Malcolm Trayner Leads 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event Into Day 8 Poker News

Visit the Card Player 2026 World Series of Poker landing page for schedules, news, interviews, and the latest event results. Stapleton, who signed on with WSOP after 15 years with PokerStars, will play a large role in the broadcasts as well, as will Jeff Platt, another recent WSOP signing. The broadcast is set to feature Ali Nejad, David Williams, Lon MacEachern, and Norman Chad in commentary roles throughout the summer. According to the WSOP’s website viewers can, “Watch every 2026 WSOP event for free on the official WSOP YouTube channel.”

Blaz Zerjav and Joshua Remitio joined Glaser and Deeb as multi-time 2025 bracelet winners, with Remitio taking home his third and fourth bracelets, both online. In taking down his seventh career bracelet, too, Mizrachi would’ve been set for another incredible summer with that victory alone. Nick Schulman earned his seventh career WSOP gold bracelet and later in the summer locked up Poker Hall of Fame honors. For 2026, the first gold bracelet event to kick off is a $500 mini Mystery Millions, featuring six starting flights across five days.

For this last event of the summer, a total of 1,699 entries were recorded by the pokernewsdaily.com time late registration closed at the end of Level 10. After a day filled with “ups and downs, ups and downs,” Wong finally got his hands on the bracelet he had been chasing. The Hong Kong-based player already had several strong results to his name, including a 13th-place finish in the Monster Stack earlier this summer. Wong explained that he began playing poker in 2013 by “learning and learning more,” but has been taking tournaments much more seriously over the last two years. After navigating a slow-paced final table where the average stack never climbed much above ten big blinds, Wong defeated Ryuta Nakai heads-up to capture his first WSOP bracelet and the top prize of $216,286.

Shawn Buchanan (73rd), Dominick Sarle (70th), Samuel Ju (41st), and 2013 WSOP Main Event champion Ryan Riess (29th) also bowed out after the dinner break as the field shrank to the final three tables. That’s why I played this one feeling better,” he said. “Oh my God, oh my God,” Wong kept repeating in disbelief after winning his bracelet. Nakai earned $144,101 for his runner-up finish, while Dzmitry Urbanovich, winner of the $10,000 8-Game Mixed Championship earlier this summer, rounded out the podium with a third-place finish worth $104,032. A total of 1,699 entries were recorded in this tournament, creating a $1,495,120 prize pool. Is there a better way to end the 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) than by winning a bracelet?

World Series of Poker Paradise 2025 Bracelet Winners

• All operators listed by PokerListings are licensed and safe to play at.
• That happened in 2024, when he won the most prestigious title of his lengthy career in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship for $1.1 million, but still finished the summer in the red.
• Live coverage of WSOP Paradise can be found on PokerNews, with information on livestreaming to be announced at a later date.

The Main Event is the most prestigious tournament in the entire World Series of Poker schedule. “The 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event will go down as one of the most memorable of all time,” said Ty Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of WSOP. The road to the 2026 Final Table was one of the most grueling tests of endurance in poker history. Watch daily poker clips on the PokerGO YouTube channel. The 2019 world champion Hossein Ensan ended the day 16th in chips on 1,280,000 after a bullish day at the felt, while other former winners in John Cynn (927,000), Joe Hachem (353,000), Chris Moneymaker (221,000) and Greg Raymer (205,000) performed brilliantly too. Liu came into play on a big stack but really stepped on the gas, and powered to her lead in impressive fashion.

As far as the tournament action goes, the 100 live events and 30 online bracelet events held for players located in Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan bears a strong resemblance to the 2025 schedule. This was the first time poker players were able to win a WSOP bracelet online, with the final six playing down at the Rio to crown the winner. This year also marks the launch of MyPlayers, a brand-new, free feature that lets poker fans track their favorite players across all PokerNews live-reported events. Utilizing years of success and experience playing online poker, professional poker player Anthony Spinella won the $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event, receiving $197,743 and becoming the first player to win a WSOP bracelet via an online tournament. Duking it out over eight days of poker action, the resilience of the nine remaining players has earned them a seat at poker’s most prestigious final table. Only one day of poker separates the last 21 players in the field from the most coveted final table of the year in poker.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12

