstack Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Philip Ardire
• 💰 Prize: $171,589
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♥ Q♠ T♥ 6♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,636
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,328,544

One of the cheapest events of the 2026 WSOP was won by an unlikely veteran. Before this victory, Philip Ardire had recorded just six WSOP Circuit cashes over a 16-year span, with total live earnings of only $13.6K in WSOPC events.

In recent years, the American has been a professional Omaha cash-game player, which is why he decided to take a shot in this Omaha tournament. Despite entering the final table as the shortest stack and starting heads-up play at a 4-to-1 chip disadvantage, Ardire mounted an impressive comeback and captured his first WSOP bracelet.

Event #16: $1,700 U.S. Circuit Championship No-Limit Holdem

• 🏆 Winner: Antonio Vargas
• 💰 Prize: $439,605
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 9♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,148
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,231,666

Not the first player at the 2026 WSOP to credit a coach for their victory, Antonio Vargas was coached by Faraz Jaka ahead of the U.S. Circuit Championship final table. However, after winning the first bracelet of his career, Vargas described his victory as "just a lot of luck and good fortune."

Vargas spent most of the final table among the chip leaders and entered heads-up play against Kai Cohen with a 3-to-1 chip advantage. Cohen managed to double up once, but the tournament ended just a few minutes later. Vargas turned a straight, while his opponent's flush draw failed to complete. Even so, Cohen called an all-in with top pair and a three kicker, bringing the event to a close.

Event #17: $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Naoya Kihara
• 💰 Prize: $428,923
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 2♣ 3♥ 5♥ 6♠ 7♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 198
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,841,400

Naoya Kihara won Japan's first WSOP bracelet in 2012, and his second victory came only 14 years later. The Lowball Championship attracted a strong field. Among the players who finished in the top 20 were Daniel Negreanu, Alex Foxen, Phil Hellmuth, and Shaun Deeb.

After the tournament, Naoya Kihara said:

"I'm 44 years old now, and I had been considering retiring from tournament poker. But thanks to this victory, I've decided to keep playing tournaments for at least another two or three years."

Event #18: $1,500 Monster Stack No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Richard Alsup
• 💰 Prize: $1,302,125
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ 7♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 11,933
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $15,841,057

One of the largest WSOP 2026 events lasted five days. The title was won by Minnesota-based live grinder Richard Alsup. With the first seven-figure payday of his career, he moved up to second place in the rankings of the best players from his home state.

This is Richard’s second bracelet: his first WSOP victory came in 2022 in an $800 Deep Stack event with nearly 3K entries.

“I just stayed positive and had a feeling I was going to win. Even in the final hand, when I went all-in with A♣7♥ against A♠K♣, I felt like things would go my way,” Alsup said after his victory.

It’s worth noting that Alsup ran well throughout the heads-up against Salvatore Dicarlo, who started the duel with 75% of the tournament chips in play.

Event #19: $25,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Kristen Foxen
• 💰 Prize: $1,773,083
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ A♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 345
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,804,500

Kristen Foxen captured her sixth WSOP bracelet. Interestingly, her previous three bracelet victories came online, and exactly ten years had passed since her last live WSOP win in Las Vegas.

Foxen and Galen Hall entered the final day of the High Roller event as the chip leaders. After methodically eliminating the remaining competitors, they faced off in a heads-up match that began with nearly even stacks.

Speaking about the one-on-one battle, Foxen said:

“Heads-up matches are always intense. At first, things were going his way, then they swung in my favor, then back to him again. In the end, two brutal coolers went my way.”

Those two decisive hands were a straight-over-straight situation, followed immediately by an all-in confrontation with A♥ A♦ against A♣4♦ in the very next hand. Foxen was already receiving congratulations from Hall by the turn, and just a few minutes later, her husband Alex presented her with her brand-new bracelet.

Event #20: $1,500 Dealers Choice

• 🏆 Winner: Jeff Madsen
• 💰 Prize: $161,057
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ Q♥ Q♦ Q♣ 2♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 656
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $870,850

After Naoya Kihara and Justin Liberto, another player managed to win a WSOP bracelet after a very long drought. Jeff Madsen captured his previous, fourth career bracelet back in 2015. Two of his titles came in 2006, the year he became the youngest player ever to win the WSOP Player of the Year award.

At the Dealers Choice final table, Jeff was the most accomplished player in the field, but he entered six-handed play with only the fourth-largest stack. It took Madsen just one hour and three major pots to move into the chip lead. Starting from the final five, he went on to eliminate three opponents from the tournament one after another.

Entering heads-up play against Philip Wess, Madsen held a 10-to-1 chip advantage, and the duel lasted only about half an hour. The final hand was played during a round of Pot-Limit Double Draw High. After the series of draws, Madsen improved to trip queens in an all-in pot, securing both the hand and the tournament victory.

Event #21: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better

• 🏆 Winner: Frederic Normand
• 💰 Prize: $235,377
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ K♣ T♣ 5♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,093
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,450,957

Frederic Normand won a WSOP bracelet in his first-ever PLO Hi-Lo tournament. The Canadian has more than $3 million in live tournament earnings and finished runner-up at the WSOP last year. On that occasion, he lost the heads-up battle in the $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em event to Antonio Galiana.

Normand described his victory as nothing short of a miracle:

“I was playing an Omaha tournament at Aria until 6 a.m. and ended up winning it. Then I came here to support my fantasy team. Somehow, I made it through to Day 2, and thanks to even more unbelievable magic, I ended up winning this tournament!”

Remarkably, the heads-up match in Event #21: PLO Hi-Lo 8 or Better lasted just a single hand. Michael Rodrigues moved all-in on the flop with a set of nines, but by the turn, Normand had completed a straight, which proved enough to secure him the victory.

Event #22: $1,500 Big O

• 🏆 Winner: Christopher Alcindor
• 💰 Prize: $387,110
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♠ 9♣ 6♥ 3♠ 3♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,150
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,802,785

Big O champion Christopher Alcindor usually plays in his native Canada, but for the past three years he has traveled to Las Vegas as a representative of KKPoker. Prior to this victory, his best WSOP result was a 499th-place finish in the Main Event.

Entering four-handed play in Event #22, Alcindor eliminated all of his remaining opponents in just 10 minutes. The $387,110 payday immediately doubled his lifetime live tournament earnings.

Event #23: $10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Naoya Kihara
• 💰 Prize: $301,970
• ❤️ Winning Hand: J♣ T♣ 5♣ T♥ 2♦ K♠ J♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 130
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,209,000

It took just three days for Naoya Kihara to win another WSOP tournament, making him the first two-time champion of the series this year. This time, the Japanese player conquered the Stud event. Before Kihara, only five players in the entire history of the series had won two consecutive Championships: Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, Greg Merson, George Danzer, and Jason Mercier.

After the tournament, Naoya said: “I need at least one more bracelet.”

Interestingly, no matter who won the heads-up of the event, we would still have seen the first WSOP 2026 player to secure two bracelets. In the heads-up against Kihara was Event #6: $1,500 Seven Card Stud champion James Cheung.

Event #24: $25,000 High Roller Six Handed No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Artur Martirosian
• 💰 Prize: $1,286,285
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 4♠ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 242
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,687,000

As expected for a high roller event, Event #24 attracted a stacked field of talented players. The final table featured competitors from five different countries. The most accomplished among them was Chance Kornuth, but he was also the first to exit the final table after losing an all-in confrontation with A♦K♠ against A♣Q♣.

Martirosian eliminated the next two players and eventually reached heads-up play against Pavel Plesuv, whom Artur later described as the toughest opponent at the final table. The Moldovan battled evenly with Martirosian for two hours, but first saw his two pair run into a straight, and in the final hand, his A♥9♣ failed to improve against pocket fours.

This victory marks the fourth WSOP bracelet of Artur Martirosian’s career. Last year, he won the $25,000 Heads-Up Championship.

