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Home / WCOOP / WCOOP 2023: Stokes wins Main Event, Leonard claims fourth title and Player of the Series

The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP 2023) ran from September 10 to October 4 with more than $80M Gtd. Here’s where you’ll find all our coverage from WCOOP 2023

WCOOP 2023 DAILY RECAPS

Thursday, October 5

The final day of the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) 2023 took place yesterday, wrapping up an incredible series.

We’ll bring you all the interesting stats – including the country leader boards, multiple winners, and more – in a future article. 

But for now, let’s go over what happened on Wednesday.

STOKES WINS THE MAIN EVENT FOR $1M

The $10,300 WCOOP NLHE Main Event (#98-H) went to Ivan “ILS007” Stokes, who entered the final table with the chip lead. 

Ivan “ILS007” Stokes

This is Stokes’ first WCOOP title and they don’t come much better than this. He battled through 600 entries from the world’s best tournament players and defeated Sweden’s “ShipitFTW911” heads-up to win $1.04 million and the right to call himself the world champion.

WCOOP 98-H: World Championship of NLHE: $10,300 Main Event

1- Ivan “ILS007” Stokes (UK) – $1,047,257
2- “ShipitFTW911” (Sweden) – $765,389
3- Juan “xPastorcitox” Pastor (Argentina) – $559,385
4- Niklas “Lena900” Astedt (Sweden) – $408,827
5- Leonard “Grozzorg” Maue (Austria) – $298,792 
6- Jamil “jamil11” Wakil (Canada) – $218,372
7- Kelvin “Kelvin_FP:AR” Kerber (Brazil) – $159,598
8- Mario “livinmydream1” Mosboeck – $116,642
9- Kayhan “KayhanMok” Mokri (Norway) – $94,330

MEDIUM EDITION

In the $1,050 Medium edition, it was Brazil’s “BLEFE GOD” who finished on top, having also begun the FT with the lead. They defeated Jans “Graftekkel” Arends heads-up after battling through a 4,342-entry field over four days of play.

This is also BLEFE GOD’s first WCOOP title, for which they earned $619,300

WCOOP 98-M: World Championship of NLHE: $1,050 Main Event

1- “BLEFE GOD” (Brazil) – $619,300
2- Jans “Graftekkel” Arends (Austria) – $437,909
3- “graczzz” (Poland) – $309,648
4- “DerRappler” (Austria) – $218,594
5- “kerolis” (Lithuania) – $154,823
6- “Bababangg” (Malta) – $109,477
7- “Per.V7” (Brazil) – $77,411
8- “Spud989” (UK) – $54,738
9- “piper_kl88” (Austria) – $38,705

LOW EDITION

And finally, it was Brazil’s “CadeMito” who took down the $109 edition, triumphing over a whopping 27,194 entries. They entered the final table second in chips and rode the big stack to victory.

After a heads-up deal, CadeMito banked $257,039 and the title, while Malta’s “Goonie Tot” placed second for $212,475.

WCOOP 98-L: World Championship of NLHE: $109 Main Event

1- “CadeMito” (Brazil) – $257,039*
2- “Goonie Tot” (Malta) – $212,475*
3- “Stognov303” (Bulgaria) – $139,283
4- “TheVirus217” (Ireland) – $99,285
5- “superrookie00” – $70,774
6- “Ant1K1lller” (Kyrgyzstan) – $50,450
7- “Natrium111” (Belarus) – $35,962
8- “daPEPEhu” (Malta) – $25,635
9- “Pampa27” (Argentina) – $18,273

LEONARD WINS PLAYER OF THE SERIES

patrick leonard

Leonard banks an extra $25,000

Patrick “pads1161” Leonard builds his entire yearly schedule around these big online poker series, always with the same intention: win titles and the Player of the Series Leader Board.

Job done. He’s absolutely smashed it in WCOOP 2023.

On Wednesday, Leonard took down the $1,050 Super Tuesday (#105-H) for $54,506 and his fourth title of the year (and ninth of his career). To do so he had to beat his friend “Eduardo850” of Brazil after the two made a deal heads-up.

The victory was enough for Leonard to pip Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser to the overall Player of the Series title and its $25,000 prize. Glaser – who won an astonishing seven titles – will have to settle for winning the High Leader Board, picking up $15,000.

“FAL1ST” of Thailand topped the Low, winning $5,000, while Sweden’s Jerry “Perrymejsen” Odeen claimed the Medium for $10,000, having won four titles in 2023.

You can look through all the Leader Boards here.

BRILLIANT BRUSCHI

Finally, we’ve got to shout out Renan “Internett93o” Bruschi’s performance on the final day.

A fantastic series for Bruschi

The Brazilian not only took down the $530 Mixed NLHE/PLO (#106-H) for $17,194 and his second title of the year (fourth overall), topping 159 entries, but also finished second in the $55 Medium edition of the same event for $6,831. 

“Bilbokatze” from Germany won that for $9,805, besting 1,006 entries.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “porto231”
Event: WCOOP 105-L: $33 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $20,062

Winner: “pachitosurf”
Event: WCOOP 105-M: $215 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $43,450

Winner: “Góras”
Event: WCOOP 108-M: $530 NLHE [Progressive KO, Final Freeze]
Prize: $27,930 (including $13,131 in bounties)

Winner: Jan-Mikael “Kesjan” Kesänen
Event: WCOOP 108-H: $5,200 NLHE [Progressive KO, Final Freeze]
Prize: $116,538 (including $65,078 in bounties)

Winner: “beastishngry”
Event: WCOOP 109-H: $1,050 PLO
Prize: $30,349

Winner: “efkinis24”
Event: WCOOP 110-H: $530 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Series Wrap-Up]
Prize: $32,256 (including $19,496 in bounties)


Wednesday, October 4

All three WCOOP 2023 NLHE Main Events will play down to a champion today. Let’s take a look at the final tables.

$10K MAIN

Ivan “ILS007” Stokes (UK) – 31.7 million
Leonard “Grozzorg” Maue (Austria) – 25.8 million
Niklas “Lena900” Astedt (Sweden) – 23.2 million
“ShipitFTW911” (Sweden) – 18.4 million
Juan “xPastorcitox” Pastor (Argentina) – 15.3 million
Kelvin “Kelvin_FP:AR” Kerber (Brazil) – 11.5 million
Jamil “jamil11” Wakil (Canada) – 9.6 million
Kayhan “KayhanMok” Mokri (Norway) – 7.5 million
Mario “livinmydream1” Mosboeck – 6.6 million

Stokes leads the way, seeking his maiden WCOOP title, while Astedt is after his third of the year. 

There’s $1,047,257 up top in this one.

Niklas “Lena900” Astedt

$1K MAIN

“BLEFE GOD” (Brazil) – 84 million
Jans “Graftekkel” Arends (Austria) – 79.8 million
“Spud989” (UK) – 51.5 million
“graczzz” (Poland) – 41.2 million
“DerRappler” (Austria) – 41.2 million
“kerolis” (Lithuania) – 37.8 million
“Per.V7” (Brazil) – 36 million
“piper_kl88” (Austria) – 32.8 million
“Bababangg” (Malta) – 20.7 million

Arends is the most accomplished player remaining and he’s in a fantastic position to win his second WCOOP of the year and his career. 

$619,300 awaits the winner.

