2023 WSOP Final Roundup: All 95 Live Events in the Books
The 2023 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas is over. There were 95 tournaments held at Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas from May 30 through mid-July. We’ll recap the online bracelet events and Main Event separately so as to dedicate this final wrap-up to all of the regular live events – except the Main Event – from the 2023 WSOP schedule. We’ve recapped each week as the action played out this summer, showing the results of each tournament: –Week 1 recap –Week 2 recap –Week 3 recap –Week 4 recap –Week 5 recap –Week 6 recap We start the final recap with the first tournament on the schedule after the Main Event (Event 76), and continue through to the end of the summer WSOP.
Event 77: All Sevens for Daniels
It was the Lucky Sevens tournament with sevens all over the buy-in and payouts, but the all-important number was one – one winner named Shawn Daniels. When the seven-handed tournament played down to the final table, play continued but the final five had to return for one more day of play. And in the end, Daniels collected his first WSOP gold bracelet. After breaking down in heavy emotion, Daniels noted that the victory was “pretty unreal.” https://twitter.com/WSOP/status/1678895566821130241?s=20
Event 77 | $777 buy-in | NLHE Lucky 7s 7-Handed (unlimited RE) |
Total entries: | 7,323 | (6903 in 2022, 1122 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $5,007,175 | |
Players paid: | 317 | |
Minimum payout: | $2,580 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Shawn Daniels (USA) $777,777 |
2nd place: | Julien Montois (France) $400,777 | |
3rd place: | Istvan Briski (Hungary) $226,777 | |
4th place: | Anthony Scarborough (USA) $168,777 | |
5th place: | Charles La Boissonniere (Canada) $125,777 | |
6th place: | Alexander Cole-Gardner (USA) $95,777 | |
7th place: | Yizhou Huang (USA) $72,777 |
Event 78: Skaggs Snags Bracelet
This tournament combined two player favorites – PLO and bounties. More than 1,200 entries created a $1.6M prize pool, and it was a tough field. Thomas Skaggs had to fight every step of the way to win the tournament for his first WSOP bracelet. The Omaha specialist and cash game player said he has a strong mindset for the game. Skaggs made it work for the win, just hours before having to catch a plane out of Las Vegas.
Event 78 | $1,500 buy-in | PLO Bounty 8-Handed (2 RE) |
Total entries: | 1,214 | (1390 in 2022, 860 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $1,620,690 | |
Players paid: | 183 | |
Minimum payout: | $1,501 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Thomas Skaggs (USA) $171,742 |
2nd place: | David Hu (Netherlands) $106,138 | |
3rd place: | Satar Al-Sadoun (USA) $75,761 | |
4th place: | Paul DeGiulio (Bermuda) $54,775 | |
5th place: | Yusuke Tanaka (Japan) $40,119 | |
6th place: | Vincent Moscati (USA) $29,773 | |
7th place: | Paul Spitzberg (USA) $22,392 | |
8th place: | Noah Schwartz (USA) $17,069 |
Event 79: Bernabeu Scores for Spain
More than 2K entries in this $2,500 NLHE event turned into a prize pool of $4.6M. As the field thinned, several well-known players headed toward the final table, though Seth Davies was the most recognized of the final nine. The crowd watching the final table was Spanish-heavy, though, with two Spaniards fighting for the gold. In the end, Ramon Fernandez finished seventh and Samuel Bernabeu won his first bracelet and did it with Spanish chants taking him all the way to the end. After some time away from the game, Bernabeu returned this summer, something that turned out to be a positive decision.
