WSOP 2025: Martirosian dominates heads-up, Benny Glaser claims his sixth bracelet

25,000$ Heads-Up Championship: Martirosian once again proves he's a cut above
 

Russian pro Artur Martirosian came out on top in the $25,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold’em Championship, navigating a field of 64 elite competitors. Martirosian booked impressive victories over Jeremy Ausmus, Faraz Jaka, Kevin Rabichow, Chance Kornuth, and Patrick Leonard, before defeating Aliaksei Boika in the final match. The win secured Martirosian his third WSOP bracelet along with a $500,000 payday.

This event was stacked with poker superstars —Phil Ivey, Kristen Foxen, and Alex Foxen were all in the mix. Martirosian, however, displayed the perfect blend of aggression, patience, and mental preparation to confirm that heads-up play is one of his strongest formats. He was nearly eliminated in the opening round, down roughly nine to one in chips against Ausmus, but managed to pull off the comeback and showcase remarkable resilience throughout the bracket.

This is Martirosian’s second major title in the heads-up format. Back in 2023, he won the WSOP Online $10,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Championship and reached the semifinals last year. His latest gold bracelet comes with another $500,000 plus points in the PokerGO Tour leaderboard. “This is my favorite tournament. It’s why I came to Vegas early this year. I had some tough luck in the semis last year, so I’m thrilled I finally got the job done,” Martirosian said after securing the title.

Event #8: 1,500$ Dealer's Choice – Benny Glaser does it again!
 

From a field of 597 entries, it was Benny Glaser who outlasted them all in the three-day $1,500 Dealer’s Choice, securing his sixth WSOP bracelet. In the final showdown, he finally outdueled Matthew Schreiber—a tough opponent who simply refused to bust for long stretches.

Schreiber was on the brink of elimination time and again, surviving multiple all-ins to claw his way back into contention at the final table. When it was all over, you could see the immense relief wash over Glaser. “Honestly, I’m just so relieved. He must have been all-in ten or eleven times; I lost count. It was absolutely crazy,” Glaser said after the win.

This victory further cements Glaser’s status as one of the most versatile players on the circuit. In Dealer’s Choice, he demonstrated genuine mastery of 21 different poker formats. With his sixth WSOP bracelet, Glaser joins an extremely exclusive club — only 26 players in history have earned six or more WSOP bracelets.

1,000$ Mystery Millions: Final table in sight as Vegas celebrates its luckiest man
 

The opening event of this year’s WSOP, the $1,000 Mystery Millions, is racing toward its final act. Following a staggering 19,654 entries that pushed the total prizepool to 17,295,520$, just 20 players remain in the hunt for WSOP gold and the million-dollar top prize.

George Tatalovich (USA) heads into the last day as the chipleader, bagging up an impressive 77 million chips. Hot on his heels are Linda Ngo (67 million) and Wesley Fei (62.4 million). Of the remaining 20 contenders, only one — Daniel Strelitz, with two prior WSOP titles to his name — already owns a gold bracelet.

The day’s biggest spectacle came with the Mystery Bounty draws for $1,000,000. The first massive payout went to Tyler Montoya, but the spotlight landed firmly on Thomas Zanot. He’s not a stranger to million-dollar moments — in 2023, Zanot scored a 6.4 million jackpot in Pai Gow poker, cementing his reputation as perhaps the luckiest poker player alive.

Sources: WSOP, PokerNews