Event #25: $500 Freezeout No-Limit Holdem

• 🏆 Winner: Brayden Lou
• 💰 Prize: $196,066
• ❤️ Winning Hand:A♣ A♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 4,100
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,701,500

Event #25: $500 Freezeout became the first tournament of WSOP 2026 to be won by a complete unknown. Brayden Lou recently graduated from college and stopped in Las Vegas with his father on the way to California. In his very first event of the series, Event #18: $1,500 Monster Stack, the young player managed to eliminate none other than Michael Mizrachi.

Brayden spent almost the entire $500 Freezeout near the top of the chip counts and entered heads-up play against Jason Hoffman with an eight-to-one chip lead. However, Hoffman managed to double up several times. The decisive hand came when both players made two pair, but Lou's hand was stronger. Shortly afterward, Jason shoved his remaining chips with A♦J♦, only to run into his opponent's pocket aces.

Event #26: $2,000 No-Limit Holdem

• 🏆 Winner: Braxton Dunaway
• 💰 Prize: $288,064
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 4♥ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 968
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,723,040

Braxton Dunaway has been playing live tournaments for almost 20 years, but real success came to him only in recent years. In 2023, he won his first bracelet, and last year he finished in 3rd place in the Main Event.

At the final table of Event #26, Erwann Pecheux and Braxton Dunaway were dominating the action. They were the ones who eliminated all the opponents at the table and met in heads-up play. The decisive hand in the one-on-one battle was a big pot where both players hit a pair of tens, but the American had the better kicker. In the very next hand, Peche called his opponent’s all-in with A♥9♠, and Dunaway’s pocket fours held up.

After the victory, Braxton Dunaway plans to take a couple of days off and then return to playing WSOP over the weekend.

Event #27: $10,000 Dealers Choice Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Bryce Yockey
• 💰 Prize: $371,664
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ J♦ 9♥ 6♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 163
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,515,900

Bryce Yockey is a well-known Omaha specialist in the United States. He won his first bracelet in 2017 and his second in 2024, when he also finished runner-up in the Poker Players Championship.

In the Dealers Choice Championship, the American had already become the chip leader at the final stage before the final table, even though there was still one player in the tournament who had not yet won a bracelet. With four players left, Chad Eveslage closed the gap on Yockey after knocking out two opponents in a row. However, in the battle of two big stacks, Yockey came out on top, and Chad finished in 4th place.

In heads-up play against Ryan Miller, Yockey had nine times more chips, and within two hands in a Omaha round he secured the victory. “I wanted to win this tournament more than any other, except the PPC and the Main Event. It’s my number 3,” the player said after receiving the bracelet.

Event #28: $600 Deepstack Mixed No-Limit Hold'em; Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Brent Gregory
• 💰 Prize: $204,140
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 7♥ 5♠ 4♥ 4♣ 
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 3,332
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,679,328

Event #28, despite its modest buy-in, featured several big names at the final table. Alex Foxen and Daniel Negreanu finished the tournament in 5th and 8th place, respectively. WSOP Circuit ring record-holder Maurice Hawkins also reached heads-up play.

The winner of the tournament was a low-stakes live tournament regular from Montana, Brent Gregory. The first-place payout marked his biggest cash in 10 years of play. His heads-up opponent, who had eliminated Foxen and Negreanu, started the one-on-one duel with a two-to-one chip lead and came very close to claiming his first WSOP victory. However, Brent took down three major pots in a row, and in the decisive hand, trips on the flop secured him the tournament win.

Event #29: $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Santhosh Suvarna
• 💰 Prize: $1,992,870
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♥7♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 167
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $7,932,500

India’s top player, businessman, and high roller Santhosh Suvarna has won his third bracelet since 2023. He stated that his only goal in poker is to win the WSOP Main Event, after which he plans to retire from the game.

At the final table of Event #29, Suvarna first doubled up through Chang Lee and then won two major pots against Zlotnikov, sharply shifting the momentum of the final table. The Indian player described these hands as key on his path to victory.

The heads-up against Chang Lee lasted about an hour. Suvarna caught his opponent bluffing and won a significant pot. In the final hand of the tournament, his 8♥7♥ made trips on the river and proved stronger than Lee’s pocket kings.

Event #30: $1,500 Limit Hold’em 7-Handed

• 🏆 Winner: Dennis Weiss
• 💰 Prize: $133,704
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♥8♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 510
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $677,025

Dennis Weiss is an Omaha specialist. Most of his live earnings and both of his bracelets have come from events in this poker variant. Last year, the German player took first place in a PLO High Roller event, earning $2,292,155.

He entered the final table with the shortest stack, at times down to just 6 big blinds. However, he first picked up pocket aces at the right moment, and later made trips on the flop.

In the end, Dennis eliminated four opponents at the final table and defeated Omar Mehmood in heads-up play.

Event #31: $1,500 Super Turbo Bounty No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Mike Holtz
• 💰 Prize: $238,097
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥3♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,103
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,791,733

Mike Holtz is an online regular. He has six WSOP Circuit rings and one WSOP bracelet, which he won on WSOP.com. That’s why he was especially happy to take down a live event in the series.

“Looks like most of the people at the final table have never played super turbo or don’t really know how to play a final table. It felt like the final table was pretty easy,” Holtz said after winning the bracelet.

However, as always, luck still played its part. With three players left, Mike eliminated Rute Jin in a preflop all-in: 6♠5♥ vs A♣5♦, hitting a six on the flop.

Event #32: $3,000 No-Limit Holdem

• 🏆 Winner: Omar Zazay
• 💰 Prize: $538,158
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ 2♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,300
• 💵 Total Prize Pool:  $3,471,000

More than 10 years ago, Omar Zazay stepped away from professional poker to focus on business, but he continued to make annual trips to the WSOP. Prior to this victory, his best result at the series was a 19th-place finish in the $25K PLO event in 2018.

After the win, Zazay said:

“I’m feeling pretty amazing. This tournament was a real roller coaster. I remember being down to just ten big blinds around the middle of Day 3, but I never gave up. I told my wife that I was going to keep fighting because I came here to win a bracelet.”

In the heads-up match of Event #32, Omar defeated well-known high roller Jean-Robert Bellande, who had held the chip lead throughout the final table. In the final hand of the tournament, Zazay’s A♦ 2♥ prevailed over Bellande’s J♠ T♦ in a preflop all-in confrontation.

Event #33: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Nathan Gamble
• 💰 Prize: $767,395
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ K♦ J♠ 7♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 390
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,627,000

Nathan Gamble became the first player in WSOP history to win three bracelets in PLO8 events. At the same time, he is not primarily a tournament player and is better known as a high-stakes cash game specialist in mixed games.

Event #33 was Gamble's first live tournament of the year. His main opponent at the final table was Justin Liberto, who had already won a WSOP event earlier in the series. Nathan won several large pots from Liberto without showdown and became the new chip leader with four players remaining. The two would later meet in the tournament's heads-up match.

In the final hand of the tournament, Liberto got all his chips in on the flop with an overpair, but Gamble had flopped two pair. The turn and river did not change the outcome, securing the victory for Gamble.

Event #34: $500 COLOSSUS

• 🏆 Winner: Justin Smith
• 💰 Prize: $550,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ K♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 16,269
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $6,751,635

Justin Smith has played poker very little over the past few years, and his biggest cashes in his career came between 2009 and 2011. In 2015, he even finished 10th in The Players Championship. In the Colossus, he entered the event for the third time and called it “fun”: “I saw the same people walking around all day and making multiple re-entries.”

Only one player at the final table already had a WSOP bracelet: two-time bracelet winner Eric Baldwin, but he exited in 8th place. Smith entered the final 9 with the fourth-largest stack, and first eliminated short stack Min Ji, who had 5 big blinds, then doubled through Myles German: A♦ K♥ vs A♣ Q♥ with an ace on the flop.