Event 79 | $2,500 buy-in | NLHE (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 2,068 | (1364 in 2022, 996 in 2019) |
Total prize pool: | $4,601,300 | |
Players paid: | 311 | |
Minimum payout: | $4,002 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Samuel Bernabeu (Spain) $682,432 |
2nd place: | James Anderson (USA) $421,761 | |
3rd place: | Zlatin Penev (Italy) $310,528 | |
4th place: | Seth Davies (USA) $230,772 | |
5th place: | Diego Vaz Sorgatto (Brazil) $173,121 | |
6th place: | Justin Kindred (USA) $137,111 | |
7th place: | Ramon Fernandez (Spain) $100,252 | |
8th place: | Derek Normand (USA) $77,401 | |
9th place: | Daniel Schill (USA) $60,346 |
Event 80: Arieh Does It Again
It was time for another elite field to play for a high roller bracelet, and that meant Josh Arieh was in it to try to win his second bracelet of this series…and the seventh of his career. Once he made the final table, he moved right on past names like Scott Seiver, Johannes Becker, John Hennigan, Mike Matusow, and Joao Vieira. Arieh then defeated Dan Heimiller heads-up. Arieh attributed his recent successes to getting his life in order. “My life is so amazing outside of poker,” he said. “I got my shit straight and my relationships with my daughters and with Rachel – everything is just great. It’s definitely helped my career.” https://twitter.com/rachelblucky/status/1679649163427090432?s=20
Event 80 | $25K buy-in | HORSE High Roller 8-Handed (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 112 | (0 in 2022, 78 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $2,632,000 | |
Players paid: | 17 | |
Minimum payout: | $41,869 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Josh Arieh (US) $711,313 |
2nd place: | Dan Heimiller (USA) $439,622 | |
3rd place: | Yingui Li (China) $319,906 | |
4th place: | Joao Vieira (Portugal) $236,163 | |
5th place: | Mike Matusow (USA) $176,904 | |
6th place: | John Hennigan (USA) $134,491 | |
7th place: | Johannes Becker (Germany) $103,795 | |
8th place: | Scott Seiver (USA) $81,337 |
Event 81: Roh Rules Ultra Stack
Give players an ultra-large stack of chips, and they will put up $600 to play the tournament. The new addition to the WSOP lineup brought in more than 7,200 entries and a prize pool of $3,675,570. And when it wrapped on Day 3, Joseph Roh was in the winner’s circle with more than $400K. The part-time poker player told PokerNews, “This is something I’ve really wanted to do for a while. I don’t play that many tournaments.”
Event 81 | $600 buy-in | NLHE Ultra Stack (2 RE) |
Total entries: | 7,207 | |
Total prize pool: | $3,675,570 | |
Players paid: | 555 | |
Minimum payout: | $1,400 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Joseph Roh (USA) $401,250 |
2nd place: | Denny Lee (USA) $250,120 | |
3rd place: | John Fagg (USA) $184,720 | |
4th place: | Peyton Ethridge (USA) $139,360 | |
5th place: | William Fisher (USA) $105,890 | |
6th place: | Logan Moon (USA) $81,030 | |
7th place: | Min Sung Lee (South Korea) $62,450 | |
8th place: | Lucas Tae (USA) $48,480 | |
9th place: | Schuyler Thronton (USA) $37,910 |
Event 82: Parry Picks Up Gold
More PLO made it onto the schedule for Event 82, this one with a $3K price point. More than 1K entries came to play, creating a $2.7M prize pool. Cash game player Matthew Parry was the last player standing in the end. Even so, Parry said he had been working on his tournament game. “It just feels amazing to finally close one out,” he said, saying that winning the bracelet was surreal.
Event 82 | $3K buy-in | PLO 6-Handed (2 RE) |
Total entries: | 1,013 | (719 in 2022, 835 in 2019, 496 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $2,704,710 | |
Players paid: | 152 | |
Minimum payout: | $4,829 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Matthew Parry (USA) $480,122 |
2nd place: | Dustin Goldklang (USA) $296,746 | |
3rd place: | Ian Matakis (USA) $205,696 | |
4th place: | Cuba Levenberry (USA) $144,890 | |
5th place: | Lawrence Wayne (USA) $103,738 | |
6th place: | Connor Drinan (USA) $75,517 |
Event 83: Ha Finds Short Deck Success
Thai Ha loved Short Deck poker, so it was natural that he would play this tournament. He and a few hundred other players took to the tables, but Ha emerged victorious to claim his first bracelet and the first one for Vietnam in the 2023 WSOP. “It feels great,” Ha said after the win. “I feel like Short Deck is my strongest game.”
