Justin Smith Wins WSOP 2026 Colossus for $550,000

Justin Smith won Event #34, the $500 COLOSSUS, at the 2026 World Series of Poker on June 16, 2026. He collected $550,000 from a field of 16,269 entries and a $6,751,635 prize pool.

Smith, a quality engineer from Yakima, Washington, entered the final table fourth in chips with 107,000,000. He had fewer than $60,000 in career tournament earnings before this event, with just one five-figure cash to his name from 2014.

Smith circled the Colossus on his calendar as one of the most accessible bracelet events on the schedule. He had cashed in the previous two editions but never advanced deep.

The 16,269-entry field made the Colossus the largest single event of WSOP 2026 by a wide margin. Smith led all Day 2c survivors with 9,800,000 but hit turbulence on Day 3, dropping to 3,550,000 before doubling with J♥ 8♥ against a pair of fours to stay alive.

Smith’s path to the title included a brutal stretch where he sank to just four big blinds with four players remaining. He doubled with A♦ J♣ against Yuefan Wang’s A♠ 6♥ to claw back into contention.

From there he eliminated Wang and Victor Chong before closing it out heads-up in a single hand against Myles German to capture his first WSOP bracelet.

The Colossus played out across four starting flights, four Day 2 flights, a combined Day 3 and the final table on Day 4. Each flight grew larger than the last, with Day 1d attracting 6,028 entries alone.

France’s Edouard Debrousse topped the combined Day 3 leaderboard on 12,500,000 after a dominant Day 2b run. Smith entered Day 3 second overall on 9,800,000 as the Day 2c chip leader.

Day 3 cut the field from 303 to nine across 15 levels. None of the starting top 10 survived to the final table. Bracelet winners Ryan Leng, Patrick Leonard and Satoshi Tanaka were among the casualties.

Wang surged from 5,685,000 to 175,000,000 with a series of big hands. His 9♦ 9♣ flopped a set against Junjie Tang’s K♥ K♣ to double early, then he made a set of tens to eliminate both Tang and Brennen Bryant in a single hand.

The Colossus is the 34th of 100 bracelet events on this summer’s schedule. For qualification routes, format details and the full calendar, see the complete guide to the WSOP 2026 series.

Nine players returned on Day 4, each locked up for at least $60,171. Every eye was on the $550,000 top prize and the gold bracelet.

9th: Min Ji ($60,171)

Wang entered as the clear chip leader, but it was Smith who scored the first knockout. Ji opened to 9,000,000 from early position and Smith three-bet to 20,000,000 from the cutoff. Ji moved all in and Smith called.

Min Ji: A♠ J♣
Justin Smith: A♣ Q♦

The 7♠ K♠ 3♥ flop kept Smith ahead. Ji picked up a flush draw on the 4♠ turn, but the A♦ river changed nothing. Ji collected $60,171.

8th: Eric Baldwin ($76,000)

Two-time bracelet winner Baldwin was the most accomplished player at the table with nearly $10 million in career earnings. He jammed for 31,000,000 from the hijack and German shoved over the top from the button.

Eric Baldwin: A♠ 3♦
Myles German: A♦ A♣

German flopped a set on the A♥ 3♥ 5♠ board. The K♠ turn locked it up, and Baldwin departed in eighth for $76,000.

7th: Andrew Sanchez ($98,000)

Sanchez doubled early when his A♣ 4♦ held against Wang’s Q♥ 9♥. He could not sustain the momentum and was eliminated when he called off his stack holding top pair on a nine-high board.

Andrew Sanchez: A♣ 4♣
Yuefan Wang: A♥ J♣

The 4♥ on the river drew a reaction from the rail, but Wang’s ace-jack kicker held. Sanchez earned $98,000.

6th: Karabet Keshishyan ($125,000)

Keshishyan had survived multiple all-in confrontations throughout Day 3, including a gutshot straight in a three-way pot. His run ended when Gomez shoved from the small blind and Keshishyan called from the big blind.

Karabet Keshishyan: 5♥ 5♦
Jose Orozco Gomez: K♣ Q♣

The 3♣ J♥ J♦ flop kept the fives ahead. The 7♥ turn changed nothing, but the Q♦ river was a disaster for Keshishyan as Gomez paired his queen. Keshishyan collected $125,000.

