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The 2025 World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championship ran at Wynn Las Vegas from December 2-22. The festival made headlines when Schuyler Thornton topped a 1,865-entry field to win the $10,400 WPT World Championship for $2,258,856, and when Aaron Johnson bested a 9,876-entry field to win the $1,100 WPT Prime Championship for $1,010,400.
However, there was a full schedule of side events that took place and awarded millions more. Maxx Coleman took down the $3,000 5-Card PLO event for $100,245, while Benjamin Greenberg won the special Club WPT Gold Mystery Quest for $136,475. Another player to have success was Richard Ashby, who claimed two titles. First, he won the $1,100 PLO for $47,728 and then two days later won the $1,600 T.O.R.S.E. Championship for $52,896.
Here’s a look at some of the bigger names to claim side event titles at the 2025 WPT World Championship. You can view full results from the series over at The Hendon Mob.
Early Title for Eric Baldwin
At the beginning of the series, the $800 buy-in, $1 million GTD No-Limit Hold’em tournament attracted 2,941 entries and more than doubled the guarantee by generating a $2,043,995 prize pool.
That was paid out to the top 365 finishers, and some familiar names to make deep runs were Justin Lapka (14th – $11,461), Jessica Vierling (20th – $7,412), Jeremy Becker (25th – $5,619), Matt Affleck (37th – $4,231), and Cherish Andrews (45th – $3,620).
Las Vegas crusher Eric Baldwin, no stranger to success at the Wynn, ended up the last player standing to claim the title and $247,318 first-place prize.
$800 NLH Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eric Baldwin | $247,318 |
| 2 | Shundan Xiao | $211,213 |
| 3 | Anthony Lewis | $176,886 |
| 4 | Anonymous | $172,513 |
| 5 | Taylor Black | $96,248 |
| 6 | Brandon Sunshine | $72,324 |
| 7 | Timothy Acker | $54,498 |
| 8 | Anze Smajd | $40,481 |
| 9 | Butuc Gheorghe | $28,965 |
New Career-High Score for Arnwine
From December 5-7, the $1,600 NLH Mystery Bounty played out as 1,253 runners took their shot at a $1,472,190 prize pool.
Coming out on top in that tournament was Justin Arnwine, who is known to the poker masses thanks to his hardcore affinity for Hello Kitty. An East Coast grinder, Arnwine traveled to Las Vegas and ended up leaving with a new career-high score of $259,670.
The win came a little over a month after Arnwine had won the RGPS MGM National Harbor $1,700 Main Event for $80,646.pokerne
$1,600 Mystery Bounty Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Arnwine | $259,670 |
| 2 | Qun Dang | $164,795 |
| 3 | Agharazi Babyev | $125,223 |
| 4 | Mohamed Aissani | $96,091 |
| 5 | Mearl Wisehart | $74,033 |
| 6 | John Ypma | $56,400 |
| 7 | Johnson Nguyen | $42,381 |
| 8 | Hyundong Lee | $31,139 |
| 9 | Stephen Nussrallah | $22,574 |
Rob Wazwaz Finishes Off Career Year with a Win
It’s been a good year for Minnesota’s Rob Wazwaz, a WSOP bracelet winner and MSPT Hall of Famer. Over the summer, he nearly won a second gold bracelet when he finished runner-up in Event #92: $1,979 NLH Poker Hall of Fame Bounty for $207,510.
Well, he returned to Las Vegas for the WPT World Championship and ended up walking away with a title when he topped a 200-entry field to win the $3,000 PLO Progressive Bounty event for $68,860 plus bounties.
It helped push Wazwaz up to a career-high $561,905 in tournament earnings in 2025, according to The Hendon Mob.