Jans “Graftekkel” Arends

$109 MAIN

“Stognov303” (Bulgaria) – 149.6 million
“CadeMito” (Brazil) – 106.2 million
“superrookie00” – 83.1 million
“TheVirus217” (Ireland) – 76.9 million
“daPEPEhu” (Malta) – 59 million
“Natrium111” (Belarus) – 57.1 million
“Pampa27” (Argentina) – 54.3 million
“Ant1K1lller” (Kyrgyzstan) – 21.3 million

Kyrgyzstan’s “Ant1K1lller” always does well during COOPs and now has a shot at a Main Event title. It’s “Stognov303” of Bulgaria who sits in the pole position though.

The champ will receive $274,121 unless a deal is made.

The PLO Main Events came to an end yesterday, you can check out those results below.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “Imbajimbaa”
Event: WCOOP 100-H: World Championship of PLO: $10,300 Main Event
Prize: $233,532

Winner: “Hulaaaa”
Event: WCOOP 100-M: $1,050 PLO 6-Max Main Event
Prize: $111,622

Winner: “Gabriel1244”
Event: WCOOP 100-L: $109 PLO 6-Max Main Event
Prize: $24,203

Winner: “FlipohDentro”
Event: WCOOP 102-M: $109 NLHE PKO Series Saver
Prize: $67,368 (including $21,084 in bounties)

Winner: “DaniC199441893” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 102-H: $1,050 NLHE PKO Series Saver
Prize: $172,508 (including $87,289 in bounties)

Winner: “andrznffs”
Event: WCOOP 01-L: $5.50 NLHE [Phase 2]
Prize: $40,020

Winner: “stek94”
Event: WCOOP 01-M: $22 NLHE [Phase 2]
Prize: $65,018

Winner: Gilles “TaxationIsTheft” Simon
Event: WCOOP 01-H: $109 NLHE [Phase 2]
Prize: $125,006

Gilles “TaxationIsTheft” Simon


Tuesday, October 3

$109 NLHE Main Event – $274,121 up top

Twitch streamer Lukas “lukas_robo” Robinson is the overnight chip leader in the $109 Main Event (#98-L) with 156 players remaining, all guaranteed $1,502. Some of those still in contention include João Mathias “joaoMathias” Baumgarten, Kelvin “kelvin_fp:ar” Kerber, and Simon “C. Darwin2” Mattsson.

$1,050 NLHE Main Event – $619,300 up top

Over in the $1,050 Main (#98-M) it’s Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski out in front with 79 players remaining. Among those are recent Thursday Thrill champ Jans “Graftekkel” Arends, Adrian “Amadi_017” Mateos, PokerStars Team Pro Sam “SamSquid” Grafton, and Connor “blanconegro” Drinan.

Grafton’s deep in two Main Events

$10,300 NLHE Main Event – $1,047,257 up top

Grafton is also repping the red spade in the $10,300 Main (#98-H), sitting 25th in chips with just 38 players remaining. Ivan “ILS007” Stokes has an enormous chip lead – close to seven million more chips than his nearest competitor, Niklas “Lena900” Astedt. 

PLO MAIN EVENTS

Just seven players out of 100 entries remain in the $10,300 PLO Main Event (#100-H), led by Denmark’s “Imbajimbaa”. Joao “Naza114” Vieira is still in the mix, sitting fifth in chips. They’re all guaranteed $43,986 but they’re playing for $233,532 and the title.

In the medium $1,050 edition it’s Romania’s “#Naktro91” who leads the final 17. Daniel “Oxota” Dvoress, Jussi “calvin7v” Nevanlinna, and Mattsson (“C. Darwin2”) remain in the hunt for the $111,622 up top.

Rudolph leads the $109

Finally, it’s Christian “WATnlos” Rudolph who leads the $109 PLO Main, with 18 of 2,340 entries remaining. Chris “Moorman1” Moorman is also in the mix seeking his second title of the year. There’s $34,672 for the win in that one.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “yoyesyo”
Event: WCOOP 96-H: $530 NLHE [Sunday Kickoff]
Prize: $76,446

Winner: “go4gunners”
Event: WCOOP 97-M: $215 NLHE PKO [Sunday Warm-Up]
Prize: $70,272 (including $28,465 in bounties)

Winner: “Heidegger807”
Event: WCOOP 97-H: $,2100 NLHE PKO [Sunday Warm-Up]
Prize: $117,183 (including $66,668 in bounties)

Winner: “17neffetS_BR”
Event: WCOOP 103-L: $55 NLHE [Turbo ME 2nd Chance]
Prize: $43,094

Winner: “Narcisus90” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 103-M: $530 NLHE [Turbo ME 2nd Chance]
Prize: $57,353

Winner: Pascal “Pass_72” Lefrancois
Event: WCOOP 103-H: $5,200 NLHE [Turbo ME 2nd Chance],
Prize: $108,730

Winner: Pedor “pvigar” Garagnani (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 104-H: $1,050 NLHE Turbo Freezeout
Prize: $44,495


Monday, October 2

It’s time to catch up on another incredible weekend. 

“UNPRECEDENTED SCENES” FOR GLASER 

What more can we say? 

Seven? Are you kidding me

Seven?!

benny glaser

What a series for Glaser

Yep, we counted them. Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser won his seventh title of WCOOP 2023 on Saturday, beating 195 entries in the $1,050 NLHE 6-Max Turbo to win $38,894.

This is Glaser’s second no limit hold’em title of the series and 25th COOP trophy. To get the job done this time, he had to beat Gavin “gavz101” Cochrane heads-up, as well as Sam “Str8$$$Homey” Greenwood in third.

Glaser currently leads both the Overall and High Leader Boards, and rightly so.

You can check out all the Leader Boards here.

FOUR FOR LEKNES

Glaser’s friend and fellow mixed game crusher Tobias “Senkel92” Leknes has captured his third and fourth titles of the year, first winning the $2,100 8-Game 6-Max (#87-H) for $33,775.

Leknes: One of COOP’s all-timers

The event received 40 entries and saw Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov finish third, while Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski came fifth.

Leknes also took down the $1,050 World Championship of NL 2-7 Single Draw, beating 54 entries to win $20,786.

Leknes now has 13 WCOOP titles – second only to Glaser – and when combined with his SCOOP success (he won three this year) it gives him 20 COOP wins in total, again, trailing only Glaser.

PADS MAKES IT THREE

Patrick “pads1161” Leonard also picked up his third title of the year over the weekend.

patrick leonard

Hat trick for Pads

The power-jamming Brit took down the $109 NLO8 (#93-M) for $7,449 after defeating 411 entries, taking his WCOOP career total up to eight.

He now has 15 COOP titles overall.

DIMOV BREAKS HIS SILENCE

Ognan “cocojamb0” Dimov won three WCOOP titles last year. Now he’s on the board in 2023 with just a few days remaining.

The Bulgarian high roller won his fifth-career WCOOP in the WCOOP 92-H: $3,150 NLHE Progressive KO for $98,415 (including $62,250 in bounties), overcoming 115 of the world’s best.

ALWAYS COMING SEVEN FOR ASTEDT 

It wasn’t a matter of if, but when Niklas “Lena900” Åstedt would win his seventh WCOOP title.

Niklas “Lena900” Åstedt

The all-time great Swede came close last week, finishing runner-up to Michael “imluckbox” Addamo, but now he’s done it, winning  the $1,050 NLO8 (#93-H) for $22,224.

The event had 93 total entries and saw Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov notch up another final table finish. He finished runner-up this time, while Rui “RuiNF” Ferreira was third and Glaser finished fourth.

HUGE WIN FOR ARENDS

Jans “Graftekkel” Arends clinched his maiden WCOOP title in style on Saturday, taking down the enormous $10,300 Thursday Thrill (#86-H) for $202,937, including $105,000 in bounties.

