List of largest poker tournaments in history (by prize pool)
Encyclopedia
For the last seven years, the largest tournament in the world has been the World Series of Poker
Main Event. The $10,000 buy-in tournament has increased in prize pool year-over-year from its start in 1970, with the exception of 1992, 2007 (the latter a result of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006
, which reduced the number of players winning their seats via online play) and 2009 (the latter a result of the filled capacity of the tournament host, the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
, which denied as many as 500 players entry, according to news reports).
The first tournament to reach a million dollar prize pool was the 1983 WSOP Main Event. The WSOP Main Event of 2004 had the first prize pool of above $10,000,000.
The largest non Hold'em Tournament has been the 2008 WSOP $50K HORSE with a prize pool of $7,104,000 and the first prize of $1,989,120 going to Scotty Nguyen
.
Below are the 30 largest poker tournament
s with respect to the prize pool and not number of entrants. This list includes live and online poker
.
All tournaments, besides thoses noted, were played in No Limit Hold'em.
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
Main Event. The $10,000 buy-in tournament has increased in prize pool year-over-year from its start in 1970, with the exception of 1992, 2007 (the latter a result of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006
Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006
The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 is United States legislation regulating online gambling. It was added as Title VIII to the SAFE Port Act which otherwise regulated port security...
, which reduced the number of players winning their seats via online play) and 2009 (the latter a result of the filled capacity of the tournament host, the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
The Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino is located off the Las Vegas Strip in the unincorporated area of Paradise, Nevada, USA. It is better known as The Rio and is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Inc. The Rio was the first all suite resort in the Las Vegas area...
, which denied as many as 500 players entry, according to news reports).
The first tournament to reach a million dollar prize pool was the 1983 WSOP Main Event. The WSOP Main Event of 2004 had the first prize pool of above $10,000,000.
The largest non Hold'em Tournament has been the 2008 WSOP $50K HORSE with a prize pool of $7,104,000 and the first prize of $1,989,120 going to Scotty Nguyen
Scotty Nguyen
Thuận B. "Scotty" Nguyễn is a Vietnamese American professional poker player who is a five time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, most notably as the winner of the 1998 World Series of Poker Main Event and the 2008 WSOP $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship...
.
Below are the 30 largest poker tournament
Poker tournament
A poker tournament is a tournament where players compete by playing poker. It can feature as few as two players playing on a single table , and as many as tens of thousands of players playing on thousands of tables...
s with respect to the prize pool and not number of entrants. This list includes live and online poker
Online poker
Online poker is the game of poker played over the Internet. It has been partly responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of poker players worldwide...
.
All tournaments, besides thoses noted, were played in No Limit Hold'em.
| Event | Prize Pool (US$) | Winner | 1st Prize | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 WSOP Main Event | $82,512,162 |  Jamie GoldJamie Gold Jamie M. Gold is an American television producer, a talent agent, and poker player, based in Malibu, California. He is known for winning the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event and currently divides his time between his activities as president of production for the entertainment company,... |
$12,000,000 | |
| 2010 WSOP Main Event | $68,799,059 |  Jonathan DuhamelJonathan Duhamel Jonathan Duhamel is a Canadian poker professional from Boucherville, Quebec, best known as the winner of the Main Event at the 2010 World Series of Poker . He is the first Canadian player to capture the Main Event bracelet.... |
$8,944,310 | |
| 2011 WSOP Main Event | $64,531,000 |  Pius HeinzPius Heinz Pius Heinz is a German poker professional from Cologne, best known as the winner of the Main Event at the 2011 World Series of Poker. He is the first German player to capture the Main Event bracelet.... |
$8,711,956 | |
| 2008 WSOP Main Event | $64,333,600 |  Peter EastgatePeter Eastgate Peter Eastgate is a poker player from Denmark, best known as the winner of the Main Event at the 2008 World Series of Poker. At the time, he became the youngest player ever to win the event. He was consequently surpassed by Joe Cada in 2009.-Early life:Eastgate was raised in Dalum, a suburb of... |
$9,152,416 | |
| 2009 WSOP Main Event | $61,043,600 | Joe Cada Joe Cada Joseph "Joe" Cada is an American professional poker player from Shelby Charter Township, Michigan, best known as the winner of the Main Event at the 2009 World Series of Poker .... |
$8,547,042 | |
| 2007 WSOP Main Event | $59,784,954 | Jerry Yang Jerry Yang (poker player) Xao "Jerry" Yang is an ethnic Hmong poker player from Temecula, California and the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event champion.Yang started playing poker in 2005. An amateur player at the time, Yang entered the 2007 World Series of Poker after winning a $225 satellite at the Pechanga Resort... |
$8,250,000 | |