$3,000 PLO PKO Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rob Wazwaz | $68,860 |
| 2 | Lawrence Brandt | $68,860 |
| 3 | Samuel Uhlmann | $37,534 |
| 4 | Zachary Schwartz | $27,354 |
| 5 | Brevin Andreadis | $20,192 |
| 6 | Michael Lavenburg | $15,377 |
| 7 | Oleksandr Trokhymenko | $12,027 |
| 8 | Jonathan Leone | $9,664 |
| 9 | Cliff Josephy | $8,001 |
Cliff Josephy Scores Big
From December 18-21, the $3,000 buy-in, $3 million GTD No-Limit Hold’em event took place. The tournament drew 1,544 runners, which surpassed the guarantee by creating a $3,928,462 prize pool that was paid out to the top 191 finishers.
Among those to make relatively deep runs were Brock Wilson (12th – $36,835), Ray Qartomy (14th – $27,080), Boris Kolev (27th – $13,187), Dylan Linde (32nd – $12,381), and Michael Wang (41st – $10,991).
The final table played host to top competition like Shannon Shorr and Jack Duong, but ultimately, it was poker veteran Cliff Josephy defeating Ben Ramon in heads-up play to claim the title and a hefty $700,157 first-place prize.
$3,000 NLH Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cliff Josephy | $700,157 |
| 2 | Ben Ramon | $456,229 |
| 3 | Jack Duong | $350,612 |
| 4 | Michael Levenburg | $209,042 |
| 5 | Shannon Shorr | $161,536 |
| 6 | Yiannis Liperis | $120,383 |
| 7 | Stephen Kehoe | $88,184 |
| 8 | Samuel Bekerian | $64,326 |
2025 WPT World Championship Side Event Winners
| Date | Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12/2/25 | $600 Limit Omaha 8 | 123 | $62,730 | Edward Spivack | $17,251 |
| 12/2/25 | $800 NLH $1M GTD | 2,941 | $2,043,995 | Eric Baldwin | $247,318 |
| 12/3/25 | $600 TORSE | 116 | $59,160 | Michael Parizon | $13,290 |
| 12/5/25 | $1,600 Mystery Bounty $1M GTD | 1,253 | $2,261,190 | Justin Arnwine | $259,670 |
| 12/5/25 | $1,100 NLH Turbo NLH | 145 | $141,375 | Adi Aizin | $38,170 |
| 12/6/25 | $1,100 NLH Turbo | 141 | $137,475 | Boris Kolev | $37,118 |
| 12/7/25 | $1,100 HORSE | 151 | $145,715 | Richard Bai | $37,365 |
| 12/7/25 | $1,600 PLO Mystery Bounty | 526 | $752,180 | Chase Crouch | $91,775 |
| 12/8/25 | $1,100 Limit Omaha 8 | 147 | $141,855 | Ben Landowski | $38,301 |
| 12/8/25 | $600 5-Card PLO | 163 | $83,130 | Liran Betito | $19,253 |
| 12/8/25 | $3,000 PLO | 121 | $330,330 | Jonathan Borenstein | $90,837 |
| 12/8/25 | $1,100 PLO Turbo | 187 | $182,325 | Ezra Abugazal | $44,622 |
| 12/9/25 | $3,000 5-Card PLO | 136 | $371,280 | Maxx Coleman | $100,245 |
| 12/9/25 | $1,100 TORSE | 170 | $164,050 | Joseph Carlson | $35,000 |
| 12/9/25 | $600 NLH Turbo | 252 | $129,780 | Mark Crispin | $21,794 |
| 12/10/25 | $600 NLH Turbo | 305 | $157,075 | Zachary Frank | $23,362 |
| 12/11/25 | $600 NLH Turbo | 358 | $184,370 | Jose Luis Medina Vargas | $36,548 |
| 12/11/25 | $600 Limit Omaha 8/Stud 8 | 216 | $110,160 | Charles Honkonen | $25,792 |
