If you are a poker fan who has followed the game for years or someone who simply loves looking back at all-time big wins or comeback stories – this list of the greatest WSOP moments will scratch your itch.
This is the collection of all-time great moments from the World Series of Poker, and it’s not just about money. It’s wild, funny, emotional, and downright legendary stories that have made the World Series of Poker into the spectacle it is today.
We are counting from number ten to the most memorable moment in WSOP history.
10. Annette Obrestad: The Teen Queen of WSOP Europe (2007)
Greatest WSOP moments kick off with a girl, who was Only 18, and she set the world afire: Annette Obrestad from Norway was the very first-ever winner of the WSOP Europe Main Event. The day before her 19th birthday, she took home a staggering £1 million and became the youngest-ever bracelet winner at WSOP.
Not only did she win impressively but also signaled a generational change. They have arrived: the internet kids shall now dominate.
9.Tom McEvoy Makes History and Becomes the First Satellite Champion (1983)
Tom McEvoy became the first-ever WSOP Main Event champion in that legendary year of 1983 by qualifying via the satellite method. “You do not have to be a man with lots of money to play in a much bigger game than you,” says Tom.
It also helped further democratize poker so that these everyday types can get a jump on their own big dreaming inside the WSOP. Definitely one of the greatest WSOP moments, as it showed qualifiers can still win big.
8. Doyle Brunson Wins Twice with 10-2 (1976-1977)
Ten-Deunce is called the Doyle Brunson hand. If you are wondering, what is the story behind this iconic poker hand, here it is :
Some poker hands are legends, and this one became one. Doyle Brunson, with a hand of 10-2, won back-to-back WSOP Main Events in ’76 and ’77. This specific sub-par hand became the last winning hand of the tournament twice.
Not only that, he caught miracle 10s on the river both years to win. From that day onward, 10-2 was called “The Doyle”-one of the most iconic hands in poker. Legendary poker player + same iconinc poker hand + back-to back wins = one of the greatest WSOP moments of all time.
7. Amarillo Slim: Poker Superstar (1972)
Tom “Amarillo Slim” Preston specially became a Main Event champion; he was the first person celebrity of poker into the mainstream. After achieving victory in 1972, he appeared on The Tonight Show and 60 Minutes, selling this whole cowboy charm to America.
He didn’t simply make one victory. He sold the whole idea of poker to the world. To use the language of the youth, he was the first poker influencer in the world. He is not only part of one of the greatest WSOP moments in history, but thanks being a notorious person, he brought poker to the mainstream media.
6. Phil Hellmuth Becomes a WSOP God: 2012
Whether you love him or hate him, you can’t take away from Phil Hellmuth. He won number 13 in the Main Event at WSOP Europe in 2012, making him exclusive in getting both the Vegas and the European Main Events.
And with his consistency, attitude and passion, Hellmuth is practically a walking highlight real of WSOP greatness.
5. Antonio Esfandiari Wins $18 Million at One Drop (2012)
IN exclusively live poker, the biggest payday ever in history is $18,346,673. That is the bounty with which Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari went away from the Big One for One Drop-a charity classic with a buy-in of $1 million.
It was poker at its most insane-high stakes, high drama, and record-breaking numbers. Antonio Esfandiari is a legendary poker player with many years of experience, so it comes as no surprise that he is part of the greatest wsop moments of all time.
4. The Incredible Comeback of Stu Ungar (1997)
Stu Ungar’s story is tragic, but in 1997 he proved to the whole world just how brilliant he really is. In 1997, Ungar was deeply in debt and clearly showed physical damage from his years of bad addictions.
Miracles do happen, and for Stu it started, when a friend staked him into the Main Event against all odds at the last moment.
Using his signature shades, which hid the marks life had left on him, he completely dominated the field and won his third Main Event title-it was raw, real, and unforgettable.
3. Jack Straus and the Birth of “A Chip and a Chair” (1982)
If you have heard famous quotes, involving the words ” chip and a chair” , now you will find out their origins.
Jack Straus thought he was out of chips, until he found one last $500 chip under a napkin. That’s all it took. He kept doubling, and doubling again… and eventually won the tournament !
This brought poker one of the most colorful lines ever: “All you need is a chip and a chair.” Even today, the saying still stands true.
2. Johnny Chan Back-to-back Bracelets (1987-1988)
Back-to-back victories in the Main Event? That’s the rare stuff. Johnny Chan did that, and very nearly made it three in a row the next year. His victory nearly 20 years ago over Erik Seidel is so legendary it made it into Rounders.
It was really the Golden Age of Poker, and Chan was its king.
1. Chris Moneymaker’s $39 Dream Becomes a $2.5 Million Reality (2003)
No WSOP story changed poker like this one. Many consider this the number 1 among greatest WSOP moments.
Chris Moneymaker-not just an amateur but a rank amateur-qualified for the Main Event-from an online satellite that costs just $39. He beat the pros, went heads-up with Sammy Farha, and put $2.5 million in his pocket.
It was the birth of ‘the Moneymaker Effect’: poker became globalized, mainstream, accessible, and even more known to remind us that, after all, anyone can win.
Why These Are the Greatest WSOP Moments Ever
The WSOP is for the courageous ; hence it is all about comebacks, characters, chaos, and clutch plays. Those above are some of the greatest WSOP moments in history that have made the tournament legendary. Whether you’re a grinder, a railbird, or just in it for the drama, such stories remind us why we watch, play, and dream.
Which one’s your favorite moment? Share it in the comments ! If you wish to keep reading something similar, here is ranking of the TOP 9 Poker Movies of all time.
