The first week of the 2026 World Series of Poker is in the books, and five men have been fortunate enough to walk away with one of the most prized trophies in poker. The early action has been dominated by non-Texas Hold’em events, with Seven Card Stud and Pot Limit Omaha taking center stage at the 2026 WSOP. That will change on Monday as the Final Four from the $25,000 Heads-Up World Championship square off to determine the biggest buy-in tournament of the Vegas ‘summer camp’ to date.
Gheba Wins Big, Lonis Denied
In Event #2, the $5,000 Eight-Handed No Limit Hold’em tournament, Daniyal Gheba was able to outlast a final table that included a trio of Chinese players, including Ren Lin and ultimate runner-up Chenxiang Miao. The tournament was a big one for Gheba, who picked up the largest payday in his poker career. The $502,985 payday was obviously nice to pocket, but the first WSOP bracelet was arguably sweeter for the poker professional.
Usually, the opening tournament of the festivities in Las Vegas, the $500 Casino Employees’ Event, was moved to Event #3 this year. 906 entries were collected at the cage, generating a prize pool of over $375,000. In the end, New Mexico poker dealer Jerome Neppl was a dominant force, never facing a serious challenge in the tournament by carrying the chip lead from Day One to the conclusion. Neppl, who stated he would still work the WSOP (which is why he was in Event #3), walked off with a 2026 WSOP bracelet and $64,083 in prize money.
Arguably, the biggest news of the first week was in Event #4, the $1,500 Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or Better. Three-time WSOP bracelet winner and WSOP legend Perry Green was sharp with his game, earning his way to the final table of the tournament. Although Green would eventually fall in sixth place, his run brought a great deal of attention to Jason Daly’s winning performance over Dorian Rios; Daly pocketed $191,362 and the shiny 2026 WSOP bracelet, but Green was the real story.
One of the biggest ‘high rollers’ in the poker community is Jesse Lonis, who had previously earned two WSOP bracelets before making the final table of Event #5, the $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha tournament. Lonis would come up a bit short in this event, however, falling to China’s Yang Wang, who would win the first major title of his ten-year poker career. For defeating Lonis, Wang picked up $595,388 and the gold bracelet that signifies poker excellence.
The final bracelet winner of the first week of the 2026 WSOP is the United Kingdom’s James Cheung. Cheung has been part of the WSOP action for the last three years, but he has not been able to break through. In his first tournament of the 2026 calendar, Cheung would make that breakthrough, defeating a player that Cheung said he played in his first WSOP, Brian Yoon, for the accolades. Cheung picked up a $103,185 payday, along with that cherished WSOP bracelet.
Foxen, Danchev Among Final Four
The marquee tournament of the first week of the 2026 WSOP has been the $25,000 Heads-Up World Championship. The tournament drew 128 entries, but it took a bit of manipulation to reach that level. Two Day One flights were held, with those knocked out in Day 1A action holding the option to reenter on Day 1B. That allowed players such as Martin Kabrhel and Thomas Boivin to take two bites at the apple. For Kabrhel, the expenditure left him $50K lighter in his wallet as he did not make the money.
Foxen had to fight his way through a difficult roster of players in the Sweet Sixteen to earn his spot in the Final Four. He first had to topple Brandon Wilson, the current Player of the Year leader, before knocking out Boivin in the Elite Eight (Boivin earned $150,000 for his efforts). Foxen will face off against Nikita Kuznetsov in one of the semifinal bouts.
Danchev had his own demons to face on the WSOP felt. He first faced Florian Pesce in Sweet Sixteen action and would emerge victoriously. For those efforts, Danchev earned the honor of taking on Biao Ding in the Elite Eight, with Ding having fought back against Daniel Negreanu to force the face-off with Danchev (Negreanu at one point was up 5:1 in chips). Ding apparently used up all his ‘run good’ there, as he failed to mount a charge against Danchev, who will face Ryuta Nakai in the other semifinal contest.
Each of these men is guaranteed a $300,000 payday, regardless of today’s action. But all four of them will be looking to make a run for the title, where the 2026 WSOP bracelet will await them, along with $800,000 (the runner-up will receive $528,000). Action will begin at 3:30 this afternoon, and it will be livestreamed on the WSOP’s YouTube channel.
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