| 2005 WSOP Main Event | $52,818,610 |  Joe HachemJoe Hachem Joseph Hachem is a Lebanese-Australian professional poker player known for winning the main event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. He was the first Australian to win the main event, which earned him $7.5 million, then a record for all-time biggest tournament prize.The next year, Hachem won his... |
$7,500,000 | |
| 2004 WSOP Main Event | $24,224,400 | Greg Raymer Greg Raymer Gregory Raymer nicknamed "Fossilman," is a professional poker player. He is best known for winning the 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event.-Early life:... |
$5,000,000 | |
| 2007 WPT Championship | $15,495,750 |  Carlos MortensenCarlos Mortensen Juan Carlos Mortensen is an Ecuadorian professional poker player of Danish descent and the only Hispanic Main Event winner of the World Series of Poker. Mortensen is known for his loose play, bluffing tactics, and interesting chip-stacking style.Mortensen moved from Spain to the United States in... |
$3,970,415 | |
| 2011 Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure | $15,132,000 | Galen Hall |
$2,300,000 | |
| 2010 Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure | $14,831,300 | Harrison Gimbel |
$2,200,000 | |
| 2006 WPT Championship | $14,671,250 | Joe Bartholdi Jr Joe Bartholdi Jr Joseph N. Bartholdi, Jr. is an American professional poker player, based in Las Vegas, Nevada.-Early years:... |
$3,760,165 | |
| 2008 EPT Grand Final | $13,323,417 | Glen Chorny Glen Chorny Glen Chorny is a Canadian poker player from Waterloo, Ontario. He is currently a student at Wilfrid Laurier University and has been playing professionally since January 2008.... |
$3,196,354 | |
| 2008 WPT Championship | $13,216,250 | David Chiu David Chiu (poker player) David Chiu is a Chinese American professional poker player, based in Rowland Heights, California, who has won four World Series of Poker bracelets. He is also the winner of the 2008 World Poker Tour's WPT World Championship, and the first winner of the Tournament of Champions of Poker.Chiu was a... |
$3,389,140 | |
| 2009 EPT Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure | $12,674,000 | Poorya Nazari |
$3,000,000 | |
| 2009 EPT Grand Final | $12,293,896 |  Pieter De Korver |
$3,024,167 | |
| 2010 World Championship of Online Poker | $12,215,000 | Tyson Marks ('POTTERPOKER') |
$2,278,097.50 | online |
| 2011 PokerStars 5th Anniversary Sunday Million | $11,825,600 | Luke Vrabel ('Bdbeatslayer') |
$671,093.81 | online, added Lamborghini Gallardo Lamborghini Gallardo The Lamborghini Gallardo is a sports car built by Lamborghini. The Gallardo is Lamborghini's most-produced model to date, with over 10,000 built in its first seven years of production... LP560-4 for first place |
| 2010 EPT Grand Final | $11,289,206 |  Nicolas Chouity |
$2,263,166 | |
| 2008 World Championship of Online Poker | $10,925,000 | Carter King ('ckingusc') |
$1,265,432 | online |
| 2009 World Championship of Online Poker | $10,720,000 | Yevgeniy Timoshenko Yevgeniy Timoshenko Yevgeniy Timoshenko is an American poker player. Born in 1988 in Kharkiv, Ukraine Timoshenko moved to Mukilteo, Washington when he was 8 years old... ('Jovial Gent') |
$1,715,200 | online |
| 2011 EPT Grand Final | $10,181,818 |  Ivan Freitez-Rosales |
$2,226,345 | |
| 2007 WPT Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic | $9,661,200 | Eugene Katchalov Eugene Katchalov Eugene Katchalov is an American professional poker player raised in Brooklyn, New York since age 10.Katchalov, a graduate with a business degree from NYU, is the winner of the largest payout for a non-championship event in the World Poker Tour , earning $2,482,605 with a win of the 2007 Doyle... |
$2,482,605 | |
| 2011 FTOPS XIX Main Event Full Tilt Online Poker Series The Full Tilt Online Poker Series is an online poker tournament series sponsored by Full Tilt Poker. It was established in August 2006 and is held approximately every three months.... |
$8,851,130 |  'GIAMPP' |
$877,949.74 | online |
| 2007 EPT Grand Final | $8,687,400 | Gavin Griffin Gavin Griffin Gavin Griffin is an American professional poker player. He attended Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas.... |
$2,434,061 | |
| 2008 EPT Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure | $8,562,976 |  Bertrand GrospellierBertrand Grospellier Bertrand Grospellier , also known as ElkY is a poker player and former pro gamer from France who has won a World Poker Tour , a World Series of Poker bracelet and a European Poker Tour title... |
$2,000,000 | |
| 2006 WPT Doyle Brunson North American Poker Classic | $8,482,650 | Joe Hachem Joe Hachem Joseph Hachem is a Lebanese-Australian professional poker player known for winning the main event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. He was the first Australian to win the main event, which earned him $7.5 million, then a record for all-time biggest tournament prize.The next year, Hachem won his... |
$2,207,575 | |
| 2004 WPT Championship | $8,342,000 |  Martin de KnijffMartin De Knijff Martin de Knijff is a professional sports bettor and high-stakes poker player from Gothenburg, Sweden.His last name is from his Dutch father. His mother is Swedish... |
$2,728,356 | |
| 2009 WPT Championship | $8,172,250 | Yevgeniy Timoshenko Yevgeniy Timoshenko Yevgeniy Timoshenko is an American poker player. Born in 1988 in Kharkiv, Ukraine Timoshenko moved to Mukilteo, Washington when he was 8 years old... |
$2,149,960 | |
| 2010 EPT San Remo | $8,170,863 |  Liv BoereeLiv Boeree Olivia “Liv” Boeree is a poker player, TV presenter and model from England who won the 2010 European Poker Tour in San Remo for €1,250,000... |
$1,698,300 | |