5th: Jose Orozco Gomez ($163,000)

Gomez improved on his sixth-place finish in the 2023 Colossus by one spot. He shoved from under the gun and Chong called as the bigger stack from the big blind.

Jose Orozco Gomez: A♦ 3♥
Victor Chong: A♣ 9♣

The 10♣ 4♥ 6♦ 4♥ Q♥ board offered no help for Gomez. He earned $163,000.

4th: Yuefan Wang ($212,000)

Wang had held the chip lead for much of the final table, but his stack crumbled after Chong cracked his pocket kings with K♦ 10♥ to make a straight.

Smith then finished off the Day 3 chip leader. Wang limped the small blind and called after Smith jammed from the big blind.

Yuefan Wang: A♠ Q♣
Justin Smith: Q♦ J♣

Wang was ahead, and the 9♠ 8♣ 2♣ flop changed nothing. The 4♦ turn was a brick. But the J♠ river paired Smith’s jack for a dramatic knockout. Wang pocketed $212,000.

3rd: Victor Chong ($278,000)

Smith raised to 100,000,000 from the small button and Chong three-bet to 190,000,000, committing nearly his entire stack.

Victor Chong: K♥ Q♠
Justin Smith: A♦ 6♦

The Q♥ J♣ 7♥ flop paired Chong’s queen. But the A♠ turn gave Smith top pair, and the 9♥ river changed nothing. Chong exited with $278,000.

Heads-Up: Smith vs German

German had proven nearly impossible to eliminate throughout the final table. He escaped from the brink at least five times, including a quadruple-up from 30,000,000 when his A♥ Q♠ held in a family pot.

German also doubled with A♦ K♦ against Chong’s 7♦ 7♣, survived a dominated K♣ 9♠ against Smith’s A♠ K♠ when the river completed a flush on the board, and spiked a river straight with A♦ 6♥ against Wang’s A♣ J♣.

By the time heads-up play began, Smith held a commanding lead: 625,000,000 to German’s 190,000,000. The match lasted one hand.

German shoved for 190,000,000 on the button in the first hand of heads-up play. Smith called from the big blind.

The 4♣ J♥ 2♥ flop kept German ahead with his pair of eights. The 10♥ turn was ominous, giving Smith a flush draw to go with his overcards. The 4♥ river completed Smith’s flush and ended it.

German earned $367,000 for his remarkable run as runner-up.

“I can’t believe it yet. I don’t know what to say.”
Justin Smith

Smith later reflected on the key turning point after sinking to four big blinds with four players remaining.

“I actually thought I was going to win it before that because I was chip leader for a while, and then I took some hits. Took some races that I didn’t win. I doubled up on that one, and I took the other player out, so it was three of us. I figured I could probably get it done.”
Justin Smith

The Colossus has been one of the WSOP’s flagship mass-field events since its 2015 debut.

The buy-in increased from $400 to $500 in 2025. Entry counts dipped slightly year on year (16,301 to 16,269), but the $500 Colossus consistently draws north of 16,000 runners. First prize has climbed steadily from $414,490 to $550,000 across five editions.

Smith’s victory adds another bracelet to a series that has already crowned more than 40 champions through its first three weeks. The Colossus was the 34th event on the schedule and comfortably the largest field of the summer.

Smith can now never lose the title of WSOP champion. He circled this event specifically because of the price point.

“It’s just a fun tournament to play. A lot of people, it’s an easy buy-in. I saw a lot of people coming and going all day long the last four days.”
Justin Smith

The series continues at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas through July 15, with dozens of bracelet events still to come including the $10,000 Main Event starting July 2. The WSOP 2026 daily results and bracelet tracker has updates on every event.

Next up on the schedule are the $10,000 Razz Championship, the $1,000 Seniors Championship and the $25,000 High Roller PLO. The $10,000 Big O Championship final also resumes this week with four players remaining.

The WSOP 2026 Player of the Year standings continue to shift, with Naoya Kihara leading Shaun Deeb after a historic back-to-back championship run. Smith’s Colossus points will add to the race.