From the 83 entries, Dominykas “Mikensonas” Mikolaitis placed second, Dzivielevski third, and David “dpeters17” Peters fourth.

TOURNIER CLOSE FOR TEAM PRO

Lali “LaliTournier” Tournier came close to winning PokerStars Team Pro’s second title of the series on Sunday.

The Brazilian finished third out of 443 entries in the $22 NLHE PKO Women’s Event for $622 total, but it was another Brazilian – “missioneira81” – who took it down for $1,550 total.

MORE NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “dujo123”
Event: WCOOP 86-H: $10,300 NLHE Progressive KO, Thursday Thrill
Prize: $103,421 (including $46,906 in bounties)

Winner: Jargo “bungakat” Alaväli
Event: WCOOP 88-M: $320 NLHE
Prize: $41,793

Winner: Sam “Str8$$$Homey” Greenwood (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 88-H: $3,150 NLHE
Prize: $64,521

Winner: “Tr!pleeeee”
Event: WCOOP 90-H: $1,050 NLHE Deep Stack
Prize: $43,156

Winner: “Chillolini” (fourth WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 91-H: $1,050 Stud
Prize: $13,858

Winner: “bruna_bsb”
Event: WCOOP $215 Women’s World Championship
Prize: $7,696

Winner: “habfer025”
Event: WCOOP 92-M: $320 NLHE PKO
Prize: $71,087 (including $37,221 in bounties)

Winner: “Paffchen” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 95-M: $215 NLHE Turbo PKO
Prize: $29,299 (including $15,578 in bounties)

Winner: Roman “RomeOpro” Romanovsky
Event: WCOOP 95-H: $2,100 NLHE Progressive KO Turbo
Prize: $65,304 (including $38,625 in bounties)


Friday, September 29

SPRAGGY SO CLOSE

Benjamin “Spraggy” Spragg is on fire at the moment. 

Earlier this month, he took down the UK and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT) Brighton Main Event for £69,120. Three days ago he took down a WCOOP edition of the $530 Bounty Builder for $31,662. And last night, he was heads-up for his third WCOOP title in #80-M: $109 NLHE [Progressive KO].

Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.

With a 2:1 chip advantage and “all the momentum”, Spraggy’s power cut out at home and a mad scramble to sort out his internet connection began. Unsure of what to do, his heads-up opponent – Jan “hownorez” Nakladal – spoke to Parker “Tonkaaaa” Talbot in the chat and agreed to sit out until Spraggy returned.

It was a class act and one that was rewarded when play restarted. Momentum shifted Nakladal’s way, as did the chips. In the final hand, Spraggy got it in with an overpair against a flush draw on the flop, but the flush completed on the river.

Tough break for Spraggy

Spraggy finished second out of 4,233 entries and banked $30,253 total. “I’m pretty devastated,” he said when it was over. “I’ve never been sadder to win $30,000.”

Nakladal captured his second WCOOP title and earned $41,602, with $15,734 coming from bounties.

ODEEN MAKES IT FOUR

Don’t let this WCOOP performance go unnoticed because some players (OK, one player) are running Godlike.

Incredible series for Odeen

Sweden’s Jerry “Perrymejsen” Odeen is also having a series for the ages, clinching his fourth title of the year on Thursday.

His most recent victory came in WCOOP 81-M: $109 5-Card PLO, which received 721 total entries. Odeen banked $12,247 for the win and now has six WCOOP trophies and 11 COOP titles overall.

ANOTHER SECOND FOR MORAES 

Spraggy wasn’t the only member of PokerStars Team Pro to finish runner-up last night.

Rafael “GM_VALTER” Moraes battled through a 256-entry field but ended up falling to his fellow Brazilian “SOUFODAMS” when it reached heads-up. Moraes would have to settle for $31,698 total, while SOUFODAMS collected $52,245, including a $30,625 bounty haul.

This is Moraes’ third final table and second runner-up finish in this series. He also placed second in the $530 Deep Stack (#27-H) for $39,607.

OTHER NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “Renatbog97”
Event: WCOOP 80-H: $1,050 NLHE [Progressive KO]
Prize: $79,620 (including $44,303 in bounties)


Thursday, September 28

All the latest from Wednesday’s WCOOP 2023 action.

TWO TITLES, SAME EVENT FOR PARDO

Juan “Malaka$tyle” Pardo enjoyed an incredible day on the felt, not only capturing two titles (including one in the biggest buy-in of the series so far) but winning two versions of the same event.

Juan Pardo: Oh, what a night

Pardo first took down the $25,000 NLHE Super High Roller (#76-H) for a massive $495,333. The event received 65 entries (including 20 re-entries) and the final table included runner-up Jordi “prot0” Urlings, Christoph “26071985” Vogelsang, ”Bo$$ D4wg”, “kZhh”, Joao “Naza114” Vieira, and David “dpeters17” Peters (more on him later).

If that wasn’t enough, Pardo then took down the $2,100 Super Tuesday (#76-M) medium edition a couple of hours later, besting 272 entries to win $103,837. Jamil “jamil11” Wakil finished second in that one.

Pardo now has three WCOOP titles overall.

WATSON WINS FOURTH

Mike “SirWatts” Watson captured the fourth WCOOP title of his career yesterday, but his first in no limit hold’em. 

Mike Watson on the final table of EPT Monte Carlo 2023

Mike “SirWatts” Watson

Watson – who also took down the EPT Monte Carlo Main Event earlier this year – won the WCOOP 78-H: $1,050 NLHE [6-Max, Progressive KO] for $77,681, almost $50,000 of which came from bounties.

The event had 360 entries and a final table that included Felipe “ketzerfelipe” Ketzer and Gavin “gavz101” Cochrane.

Watson’s previous WCOOP trophies have come in 8-Game, 2-7 Triple Draw, and Stud Hi/Lo.

PETERS ON THE BOARD

David “dpeters17” Peters showed off his short-handed skills to capture the first WCOOP title of his illustrious career.

Peters is a WCOOP champ

Peters emerged victorious from 180 entries in the WCOOP 83-H: $1,050 NLHE [4-Max] to bank $37,896. The final four consisted of Peters, Fabiano “Kovalski1” Kovalski, Andrey “Kot_Spartac” Kotelnikov, and Pedro “PaDiLhA SP” Padilha.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: Eike “Mr. Havener” Onodera
Event: WCOOP 76-L: $215 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $68,680

Winner: “WizardOffAz” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 82-H: $530 NLHE [Turbo, Progressive KO, Freezeout]
Prize: $33,583 (including $17,329 in bounties)


Wednesday, September 27

One of the most respected tournament players in the game captured his second WCOOP title on Tuesday night for a six-figure score.

Here’s the latest.

ADDAMO DENIES ASTEDT 

Second title for Addamo

Michael “imluckbox” Addamo has taken the tournament poker world by storm in recent years, winning just about everything there is to win: WSOP bracelets, Super High Rollers, more than $22 million in live cashes, and a WCOOP title.

The Australian added a second WCOOP trophy to his cabinet on Tuesday, defeating a 120-entry field in the $5,200 NLHE (#70-H) to win $131,511.

The last player standing in his way was Niklas “Lena900” Astedt, seeking his seventh title and second of the series, but the Swede would have to settle for $101,894.

This is Addamo’s second victory in a $5K buy-in. His maiden title was in the $5,200 High Roller in 2019, good for $258,952.

TROPHY FOR TRAPLY 

It’s hard to believe that Peter “Belabacsi” Traply had never won a WCOOP event prior to yesterday.