PokerNews has been providing live coverage of the event for all three editions, with photos, videos, and player interviews live from the tournament floor in The Bahamas. 2026 will see another 100 live bracelet events played out inside Horseshoe Las Vegas and Paris Las Vegas, with nonstop excitement and hundreds of millions in prize money awarded along the way. MyStack lets players update their stacks in real time, directly into the PokerNews live feed. MyStack returns this year, allowing players to directly update their chip counts in the live reporting feed and give friends and followers the most accurate picture of their tournament progress. The final 1,382 players will be in the money and guaranteed at least $15,000, with the eventual champion taking home the… pic.twitter.com/w9P2acqUWH

The most recent WSOP Main Event in 2025 drew a field of 9,735, the third-largest turnout in the history of the tournament. Hailing from Barcelona, Spain, Margets is not new to success at the WSOP, having won her lone bracelet in the $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em Closer for $376,850 in 2021. Still seeking his first career WSOP bracelet, Hallaert’s first title won in the United States could be the biggest one of them all. Already having a WSOP bracelet to his name, Dunaway won the $1,500 Monster Stack for $1,162,681 during the 2023 WSOP. Braxton Dunaway (Midland, Texas, United States) – 91,900,000 ChipsBraxton Dunaway, 42, lives in Midland, Texas, and is a family man who makes his living in the oil and gas industry.

Many more will follow within the next two weeks as the eyes of the global poker community are once again firmly set on the grandest of spectacles. This time, the end for Aguero came in Level 5 when his king-nine suited couldn’t beat the pocket tens of Andrius Mazurkevicius. Belonging into the latter category is certainly football striker Sergio Aguero from Argentina, who has already competed in multiple WSOP tournaments. Last year’s runner-up Jordan Griff also participated on Day 1d but bowed out during the final level of the night, Pyzara certainly wasn’t the only one to suffer a horrendous beat, as Jared Bleznick saw his pocket aces cracked in a six-bet pot by Romain Locquet on the live-stream table when the Frenchman made quads nines. Hundreds of other dreams were crushed thereafter, with nearly ten percent of the field already on the rail by the time the dinner break kicked off at the end of Level 3.

The meat of my career was live updates, so I hold a soft spot for those because that remains the best way to really embrace the game itself and break down a hand. Even after being on camera in various capacities for years, when I worked as the WPT Live Update Hostess in Season X, the larger poker community still pushed back. Thankfully, Wicked Chops Poker created this position for me on their weekly poker show where I popped in and gave them the major headlines from the industry for five minutes. As a tournament reporter, I was so behind the scenes and so low on the ladder that I did not feel that pressure. A lot of people would say poker was pretty nasty with misogyny during that period.

Daniel and Amanda Negreanu posing with WSOP bracelet number eight. Las Vegas, Nevada (July 6, 2026) – Now well within the initial days of the 2026 WSOP Main Event, the excitement and pressure have kicked up a notch here at the Las Vegas Paris and Horseshoe. Players should follow @WSOP on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram or check WSOP.com for more event news and updates. Before all eyes turn to the 2026 WSOP Main Event, get caught up on all that has unfolded these past few days at the WSOP. Greg Mueller of White Rock, British Columbia, made a magical run in this year’s World Series of Poker Main Event after the longtime pro burned out on the game. After six hours of action in the World Series of Poker Main Event at Horseshoe Events Center, play was halted with Lucas Jumalon maintaining the chip lead.

We also go beyond live hands and chip counts. You can add our WSOP Main Event live reporting page to your favorites right now, so when cards go in the air, you’ll have instant access from the get-go. PokerNews will also have the usual highlight banner on our homepage throughout the WSOP, so getting to the WSOP live updates is always only one click away. This five-week leaderboard competition will reward the best performers in WSOP Daily Deepstacks with 50 tournament tickets to the PokerNews Deepstack Championship. “It’s another example of how we’re continuing to innovate and elevate poker media.”

Benny Glaser shined brightly early on, and just past the halfway point of the summer, won his third bracelet of 2025. The story of the summer of 2025 felt like it changed a half-dozen times over the course of seven weeks at last year’s WSOP. Local time, opening the gold bracelet action in Las Vegas, and the next four starting flights roll out at 10 a.m. After kicking off the 2025 WSOP with the $1,000 Mystery Millions no-limit hold’em mystery bounty event, the opening event’s buy-in was cut in half. Before a single hand of poker has been dealt in Las Vegas, there’s been a significant amount of concern, conversation, and discussion stemming from new rules and regulations put into place by tournament officials. This was his largest tournament score yet, topping the $103,000 he earned for a seventh-place showing in a $10,000 Triton One Jeju event this spring.