Event 83 | $1,500 buy-in | NLHE Short Deck (2 RE) |
Total entries: | 363 | |
Total prize pool: | $484,605 | |
Players paid: | 55 | |
Minimum payout: | $2,413 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Thai Ha (Vietnam) $111,170 |
2nd place: | David Prociak (USA) $68,712 | |
3rd place: | Wai Kiat Lee (Malaysia) $45,866 | |
4th place: | Robert James (USA) $31,307 | |
5th place: | Ryan Laplante (USA) $21,863 | |
6th place: | Moses Alosh (Israel) $15,629 | |
7th place: | Matan Gabay (Israel) $11,443 |
Event 84: Kulev Crushes High Roller
Alex Kulev is a well-known poker player in Bulgaria, and he is one of the few from his country to represent in the world of high rollers. He and more than 100 other players took to the $50K buy-in NLHE High Roller to try to win a bracelet after leaving the Main Event in the dust. He worked hard to outlast his competitors, especially those comprising the Euro-heavy final table. But he did it for a payout of more than $2M. Kulev collected his first piece of WSOP gold and noted, “I’m just very grateful and very excited to be here. It has always been a dream of mine to win a bracelet, and doing it in this event against this type of field is the best that it can be.” https://twitter.com/WSOP/status/1680002707804012551?s=20
Event 84 | $50K buy-in | NLHE High Roller (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 176 | (107 in 2022, 113 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $8,404,000 | |
Players paid: | 27 | |
Minimum payout: | $80,920 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Alex Kulev (Bulgaria) $2,087,073 |
2nd place: | Gergely Kulscar (Hungary) $1,289,909 | |
3rd place: | Jake Schindler (USA) $957,491 | |
4th place: | Daniel Smilijkovic (Germany) $713,413 | |
5th place: | Koray Aldemir (Germany) $533,561 | |
6th place: | Johannes Straver (Netherlands) $400,562 | |
7th place: | Brandon Wittmeyer (USA) $301,859 | |
8th place: | Moshe Refaelowitz (Israel) $228,347 | |
9th place: | Justin Kindred (USA) $173,399 |
Event 85: First for Faraz
The annual WSOP NLHE Shootout is a favorite for many who specialize in SNGs. Players win a table to make it into the money, win another table to make the final table, and then play for the win. That final table was tough, complete with Adam Friedman, Yuri Dzivielevski, and Olga Iermolcheva. But Faraz Jaka, owner of Jaka Coaching and person recovering from horrid back pain before the WSOP, finally removed himself from the list of best players without a bracelet. Jaka worked hard to be able to physically play some events, and to win his first bracelet was the ultimate reward. He commented on how he felt, “Pretty great and just taking it all in. I was so zoned in that I’m still kind of decompressing.” https://twitter.com/FarazJaka/status/1680426066203267072?s=20
Event 85 | $1,500 buy-in | NLHE Shootout |
Total entries: | 987 | (1000 in 2022, 800 in 2021, 917 in 2019) |
Total prize pool: | $1,317,645 | |
Players paid: | 100 | |
Minimum payout: | $5,759 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Faraz Jaka (USA) $237,367 |
2nd place: | Michael Finstein (USA) $146,686 | |
3rd place: | Olga Iermolcheva (Ukraine) $109,780 | |
4th place: | Ao Chen (USA) $82,954 | |
5th place: | Yuri Dzivielevski (Brazil) $63,295 | |
6th place: | Matteo Cavelier (France) $47,772 | |
7th place: | Mo Zhou (China) $37,955 | |
8th place: | Adam Friedman (USA) $29,834 | |
9th place: | Allan Mello (Brazil) $23,689 |
Event 86: Victory for Ventura
The Poker Hall of Fame Bounty tournament grew in 2023 to more than 1,400 entries. Diego Ventura was one of them. He didn’t come from nowhere. In fact, he was the all-time tournament money earner in his home country of Peru. But no player from Peru had ever won a WSOP bracelet…until this event. Ventura commented on that after his victory. “I think I always wanted to kind of open that door for other Peruvians to get inspired by that,” he told PokerNews.