He was the first Hungarian to ever win a WSOP bracelet, has three SCOOP titles, and a TCOOP title, and is just shy of $17.5 million in online earnings.

Well, Traply put things right in the $1,050 NLHE Freezeout (#72-H), besting a 215-entry field to win $41,958.

The final table included Pedro “pvigar” Garagnani and Stevan “random_chu” Chew.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “Narcisus90” (second WCOOP title)
Event: World Championship of 8-Game: $2,100
Prize: $46,609

Winner: “OMGsuperstaR”
Event: WCOOP 70-L: $55 NLHE
Prize: $46,190

Winner: “gtavares10
Event: WCOOP 70-M: $530 NLHE
Prize: $93,434

Winner: “flerrehuve” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 74-H: $530 NLHE
Prize: $46,807

Winner: Christian “CMoosepower” Elgstrøm (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 75-H: $530 PLO8 6-Max
Prize: $17,951


Tuesday, September 26

Ever feel like it’s Groundhog Day?

SIXTH TITLE OF 2023 FOR GLASER

Another day, another WCOOP victory for Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser, and this latest win is his biggest yet. 

Glaser emerged victorious in the $320 6-Max (#68-M) to win $55,706, defeating a sizeable 1,175-entry field to capture his 14th WCOOP title and sixth of the year (a new record for a single series).

Not one of Glaser’s six 2023 titles has come in the same variant. He now has an absurd 24 COOP titles to go with his five World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets. 

FINTAN FINAL TABLES THE MILLY

PokerStars Team Pro Fintan “easywithaces” Hand came close to his maiden WCOOP title last night, finishing sixth in the $530 Sunday Million PKO (#66-M) for $23,517 total. 

It was Sweden’s “Mikke8282” who finished on top of the 2,939-entry event, banking a whopping $166,338 (including $75,291 in bounties) to win their first WCOOP.

LEKNES MAKES IT 11

Tobias “Senkel92” Leknes is now an 11-time WCOOP champion, picking up his second trophy of the year.

The Norwegian took down the $2,100 NLO8 6-Max PKO (#67-H), defeating 79 entries to win a healthy $55,006, including $36,375 in bounties.

DANCHEV AND MOORMAN WIN TITLE #2

Both Dimitar “KuuL” Danchev and Chris “Moorman1” Moorman captured their second WCOOP titles on Monday.

Danchev’s came in the WCOOP 64-H: $530 NLHE [Progressive KO] for $48,052 (including $26,219 in bounties), while Moorman took down the $55 7-Max Turbo PKO (#73-M) for $19,617 plus a $7,749 bounty haul.

CLASH OF THE TITANS

Benjamin “Bencb789” Rolle came ever so close to his second WCOOP title last night, finishing runner-up in the $5,200 PKO Titans (#66-H) for $88,980 total.

It was Bulgaria’s “AchoBogdanov” who clinched the title and $187,730 (including $115,937 in bounties), defeating a tough 154-entry field and a final table that also included Michael “imluckbox” Addamo.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “Monsieur Foutre”
Event: WCOOP 65-M: $215 NLHE [Sunday Warm-Up]
Prize: $83,373

Winner: “MarceloLG30”
Event: WCOOP 65-H: $2,100 NLHE [Sunday Warm-Up]
Prize: $107,273

Winner: “HaruoB”
Event: WCOOP 66-L: $55 NLHE [Progressive KO, Mini Sunday Million]
Prize: $52,691 (including $16,066 in bounties)

Winner: “jokee_apart”
Event: WCOOP 68-H: $3,150 NLHE 6-Max
Prize: $90,599

Winner: Renan “Internett93o” Bruschi (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 71-M: $109 6+ Hold’em
Prize: $4,511

Winner: “WarleyBruno”
Event: WCOOP 73-H: $530 NLHE 7-Max Turbo PKO
Prize: $49,770 (including $29,990 in bounties)


MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25

BENNY GLASER BENNY GLASER BENNY GLASER

Count them: Five in 2023 for Glaser

Apologies for sounding like a broken record, but Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser simply won’t stop winning WCOOP titles.

The all-time leader extended his COOP total to 23 on Saturday, winning his 13th WCOOP title and fifth of the year. The event was the $1,050 NL 5-Card Draw 6-Max (#61-H) and Glaser bested 34 total entries to bank $14,207, overcoming some of the greatest mixed game tournament players in the world.

This is truly one of the most astonishing poker achievements we’ve seen, and it’s not over yet.

$130K DAY FOR VELDHUIS

Saturday was also an incredible day on the felt for Lex Veldhuis, even if he didn’t manage to secure his maiden COOP title.

Veldhuis – who displays his WCOOP results on his Twitch stream – was stuck a significant amount but managed to turn it all around in one session, cashing for more than $130,000.

Here’s a look at the PokerStars Team Pro’s results from Saturday:

4th – 55-H: $10,300 8-Game 6-Max High Roller – $22,630
3rd – 56-H: $5,200 NLHE 6-Max Turbo – $58,066
3rd – 62-H: $1,050 4-Max Turbo PKO – $15,639 (including $6,184 in bounties)
2nd – 63-H: $1,050 NLHE Turbo – $34,067

THREE FOR ODEEN

Sweden’s Jerry “Perrymejsen” Odeen has captured his third of the year and fifth WCOOP overall, taking down the $215 NLHE Turbo (63-M) for $31,356.

Odeen has been on fire this series, as his tweet below proves:

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “XD89lol<3”
Event: WCOOP 55-H: $10,300 8-Game 6-Max High Roller
Prize: $127,483

Winner: “Gavin “gavz101” Cochrane (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 58-H: $2,100 NLHE Deep Stack
Prize: $72,607

Winner: “boerni21”
Event: WCOOP 59-H: $5,200 PLO 6-Max
Prize: $108,753

Friday, September 22

This is getting ridiculous now.

You know what’s coming…

GLORIOUS GLASER WINS AGAIN

Benny, could you please slow down until we can take some more photos of you to use in our recaps? We’re running low…

Glaser can’t be stopped

Yep, Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser has done it again, winning his fourth title of the series to become the all-time leader in WCOOP titles, and extending his lead as the all-time COOP winner.

The Brit’s latest triumph came in the $2,100 PLO8 6-Max (#53-H) for $44,201, besting a 70-entry field and a tricky final table. Tobias “Senkel92” Leknes finished third, Jerry “perrymejsen” Odeen was fourth (more on him in a moment), and Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski came fifth.

If Glaser can win one more, he’ll tie the all-time record of five titles in a series, set by both Connor “blanconegro” Drinan and Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov.

TWO-TITLE NIGHT FOR ODEEN

Jerry “PerryMejsen” Odeen may have finished fourth in the aforementioned event, but he had plenty to celebrate on Thursday night. 

Two in a night for Odeen

First, the Swede took down the WCOOP 52-H: $1,050 NLHE for $64,302, overcoming a 346-entry field. To get the title he had to wade through an FT featuring Andy “bowieeffect” Wilson, Alex “Pwndidi” Theologis, and Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski, who seems to make every single WCOOP final table.

But he wasn’t done there. Odeen also won the WCOOP 53-L: $22 PLO8 for $4,598, besting a much larger field (1,447 entries).

He now has four WCOOP titles.

TWO FINAL TABLES FOR VELDHUIS

Saturday is going to be a wild one on Lex Veldhuis’ Twitch stream.

The PokerStars Team Pro has made not one but two final tables, both in huge events.

Veldhuis leads in the $10K 8-Game

He’s fourth in chips with nine remaining in the $5,200 6-Max Turbo High Roller (#56-H), guaranteed $13,553 but playing for $103,915.

