Biggest Wins in WSOP History

Antonio Esfandiari

The largest win in the history of the World Series of Poker belongs to Antonio Esfandiari. The legendary Iranian-American player took home $18,346,673 at The Big One for One Drop tournament in 2012. This record has stood unbroken for 14 years. Ahead of WSOP 2026, kicking off on May 26 in Las Vegas, we've gathered the 12 biggest scores in the history of the series.

Antonio Esfandiari. Photo: Pokernew

Because of the poker boom of the 2000s, Main Event fields grew many times over, which in turn sent prize pools soaring. As a result, all of the largest WSOP payouts fall within the last 25 years. Over the past three years, prize pools have broken the $90 million mark, with 2024 setting a record at an incredible $94 million. 

So what does the top list of the biggest scores in World Series history look like?

Mizrachi, Binder, and five more: who took home $10 million each at the WSOP  

In the ranking of the biggest WSOP wins, seven spots are taken by players who earned exactly $10 million. Last year, Bernhard Binder and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi joined their ranks (and poker history).  Binder won the WSOP Paradise Super Main Event ― the only, and the largest, tournament of the series held outside Las Vegas. And Mizrachi became the first player in history to win both the Poker Players Championship and the WSOP Main Event in a single series, after which he was immediately inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. Following that incredible achievement, The Grinder became the first to receive such an honor without the usual vote being held.

Michael Mizrachi. Photo: Rachel Kay Winter

The first to take home $10 million at the WSOP Main Event was Swede Martin Jacobson in 2014. After him, the same top prize was claimed by Hossein Ensan, Espen Jørstad, and Jonathan Tamayo. In 2018, three-time bracelet winner Justin Bonomo earned an identical sum, beating Fedor Holz heads-up in the charity tournament WSOP Event 57 — The Big One for One Drop.

Espen Jørstad. Photo: Spenser Sembrat

Two Main Event records and Lococo's triumph 

Higher up the list, three players sit very close together. In 2006, Jamie Gold, playing alongside such stars as boxer Lennox Lewis and actor Tobey Maguire, became Main Event champion and earned a then-record $12 million. He was edged out by just $70,000 by the Argentine Alejandro Lococo, who won the WSOP Paradise Triton Million in December 2024. And in 2023, Daniel Weinman set a new WSOP Main Event win record, earning $12,100,000 after beating 10,043 opponents. 

Daniel Weinman. Photo: Hayley Hochstetler

Colman's sensation and the biggest check in WSOP history

The very largest wins in the World Series came in tournaments the WSOP held in partnership with the charity organization One Drop, which provides drinking water to people in need around the world. In 2014, WSOP Event 57 — The Big One for One Drop helped raise more than $5 million in donations, and the winner of the competition was, sensationally, Daniel Colman, who beat Hall of Fame member Daniel Negreanu heads-up. The 23-year-old player received $15,306,668 for this triumph.

Daniel Colman. Photo: Joe Giron

The absolute record ― at least for now ― is held by Antonio Esfandiari. In 2012, at WSOP Event 55 — The Big One for One Drop, the three-time bracelet winner beat Britain's Sam Trickett heads-up and earned $18,346,673.

That's how the biggest victories in World Series history were won. Will anyone manage to break into the list in 2026? We'll find out this summer.