While Mueller’s been a mixed game player for the bulk of his professional poker career, he’s afforded himself incredibly well thus far in the 2026 WSOP main event. Two other multi-time bracelet winners also advanced to day 8 of the 2026 WSOP main event. Speaking of Ensan, the 2019 WSOP main event champion is one day away from a return to the final table in 2026. The final 174 players will return for day 6 at noon on Saturday, July 11, with blinds of 30,000-60,000 and a 60,000 big blind ante for level 25. Among the final 174 players, 24 have already won at least one WSOP bracelet. With the WSOP Main Event deep in the middle of its run and no championships events concluding until the start of the weekend, the PokerGO Tour Leaderboard remains as it was yesterday, with Sean Winter leading from the Finnish player Eelis Parssinen.

“Poker is filled with unexpected storylines, and nobody is better equipped to showcase the stories that unfold throughout a tournament more than ESPN. With our new ownership’s commitment to growth, this is the perfect time to bring the ‘World Championship’ back to the biggest stage in sports.” See the full 2025 WSOP schedule below and find the buy-in and date of every single official event at this year’s Series. This was the German pro’s second seven-figure score, with the earlier also coming in a $100,000 PLO event.

Irish player Andrew King started his rise towards the Top 10 for this flight in the last level after he scored a large double to bag up 303,000, closely followed by Nan Li (299,500) and Vytautas Semaska (290,600). Online and in-person registration for all World Series events will open in the weeks prior to the first event. We’re busy on improvements to make sure 2024 is both the biggest and best event in poker history. Visit to sign up for your free account, personalize your poker experience with MyPlayers, and get ready for the most exciting summer in poker. From the Main Event to the Deepstacks to your favorite poker pros, PokerNews is your home for official live updates from the 2025 WSOP and beyond.

The 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event will crown its newest world champion Wednesday night in Las Vegas. Catch all the action LIVE now on the APT livestream with Punnat Punsri at the feature table. $374K+ goes to the winner and they’ll be a day away from it in just hours. All operators listed by PokerListings are licensed and safe to play at. If you play for real money, make sure that you do not play for more than you can afford losing, and that you only play at safe and regulated operators.

Kyosuke Nagami of Japan made his third consecutive deep run in the WSOP main event, narrowly missing out on beating his personal best by two spots. Two-thirds of the field that entered play on day 7 did not make it to the end of the night. It was a tough final level for Mueller on day 7, but he has 22 big blinds to start day 8.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the start of the $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em WSOP Main Event, as airing returns to ESPN from Thursday, July 2 through Monday, July 13, with a special three-day final table finale taking place Monday, August 3 through Wednesday, August 5. Mystery bounties in the $550 Mini Mystery Millions come into play on day two of the event, scheduled for Sunday, May 31, with cards in the air at 1 P.M. While the buy-in may be lower for the Mini Mystery Millions compared to the Mystery Millions, there is still great riches for the poker player lucky enough to win the biggest bounty. Each poker player is permitted 2 re-entries per flight. The surviving finalists will reconvene 20 days later for a live, three-day televised finale airing August 3-5 from 9pm-12am EST. Under the new agreement, poker fans can expect wall-to-wall coverage, with each tournament day receiving a minimum of six hours of programming.

The average stack of 26,317,142 represents just shy of 44 big blinds when play resumes. Zhang entered the day as one of the short stacks and was unable to spin it up, taking home $150,000 for her efforts! It increased her career tournament earnings to $482,761. Zhang took a race shortly after play began, with her Q♠7♠ unable to outrun the 5♥5♣ of Thomas Clack. The 36-year-old fashion brand consultant from Shanghai, China came into the day as one of the very shortest stacks, having lost the majority of her stack late on day 6 with A♣K♠ against J♥J♦ for Felix Kuemayr.

Lucas Jumalon increased his chip lead in the World Series of Poker $10,000 buy-in No-limit Hold’em World Championship on the first day of the final table. We are the number one source for poker news, gambling industry updates, reviews and free educational content for players of all levels. Phil Ivey has 11 bracelet wins, with Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, and Erik Seidel (10) the only players with double-digit WSOP bracelet wins. In 2015, the WSOP awarded their first online poker gold bracelet, with Anthony ‘casedismised’ Spinella winning the inaugural event. The first WSOP took place in 1970, and it continues to attract some of the best poker players in the world. It doesn’t appear that Caesars is forcing players to comply with measures of that magnitude.

