Joseph Liberta Wins WSOP 2026 Millionaire Maker for $1,250,000

Joseph Liberta won Event #50, the $1,500 Millionaire Maker, at WSOP 2026 on June 24, 2026. The New Jersey native captured the first WSOP bracelet of his career and the $1,250,000 top prize, beating Michael Monroig heads-up from an 11,769-entry field and a $15,623,347 prize pool at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.

Liberta’s path to the bracelet capped a 13-year relationship with the Millionaire Maker. His four cashes in the event tell the story: 537th, 345th, 195th and now first.

He has been a regular on the poker circuit since 2011 and has played the WSOP for more than a decade, but this was the result that changed everything. The $1,250,000 score nearly doubled his career tournament earnings in one swoop.

Monroig entered the final day as the chip leader with 73,900,000 and collected $1,000,000 as runner-up, making both finalists millionaires from a single $1,500 buy-in. Bradley Gafford, who won the $1,000 Mini Main Event in 2023, was the only bracelet holder among the nine finalists.

Liberta entered the final table third in chips with 46,400,000 and just over 30 big blinds. He scored four of the eight knockouts at the final table, eliminating the last four opponents in succession to lock up the title.

The Millionaire Maker ran across four starting flights, four Day 2 flights, a combined Day 3 and two final table days. Each flight grew larger than the last, with Day 1d attracting 4,526 entries alone.

The 424 Day 2 survivors combined for Day 3 on June 22. Bo Chen topped the leaderboard on 13,300,000 after a massive late-night double through Day 2a chip leader Rob Kuhn.

Day 3 cut the field from 424 to 62 across ten levels. The casualties included 2018 Main Event runner-up Tony Miles, high-stakes regular Chris Hunichen, four-time bracelet winner Joshua Remitio, and Monster Stack champion Rich Alsup. Jason Wheeler’s pocket aces were cracked by pocket tens, and Matt Affleck suffered a cruel beat on the last hand of the night.

Day 4 trimmed the field from 62 to nine. Monroig stormed to the chip lead after eliminating Seiji Sasaki, while Mark Newhouse (back-to-back Main Event final tables in 2013 and 2014) fell in 16th. Three-time bracelet winner Ryan Eriquezzo had his pocket kings cracked by Alex Kim’s runner-runner flush and was eliminated shortly after in 13th.

For qualification routes, format details and the full calendar, see the full WSOP 2026 schedule and coverage guide.

Nine players returned on Day 5, each locked up for at least $150,068. Every eye was on the $1,250,000 top prize and the gold bracelet.

9th: Yifu He ($150,068)

He sank to just two big blinds early and could not find a spot to climb. Monroig opened to 2,500,000 from the cutoff and He pushed his final 2,500,000 from the big blind.

Yifu He: 7♠ 4♦
Michael Monroig: Q♥ 5♥

The J♥ 6♦ 10♠ flop offered nothing for He. The 3♦ turn and 3♣ river sealed his exit, and he took home $150,068.

8th: Garry Gurevich ($190,000)

Gurevich moved all in for his remaining 3,000,000 on the button. Gafford called from the small blind and Kim defended the big blind, creating a three-way pot.

Garry Gurevich: Q♦ 2♣
Bradley Gafford: J♦ 2♥
Alex Kim: K♦ 9♣

The A♥ 5♠ 3♥ flop missed everyone, and the 8♥ turn changed nothing. Kim paired his nine on the 9♦ river to claim the pot. Gurevich earned $190,000.

7th: Jacob Gagnon ($245,000)

Gagnon entered with just seven big blinds and jammed for 10,000,000 on the button. Gafford moved all in from the small blind for 16,500,000.

Jacob Gagnon: A♥ 5♦
Bradley Gafford: A♣ Q♣

Gagnon outflopped his opponent on the 7♠ 2♥ 5♥ board by pairing his five. The A♦ turn gave both players an ace, and Gafford’s rail called for a seven.

The 7♦ river delivered, counterfeiting Gagnon’s two pair as Gafford’s queen kicker played. Gagnon earned $245,000, more than tripling his career earnings in one event.

6th: Alex Kim ($315,000)

Monroig made it 6,000,000 from the cutoff and Kim shoved for 9,500,000 from the small blind.