He’s also chip-leading the $10,300 8-Game High Roller after a very-last-second registration and some run good, winning a huge pot against Dzivielevski with aces beating aces in a PLO hand.

Only four players remain and they all have a min-cash of $22,630 locked up. But there’s $127,483 awaiting the winner.

Those standing in Veldhuis’ way? Drinan, Rui “RuiNF” Ferreira, and “XD89lol<3”.

Make sure you tune in to Veldhuis on Saturday night for the conclusions of both events.

MEGA SAT TO MAIN EVENT THIS SUNDAY

Attention anyone who hope to win their way into the $109 WCOOP Main Event (#98-L).

There’s a huge Mega Satellite running this Sunday with 750 seats guaranteed for an $11 buy-in.

It kicks off at 18:30 WET.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “aferrao147”
Event: WCOOP 49-M: $530 NLHE [Midweek Freeze]
Prize: $40,365

Winner: Guillaume “Nolet20” Nolet
Event: WCOOP 49-H: $5,200 NLHE [Midweek Freeze High Roller]
Prize: $104,093

Winner: “_sennj_” (fourth WCOOP title)
Event: World Championship of Razz: $1,050, $65K Gtd
Prize: $19,973

Winner: “Aziz.Mancha” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 51-H: $530 NLHE [6-Max, Freezeout]
Prize: $31,290

Winner: “TheDomotron”
Event: WCOOP 52-M: $109 NLHE
Prize: $33,285

Winner: “Drawinddead”
Event: WCOOP 57-H: $1,050 NLHE Turbo PKO
Prize: $54,809


Thursday, September 21

We better get through this quickly because, by the time we’ve published these reports, this load of crushers have won more titles!

Here’s what went down on Wednesday.

GLASER THE GREAT WINS 11TH WCOOP

He’s done it again.

Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser has now tied Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov as WCOOP’s all-time leader in titles, winning his 11th and third of the series.

His hat trick was completed in the $1,050 NL 2-7 Single Draw (#50-H), where he defeated 51 entries to bank $19,490. 

Glaser makes this look easy, but it certainly wasn’t. The final table included Thomas “WushuTM” Muehloecker and Patrick “pads11” Leonard, to name just a couple.

Incredibly, Glaser almost won another title yesterday too. He finished runner-up in the $530 NLHE (#48-H) for $34,572, losing out to “zavor”.

Just how many titles will Glaser get in 2023? Whatever your answer, we’ll take the over.

VIEIRA MAKES IT 10

Another all-time WCOOPer, Joao “Naza114” Vieira has picked up his first title of the 2023, taking down the WCOOP 45-H: $3,150 NLHE [Super Tuesday] for $87,674.

Joao “Naza114” Vieira

The event received 129 entries and produced a tough final table that saw Aleksejs “APonakov” Ponakovs finish second for $67,929, while PokerStars Team Pro Lex Veldhuis fell in fifth for $31,594.

Vieira now has 10 WCOOP titles and ties Tobias “Senkel92” Leknes on that number. He also has six SCOOP trophies.

LEONARD IS HEADS-UP WORLD CHAMP

Make that two wins in two days for Patrick “pads1161” Leonard.

The Brit added another WCOOP title – his seventh – to his CV by taking down the $5,200 World Championship of Heads-Up for $80,500, besting all 46 entries.

He defeated “Neverstandard” heads-up, forcing them to settle for $46,000.

Leonard’s up to 14 COOP titles now.

FIVE FOR SHAKERCHI

Widely regarded as one of the best of the “business people” to play high stakes poker, the UK’s Talal “raidalot” Shakerchi took down the WCOOP 43-H: $530 NLHE [Deep Stack] yesterday for $52,266.

Five now for Shakerchi

The event got 594 entries and Shakerchi denied Espen “Hymn2Ninkasi” Jørstad his second title of the year, beating him heads-up.

This is Shakerchi’s fifth WCOOP title and second in no limit hold’em. Shakerchi also has five SCOOP wins.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “YieldJoker”
Event: WCOOP 43-M: $55 NLHE [Deep Stack]
Prize: $31,681

Winner: “Dainiux” (fourth WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 44-H: $1,050 PLO [Progressive KO]
Prize: $51,294 (including $34,297 in bounties)

Winner: “huiiiiiiiiiii”
Event: WCOOP 45-M: $320 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $53,064

Winner: “jwolter”
Event: WCOOP 47-H: $530 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Freezeout]
Prize: $37,104 (including $17,022 in bounties)

Winner: “zavor”
Event: WCOOP 48-H: $530 NLHE [Single Day]
Prize: $46,712


Wednesday, September 20

What looked to be a quiet night in WCOOP in terms of events finishing turned into a very interesting one, with big names adding titles and some final tables for PokerStars Team Pros.

Here’s what happened on Tuesday in WCOOP 2023.

LEONARD’S ON THE BOARD

It was only a matter of time before Patrick “pads1161” Leonard broke through with a win and while the prize won’t mean much to him, his 13th COOP title surely will.

patrick leonard

Patrick Leonard gives his PoY campaign a boost

Leonard came out on top in the $109 FLHE 6-Max (#46-M), defeating a 204-entry field to win $4,011. This is the Brit’s sixth WCOOP title, plus he has seven SCOOP trophies.

Ten-time WCOOP champ Tobias “Senkel93” Leknes finished third in this one.

Meanwhile, Leonard has a shot at another title tonight as he’s down to the final four players in the $5,200 World Championship of Heads-Up, with $23,000 locked up.

FERREIRA MAKES IT SEVEN

Another perennial COOP crusher picked up their seventh WCOOP title in the low version of the same event.

Rui Ferreira

Ferreira won four WCOOPs in 2022

Rui “RuinF” Ferreira outlasted 992 entries in the $11 FLHE 6-Max (#46-L) to bank $1,589 – again, not an amount that will mean much to a high roller like Ferreira. It’s all about titles for these guys, and of course, the leader board standings (we’ll get to those in a moment).

Ferreira had a massive series last year, winning four WCOOPs, and now has 14 COOP titles in total.

SECOND TITLE FOR HRABEC 

Roman “Gogac sniper” Hrabec picked up his second WCOOP victory yesterday, taking down the $2,100 NLHE [6-Max, Progressive KO] for $89,121 (including $49,031 in bounties).

roman hrabec

Roman “Gogac sniper” Hrabec

The event received 238 entries and the $400K guarantee was smashed, ending up at $476K.

Hrabec won his maiden title last year in a $2,100 buy-in PLO8 event.

FINAL TABLES FOR MORAES AND VELDHUIS

Let’s catch up on the latest from PokerStars Team Pro.

Sebastian “peace&loove” Huber had a great run in the $109 NLHE 7-Max PKO Freezeout (#41-M), finishing in eighth place out of 2,255 players (to bubble the final table) and earn $1,216 plus $373 in bounties.

Meanwhile, Rafael “GM Valter” Moraes also came close, finishing sixth out of 242 players in the $1,050 medium edition for $4,840 plus $2,063 in bounties. This is Moraes’ second final table of the series following his runner-up in the $530 Deep Stack (#27-H) for $39,607.

Finally, it will be a big night on Lex Veldhuis’ Twitch stream today.

He’s down to the final 14 players in the $3,150 Super Tuesday (#45-H) and sits sixth in chips, guaranteed $7,310 but playing for a first-place prize of $87,674. He’ll be up against chip leader “srxakgirona”, Andres “PTFisherman23” Marques, “hello_totti”, “DingeBrinker”, Joao “Naza114” Vieira, and Aleksejs “APonakov” Ponakov, to name just a few.