Event 86 | $1,979 buy-in | NLHE Poker Hall of Fame Bounty (unlimited RE) |
Total entries: | 1,417 | (865 in 2022, 468 in 2021, was a freezeout) |
Total prize pool: | $2,495,776 | |
Players paid: | 213 | |
Minimum payout: | $3,135 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Diego Ventura (Peru) $402,054 |
2nd place: | Thomas Kysar (USA) $248,502 | |
3rd place: | Jason James (Canada) $179,593 | |
4th place: | Francis Anderson (USA) $131,324 | |
5th place: | Jose Nadal (Mexico) $97,174 | |
6th place: | Louis Torres (USA) $72,773 | |
7th place: | Martin Jacobson (Sweden) $55,165 | |
8th place: | Leonid Yanovski (Israel) $42,336 | |
9th place: | Jimmy Setna (Canada) $32,897 |
Event 87: Smith Masters Mix
Players who liked Omaha Hi-Lo and Stud Hi-Lo had a great opportunity to play in Event 87 and win a bracelet in that specific mix. Hundreds of players did just that, and Canadian Bradley Smith proved to be the best in that field. Smith commented, “It’s always been my dream to win a bracelet.” Though he had to fight through a very long heads-up battle, he emerged victorious to claim his first WSOP gold.
Event 87 | $2,500 buy-in | Mixed O-8/Stud-8 (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 460 | (401 in 2019) |
Total prize pool: | $1,023,500 | |
Players paid: | 69 | |
Minimum payout: | $4,053 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Bradley Smith (Canada) $221,733 |
2nd place: | Nghia Le (USA) $137,039 | |
3rd place: | Nick Pupillo (USA) $94,681 | |
4th place: | Omar Mehmood (USA) $66,605 | |
5th place: | Timothy Frazin (USA) $47,721 | |
6th place: | Jonah Seewald (USA) $34,836 | |
7th place: | Philip Sternheimer (USA) $25,919 | |
8th place: | Yuval Bronshtein (Israel) $19,662 |
Event 88: Shum Shines
The last of the low ($1,500) buy-in, big field events was the aptly-named Closer. With more than 3,500 entries, the prize pool swelled to more than $4.7M. And from the massive field came Pierre Shum, the Jamaican-born now-US resident who long had a love for poker. The software engineer said that this was his first poker victory evet. “I came in here today to try and win the tournament. The money wasn’t even in my mind.”
Event 88 | $1,500 buy-in | NLHE Closer (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 3,531 | (2039 in 2022, 2800 in 2019, 1903 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $4,713,885 | |
Players paid: | 531 | |
Minimum payout: | $3,700 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Pierre Shum (USA) $606,810 |
2nd place: | Peter Nigh (USA) $376,420 | |
3rd place: | Roongsak Griffeth (USA) $284,030 | |
4th place: | Jack Duong (USA) $215,650 | |
5th place: | Amirpasha Enami (Canada) $164,750 | |
6th place: | Mihai Niste (Romania) $126,660 | |
7th place: | Jixue Yin (USA) $100,120 | |
8th place: | Peter Hengsakul (USA) $76,300 | |
9th place: | Sanjeev Kapoor (USA) $59,790 |
Event 89: Meng Masters Flip & Go
Players ponied up $1K each to take a shot at the luck-filled first round of Flip & Go tournaments. Doug Meng was one of 128 players from more than 1K entries who won their flips to go further in the event. He made the final table and swiftly took his run to victory. PokerNews talked to Meng after the win. “I’m just really excited,” he said. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity, and I know a lot of people couldn’t be here, so I feel very fortunate.”
