Daniel Weinman Wins WSOP Main Event After Crazy Aces Hand

Daniel Weinman is the 2023 WSOP Main Event Champion. The poker pro from Georgia took down the $10,000 tournament last night and, along with a bracelet, he banked a record-breaking $12.1 million top prize.

Weinman’s chances of success were given a major boost during the early stages of the June 17 finale. Three players returned to the Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas and leading the way was Steven Jones, a real estate broker and poker player from Arizona. 

Weinman was second in chips, just ahead of Adam Walton, another poker pro with almost $1 million in live earnings prior to the 2023 WSOP Main Event. Of the final three, only Weinman had a WSOP bracelet. In fact, with a WSOP Circuit ring, WPT titles, and $3 million in prize money at the start of play, he was the most accomplished player at the table. 

However, despite success in other tournaments, the World Series of Poker Main Event had always been a tough one for Weinman to crack. He started grinding WSOP tournaments 16 years ago but, prior to last night’s win, he’d only cashed in the Main Event once. 

Daniel Weinman Had Experience and Luck on His Side

That fact didn’t appear to faze the American. Weinman said during the post-match interview that he felt like he had an edge over his opponents. But, like all experienced pros, Weinman also knew he needed more than a healthy dose of luck to top a record-breaking field of 10,043 entrants. 

“There’s so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well, but there were so many hands that I got incredibly lucky,” Weinman told the WSOP’s media team.

The luckiest situation Weinman found himself in occurred during the finale’s first hour of play. Everyone expected the session to be a slugfest. Indeed, with so much money on the line and the average stack being 100 big blinds, there was no need for heroics. However, that didn’t stop Adam Walton from making a big move with pocket eights. 

Aces and Eights Become Dead Man’s Hand for Walton

Jones raised from the button with Q♦ 6♦ and Walton called from the small bling with eights. Weinman looked down at pocket aces and put in a three-bet. Jones folded and, without hesitation, Walton moved all-in for 84 big blinds. 

Weinman snap-called and, despite a few scares, the board ran out 7♣ 5♥ 3♣ 9♠ K♣. That hand sent Walton to the rail and gifted Weinman an almost insurmountable chip lead. In fact, forget being almost insurmountable, it was insurmountable. 

2023 WSOP Main Event Result

1. Daniel Weinman - $12,100,000
2. Steven Jones - $6,500,000
3. Adam Walton - $4,000,000
4. Jan-Peter Jachtmann - $3,000,000
5. Ruslan Prydryk - $2,400,000
6. Dean Hutchison - $1,850,000
7. Toby Lewis - $1,425,000
8. Juan Maceiras - $1,125,000
9. Daniel Holzner - $900,000

Jones only needed a double up to flip the script, but Weinman is a veteran who counts Shaun Deeb, Phil Hellmuth, and Jason Mercier among his poker friends. He wasn’t going to give up a sizable chip lead by making reckless plays. Jones attacked at every opportunity, but Weinman controlled the pots whenever possible and bided his time. 

Weinman Out-Kicks Jones to Win WSOP Main Event

Eventually, the man from Georgia found an opening. A J♠ 5♠ 2♦ flop hit both players. Bets and raises followed before the 4♣ landed on the turn. Jones committed his stack at this point and, after a momentary pause, Weinman called with K♣ J♦. 

Jones tabled J♣ 8♦.  Only an eight on the river could save him, but it didn’t arrive. The A♥ completed the board and brought the 2023 WSOP Main Event to a conclusion. The final pot was shipped over to Weinman who, by this point, was already swamped by his family and friends.

Speaking after his historic win, Weinman said he almost didn’t enter the Main Event. He’d been struggling to find his form during the early stages of the WSOP and took a break. However, it was almost as if something in the stars told him to take one more shot at the Main Event. 

Fast-forward a week or so and Daniel Weinman is the new WSOP World Champion. Not only that, his name will go down in history as the man who beat the biggest WSOP Main Event field in history and took home a record-breaking top prize worth $12.1 million.