Make sure you tune in for that.

SHOUT OUT TO THENERDGUY

We’ve just got to highlight a fantastic night for Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski, even if he didn’t add any trophies to his collection.

Dzivielevski finished second in two events on Tuesday, first the $1,050 Stud Hi/Lo (#40-H) for $11,113, then the $1,050 FLHE 6-Max (#46-H) for $10,866.

Those results have helped the Brazilian take control of the High Leader Board.

Speaking of which…

LEADER BOARD STANDINGS

Now that we’re well over a week into the series, let’s take a look at the WCOOP 2023 Leader Boards.

As mentioned, Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski sits atop the High Leader Board, followed by two-time 2023 winner Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser and Joao “Naza114” Vieira.

The UK’s “deepincidurr” leads the Medium, while last year’s Player of the Series “Fal1st” of Thailand tops the Low.

It’s Glaser who leads overall though, closely followed by reigning champ “Fal1st”.

You can look through the full Leader Boards (and the prizes up for grabs) here.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “rickyibrah45”
Event: WCOOP 39-M: $215 NLHE [6-Max, Progressive KO]
Prize: $54,247 (including $19,136 in bounties)

Winner: “000000000136”
Event: WCOOP 41-H: $1,050 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Freezeout]
Prize: $47,169

Winner: “Gambler4444”
Event: World Championship of PLO8: $1,050
Prize: $29,019


Tuesday, September 19

BIGGEST PRIZE SO FAR

The appropriately named “Starwins :)” from Denmark has pipped Parker “Tonkaaaa” Talbot to clinch the largest prize of WCOOP 2023 so far.

They defeated an 84-entry field to win the $10,300 PKO High Roller (#35-H) for a whopping $228,541, including an enormous bounty haul of $139,609. This is “Starwins :)” first WCOOP victory.

Alex “Pwndidi” Theologis finished runner-up, while Talal “raidalot” Shakerchi clinched the other podium spot.

6-MAX WORLD CHAMPION

Finland’s “thelpoker” banked a healthy $180,507 for their victory in the $5,200 World Championship of 6-Max event, outlasting all 181 entries to clinch their first title.

The best in the game showed up for this one and to get the job done, “thelpoker” had to defeat a final table that included “drew.derzh”, Rodrigo “seijistar” Seiji, and Patrick “pads1161” Leonard.

Sam “SamSquid” Grafton and Talbot cashed this one, finishing in 10th and 14th, respectively.

NEMETH WINS FIFTH TITLE

Andras “probirs” Nemeth captured his fifth WCOOP trophy yesterday with a win in the $215 5-Card PLO (#36-M) for $23,257. The event received 678 total entries.

andras nemeth

Another title for Nemeth

This is Nemeth’s third PLO title. He took down the $10,300 PLO 6-Max Main Event in 2021 for $308,556.

Nemeth also has five SCOOP titles under his belt, taking his total COOP tally up to 10.

DOUBLE FOR DRINAN

Connor “blanconegro” Drinan also picked up his fifth WCOOP win yesterday, making him a double champion in 2023.

Connor “blanconegro” Drinan

Drinan took down the 36-H: $2,100 5-Card PLO for $59,193, defeating 141 total entries.  This win comes fresh off the back of his $1,050 8-Game (#28-H) win over the weekend.

Drinan, who plays from Mexico, now has 11 COOP titles overall.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “MaxHendrix”
Event: WCOOP 33-M: $109 NLHE Sunday Kickoff
Prize: $39,784

Winner: “SerVlaMin” (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 33-H: $1,050 NLHE Sunday Kickoff
Prize: $63,930

Winner: Nils “pudelpower” Pudel
Event: WCOOP 34-H: $530 PKO Sunday Warm-Up
Prize: $74,908 (including $38,627 in bounties)

Winner: “Sp1tter”
Event: WCOOP 35-L: $109 NLHE [Progressive KO, Sunday Million]
Prize: $107,789 (including $34,522 in bounties)

Winner: “mikke8282”
Event: WCOOP 35-M: $1,050 NLHE [Progressive KO]
Prize: $168,070 (including $78,461 in bounties)

Winner: “leonidus1988”
Event: WCOOP 37-H: $1,050 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Freezeout]
Prize: $63,262 (including $37,258 in bounties)

Winner: “berny9623” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 42-H: $530 NLHE [Turbo, Progressive KO]
Prize: $36,184 (including $18,408 in bounties)


Monday, September 18

GLASER WINS 10TH WCOOP

Benny Glaser does it again

We’re only a week into the WCOOP 2023 and the all-time leader in Championship of Online Poker (COOP) titles has already added two more to his collection.

Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser took down his second WCOOP of the year (and 10th overall) on Saturday, with victory in the $1,050 World Championship of 2-7 Triple Draw. He overcame a 91-entry field to earn $22,650 in the same event he won his fifth World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet earlier this year.

The result follows an exceptional opening week that saw him win 16-M: $109 FL Badugi [6-Max] for $3,550 and make multiple final tables.

Glaser now has an astonishing 20 COOP titles for his career, as well as five WSOP bracelets. Needless to say, he’s simply one of the greatest tournament players on the planet across all poker variants.

MARQUES TAKES DOWN THURSDAY THRILL

It’s been three years since Andre “PTFisherman23” Marques won the WCOOP Main Event for $1.14 million, his maiden title. But on Saturday, the Portuguese pro (who now plays from Brazil) captured his second trophy.

Marques took down an event at EPT Paris

Marques defeated a 113-entry field in the 24-H: $5,200 NLHE [Progressive KO, Thursday Thrill High Roller] to bank a massive $179,126, including $104,258 in bounties. The final table included Prebben “prebz” Stokkan and the eventual runner-up, Simon “C Darwin2” Mattsson, who was seeking his second title of the year.

ÅSTEDT MAKES IT SIX

It was only a matter of time before Niklas “Lena900” Åstedt announced himself in WCOOP 2023, and on Sunday he did so in style.

Niklas “Lena900” Åstedt

The Swedish superstar came out on top in 38-H: $5,200 NLHE [Turbo, Progressive KO, Sunday Cooldown High Roller] for a cool $113,570, $65,781 of which came in bounties.

The 81-entry event produced a fantastic final table that included eight-time WCOOP champ and runner-up Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski, two-time champ Pedro “pvigar” Garagnani, one-time winner Ben “bencb789” Rolle, two-time winner Christian “WATnlos” Rudolph, and four-time champ Ognyan “cocojamb0” Dimov

This is Åstedt’s sixth WCOOP title and 12th COOP win overall. He remains online poker’s all-time money winner with a staggering $45 million in cashes, according to Poker Stake.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “necgaidziai”
Event: WCOOP 22-H: $530 NLHE
Prize: $58,934

Winner: “ferkovsk”
Event: WCOOP 24-M: $530 NLHE [Progressive KO, Thursday Thrill]
Prize: $103,927 (including $50,224 in bounties)

Winner: “klem90”
Event: WCOOP 25-M: $320 NLHE [6-Max, Single Re-Entry]
Prize: $43,984

Winner: “Pantoja RO”
Event: WCOOP 25-H: $3,150 NLHE [6-Max, Single Re-Entry]
Prize: $67,389

Winner: “SuspiciousCat”
Event: WCOOP 27-H: $530 NLHE [Deep Stack]
Prize: $54,554

Winner: Connor “blanconegro” Drinan (fourth WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 28-H: $1,050 8-Game
Prize: $18,668

Winner: “Koy__Spartac”
Event: WCOOP 29-H: $1,050 NLHE [Progressive KO, Saturday KO]
Prize: $95,488 (including $48,168 in bounties)

Winner: “FAL1st” (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 30-H: $1,050 FLO8 [8-Max]
Prize:$20,522

Winner: “simbadlion”
Event: WCOOP 31-M: $215 NLHE [Freezeout]
Prize: $32,076

Winner: Alexandre “aminolast” Raymond
Event: WCOOP 31-H: $2,100 NLHE
Prize: $47,315

Winner: Kelvin “kelvin_fp:ar” Kerber (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 32-H: $1,050 NLHE [5-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO]
Prize: $41,619 (including $26,953 in bounties)

Winner: Pablo “pabritz” Brito
Event: WCOOP 38-M: $530 NLHE [Turbo, Progressive KO, Sunday Cooldown]
Prize: $63,765 (including $35,066 in bounties)


Friday, September 15

There’s never a dull day during the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). 