It was against German and Yuefan Wang that Justin played his biggest pots at the final table. He eliminated Wang in 4th place and then faced Myles in heads-up. The one-on-one match did not last long and required only a single preflop all-in. Smith’s A♠ K♥ made a flush against pocket eights.

Event #35: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Jason Zipfel
• 💰 Prize: $441,560
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ A♦ J♠ 5♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,581
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,426,277

Jason Zipfel cashed in a PLO tournament for the first time and immediately went all the way to victory. The American admitted that he primarily plays in private cash games and only enters a handful of tournaments each year.

In the heads-up match of Event #35, Zipfel faced Hokyiu Lee, who was already a WSOP bracelet winner. In the final hand, Jason's pocket aces held against his opponent's flush draw to secure the title.

Event #36: $100,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Yuri Dzivielevski
• 💰 Prize: $2,841,432
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♣ 9♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 115
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $11,040,000

Brazilian regular Yuri Dzivielevski is on a remarkable heater. All three of his seven-figure scores have come since December 2025. This week in Las Vegas, he captured his fifth WSOP bracelet and recorded the biggest cash of his career.

Although many consider Yuri a mixed-games specialist, this time he came out on top in a No-Limit Hold'em event. His opponents at the final table included Martin Kabrhel, Alex Foxen, and Alex Kulev. In heads-up play, Dzivielevski defeated the Netherlands' top player, Teun Mulder.

Unfortunately, the Brazilian will miss the Main Event. His wife is expecting their second child, who is due to be born in July.

Event #37: $1,500 H.O.R.S.E.

• 🏆 Winner: Nick Schulman
• 💰 Prize: $183,366
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♣ 7♠ 9♠ A♠ 4♥ Q♠ 3♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 780
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,035,450

Nick Schulman has now won WSOP events in four consecutive years, bringing his total bracelet count to eight. After his latest victory, the 41-year-old American said:

“I’ve dedicated most of my life to poker, and I feel like I’m only now reaching my peak. I don’t want to be one of those players who cling to past accomplishments, but I genuinely feel like I’m finally starting to realize my full potential.”

In his run to the title, Schulman spent most of the final table among the chip leaders. He eliminated Mike Wattel, Joe Brindle, and Jonathan Nebbout. In heads-up play against Clayton Mozdzen, Nick quickly built his advantage to a 5-to-1 chip lead. The Canadian managed to double up several times, but he was unable to turn the match around. During a round of Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo, Schulman completed a flush on seventh street against his opponent’s trips to secure the victory.

Event #38: $10,000 Limit Hold'em Championship 7-Handed

• 🏆 Winner: Dong Chen
• 💰 Prize: $285,200
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ 4♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 121
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,125,300

Stephen Hubbard's example, after winning the Lowball event at the 2026 WSOP, showed that it always pays to try your hand at different poker variants. China's Dong Cheng took that lesson to heart during this year's series, deciding to learn Limit Hold'em and ultimately capturing a bracelet in the discipline. Cheng's first WSOP victory came in 2023, when he won a $10,000 High Roller event at WSOP Paradise.

The final stage of Event #38 featured a star-studded lineup that included Phil Ivey, Gus Hansen, Benny Glaser, and Jeremy Ausmus. For Cheng, however, the action did not come easy at this point in the tournament. Both at the start of play and later during four-handed action, he found himself at the bottom of the chip counts. However, Chen won several crucial pots against Jeremy Ausmus and Benny Glaser and had taken over the chip lead by the dinner break. The turning point came when he made a flush on the turn to eliminate Ausmus in third place.

Throughout heads-up play against Glaser, the Chinese player controlled the action. The biggest pot of the match saw Glaser lose with a flush against a full house that Chen completed on the river. In the very next hand, the Brit got the rest of his chips in holding T♣8♠ against Chen's A♠4♠. An eight on the flop put Glaser ahead, but the river once again favored Chen, completing his flush draw and securing the championship.

Event #39: $5,000 Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Juan Rodriguez
• 💰 Prize: $673,011
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 8♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 844
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,882,400

Juan Rodriguez started playing poker after moving to the United States. His biggest cash before the World Series of Poker 2026 was only $47,071. The Seniors High Roller victory instantly doubled his total winnings from a 20-year poker career.

On the tournament bubble, the Peruvian executed one of the most talked-about bluffs of the series. On the board 8♠ K♣ 10♦ 2♠ 7♥, Michael Rein, holding two top pairs, after a long decision folded the best hand to an all-in. Rodriguez showed A♦Q♦.

In heads-up play of Event #39, Juan faced Nariman Yaghmai, trailing in chips. But Rodriguez needed less than an hour to outplay his opponent. In the final hand, Rodriguez’s K♣8♣ was behind A♦3♥, but a king on the river gave him the winning pair and the title.

Event #40: $1,500 Razz

• 🏆 Winner: Sebastian Pauli
• 💰 Prize: $135,564
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ 2♥ 2♦ 3♠ 6♥ 6♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 519
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $688,972

Sebastian Pauli's last major tournament victory had come quite some time ago. Back in 2013, he reached the final table of a WSOP Razz event, but could only manage a fourth-place finish.

In 2026, the tournament attracted nearly twice as many entries as it had 13 years earlier. The most accomplished player at the final table was Dennis Weiss, who already owned three WSOP bracelets, including one won earlier during this year's series.

The heads-up battle between Pauli and Weiss lasted nearly five hours. The German gained a decisive chip advantage after winning a crucial pot with A-3-5-7-9 (nine-seven low). Weiss continued to fight for more than half an hour, but eventually lost his last chips in the final hand when his opponent made A-2-3-4-6 (six-four low), one of the strongest possible hands in Razz.

Event #41: $250,000 Super High Roller No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Adrian Mateos
• 💰 Prize: $4,334,411
• ❤️ Winning Hand: T♣ 2♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 56
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $13,720,000

Spain’s best player won his sixth bracelet, and for the second time Adrian Mateos became the champion of the most expensive event at the World Series of Poker. In 2021, the Super High Roller brought him $3,292,000.

Interestingly, Mateos showed resilience and made a re-entry at the end of the first day of play. At the final table, Adrian eliminated:

• Samuel Mullur (A♣8♣ vs T♣9♦ in the blinds),
• Jason Koon, holding with T♣T♠ against A♠K♥,
• Sean Winter (A♠A♦ vs A♣9♣ in the blinds).

His heads-up opponent, Bryn Kenney, had previously eliminated Phil Ivey in eighth place. The American entered heads-up play with a significant chip lead, but Mateos first won a big pot with a straight, then flopped two pair in the final hand to beat Kenney’s top pair and take the rest of his chips.

At the bracelet ceremony, Adrian said:

“This is my favorite tournament because of the structure and the buy-in. High buy-in events give me extra motivation.”

Event #42: $10,000 Big O Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Daniel Aharoni
• 💰 Prize: $861,287
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ T♠ T♦ 6♠ 4♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 456
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $4,240,800

Daniel Aharoni prefers cash games over tournaments and has not played at the WSOP for the past two years. However, his extensive experience in high-stakes games helped him take first place in the Big O Championship. The event attracted a strong field: in the top 10, only three players did not have bracelets.

Aharoni entered the final table with a massive stack and confidently made his way to heads-up against Aaron Kupin. Kupin managed to cut into the lead several times, but Aharoni quickly reestablished his advantage.

The key moment came when he made quad eights against his opponent’s full house, leaving Kupin short-stacked. In the decisive hand, Aaron got it in with a draw, but Aharoni’s pair of tens and his low combination held up.

Event #43: $800 8-Handed Deepstack No-Limit

• 🏆Winner: Matthew Moss
• 💰 Prize: $318,556
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 9♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 3,903
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,732,100

British professional Matthew Moss has played very little over the past seven years. Last year he recorded a career-best cash of $520,000 in the Onyx Super High Roller Series $100K buy-in event, and now in Las Vegas he finished first in an $800 buy-in event.