Event 89 | $1K buy-in | NLHE Flip & Go (unlimited RE) |
Total entries: | 1,022 | (1329 in 2022, 1240 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $1,182,810 | |
Players paid: | 128 | |
Minimum payout: | $2,000 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Dong Meng (USA) $160,490 |
2nd place: | Wesley Fei (China) $100,120 | |
3rd place: | Brady Hinnegan (Canada) $71,700 | |
4th place: | Kevin Eyster (USA) $52,280 | |
5th place: | Pete Chen (Taiwan) $38,600 | |
6th place: | David Williams (USA) $28,870 | |
7th place: | Eric Wasserson (USA) $21,880 | |
8th place: | Drew Gonzalez (USA) $16,790 | |
9th place: | Andrew Sandomire (USA) $13,070 |
Event 90: Reard Secures Second Gold
There were 550 entries in the final NLHE championship-level event at the 2023 WSOP, even with a $10K buy-in. The tournament brought in a lot of pros, like Eric Baldwin, Justin Liberto, and Stephen Chidwick, who all made the final table. But it was Frenchman Alexandre Reard who lasted longer than the rest, beating Chidwick heads-up for more than $1M and his second career gold bracelet. Reard won with the help of a loud French rail and the ability to focus amidst it all. “I did feel some pressure coming into the (final) day because I knew that, in France, everyone was expecting me to be at least in the top two.” He didn’t let them down. https://twitter.com/pokerorg/status/1681121616091295745?s=20
Event 90 | $10K buy-in | NLHE 6-Handed Championship |
Total entries: | 550 | (394 in 2022, 272 in 2019, 329 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $5,115,000 | |
Players paid: | 83 | |
Minimum payout: | $16,088 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Alexandre Reard (France) $1,057,663 |
2nd place: | Stephen Chidwick (UK) $653,688 | |
3rd place: | AJ Kelsall (USA) $443,259 | |
4th place: | Justin Liberto (USA) $306,555 | |
5th place: | Eli Berg (USA) $216,319 | |
6th place: | Eric Baldwin (USA) $155,809 |
Event 91: Miller Makes It Two
The $3K buy-in HORSE event delivered several hundred players to the action, and it was a tough tournament. Not only did the final table feature some big poker names – Todd Brunson, Kevin Gerhart, Andrew Yeh, Barbara Enright, and Calvin Anderson – the final heads-up battle was so intense that it brought on a Day 4. Ryan Miller ultimately beat Leonard August. Miller claimed his second WSOP gold of the summer, having just won the $10K Stud-8 Championship bracelet less than two weeks before. “It feels surreal,” he admitted, “like it’s not possible. I was just hoping to cash in a couple of events, and I just happened to win two of them.” https://twitter.com/pokerorg/status/1681426068010332160?s=20
Event 91 | $3K buy-in | HORSE 8-Handed |
Total entries: | 332 | (327 in 2022, 301 in 2019, 282 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $886,440 | |
Players paid: | 50 | |
Minimum payout: | $4,873 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Ryan Miller (USA) $208,460 |
2nd place: | Leonard August (USA) $128,835 | |
3rd place: | Calvin Anderson (USA) $89,169 | |
4th place: | Barbara Enright (USA) $62,783 | |
5th place: | Andrew Yeh (USA) $44,983 | |
6th place: | Noah Bronstein (USA) $32,807 | |
7th place: | Kevin Gerhart (USA) $24,363 | |
8th place: | Todd Brunson (USA) $18,429 |
Event 92: Lee First in Freezeout
As the Main Event crowned its champion, Kang Hyun Lee was one of many players in the $1K Freezeout. The final table showed just how talented the field had been, with Vanessa Kade, Asher Conniff, Kevin Kalas, and Eric Mizrachi all at the final table. But Canadian Lee won. “It feels amazing!” Lee explained. “Just being a poker enthusiast my whole life, to finally get the most coveted award in the game, it just feels surreal.”