| 12/12/25 | $1,600 NLH $1M GTD | 1,300 | $1,859,000 | Antonio Vargas Alvarado | $307,794 |
| 12/12/25 | $600 TORSE | 191 | $97,410 | Ross Hoffman | $23,839 |
| 12/12/25 | $1,600 PLO Turbo $500 Bounty | 221 | $207,740 | Nitesh Rawtani | $41,225 |
| 12/13/25 | $1,100 5-Card PLO | 295 | $287,625 | Rafael Lebron | $51,122 |
| 12/13/25 | $600 NLH Turbo | 228 | $117,420 | Roger Franco | $24,496 |
| 12/13/25 | Club WPT Gold Mystery Quest | 100 | $2,000,000 | Benjamin Greenberg | $136,475 |
| 12/13/25-12/15/25 | $600 NLH $250K GTD | 1,353 | $690,030 | David Bradshaw | $88,172 |
| 12/14/25 | $1,600 PLU Turbo $500 Bounty | 163 | $153,220 | Michael Wilson | $39,290 |
| 12/14/25 | $1,100 Big O | 328 | $319,800 | Veerachai Vongxaiburana | $57,464 |
| 12/14/25 | $1,100 Ladies Championship | 445 | $429,425 | Lily Lotfy | $82,636 |
| 12/15/25 | $1,100 NLH | 422 | $411,540 | Josef Snejberg | $79,169 |
| 12/15/25 | $1,100 2-7 Mixed Limits | 143 | $139,425 | Michael Wilklow | $35,252 |
| 12/15/25 | $1,600 NLH Turbo $500 Bounty | 183 | $263,520 | Dan Ionut Hila | $33,735 |
| 12/15/25 | $3,000 NLH Progressive Bounty | 200 | $546,000 | Rob Wazwaz | $68,860 |
| 12/16/25 | $3,000 NLH Progressive Bounty | 186 | $321,780 | Erick De Leon | $63,585 |
| 12/16/25 – 12/19/25 | $1,100 NLH | 3,284 | $3,169,060 | Viet Vo | $374,230 |
| 12/16/25-12/17/25 | $1,600 Limit Omaha 8 Championship | 129 | $184,470 | Kathy Chang | $49,807 |
| 12/17/25-12/18/25 | $1,600 HORSE Championship | 139 | $198,770 | Kristan Lord | $53,668 |
| 12/17/25 | $1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha | 237 | $231,075 | Richard Ashby | $47,728 |
| 12/17/25-12/18/25 | $25,400 High Roller | 89 | $2,225,000 | Darren Elias | $631,800 |
| 12/18/25-12/20/25 | $1,100 NLH Seniors Championship 50+ | 749 | $722,785 | David Porter | $130,888 |
| 12/18/25-12/21/25 | $3,000 NLH $3M GTD | 1,544 | $3,928,462 | Cliff Josephy | $700,157 |
| 12/18/25-12/19/25 | $1,600 TORSE Championship | 137 | $195,910 | Richard Ashby | $52,896 |
| 12/18/25-12/19/25 | $25,400 High Roller | 39 | $975,000 | Brandon Wilson | $341,250 |
| 12/19/25 | $600 Mixed Triple Draw | 132 | $68,340 | Derek Bugg | $14,923 |
| 12/19/25 | $800 NLH | 307 | $214,900 | Antuan Bunkley | $43,492 |
| 12/20/25-12/22/25 | $10,000 Seniors High Roller 50+ | 93 | $883,500 | Maxim Panyak | $217,011 |
| 12/20/25-12/22/25 | $1,600 Mystery Bounty | 1,478 | $1,374,540 | Kelly Becker | $239,688 |
| 12/20/25 | $3,000 NLH 6-Max | 314 | $857,220 | Tyler Jamison | $172,730 |
| 12/20/25 | $1,100 NLH 6-Max Turbo | 243 | $236,925 | Todd Ivens | $52,360 |
| 12/21/25 | $600 NLH | 204 | $105,060 | Yansong Kou | $22,305 |
| 12/21/25 | $10,500 NLH 8-Max | 94 | $902,400 | Clemen Deng | $267,742 |
| 12/21/25 | $600 PLO 5-Card turbo | 136 | $70,040 | Steven Levy | $18,908 |
| 12/22/25 | $1,100 NLH | 376 | $366,600 | Agharazi Babayev | $72,139 |
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