Moss entered the final table of Event #43 with the second-largest stack and, over the course of the final table, lost only one major pot. In heads-up play against Daryl Ronconi, Matthew came in with a significant chip advantage. In the decisive hand, the European decided to call a preflop all-in with K♣9♠, while Ronconi held A♦6♦, but the dealer put a nine on the turn and then a king on the river.

Matthew Moss won his first bracelet. Prior to this, his best result at the World Series of Poker was 21st place in the Main Event in 2016.

Event #44: $10,000 Super Turbo Bounty No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Alex Foxen
• 💰 Prize: $594,246
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 6♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 466
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $4,333,800

After three final tables at the World Series of Poker 2026, Alex Foxen secured his fourth bracelet. That brings the Foxen family total to ten WSOP titles combined. To catch up with the Mizrachi brothers, Alex and Kristen still need three more bracelets.

At the Event #44 final table, Foxen entered as the chip leader and eliminated six of his eight opponents. The most painful bustout in fifth place was Nazar Buhaiov, whose pocket aces ran into 7♣8♣. The American’s straight draw didn’t complete, but an eight on the turn gave him full house.

In heads-up play, Yixi Tang managed to put up a strong fight against the American and doubled up several times, but Foxen first picked off a bluff and then, in the final hand, turned top pair to close out the tournament and secure the victory.

Event #45: $2,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better; Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better

• 🏆 Winner: Eddie Blumenthal
• 💰 Prize: $248,545
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♥ Q♥ 8♦ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 587
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,306,075

Almost all of Eddie Blumenthal’s tournament earnings throughout his career have come in Hold’em events. For example, his career-best cash of $334,756 came in 2011 when he finished runner-up in a $1,500 WSOP No-Limit Hold’em Six-Handed event. However, he captured his first bracelet in a Mixed Omaha/Stud Hi-Lo tournament.

Blumenthal entered the final nine with the second-largest stack, although the gap between him and two other contenders was minimal. He quickly took over the chip lead and eliminated four opponents in succession. Over the next several hours, however, players were reluctant to bust, and large stacks repeatedly changed hands around the table.

At that point, Nikolai Fal became the key player at the table. He collected the chips of two opponents and pushed the tournament into heads-up play. The final duel was dominated by The final duel was dominated by Blumenthal, who did not lose a single major pot during the half-hour match. In the final hand, he rivered trip queens while also making a qualifying low, scooping the pot to secure the title.

Event #46: $1,000 Seniors No-Limit Hold’em Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Homan Mohammadi
• 💰 Prize: $660,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ 6♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 7,538
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $6,633,440

Homan Mohammadi is a professional chess player who only began playing live poker tournaments regularly later in life. He recorded his first WSOP cash at nearly 40 years old. Mohammadi captured the Seniors Championship title on his fourth attempt. The victory brought him a career-best score and increased his lifetime tournament earnings by roughly one-third.

Mohammadi entered the official final table of Event #46 as the chip leader and eliminated five opponents on his way to heads-up play.

Larry Quang did not last long against Mohammadi in the one-on-one battle. The final hand of the tournament saw A♦ 6♦ all in against K♦ 7♣. Quang paired his king on the flop, but an ace on the river gave Mohammadi the pot and the title.

Event #47: $25,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Eelis Pärssinen
• 💰 Prize: $2,161,056
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ A♣ 6♦ 2♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 451
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $10,598,500

Eelis Pärssinen ranks second among Finnish players in all-time live tournament earnings and has focused primarily on PLO for the past 15 years. He won his first WSOP bracelet in 2021 in a $5K NLH/PLO event, while the biggest payday of his career came in 2024, when he earned $2,270,000 for winning the Triton PLO Main Event.

Pärssinen entered the final day of Event #47 as the chip leader, holding half of the chips in play. However, he gradually lost his advantage and began heads-up play against Levon Khachatryan at a chip deficit. The Finn quickly regained momentum, though, doubling up after flopping quads against his opponent's full house.

In the tournament's final all-in confrontation, pocket aces secured the victory for Pärssinen, although Khachatryan, holding A♦ Q♣ 3♦ 3♥, picked up two different straight draws during the hand.

Event #48: $10,000 Razz Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Calvin Anderson
• 💰 Prize: $357,026
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ 4♠ 5♣ 7♠ 8♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 155
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,441,500

Calvin Anderson became the fourth player at WSOP 2026 to win a sixth career bracelet. Interestingly, the American had already won the Razz Championship back in 2018.

The final table of Event #48 lasted more than 11 hours, and Anderson started it as the chip leader. Up to the final four, he did not make a single elimination, but his chip lead kept growing.

Eric Rodawig, a well-known professional player and financial analyst, was unable to win a single major pot against Calvin in heads-up play. In the final hand, a jack on fifth street severely weakened Rodawig’s hand, while his opponent picked up a seven and improved to A♦ 4♠ 5♣ 7♠ 8♥.

Event #49: $2,500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Marco Johnson
• 💰 Prize: $513,885
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ 5♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,561
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,473,225

Marco Johnson had to wait ten years to win the third WSOP bracelet of his career, despite cashing more than 150 times at the World Series of Poker. Thanks to his victory in Event #49, the American scored a career-best payday, pushing his lifetime tournament earnings past the $6 million mark. Interestingly, Johnson has now won WSOP bracelets in three different poker disciplines: NLH, FLH, and H.O.R.S.E.

Johnson entered the freezeout final table second in chips. The tournament's final nine also featured well-known players such as Faraz Jaka and Chino Rheem. Marco doubled up early, eliminating Sebastian Schulze over the course of two hands. By the time the field was down to three players, Kenzo Ishida had caught up to the American in chips, but he too lost his entire stack to Johnson in just two hands.

Johnson began heads-up play against Rheem with a 4-to-1 chip lead. Chino managed to double up early when his A♣A♠ held against J♣J♦, but about 30 minutes later the next preflop all-in went Johnson's way. Marco's A♦5♦ flopped a straight against Rheem's A♠4♣, bringing the tournament to an end.

Event #50: $1,500 Millionaire Maker

• 🏆 Winner: Joseph Liberta
• 💰 Prize: $1,250,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♣ 5♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 11,769
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $15,623,347

Joseph Liberta earned $1.5 million playing low buy-in tournaments over 15 years, so his victory in the Millionaire Maker nearly doubled his career winnings. Before that, the American’s best WSOP result was 15th place in the Omaha High Roller in 2023, where he earned just over four $25K buy-ins.

After four days of play, Liberta reached the Millionaire Maker final table with the third-largest stack. He won his first big pot in the top 7: defending the big blind with Q♣T♣, he made trips after Joseph Baghdadian decided to fire a bluff all the way to the river. An hour later, Liberta called down a bluff from Michael Monroig holding only A-high and became the chip leader.

From that point until heads-up, Joseph Liberta took most of the chips from his three remaining opponents and entered the one-on-one duel against Monroig with a significant advantage. Michael managed to double up only once, but under pressure from increasing blinds he moved all-in with T♦8♥ and was called by 8♣5♦. Two fives on the flop sealed the victory for Liberta.

Event #51: $10,000 Mystery Bounty No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Alex Anton
• 💰 Prize: $678,300
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 7♥ 6♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 558
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,189,400

Young American professional Alex Anton only began actively playing live tournaments in 2025, having previously focused on cash game grinding. Until recently, his best WSOP result was a 4th-place finish in the Super High Roller in Prague, earning $397,163. This summer in Las Vegas, he had already reached another final table, finishing fourth in the $10K Deep Stack Six-Max event.

Anton entered the Event #51 final table as the chip leader in the top 9, although his advantage over Josh Reichard was only 1 big blind. However, with three players remaining, he had accumulated roughly two-thirds of the chips in play.

He entered heads-up play against Julien Sitbon with a six-to-one chip lead. In the final hand of the tournament, Anton made a straight on the turn against pocket tens and secured his first WSOP bracelet.