The powers that be behind the WSOP brought some heavy hitters on board to round out the broadcast team, including long-time PokerStars and European Poker Tour broadcaster Joe Stapleton. Beginning today, May 26, the action carries on every day through July 15. Tuesday afternoon marks the beginning of the 2026 World Series of Poker.

Las Vegas, Nevada (May 26, 2026) – After a festive Memorial Day weekend here in Sin City, the biggest poker series of the year is ready to get underway! ESPN first broadcast the WSOP Main Event in 1978 and remained the dominant broadcaster of the event for decades, helping to fuel the global poker boom. Known for innovative hits like Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli (the “ManningCast”) and Netflix’s “Quarterback” and “Receiver”, Omaha Productions will apply its signature storytelling lens to the poker table.

Hachem and Brunson remain in contention to make history as the younger half of a father-and-son WSOP main event championship combo, with Joe Hachem having won in 2005 and the late Doyle Brunson in 1976 and 1977. I also care less about the pay jumps than most, and I’m trying to win the tournament no matter what day it is. Trayner also took down the return of the Aussie Millions main event earlier this year. One of them will eventually hoist this year’s championship gold bracelet, and bank the $10,000,000 first-place prize from the fourth-largest world championship in history. Stream live NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, college sports, plus SportsCenter, First Take, and all your favorite ESPN shows—anytime, anywhere—only in the ESPN app. If you’re a poker fan, there’s no bigger tournament than this.

The final knockout of day 2 pitted the A♠A♥6♥5♣ of Sean Winter against K♦Q♠6♠6♦ for Chris Frank. Six-time bracelet winner Jeremy Ausmus was left on fumes when his own pair of kings and flush draw ran into the pocket aces of Philip Sternheimer. Two-time bracelet winner Robert Cowen then bowed out in ninth place ($224,962) with his overpair of kings and flush draw losing out to the flopped set of queens of Negreanu. He was soon joined by four-time bracelet winner Joao Simao (13th), Jonathan Depa (12th), Lautauro Guerra (11th), and Gergo Nagy (10th), who all earned $204,938 for their efforts. The 51-year-old Canadian legend of the game defeated a stacked field of 83 entries in the $100,000 pot-limit Omaha high roller to earn his eighth bracelet and the first-place prize of $2,257,718.

🎤🔥@brucebuffer just delivered a “Shuffle up and deal! But a late dip puts him in a perilous position heading into Tuesday afternoon’s session. He’ll take 106,500,000 into night two of this three-day marathon. The 22-year-old bagged up 212,000,000 to remain the favorite to walk away with the championship bracelet and the first-place prize of $10,000,000.

Head straight to the PokerNews Live Reporting page, the one-stop hub for real-time tournament coverage. PokerNews is also proud to host its own WSOP-bracelet event, the $600 PokerNews Deepstack Championship. “This is the biggest summer in poker, and there’s no better place to follow it all than PokerNews,” said Shirley Ang, PokerNews Global Live Events Manager.

Ever wonder who is the best poker player in the world? The Japanese player earned $516,160 for his fifth-place showing, the second-largest score of his tournament career. This was his fourth final-table finish of the series, having placed third in both the $25,000 six-max no-limit hold’em and $25,000 PLO/NLH mix, as well as fourth in the $250,000 super high roller. The six-figure bubble burst on day 2, with three-time bracelet winner Naoya Kihara being the last to be sent to the rail empty-handed. The 100 bracelet events that make up the World Series of Poker 2026 will shape the race for the revamped WSOP Player of the Year (POY) competition.

What was once a sea of 9,208 entries is down to just three tables going into day 8, and by the close of play on Monday, July 13, the final nine will claim their place in poker history. More than 68 percent of the players who reached day 5 fell by the end of the night. For almost any other player, even a hint of repeating as WSOP main event champion would be an absurdity. Other players to keep an eye on heading into day 6 include Patrick Leonard, Loren Klein, Sean Winter, Lara Eisenberg, Dylan Smith, Caitlin Comeskey, Matt Salsberg, Brock Wilson, and Zdenek Zizka.