Event 92 | $1K buy-in | NLHE Freezeout |
Total entries: | 1,710 | (2663 in 2022, 720 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $1,521,900 | |
Players paid: | 257 | |
Minimum payout: | $1,603 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Kang Hyun Lee (Canada) $236,741 |
2nd place: | Eric Mizrachi (USA) $146,335 | |
3rd place: | Ivan Millian (USA) $106,602 | |
4th place: | Abdul Almagableh (USA) $78,495 | |
5th place: | Kane Kalas (USA) $59,429 | |
6th place: | Asher Conniff (USA) $43,372 | |
7th place: | Ricardo Nakamura (USA) $33,461 | |
8th place: | Vanessa Kade (USA) $25,749 | |
9th place: | Eider Cruz (USA) $20,041 |
Event 93: Nielsen Nabs Win
The very last championship-level event of the 2023 WSOP was in the unique Short Deck variation. And it cost $10K to enter, which resulted in just 106 entries. While Chris Brewer and John Juanda were also in the running for this win, Marin Nielsen of the Faroe Islands won. “I thought I would be nervous,” he told a reporter after the win. “I don’t know. I am a full-time Short Deck cash player, but I mostly play online at GG.”
Event 93 | $10K buy-in | NLHE Short Deck (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 106 | (110 in 2022, 66 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $985,800 | |
Players paid: | 16 | |
Minimum payout: | $16,792 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Martin Nielsen (Faroe Islands) $270,160 |
2nd place: | Hong Wei Yu (USA) $167,340 | |
3rd place: | Ivan Ermin (Russia) $118,037 | |
4th place: | Eric Wasserson (USA) $85,124 | |
5th place: | John Juanda (Indonesia) $62,793 | |
6th place: | Nobuaki Sasaki (Japan) $47,406 | |
7th place: | Chris Brewer (USA) $36,648 |
Event 94: Keating Crushes Quickly
The second-last tournament of the series offered a $5K buy-in NLHE, and there were 813 entries in the mix. The tournament played for two days and finally found high-stakes player Alex Keating holding the bracelet. When asked how he felt about winning, Keating said, “Good, yeah, not bad, actually. I’m thinking about what I’m supposed to do right now.”
Event 94 | $5K buy-in | NLHE 8-Handed (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 813 | (573 in 2022, 531 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $3,739,800 | |
Players paid: | 122 | |
Minimum payout: | $8,059 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Alex Keating (USA) $701,688 |
2nd place: | Guoliang Wei (China) $433,662 | |
3rd place: | Nozomu Shimizu (Japan) $305,474 | |
4th place: | Marcello Delgrosso (Canada) $208,402 | |
5th place: | Alexandros Kolonias (Greece) $158,525 | |
6th place: | Josh Reichard (USA) $116,842 | |
7th place: | Christian Harder (USA) $87,470 | |
8th place: | Jason Hickey (USA) $66,526 |
Event 95: Berger Binks Bracelet
The very last of the 2023 WSOP live bracelet events in Las Vegas was a super turbo-structured tournament that brought in 1,482 entries. The $1.3M prize pool awarded the top finishers but none more than Paul Berger, who won the gold and $212K. The Las Vegas-based player said that he would not keep his winnings, though. Berger told PokerNews, “The money is more important (than the bracelet) because I donate it, so the fact that I’ve got the biggest score of my life and it’ll go to a good cause is very cool.” https://twitter.com/Kevmath/status/1681574631432679424?s=20
Event 95 | $1K buy-in | NLHE Super Turbo (1 RE) |
Total entries: | 1,472 | (1288 in 2022, 1025 in 2021) |
Total prize pool: | $1,318,980 | |
Players paid: | 223 | |
Minimum payout: | $1,601 | |
Final table results: | 1st place: | Paul Berger (USA) $212,645 |
2nd place: | Yuri Dzivielevski (Brazil) $131,408 | |
3rd place: | Santiao Plante (Canada) $95,195 | |
4th place: | Miguel Cardosa (Portugal) $69,751 | |
5th place: | Michael Liang (USA) $51,700 | |
6th place: | Kafton Ramsamooj (Trinidad & Tobago) $38,769 | |
7th place: | Hon Cheong Lee (Hong Kong) $29,417 | |
8th place: | Alex Zhang (USA) $22,589 | |
9th place: | Tai Cao (USA) $17,556 |