Event #52: $3,000 Nine Game Mix

• 🏆 Winner: Joey Couden
• 💰 Prize: $254,470
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ T♥ 6♥ 5♠ 4♦ 4♣ 2♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 472
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,260,240

Joey Couden spent many years as a professional No-Limit Hold’em player, while mixed games remained more of a hobby for him. In the end, it was the record-breaking Nine Game Mix event that delivered the American his third WSOP bracelet and the largest payout of his career.

Couden started the final day in the middle of the chip counts but quickly built momentum: he eliminated Mike Gorodinsky and Eli Elezra in quick succession, then reached the final table second in chips. Only Shaun Deeb had more.

It was Deeb who Couden faced in heads-up play. For Deeb, it marked his 17th WSOP heads-up appearance, and he entered the match with a 2-to-1 chip advantage.

However, over the course of three and a half hours, Couden managed to overcome the more decorated opponent. In one of the key pots in Stud, he won a big hand and eventually left Deeb with no chips

Event #53: $1,500 Five Card Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆Winner: Zachary Gruneberg
• 💰 Prize: $271,552
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♠ 4♣ 4♦ 3♣ 2♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,319
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,750,973

Best cash of $490,617 and his first two WSOP bracelets, Zachary Gruneberg won in Hold’em events. Prior to WSOP 2026, he had not recorded a win in any Omaha tournament with a prize higher than $8K.

Gruneberg started the final table of Event #53 as a short stack and spent a long time under pressure from big stacks, several times staying close to elimination. Only at the final four, after eliminating Gianluca Cedolia, did the American manage to move into the chip lead.

In the heads-up against Hokyiu Lee, Gruneberg began with twice as many chips and quickly closed out the tournament. In the final hand, the players got it all in on the flop, and on the river Gruneberg completed a straight against an overpair.

Event #54: $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Calvin Anderson
• 💰 Prize: $413,580
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ K♥ Q♦ 9♦ 8♦ 6♦ 3♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 189 
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,422,900

Calvin Anderson became the second player this year to win two WSOP bracelets during the same series. Interestingly, just like Naoya Kihara, Anderson accomplished the feat by winning two consecutive $10,000 Championship events. The American now has seven WSOP titles to his name.

Anderson started the final table of Event #54 with an average stack, but several pots won from Robert Mizrachi, along with all of David Bach’s chips, propelled him into second place on the leaderboard behind Josh Arieh. After a lengthy three-handed battle, Anderson advanced to heads-up play against Arieh holding a commanding 4-to-1 chip lead. Just 30 minutes later, in a Stud Hi-Lo hand, Josh lost the remainder of his stack when his straight was beaten by a flush.

In his winner's interview, Anderson shared his secret to success:

“I take a lot of different supplements. I don’t drink alcohol. I try to eat healthy. I think the guy who finished third had a few drinks, and it affected his result. In HORSE, it’s important to pick your opponent. Some players are strong in certain games, while others excel in different ones.”

Event #55: $50,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Joao Simao
• 💰  Prize: $1,368,700
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ A♣ J♥ 9♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 110
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,225,000

For the second time at this WSOP, a high roller event was won by a Brazilian player. João Simão, following Yuri Dzivielevski, became the winner of the $50K Omaha event and claimed his fourth bracelet.

Simão entered the final day with the second-largest stack among the eight remaining players, trailing only Robert Cowen. In fifth place, he eliminated a strong Omaha specialist, Carlo van Raven, while Cowen was stopped in third place by Santhosh Suvarna.

In heads-up play against the Brazilian, Santhosh started with nearly a two-to-one chip lead, but pocket aces, which are less dominant in PLO than in NLH, gave João a double-up and eventually the victory in the tournament.

Event #56: $3,000 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Abhishek Mhatre
• 💰 Prize: $492,050
• ❤️ Winning Hand: T♠ 9♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,150
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,070,500

Canadian amateur Abhishek Mhatre came to just his second WSOP. Prior to winning Event #56, nearly all of his live tournament earnings came from a seventh-place finish in last year's $500 Freezeout event.

Mhatre was the shortest stack remaining in the final five, but then doubled up three times in just 10 minutes:

• A♣J♠ vs K♦J♦ against Martin Jacobson
• A♥5♥ vs A♦K♠ against Salem (a five on the flop)
• 8♥8♣ vs Q♥Q against Loeliger (an eight on the flop)

In heads-up play, Abhishek defeated 2014 WSOP Main Event champion Martin Jacobson. It took him only ten hands to seal the victory. In the final all-in confrontation, his T♠9♥ faced Jacobson's J♠T♦, and the dealer put a crucial nine on the flop to secure the win for the Canadian.

Event #57: $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Harry Rubin
• 💰 Prize: $390,300
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ 9♣ 9♦ 7♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 3,763
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,558,182

Holding the chip lead for most of Day 3, Harry Rubin captured his first WSOP bracelet. Before that, the American’s best result in the series was a 4th-place finish in a $1K freezeout in 2022, which earned him $113,532. Interestingly, just ten days earlier, Rubin had won a PLO event with the same buy-in at the Aria Poker Classic series.

At the start of the Event #57 final table, Harry had accumulated more than half of all the chips in play. Over the first three hours of play, he lost that entire advantage and dropped to the bottom of the chip counts by the final five players. However, Rubin managed to regroup: three opponents were eliminated through pots he played, and the heads-up against Narcis-Gabriel Nedelcu lasted just one hand.

Event #58: $1,500 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw

• 🏆 Winner: Michelle Chin
• 💰 Prize: $161,313
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♠ 7♥ 5♦ 4♦ 2♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 657
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $872,167

Michelle Chin won two WSOPC events early in her career in 2015 and had not won another live tournament since. At this year’s WSOP, she cashed in four events for small amounts and delivered a strong performance in the Lowball event.

She entered the official final table with the fifth-largest stack out of seven players, but quickly doubled up through Ian Pelz. In the top five, after winning a big pot against Horacio Chavez, she moved into the chip lead. When three players remained, Daniel Strelitz emerged as the dominant stack and entered heads-up play against Chin with a chip advantage.

After two hours, Chin managed to turn the heads-up match in her favor and, over the course of just three hands, took all of Strelitz’s chips.

Event #59: $500 Salute to Warriors

• 🏆 Winner: Prashanth Nataraj
• 💰 Prize: $208,800
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠J♦ 
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 4,478 
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,835,980

Prashanth Nataraj had previously recorded ten WSOP cashes, but had never won more than $4.9K. The $500 Salute to Warriors proved to be a true marathon for the Indian player, earning him both a career-best score and his first WSOP bracelet.

Nataraj began the final day with just 10 big blinds and had built his stack up to 26 big blinds by the time the final table was reached, sitting third in chips. His only major showdown pot before three-handed play came against Julien Duveau, while in every other significant hand his opponents folded before the river.

After eliminating Jeevan Lobo in third place, Nataraj entered heads-up play against     Laurance Essak with a 2-to-1 chip lead. The very first preflop all-in decided the outcome of the tournament. Essak got his chips in with A♦6♠, but found himself dominated by Nataraj's A♠J♦.

Event #60: $50,000 Poker Players Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Benny Glaser
• 💰 Prize: $1,343,764
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ Q♦ 7♦ 4♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 108
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,130,000

One of the strongest mixed-game players, Benny Glaser, reached another major milestone. The British player won his ninth bracelet in the most prestigious mixed-format event.

The Poker Players Championship traditionally attracts an extremely tough field. The last player without a bracelet was eliminated in 13th place, and the six players who reached the final day together had 32 WSOP titles between them. Glaser entered that stage of the tournament as the chip leader.

It’s interesting that on the final day, apart from Josh Arieh heads-up and Christopher Tong finishing sixth, Benny didn’t eliminate a single opponent from the tournament. After receiving the bracelet, he said:

“It all feels a bit like a dream right now. I’m just so happy. It’s the pinnacle of achievements in mixed games, and this event is something really special to me.”