Alex Kim: A♦ 7♥
Michael Monroig: J♥ 10♥

Kim held the lead preflop, but the 9♦ K♠ 10♦ flop paired Monroig’s ten. The 8♥ turn gave Kim straight outs, but they did not arrive on the 9♥ river. Kim collected $315,000.

5th: Joseph Baghdadlian ($410,000)

Gafford left Baghdadlian with crumbs in a preceding hand when his J♦ J♠ held against Baghdadlian’s K♦ 10♦. Baghdadlian then got his final 5,500,000 in from under the gun and Liberta called from the big blind.

Joseph Baghdadlian: A♥ J♠
Joseph Liberta: A♠ K♠

Liberta’s big slick was in command. The 7♥ 5♣ 8♠ flop changed nothing. Some chop possibilities appeared on the 6♥ turn, but the 7♠ river sent Baghdadlian to the payout desk in fifth for $410,000.

4th: Halford Fairchild ($530,000)

Fairchild open-jammed from under the gun for 30,000,000 and Liberta called from the big blind.

Halford Fairchild: A♠ Q♠
Joseph Liberta: 9♣ 9♥

A nine came in the window on the J♥ J♣ 9♠ flop, giving Liberta a full house. There was no coming back for Fairchild on the 10♥ turn. The 3♣ completed the board, and he collected $530,000.

3rd: Bradley Gafford ($750,000)

Gafford limped from the small blind and Liberta checked the big blind.

Bradley Gafford: K♥ 10♥
Joseph Liberta: Q♠ 9♦

The 3♥ 10♦ J♠ flop gave Gafford a pair of tens. The K♦ turn improved Gafford to two pair, but it also completed a straight for Liberta, who now held king-queen-jack-ten-nine.

Gafford jammed the 8♣ river and was snap-called. Gafford earned $750,000 for his finish.

Heads-Up: Liberta vs Monroig

Liberta carried a commanding chip lead into the duel at 214,000,000 to Monroig’s 80,000,000. The gap tightened briefly when Monroig doubled with trip kings after his K♦ 7♠ hit a board of A♣ K♠ K♣ 2♠ 6♣ against Liberta’s Q♦ 6♦.

From there, Liberta leaned on his opponent pot by pot. He picked off a river bluff with king-high in one hand, then shoved the river with trip tens in another to push his stack past 250,000,000. Monroig’s brief rally never found a second gear.

Monroig was forced to fold a series of pots preflop and slipped to 22,500,000 before he shipped it on the button. Liberta called from the big blind.

Monroig’s 10♦ 8♥ had Liberta’s 8♣ 5♦ dominated, but the 5♣ 2♣ 5♠ flop gave Liberta trip fives and a near lock on the hand. His supporters had called for a five, and it arrived in emphatic fashion.

The Q♥ turn left Monroig drawing dead. The 2♥ completed the board, and Liberta was crowned champion of the WSOP 2026 Millionaire Maker.

Monroig earned $1,000,000 as runner-up, turning a $1,500 entry into a seven-figure payday of his own.

“It’s completely surreal. I’ve been here for a long time. I’m just extremely grateful.”
Joseph Liberta

The $1,500 Millionaire Maker has been one of the WSOP’s flagship mass-field events since its debut, drawing fields above 10,000 every year since 2023 and guaranteeing a seven-figure top prize.

*The 2025 Millionaire Maker bracelet was vacated after a WSOP investigation into chip dumping during heads-up play. No winner was recognized and no bracelet was awarded.

Entry counts have grown steadily since 2022, when the event drew 7,961 runners. The 2026 field of 11,769 dipped slightly from the 2025 peak but still ranks as the second-largest in the event’s history.

Three of the four recognized Millionaire Maker champions since 2022 won their first WSOP bracelet in this event. Kolev already held an online bracelet but claimed his first live title here. Plesuv, Spitale and now Liberta all captured their first piece of WSOP gold in the Millionaire Maker.

All nine finalists were based in the United States. The top two both became millionaires from the event, continuing a run of seven-figure runner-up paydays that started in 2023.

Liberta’s win came in the 50th event on the 100-bracelet schedule and added another first-time champion to a series that has already delivered dozens of new bracelet winners. The $15,623,347 prize pool dwarfed Justin Smith’s 16,269-entry Colossus by nearly $9 million despite a smaller field, thanks to the higher buy-in.

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 completed event.

Liberta’s Millionaire Maker points will factor into the WSOP 2026 Player of the Year standings, which continue to shift as new champions are crowned each week.