Top 10 Biggest Poker Tournament Winners In The World 2026

In the high-stakes world of professional poker, where fortunes may be won and lost in a single hand, the biggest tournament winners are like legends. As we enter the year 2026, the all-time money list shows the best players who have mastered no-limit hold’em, pot-limit Omaha, and high-roller showdowns. These giants have made millions by winning World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets, the Triton Super High Roller Series, and the European Poker Tour (EPT). They do this by combining skill, psychology, and an unbreakable focus. If you’re a poker fan looking for inspiration from the game’s big money players, this Nubia Magazine guide goes into great detail about the top earners, their adventures, methods, and record-breaking cashes.

At Nubia Magazine, we love finding out the tales behind the chips the hard work of late night grinds, the excitement of final-table bluffs, and the lessons learned from poker’s unpredictable nature. Our blog has SEO friendly tips to help you improve your game, whether you’re a new player looking at your first satellite or a seasoned grinder looking at GTO solutions. We mix fun and learning to keep you at the virtual felt. We achieve this by breaking down the latest WSOP Paradise tournaments and writing profiles of up-and-coming players. As you look at these top 10 largest poker event winners of 2026, keep in mind that success in poker is like success in life: you have to be patient and able to change.

This year has seen a huge change in the all-time money list for poker. Record-breaking buy-ins like the $1M Big One for One Drop and huge Triton fields in Jeju and Montenegro have made it happen. The best players are mostly from the US and Europe, and their totals are over $50 million. One of the most important trends is the rise of pot-limit Omaha high rollers and hybrid online-live tournaments, which reward players who are good at a variety of forms. According to data from The Hendon Mob, our top 10 players have made more than $600 million together, showing that poker is a billion-dollar business. Nubia Magazine’s analysis is based on verifiable cashes, therefore you may trust it for your poker strategy research.

What makes these victors different? It’s not just raw talent; it’s also mental strength. For example, Bryn Kenney’s cold-blooded ICM judgments or Daniel Negreanu’s famous table talk. We’ve seen veterans like Fedor Holz teach the next generation in 2025, and young players like Adrian Mateos break age records. As we rate them by how much money they made in real tournaments (as of December 2025), get ready for stories of resilience, huge paydays, and the river card’s unshakable appeal.

List Of Top 10 Biggest Poker Tournament Winners In the world 2026

1. Bryn Kenney

Bryn Kenney, an American heavyweight, is at the top of the all-time money list for 2026. His $79.8 million in live cashes makes him the financial king of poker. Kenney was born in Long Beach, New York. He went from being a Magic: The Gathering pro to a poker star, winning his first WSOP bracelet in 2014’s $1,500 10-Game Mix. What was his greatest achievement? The 2019 Triton Million saw a record $20.56 million runner-up, which is the biggest single payout in poker history. Kenney won $2.3 million in the WSOP this year, including $887,000 for coming in second in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship. His advantage grew with wins at Triton in Jeju ($839,000) and London ($6.86 million from 2023 carryover). Kenney is ahead because he is a master of high-stakes games, having won 34 tournaments and being ranked #1 by the Hendon Mob. When he’s not playing poker, he gives money to conservation groups. For people who want to be pros, study his patient aggression. It’s the key to turning $1 million buy-ins into empires. As 2025 comes to a close, competitors like Stephen Chidwick are barely $6M behind, but Kenney’s steady performance predicts he’ll keep the reign.

2. Justin Bonomo

Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo is in second place with a shocking $69.4 million. He has three WSOP bracelets and 36 titles. The Virginia native, who used to be a top player in Magic: The Gathering, won the $10 million Big One for One Drop in 2018, which was the biggest prize in the event’s history. Bonomo made $1.3 million in the seventh place in the WSOP Super Main Event in 2025, which brought his total to over $65 million by mid-year. He has $17.8 million in cash from the WSOP alone, and he has had deep runs in the Super High Roller Bowls and the Triton series. What is Bonomo’s plan? He got better at studying and heads-up play by practicing online under a fake name. A incident involving many accounts in 2006 early in his career further added to his redemption story, making him a figure of persistence.