(Seriously – even today’s day off is full of fantastic side events).

Here’s what went down on Thursday.

SENSATIONAL STREBKOV WINS SECOND OF SERIES

Before this series began, it had been five years since Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov had won an event during WCOOP. The Russian went out with a bang in 2018, winning an incredible five titles, but since then…silence.

Well, not only is Strebkov back, but he’s back with a vengeance.

Denis Strebkov: WCOOP's leading light

Denis Strebkov: WCOOP’s leading light

Strebkov won his first event of the year on Tuesday: a $5.50 NLHE PKO. It marked his 10th career title and put him one ahead of Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser, who had tied him on nine that same evening.

Now Strebkov is back in front as the player with the most WCOOPs, and he retook the lead in style. On Thursday, he took down the $1,050 World Championship of HORSE event, defeating a 93-entry field to win $23,699.

At this rate, he could end up besting his 2018 performance.

Strebkov is our first double-winner of the series so far.

LEKNES CLINCHES 10TH TITLE

Like Strebkov, Tobias “Senkel92” Leknes is also a master of mixed games and a player who wins COOP titles with ease.

Tobias Leknes playing at EPT Barcelona 2022

10th win for Leknes

Leknes – who won three SCOOP events earlier this year – has picked up his first WCOOP of 2023, and 10th of his brilliant career.

He came out on top in the $109 PLO 6-Max (#20-M), overcoming 865 entries to earn himself $14,477, and on the same night, he finished third in the $11 Razz (#23-L).

Leknes has a chance to tie Strebkov on Saturday as he’s also on the final table of the $1,050 World Championship of 2-7 Triple Draw. 

The Norwegian now has 17 COOP titles in total.

DZIVIELEVSKI MAKES IT EIGHT

Brazilian superstar Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski picked up his eighth WCOOP trophy on Thursday, winning the $1,050 PLO 6-Max (#20-H) for $36,301.

Yuri Dzivielevski

Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski

Dzivielevski won three WCOOPs in 2020 and another three in 202, plus his maiden title in 2015. He also has two SCOOP victories.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: “Tr!pleeeee”
Event: WCOOP 18-H: $1,050 Deep Stack
Prize: $59,341

Winner: “Eltucu64”
Event: WCOOP 19-H: $2,100 7-Max PKO
Prize: $78,819 (including $40,641 in bounties)

Winner: “Luis_faria” (Second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 21-H: $530+R [Rebuy]
Prize: $47,514

Winner: “Iamkenough”
Event: WCOOP 26-H: $530 Turbo PKO Freezeout
Prize: $39,119 (including $21,461 in bounties)


Thursday, September 14

Huge news from Wednesday night’s action as a PokerStars Team Pro clinched the first title for the team in 2023, winning the largest prize of the series so far.

Plus, the player with the most WCOOP titles in history added another trophy to the mantle, and other big names added themselves to the winner’s sheet.

Here’s a quick recap.

TONKAAAA WINS THIRD WCOOP TITLE

Three-handed in the massive $10K Super Tuesday (#15-H), Parker “Tonkaaaa” Talbot told the thousands watching him on Twitch that when he returned from the five-minute break, he was going to bust a player, enter heads-up with the chip lead, and then win.

That’s exactly what he did, defeating “srxakgirona” heads-up to bank $213,229 – the largest first-place prize of WCOOP 2023 so far. 

This is Talbot’s third WCOOP title and the second-largest online cash of his career.

STREBKOV EXTENDS LEAD WITH 10TH TITLE

This result somehow snuck by us yesterday, but it’s well worth shouting about.

Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov

Denis “aDrENalin710” Strebkov, WCOOP’s all-time leader in titles, added a tenth trophy on Tuesday night by winning the $5.50 PKO (#13-L) for $4,283, including $1,140 in bounties. He defeated an enormous field of 11,698 entries to get the job done.

The result came on the same night that Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser tied him on nine.

Strebov now has 14 COOP titles in total.

MATTSSON DENIES GRAFTON IN $3K PKO

Talbot wasn’t the only Team Pro to reach a big final table last night.

Sam “SamSquid” Grafton was among the finalists in the $3,150 PKO (#17-H) seeking his second WCOOP title, but alas, his run ended in fourth for $31,718, including his $13,219 bounty haul.

simon mattsson

The legendary “C Darwin2”, aka Simon Mattsson

It was Swedish phenom Simon “C Darwin2” Mattsson who came out on top of the 111-entry field to win $81,255 (including $44,062 in bounties) and this third career WCOOP title.

Mattsson — widely considered to be among the best online tournament players in history — won two events in last year’s series, but this prize surpasses both.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Winner: David “missoracle” Yan (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 13-H: $530 NLHE [Progressive KO], $325K Gtd
Prize: $53,996 (including $28,308 in bounties)

Winner: Pedro “PadiLhA SP” Padilha (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 15-M: $1,050 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $103,124

Winner: “SAFADA1” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 15-L: $109 NLHE [Super Tuesday]
Prize: $56,838


Wednesday, September 13

What did we miss?

A lot, as it turns out.

Apologies for the late start to our WCOOP coverage (a couple of days off after EPT Barcelona and UKIPT Brighton were very much needed) but we’re here now and have much to tell you.

It’s been a wild opening to WCOOP 2023 with huge storylines emerging. 

Let’s get to it.

GLASER EXTENDS ALL-TIME COOP LEAD

benny glaser

Benny Glaser: the COOP GOAT

If SCOOP 2023 was anything to go by, this won’t be the only time we’ll use that headline throughout this series.

The all-time leader in COOP titles heading in, Benny “RunGodlike” Glaser is off and running, winning his ninth WCOOP title and 19th COOP in the opening days of the series.

Glaser took down 16-M: $109 FL Badugi [6-Max], good for $3,550, and has made five final tables so far. The prize may be small in comparison to what he’s used to, but trust us, the Brit is thrilled with the result.

He now has 19 COOPs overall, having won three SCOOPs earlier this year. Incredible.

FERREIRA MAKE IT SEVEN

Another titan of COOP poker added to their overall tally in the first few days of the series.

rui ferreira

Rui Ferreira starting off strong

Portugal’s Rui “RuiNF” Ferreira (who now plays from Brazil) enjoyed his seventh WCOOP victory by taking down 09-M: $530 NLHE [Progressive KO] for $77,322, including $36,711 in bounties. 

Ferreira had a series for the ages last year, winning four titles, and his 2023 campaign is off to an incredible start. His WCOOP record now matches his SCOOP, with 14 COOP titles overall.