Event #61: $1,000 Super Seniors

• 🏆 Winner: Lionel Barracano
• 💰 Prize: $355,263
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 5♣ 5♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 3,323
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,924,240

In 2024, Lionel Barracano recorded a career-best cash by finishing 12th in the Super Seniors event, and now he has not only captured his first bracelet in the same tournament but also nearly tripled his total lifetime live tournament winnings.

The French player entered the official final table with only the sixth-largest stack. His position in the chip counts improved after a key all-in with pocket fours against Kevin Song’s aces. He flopped a set. Later, Barracano did not play a single significant pot until the final five, and his stack dropped to 12 big blinds. Once again, Song was involved in a key hand: holding A♣8♣, Barracano turned an ace against Song’s pocket jacks.

Although Lionel Barracano eliminated Donald Briggs in 3rd place, he entered heads-up against the Korean player with a smaller stack. However, it took him just about half an hour and two major pots to secure the victory. In the decisive hand, Song’s pocket fours were beaten by 5♣5♠.

Event #62: $2,500 No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Josh Reichard
• 💰 Prize: $555,198
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♠ T♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,736
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,864,825

One of the top players from Wisconsin, Josh Reichard has come close to winning a WSOP title multiple times. Since 2023, he has finished second or third on four occasions. Josh won his first bracelet in a $2,500 NLH event, and that victory pushed his career earnings past $6 million.

At the Event #62 final table, Reichard moved into the chip lead after eliminating John Ciccarelli in 6th place. However, as often happens in the decisive stages of such tournaments, the situation at the table shifted dramatically more than once.

In heads-up play against Caleb Harris, Josh started with nearly half the stack of his opponent. That, however, did not stop Reichard from closing out the duel in under an hour. Several pots won without showdown, two pair on a wet board, and a straight in the final hand secured the victory for Josh Reichard.

Event #63: $1,000 Mystery Millions No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Matthew Higgins
• 💰 Prize: $1,000,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ A♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 22,811
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $13,230,380

The largest-field tournament of WSOP 2026 was won by professional player Matthew Higgins from Georgia. Higgins captured his first bracelet in Event #63, and the $1 million payday boosted his live tournament earnings to nearly $4 million. Matthew is a regular on the WSOP Circuit, while his previous success at the summer series had mostly come in the Main Event, where he recorded three cashes. Interestingly, another player also received $1 million in this tournament, as Jonathan Schiller pulled the top bounty.

Higgins entered the final table as the chip leader and even eliminated Imre Makranyi in 8th place. However, his momentum soon stalled, and by four-handed play the American had fallen to the bottom of the chip counts. Higgins got back into contention after doubling through Dominik Panka with K♦Q♦ against J♦9♦, then knocked out Leo Lombardozzi in third place when T♠T♣ held against A♣Q♠.

The heads-up match against Panka did not last long. In the final hand, the Polish player moved all-in on the flop after making top pair, but Higgins was holding pocket aces, which improved to a set on the turn.

Event #64: $25,000 High Roller PLO/NLH Mixed

• 🏆 Winner: Eelis Parssinen
• 💰 Prize: $1,172,296
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ K♣ J♣ 5♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 214
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,029,000

Eelis Pärssinen became the third player at WSOP 2026 to win two events. Thanks to his victory, Finland now has 12 WSOP bracelets (3 of them belonging to Pärssinen). Regardless of the heads-up result, that total was guaranteed to increase, as Pärssinen faced his fellow countryman Juha Helppi for the title.

The two Finns started the final table of Event #64 at the top of the chip counts. Helppi eliminated two opponents, including Daniel Negreanu in 7th place, while Pärssinen collected the chips of four other players before reaching heads-up play.

The Scandinavian showdown lasted nearly three hours, with both players taking the lead multiple times. In the final all-in confrontation, Pärssinen flopped two pair and a flush draw, which completed on the turn. Interestingly, he also won a mixed PLO/NLH event five years ago.

Event #65: $1,500 Freezeout No-Limit Holdem

• 🏆 Winner: Ciro Gonzalez
• 💰 Prize: $449,067
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ 8♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 2,617
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $3,474,067

First WSOP ITM — and an immediate victory. Mexican player Ciro González is an amateur. Before his trip to Las Vegas, he had never won more than $5.5K in a single tournament over a 13-year poker career.

Lack of experience in the decisive stages of World Series events did not stop him from reaching the final table of Event #65 with the second-largest stack at 83 big blinds. González quickly rose to chip leader. First, he took a big pot in a hand against Brandon Hamlet, and then eliminated Aram Zobian.

After that, the Mexican picked up chips from four more opponents and entered heads-up against Kyle Lin with a six-to-one chip advantage. The American won the first all-in, but in the second his pocket fours were no match for A♣8♠: an eight came on the flop and on the river.

Event #66: $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Breno Drumond/Henrique Lessa
• 💰 Prize: $184,769
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ A♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,375
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,210,000

Another victory for Brazil at WSOP 2026 was secured by the duo Breno Drumond and Henrique Lessa. Both players already had experience in major live events: Drumond finished runner-up in a $2,500 Freezeout event at the 2025 WSOP, while Lessa won the EPT Second Chance last year for $470,585 and finished 15th in the 2023 WSOP Paradise Main Event.

In Event 66, Team Drumond reached the final table (top 9) with only the fourth-largest stack. The Brazilian team significantly improved its position in the chip counts after eliminating the U.S. duo Jennifer Zewe / Vincent Moscati in seventh place.

The heads-up against the Japanese team lasted about 10 minutes. On the turn, Ruka Yamauchi, holding a flush draw and a gutshot, moved all-in, but neither draw completed on the river, and Breno’s pocket aces held up.

Event #67: $10,000 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Koji Fujimoto
• 💰 Prize: $392,478
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 7♥ 6♣ 5♠ 3♣ 3♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 176
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,636,800

Japanese limit and mixed-game specialist Koji Fujimoto has cashed 17 times in WSOP events in these formats since 2023. Until now, his best result had been a 3rd-place finish in a T.O.R.S.E. event last year, earning $119,108.

Back in Japan, Koji works as a poker coach, and many of his students came to support their sensei at the Championship final table. The main favorite entering the match was Nick Schulman, who already held bracelets won in 2-7 Triple Draw events.

It was against the American that Fujimoto reached heads-up play. The one-on-one battle lasted nearly four hours. In the final hand of the tournament, Koji opened with a button raise, Nick called, and the hand went through all three draws. After the final draw, Schulman failed to improve, while Fujimoto held the best hand and took down the pot.

Event #68: $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Skye Chen
• 💰 Prize: $194,630
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 4♣ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,475
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,298,000

Skye Chen won her first World Series of Poker event. Interestingly, her first live cash came only this January, with total career earnings of just $1.5K.

She started the final day of Event #68 with 45 big blinds and shared second place in the chip counts with Lisa Teebagy. In the top 5, Chen eliminated former chip leader Emily Spencer: A♥ K♦ vs A♦ J♠, and later knocked out Lisa Teebagy in 3rd place: 5♥ 5♣ vs K♦T♦. Still, she entered heads-up against Aubrey Williams with a significant deficit.

The heads-up battle lasted two hours. The decisive all-in happened when stacks were roughly even. Williams moved all-in with A♣ 5♣ but couldn’t improve against Skye Chen’s pocket fours.

Event #69: $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better

• 🏆 Winner: Taylor Atchison
• 💰 Prize: $159,276
• ❤️ Winning Hand: Q♥ 6♠ 6♥ 6♦ 5♠ 5♦ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 647
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $858,892

Taylr Atchison cashed in a WSOP event for the first time only last year, and after recording two more ITM finishes, his latest trip to Las Vegas resulted in a victory in the Seven Card Stud event. The American admitted that he usually plays the game at home with friends or as part of mixed-game rotations.