3. Stephen Chidwick

British star Stephen Chidwick, who has won two WSOP bracelets and is England’s highest-paid player, moves up to third place with $75.8 million. Chidwick’s 2019 $25K PLO High Roller bracelet win him in $1.62M, while his 2025 Triton wins of $3.46M in Short Deck and NAPT $50K ($558K) put him over $70M. His best finish was fourth in the 2019 Triton Million ($5.37M), and he has 50 championships and 386 cashes to show for his mixed-game skills. Chidwick seems low-key, but he’s actually a genius when it comes to analysis. He loves solving problems and does well at PLO turbos. His $11.46 million in POY earnings in 2025 put him at number 11 in the world. For readers who are grinding EPT satellites, his patience in bubble regions is priceless. It shows that Brits can win at high-stakes poker.

4. Mikita Badziakouski

Mikita Badziakouski from Belarus comes in fourth with $69.1 million. He is a short-deck expert and a WSOP bracelet holder. He started out online as “fish2013” and became famous in 2018 when he won $2.5 million at Triton Montenegro. In 2025, he won the €50K High Roller at the EPT Monte Carlo for $893K and the $2.21M Triton Jeju cashes, which included a $7.11M 2023 Big One for One Drop echo. Badziakouski’s aggressive style shows in bounties, where he has 24 titles and more over $3 million online. His $65 million milestone in the middle of 2025 put him in third place for a short time.

5. Jason Koon

Fifth place Jason Koon is from West Virginia and has 12 Triton titles, which is the most in the series. He has $69.3M. His $50K High Roller bracelet from the 2025 WSOP ($1.97M) put him in third place on the money list for a short time, adding to his heads-up win in 2021. Koon’s $3.39 million Montenegro A $150,000 win and a $643,000 Jeju PLO third place finish helped make it a $6.9 million year. He is GGPoker’s ambassador and a RunItOnce coach with 37 wins. Koon’s “flourishing existence” concept, which balances poker with giving back, makes sense. His ICM mastery in high-rollers is important for the rising buy-ins in 2025.

6. Dan Smith

Dan Smith is sixth with $63.3 million. He is a New Jersey chess player who won a bracelet. His 2022 Heads-Up Championship win of $25,000 ($243,000) followed a long dry spell, but big wins like $8.77 million in the 2019 Triton third and $4 million in the 2018 Big One characterize him. In 2025, the WSOP Paradise PLO fifth place prize was $526K, and the Double Up Drive charity raised $24.7 million. Smith’s analytical depth is as good as engines’; he’s number one on New Jersey’s list. If you want to learn about strategy, you need to read his heads-up edges.

7. Daniel Negreanu

“Kid Poker,” who has won six WSOP bracelets (seven total), sits in seventh place with $56.5 million. The Toronto icon won the $1.18M Poker Players Championship in 2025 and the $292K PGT Dealer’s Choice in 2025. His 2016 One Drop win of $8.29 million is still famous, and he has 49 titles and is in the Poker Hall of Fame. Millions of people are inspired by Negreanu’s books and vlogs. Nubia’s favorite: His 16 years of winning more than $1 million show that poker is a long-lasting game.

8. Adrian Mateos

Adrian Mateos from Spain is in eighth place with $56.4 million. He is the youngest three-bracelet winner at 22. His 2025 WSOP Online $3.2K High Roller ($253K) win made him the fifth person to win five bracelets by the time he was 30. The $13 million haul from 2024 (the most ever) carried over, with Triton coming in second with $3.29 million. He is Spain’s number one with 29 titles. Mateos’s online SCOOP/WCOOP supremacy carries over to live games.

9. Isaac Haxton

Haxton comes in ninth with $63.8 million. He is a solution wizard who won a 2023 WSOP bracelet worth $1.7 million. The $2.79 million Triton Jeju PLO win in 2025 ended a 34-final-table drought, and the $1.97 million WSOP $100K PLO second place finish was also good. He is an elite player with 20 titles and $10.8 million in POY points. Haxton’s $2 million-plus online adds depth. His predatory changes are game-changing for players who know how to use technology.

10. Fedor Holz

Fedor Holz from Germany is in the top 10 with $52.2 million. He won the 2016 One Drop bracelet with $4.98 million. In 2025, he won the $1.08M WSOP Online Heads-Up second, which gave him two more bracelets. Holz’s concentration on high rollers has paid off, with 19 titles and a GGPoker ambassadorship, bringing in $470K in Montenegro eights. Holz’s attitude coaching through Pokercode gives pros more power. Legacy: From an online star to a member of a $50 million club.