TALBOT AND GRAFTON ON FINAL TABLES

Don’t miss tonight’s $10,300 Super Tuesday High Roller (#15-H) final table, where PokerStars Team Pro Parker “Tonkaaaa” Talbot is second in chips with nine players remaining.

He’ll be battling the likes of Thomas “WushTM” Muehloecker, Yuri “theNERDguy” Dzivielevski, and Samuel “€urop€an” Vousden.

They’re all guaranteed $25,080, but there’s $213,229 awaiting the winner.

Talbot’s fellow Team Pro Sam “SamSquid” Grafton is also on a final table over in the #17-H: $3,150 7-Max PKO. He is currently in third place with seven remaining and will be playing for a first prize of $37,192 plus bounties.

NOTABLE RESULTS

Espen “Hymn2Ninkasi” Jørstad – the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champ in 2022 – picked up his first WCOOP title, while Roman “RomeOpro” Romanovsky won the biggest prize of the series so far.

We also saw mixed-game master “Chillolini” pick up his third WCOOP title, and three players win their second.

Here’s a look at some other notable results from the first three days of WCOOP 2023:

Winner: Espen “Hymn2Ninkasi” Jørstad
Event: WCOOP 03-H: $3,150 NLHE [Progressive KO Sunday Warm-Up]
Prize: $122,371 (inc. $84,703 in bounties)

Winner: Roman “RomeOpro” Romanovsky
Event: WCOOP 04-H: $10,300 NLHE [High Roller]
Prize: $203,121

Winner: Renan “Internett93o” Bruschi (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP $5200 World Championship of Progressive KO NLHE 
Prize: $198,665 (inc. $110,312 in bounties)

Winner: “Chillolini” (third WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 16-H: $1,050 FL Badugi [6-Max]
Prize: $15,641

Winner: “tablepanic” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 08-L: $5.50 NLO8 [6-Max] 
Prize: $2,075

Winner: “Kzhh” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 09-H: $5,200 NLHE [Progressive KO, High Roller]
Prize: $100,380 (inc. $48,984 in bounties)

Winner: “Adkaf” (second WCOOP title)
Event: WCOOP 10-H: $2,100 HORSE
Prize: $28,611

TWEETS OF THE DAY

WCOOP 2023 SCHEDULE

The waiting is over so let’s get right to it.

Here’s the full WCOOP 2023 schedule. It’s 110 events long and this year boasts an $80 million guarantee.

Scroll through and check the entire schedule below. Then check out details further down about the Championship events – plus, a few extra details you’ll want to know.

WCOOP 2023 schedule

SOME HIGHLIGHTS

Here’s a rundown of what you can look forward to:

  • $80M GTD, from September 10 – October 4
  • 12 World Championship Events
  • $12.5M across three Main Events on October 1:
  • $109 WCOOP Main Event-L – $2,500,000 guaranteed
  • $1,050 WCOOP Main Event-M – $4,000,000 guaranteed
  • $10,300 WCOOP Main Event-H – $6,000,000 guaranteed
  • Each event three tiered with buy-ins from $5.50-$25,000
  • Leader Board prizes worth $100K.

And a special freeroll on the first Sunday for WCOOP 2022 winners (invite only).

You’ll also have numerous options whatever your bankroll size, or your experience.

  • Satellites start from $0.55
  • Special Spin & Go’s with $0.75, $4, $20 buy-ins
  • Fast Track satellites into the Main Events, from $2.20.

How to play WCOOP through Power Path

For the first time ever qualifying on Power Path is available to players, with WCOOP tickets worth $285K added to Power Path Step 3 & 4 tournaments. Players will be able to exchange passes for WCOOP events and ticket bundles.

  • Bronze ($109 buy-in events)
  • Two options of $2,500 Silver Pass bundles
  • A $10,300 Gold Power Pass can be used either for a buy-in to the Main Event High, or exchanged for a ticket bundle.

All Bronze Passes will be able to be used for $109 buy-in events, with three other Pass bundles available.

Silver Pass ticket bundle 1

  • 1 x $530 WCOOP ticket​
  • 3 x $215 WCOOP tickets​
  • 6 x $109 WCOOP tickets​
  • 8 x $55 WCOOP tickets​
  • 10 x $22 WCOOP tickets​

Silver Pass ticket bundle 2

  • 2 x $1,050 WCOOP Main Event-M tickets​
  • 2 x $109 WCOOP Main Event-L tickets​
  • 8 x $22 WCOOP ticket​

Gold Pass bundle

  • 1 x $5,200 WCOOP ticket​
  • 4 x $1,050 WCOOP tickets​
  • 4 x $109 WCOOP tickets​
  • 6 x $55 WCOOP tickets

The $10,300 Gold Power Pass can also be used to buy into the WCOOP Main Event-H which starts on October 1, with $12.5 million guaranteed across the three Main Events:

  • $109 WCOOP Main Event-L: $2,500,000 GTD
  • $1,050 WCOOP Main Event-M: $4,000,000 GTD
  • $10,300 WCOOP Main Event-H: $6,000,000 GTD

CHAMPIONSHIP EVENTS

WCOOP is the year’s most prestigious online series, and with WCOOP Championship events we’re talking cherry on top. Each comes with the title “World Champion”.

And, while every WCOOP winner will receive a trophy, those earning Championship Event titles will celebrate with even larger silverware.

This year’s Championship Events

ABOUT THE SERIES

The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) — the world’s longest-running and premier online poker series — will return for its 22nd edition later this year.

So get these dates marked on your calendars right now:

Sunday, 10 September to Wednesday, October 4, 2023.

That means incredible WCOOP action for 25 days, and it’s coming your way.

The WCOOP Main Events will begin on Sunday, October 1.

Twenty-one years after its first running, WCOOP remains the online tournament series that still gets the pulse racing faster than any other. Ask online players for their ambitions, and a WCOOP title is still at the top.

Few could have predicted when PokerStars players first contested WCOOP in 2002, that it would still capture the imagination more than two decades later. Through those first 21 years, players accounted for more than 7.8 million entries and 2,105 champions were crowned from more than 70 countries. In prize money terms that added up to more than $1.2 billion.

Online titles don’t get more prestigious or more significant than a WCOOP crown — but these tournaments are open to anyone. Buy-ins start at only $5.50, with numerous ways players can qualify for higher buy-in events for a minimal outlay.

Watch out for satellite events starting very soon.

MORE ABOUT WCOOP:
YEAR-BY-YEAR GUIDE | COMPLETE RESULTS | MULTIPLE CHAMPIONS

WCOOP 2022 STATS

STAT TRACKER

Tournaments completed: 367
Entries: 1,184,919 (inc. 273,917 re-entries)
Prize pools: $108,569,090
First-place prizes: $17,001,233 (inc. $3,225,152 in bounties)

Countries Leaderboard final standings:

70 titles — Brazil
42 — UK
28 – Austria
21 – Sweden
18 – Germany
16 – Ukraine
15 — Canada
14 – Norway
12 – Romania
10 – Bulgaria, Finland
9 — Belarus
7 – Kazakhstan, Lithuania
6 – Argentina, Hungary, Mexico, Montenegro
5 – Andorra, Croatia, Poland
4 — Armenia, Estonia, Malta, Uruguay
3 — Belgium, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, Peru
2 — Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Morocco, Slovenia, Switzerland
1 — Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Greece, Indonesia, New Zealand, Slovakia, Tunisia, Uzbekistan.

ALL-TIME WCOOP STATS (2002-2022)

No. of Tournaments: 2,105
Total Entrants: 7,808,769
Total Prize Pools: $1,203,803,287
First Place Prizes: $184,472,406

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