Among the notable players at the final table of Event #69 was David Bach (3 WSOP bracelets), but he was eliminated in 6th place. Entering heads-up play against Daniil Fedunov, Atchison had about one-seventh of his opponent’s stack, but within an hour he had taken over the chip lead. In the final hand of the tournament, Atchison made sixes full of fives to defeat Fedunov's flush.

After receiving his bracelet, Atchison said:

“Overall it was just a crazy tournament with how long it lasted. I got to give my hat off to the guys I played with, they were super fun. Another reason I love mixed games is because they’re a little bit more casual than Hold’em tournaments.”

Event #70: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Michael Mizrachi
• 💰 Prize: $1,350,203
• ❤️ Winning Hand: J♥ T♦ 7♥ 6♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 836
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $7,774,800

Michael Mizrachi is getting closer to his dream of catching Phil Hellmuth in the all-time WSOP bracelet race. "The Grinder" captured his ninth WSOP title in a Pot-Limit Omaha event.

The tournament's final table stretched across two days. Only two players in the final ten had never won a WSOP bracelet before. Mizrachi stayed under the radar early on, but in the final eight he won two massive pots against Jesse Lonis and surged into the chip lead with a huge advantage. From there, Mizrachi eliminated five opponents on his way to heads-up play.

Mizrachi began the heads-up match against Zarvan Tumboli with a commanding lead. The Indian player managed to win only a few small pots. In the decisive hand, Tumboli moved all-in on a flop of 8♠8♥J♠ holding pocket aces and was called by top pair plus a gutshot. A nine on the river completed a straight for Mizrachi and secured his ninth WSOP bracelet.

Event #71: $2,500 Mixed Big Bet Event

• 🏆 Winner: Dylan Smith
• 💰 Prize: $182,591
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♦ 7♥ 6 ♠4♣ 3♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 388
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $858,850

After six final tables since 2021, Dylan Smith finally captured his first WSOP bracelet. Thanks to this victory, the American’s career earnings surpassed the $5.5M mark.

Starting from the final five, Smith eliminated every remaining opponent, including Naoya Kihara in third place, who already has two WSOP 2026 titles. In heads-up play against Matt Vengrin, Smith entered with a significant chip lead and defeated his opponent in about half an hour. In the decisive hand of Pot-Limit 2-7 Triple Draw, Dylan showed the stronger low hand: 8♦7♥6♠4♣3♣.

After receiving the bracelet, Smith said he does not particularly enjoy limit games and that his preparation in Florida, where he practiced exotic formats such as Pot-Limit 5-Card Double Draw and Pot-Limit 2-7 Triple Draw, played a major role in his success at the WSOP.

Event #72: $1,000 Mini Main Event

• 🏆 Winner: Daisuke Ogita
• 💰 Prize: $1,000,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♠ T♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 12,560
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $11,052,800

Over the past eight years, Daisuke Ogita has won tournaments across several major series (EPT, APT, and WPT), but had never finished higher than third place at the WSOP. This year, however, fortune was on the Japanese player's side. He captured his first bracelet in one of the few events that attracted more than 10,000 entries.

As is often the case in large-field, low buy-in tournaments, the average stack at the Event #72 final table was very short, and less than three hours passed between the start of the final ten players and the final hand. Ogita won his first major pot against Richard Harris, who joked that the Japanese player kept trying to steal his blinds. Three-handed, Daisuke scored a crucial double-up after eliminating Jeffrey Evans.

The heads-up match against Jaehwa Son lasted only a few hands. The Canadian moved all in with K♠ J♦ but was defeated by A♠ T♠.

Event #73: $5,000 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em

• 🏆 Winner: Markus Gonsalves
• 💰 Prize: $979,655
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 5♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,402
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $6,449,200

Markus Gonsalves has been playing poker for over 20 years, and throughout that time he has preferred cash games over tournaments. However, that did not prevent the American from winning more than $3 million in live events. In 2015, he secured a major victory on the WPT, and now he has added a WSOP bracelet. Prior to this, Markus had never finished higher than fourth place at the World Series.

On the final day, Gonsalves started as the chip leader with a stack of 69 big blinds and continued to build on his advantage, eliminating three of the six remaining players.

In heads-up play against Xiaoyao Ma, Markus began with a very solid chip lead. However, his opponent managed to erase the deficit within an hour and even took over the chip lead. A preflop all-in with A♣ 9♦ against K♥ K♦ left Xiaoyao with just 7 big blinds, as an ace appeared right on the flop. After doubling up once, Ma lost his stack in another hand where he was particularly unlucky: K♣ 5♣ versus A♠ K♠, with both a king and a five appearing on the flop.

Event #74: $1,500 8-Game Mixed

• 🏆 Winner: Shaun Deeb
• 💰 Prize: $181,625
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ K♣ K♥ 3♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 766
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,016,865

Shaun Deeb won his ninth WSOP bracelet. Remarkably, it was only his third cash of the series so far, compared to 18 cashes at the same point last year. Interestingly, Deeb also won the same event back in 2023.

Deeb got extremely lucky twice on his way to the final table. In the final nine, Michael Koenig ended up giving all of his chips to Deeb. First, Deeb got all-in with A2 against Koenig's A6 and hit a crucial deuce to survive. Later, in a 2-7 Triple Draw hand, he made a wheel against Koenig's second-best possible hand.

Deeb began heads-up play against Dean Joe with only half of his opponent's stack. The battle for the title lasted two and a half hours. The final hand came in PLO, where the players got all the chips in on the flop. Deeb held pocket kings against Joe's top pair, and neither the turn nor the river provided any help for Joe.

“I just kept making the nuts. When you make the best hand on the river heads-up, you're usually going to win the tournament,” Deeb said.

Event #75: $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Matt Grapenthien
• 💰 Prize: $415,648
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ Q♣ 3♦ 8♥ J♣ 8♦ 8♣
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 190
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,767,000

Matt Grapenthien is a Stud specialist. All three of his six-figure scores in his career came in WSOP events in this poker variant, and he won his first bracelet in 2014.

At the final table of Event #75, only two players had shorter stacks than Grapenthien. A key hand against Maxx Coleman significantly improved his position in the chip counts. Grapenthien made two pair along with a low combination. During three-handed play, Maxx Coleman and Jack Germaine battled for the chip lead, but after Coleman was eliminated, Grapenthien advanced to heads-up against Germaine.

Matt controlled the heads-up match, and in one of the hands he even made quads. In the final hand of the tournament, he held a stronger set than his opponent.

Event #76: $100,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Daniel Negreanu
• 💰 Prize: $2,257,718
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♦ 9♠ 3♦ 2♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 83
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $7,968,000

Daniel Negreanu won a bracelet in a Pot-Limit Omaha event for the first time in his career. This brings his total WSOP bracelet count to eight. The Canadian’s victory is particularly significant given that the $100,000 high roller attracted many of the world’s strongest PLO specialists.

On the final day of Event #76, five players remained, and Negreanu got off to a rough start, losing nearly half of his stack to Chris Frank, who made a rivered flush. However, he recovered by winning big pots against Philipp Sternheimer and Yosuke Miki, reclaiming chips from Frank and moving into the chip lead. The momentum then shifted toward Artur Martirosian, who eliminated two opponents and overtook the Canadian at the top of the chip counts.

After Martirosian took the rest of Frank’s chips, heads-up play began. In the early stages of the one-on-one battle, Martirosian won a few small pots, but most of the key hands went Negreanu’s way. In the final hand of the tournament, Martirosian moved all in with A♣9♦8♣8♥, and Negreanu called with K♦9♠3♦2♠. The A♦5♠4♦ flop immediately gave Negreanu a straight.

Event #77: $2,500 Mixed Triple Draw Lowball

• 🏆 Winner: Patrick Stacey
• 💰 Prize: $223,177
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♦ K♠ 6♠ 4♠ 3♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 508
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,130,300

Patrick Stacey has only in recent years, after stepping away from business, started to take poker seriously and even worked with a coach. He earned four of his biggest tournament cashes over the past 12 months. In June, Patrick finished 2nd in a mixed event at the Wynn and is now celebrating a WSOP victory.

Stacey entered the final day of Event #77 in 15th place out of 18 players and reached the final table with the fourth-largest stack. Among the top 7, only he and Karl Tretter had no WSOP titles.

Patrick moved into the chip lead after winning a big pot without showdown against Danny Tang and eliminating Arthur Morris. After that, Stacey knocked out three more players, but entered heads-up against Tang with an even stack. The Canadian gave his opponent no chance and closed out the heads-up match in under an hour.

Event #78: $600 Deepstack Championship No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Adriaan Jacobs
• 💰 Prize: $282,817
• ❤️ Winning Hand: J♥T♥
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 5,177
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,609,208

Adriaan Jacobs turned 21 just two weeks ago. As a birthday gift, his father offered him a round-the-world trip with a stop at the WSOP. Jacobs passed his accounting exam and flew to Las Vegas from South Africa with his entire family. Before that, Adrian had only two cashes in tournaments back home.

The final day of Event #78 started at the five-handed stage, and Jacobs held a significant advantage over his opponents. The second-largest stack, Seong Han, had 30 BB compared to Jacobs’ 67 BB. It was against Han that Adriaan played his two biggest pots: first he lost A♠K♥ vs K♠K♦, and then, three-handed, he won A♠A♦ vs A♥K♦.

The heads-up match against Paul Merlette was over quickly. In the final hand, Jacobs called his opponent’s all-in on the flop with a flush and straight draw. A K♥ came on the turn, giving Merlette second pair, but it also completed Jacobs’ flush draw. A queen on the river changed nothing.

Event #79: $3,000 Freezeout No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Asi Moshe
• 💰 Prize: $683,830
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♥ K♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,792
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $4,784,640

After a one-year break from professional poker, Israeli player Asi Moshe came to the WSOP more as a recreational player. However, his return turned out to be impressive — he won his fifth World Series bracelet.

Before stepping away, Moshe had played poker professionally for six years, but last year he decided to “go back to his roots” and took a job at a company specializing in mobile games. He arrived at the 2026 WSOP without major expectations, but managed to cash in two events and then went all the way to the bracelet in his third tournament.

Still, the victory did not look accidental. Asi was the chip leader after Day 1, finished Day 2 second in chips, and held a big advantage over his opponents for almost the entire final table.

At the final table, Moshe eliminated several experienced opponents, including Chris Moorman, David Miscikowski, and Ihor Popyk. He entered heads-up against Qiao Du with a 6:1 chip lead. Du managed to double up once, but a few hands later Moshe’s A♥K♦ held against his opponent’s Q♥T♥ in an all-in, giving Asi the victory.

Event #80: $10,000 8-Game Mixed Championship

• 🏆 Winner: Dzmitry Urbanovich
• 💰 Prize: $431,260
• ❤️ Winning Hand: A♣ 7♥ 6♣ 2♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 199
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,850,700

Dzmitry Urbanovich spent more than ten years chasing his first WSOP bracelet — through early online success, major live scores, and dozens of attempts at the World Series. In the $10,000 8-Game Mixed Championship, he finally closed that gap.

The Polish player was already considered a prodigy in his youth: he started playing online at an early age, won major EPT titles and earned millions before turning 21, and had been coming to the WSOP since 2016. But despite seven final tables and two runner-up finishes, the coveted bracelet had always remained out of reach.

In this event, Urbanovich made his way through a 199-player field and reached a final table that included stars such as Alex Foxen and Brian Rast. Along the way, he found himself in several difficult spots, including moments with a short stack, but a series of double-ups helped him gradually turn the final table around.

The key moment came in three-handed play, when Urbanovich won a huge pot from Derek Hanauer without showdown and took a commanding chip lead. After Hanauer was eliminated, he entered heads-up play against Richard Bai with roughly a 3:1 advantage. Bai managed to narrow the gap, but could not turn the match around. In the final hand, Bai got his chips in on the flop with a flush draw and a straight draw, while Urbanovich already had a pair and the nut flush draw with the ace. The turn and river did not help Bai, and Dzmitry won his first WSOP bracelet.

Event #81: $800 Summer Celebration

• 🏆 Winner: Toby Price
• 💰 Prize: $500,000
• ❤️ Winning Hand: K♣ 2♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 6,803
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $4,762,100

Thanks to his victory in the Summer Celebration, Toby Price immediately doubled his career tournament earnings. The American first cashed at the WSOP in 2017 and, four years later, finished runner-up in the Fifty Stack.

In the middle of Day 2, Price lost a massive pot after suffering a river bad beat and was left with a very short stack, but managed to stay alive. He entered the final table fourth in chips. Price moved up the leaderboard after eliminating James Murphey in seventh place and doubling through Craig Varnell in a preflop all-in with A♥J♣ against K♥Q♣.

After Price won all of Michael Moncek’s chips, the tournament moved into heads-up play against Deniz Oeney. Oeney managed to overcome a 2-to-1 chip deficit and even take the chip lead, but Price then won a crucial showdown with A♦9♠ against K♥7♠, leaving his opponent with less than one big blind. Oeney lost his remaining chips in the very next hand.

Event #83: $1,500 Double Board Bomb Pot Pot-Limit Omaha

• 🏆 Winner: Justin Fawcett
• 💰 Prize: $322,564
• ❤️ Winning Hand: J♦ 7♥ 3♦ 2♠
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,673
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $2,220,907

Fawcett discovered four-card poker by accident. A friend once asked him to play a single hand on his behalf, and it turned out to be Omaha:

“I saw four cards, looked at the board, then back at the cards — there were just so many possibilities.!”

Justin has been coming to the WSOP since 2019, and in 2025 he won his first bracelet in the No-Limit Hold’em Ultra Stack event.

Fawcett and Abdul Amer started the final table of Event #83 as the two biggest stacks and eventually met heads-up. At the start of their duel, however, Amer held around 75% of all the chips in play. Still, Justin managed to turn things around in just half an hour. In the two biggest pots, the eventual winner made strong hands on both boards after getting all the chips in.

Event #84: $5,000 Super Turbo Bounty No-Limit Hold'em

• �� Winner: Myles Mullaly
• 💰 Prize: $593,601
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 9♣ 9♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,213
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $5,579,800

Young grinder from New York, Myles Mullaly, surpassed $2M in career winnings thanks to his victory in the Super Turbo Bounty. He managed to earn that amount in just three and a half years.

At the final table, down to nine players, Myles and five others were sitting with short stacks. Early in the final table, the American picked up pocket kings and managed to double up. After that, he briefly climbed to the top of the chip counts by winning two all-ins with AK.

At three-handed play, everything was going in Pete Chen’s favor. He took a big pot from Myles without showdown and then eliminated Endrit Geci. But in heads-up play, Mullaly managed to overcome a five-to-one chip deficit against the player from Taiwan. After winning the bracelet, Myles admitted he had been extremely fortunate throughout the tournament:

“I ran incredibly well. Won like 20 all-ins on Day 1 and only lost one. I still can’t believe it.”

Event #85: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em

• 🏆 Winner: Zixuan Liu
• 💰 Prize: $219,391
• ❤️ Winning Hand: 8♦ 4♦
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Number of Entries: 1,732
• 💵 Total Prize Pool: $1,524,160

A young software engineer for TikTok, Zixuan Liu, recorded his first career cash less than a week ago, and in the very next tournament he went on to win first place. He told reporters that his first purchase with the winnings would be a new car for his wife.

Liu started the final table with a big stack of 65 BB and initially stayed out of major pots. However, once the field was reduced to five players, he personally eliminated three of his remaining opponents on the way to victory.

To close out the heads-up match in his favor, Liu needed just one showdown after nearly an hour of play against Justin Shiao. In the final hand, Shiao moved all-in on the turn with a gutshot and flush draw but failed to improve against two pair, while Zixuan Liu improved to a full house on the river.