Justin Liberto Headlines Latest World Series of Poker Bracelet Winners

It was an action-packed Wednesday at the 2026 World Series of Poker on June 3. Three bracelets were awarded during the evening hours, with two first-time champions crowned inside the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas and one previous winner adding to his collection of hardware.

The latter story saw Justin Liberto take down this year’s $1,500 mixed Omaha eight-or-better event for his second bracelet and $265,297 in prize money. This came nearly 11 years after he emerged victorious in the 2015 $3,000 no-limit hold’em six-max event. Liberto topped a stacked field on day 3 to come away with the gold yet again.

Earlier in the night, 26-year-old Georgia Tech PhD student Honghao Zhang came out on top in a $1,500 no-limit hold’em six-max event for his first bracelet and $346,108. Zhang bested 1,840 entries in that short-handed affair, taking down the title with his very first WSOP cash.

Philip Ardire triumphed in the $600 pot-limit Omaha Deepstack tournament, outlasting a hefty field of 2,636 entries in the four-card event to earn his first bracelet and $171,589.

Liberto Scoops Bracelet No. 2

The mixed Omaha eight-or-better event featured a trio of split-pot versions of the popular game, with pot-limit, fixed limit, and Big O (five-card PLO8). The 1,287-entry turnout made for a prize pool of $1,708,492, with 194 players getting a piece of that sum.

Justin Liberto took down the largest share worth over a quarter of a million dollars, increasing his lifetime tournament earnings past the $7.7 million mark in the process. This was the seventh-largest payday of his career, and his 10th final table at the WSOP.

“I’ve gotten every spot at the final table, except first, since I got (my first bracelet), so, I feel well overdue, and I’m really happy,” Liberto told PokerNews live reporters on the scene after closing out the win.

In addition to the title and the money, Liberto also scored 960 Card Player Player of the Year points for the win. This was his second title and fourth final-table finish of 2026, having also won an eight-game event at the PGT Mixed Games festival in February. With 1,922 total points, he now sits inside the top 75 in the overall POY standings presented by CoinPoker.

Big names like Nick Guagenti (40th), Ari Engel (39th), Perry Green (37th), Ray Henson (29th), Brandon Cantu (17th), Lawrence Berg (13th), and Michael Banducci (12th) ran deep but fell short of the official final table.

2024 WPT Voyage high roller champion Brian Battistone bowed out in ninth place ($21,386), and was soon joined on the rail by Edward Spivack (8th – $27,725) and Joseph Weinberger (7th – $36,464). Bracelet winner Chris Lee then busted Naween Fernando (6th – $48,642) and five-time bracelet winner Brad Ruben (5th – $65,801).

Action From The Final Four

Two-time bracelet winner Brandon Shack-Harris also fell at Lee’s hands. He got his last bet in on the river in limit Omaha eight-or-better with 6♥5♣4♦3♣ on a Q♦J♦7♥4♥2♣ board. Lee called with A♠K♠4♠3♠ for the nut low and the same pair with an ace kicker to scoop. Harris earned $90,249 as the fourth-place finisher.

Jean Laurent (3rd – $125,476) was the next to be sent packing, with Lee again landing the final blow. He was left on fumes after running into a straight for Liberto on a high-only board. He then got the last of his stack in preflop with Q♥Q♦5♣2♦ against K♥J♠10♥7♥. Lee made kings up to scoop the pot.

Even with the elimination spree, Lee entered heads-up play trailing Liberto. The disparity started out as roughly 3:2 in Liberto’s favor, but the stacks soon evened out. After a few swings back and forth, Liberto won a hefty pot with sevens full of eights to regain the lead in time for the final hand. Lee raised to 500,000 on the button in Big O with A♣9♠6♠5♠3♣ and Liberto called from the big blind with A♦Q♠8♣2♠2♦. The flop came down 8♥7♦5♦ and Liberto check-called 1,000,000.

The turn brought the K♦ to give Liberto the nut flush to go with his nut low. He checked to Lee, who fired 1,500,000. Liberto check-raised to 6,700,000 and Lee jammed for 13,800,000 with his flopped straight and second-nut low. Liberto called and the river brought the 10♥ to bring the tournament to a close. Lee settled for $176,809 as the runner-up.

Final Table Results

First Time Charmed For Zhang

Honghao Zhang only picked up poker a few years ago, while working towards an advanced degree in Operations Research. He had never cashed in a WSOP bracelet event prior to coming to Las Vegas this summer, but he has had some success on the live felt before scoring this breakout win. He finished second in a $1,100 buy-in at last year’s WPT World Championship festival for $355,110. That remains his highest score, although he came close to topping it with the $346,108 that came with his victory at the series.

Zhang secured 1,080 POY points for the win, enough to move him within striking distance of the top 250 in the overall standings. This was only his 10th recorded live score.

“I’m still a student,” said Zhang after his win. “Poker isn’t full-time for me. It’s a hobby, but I like it.”

Zhang Bides His Time, Surges Across The Finish Line

The top 194 finishers cashed in this $1,500 six-max event, which ran from June 1-3. Big names that came close to the final table included recent $25,000 heads-up championship semifinalist Ryuta Nakai (44th), Barry Shulman (33rd), Justin Lapka (26th), Frank Marasco (14th), Chris Hunichen (13th), and Cherish Andrews (12th).  The final day began with nine remaining and Michel Molenaar in the lead. Zhang was in fourth chip position when action resumed.

Rania Nasreddine (9th – $35,250), Justin Arnwine (8th – $35,250 ), and Moelenaar (7th – $46,619) were all early eliminations on the final day. Zhang didn’t score his first knockout of the day until three-handed play. He made the second-nut flush on the river in a massive pot, besting the aces and tens of David Rees to nearly pull even ahead of heads-up play. Rees earned $163,172 as the third-place finisher.

Zhang was able to pull ahead in the final showdown and then expand his advantage. The final hand pitted Harlan Karnofsky’s A♥4♣ against Zhang’s A♦5♣. The board came down A♣3♠2♥7♠10♥ and Zhang’s superior kicker somehow played to earn him the pot and the title. Karnofsky earned $230,626 for his second-place showing.

Final Table Results

Philip Ardire Triumphs In Fast-Paced PLO Event

Philip Ardire

The largest score of Philip Ardire’s poker-playing life came in an event that he had not planned to play. He came to Las Vegas to try his hand in some daily tournaments. After busting from his scheduled events, he saw the $600 Deepstack PLO event at the WSOP listed and decided to extend his trip by a day. That decision wound up paying big, as Ardire beat out over 2,600 entries to earn his first six-figure tournament score and his first gold bracelet.

This lower buy-in event awarded over $1.3 million in prize money, with both Ardire and runner-up Randy Jacks taking home over $100,000 for their efforts.

Plenty of notables ran deep in this event, including Freddy Deeb (45th), Martin Kabrhel (17th), and Erik Cajelais (16th). The five-figure payouts began at 11th place. Jacks scored several consecutive knockouts late on the final day to set up the heads-up showdown with the lead. Ardire soon edged ahead, though, when his flopped two pair held against the overpair of aces for Jacks. The final hand of the tournament pitted Ardire’s flopped broadway straight against Jacks’ set of queens and outs to a chop. The straight held through the turn and river to send Jacks packing with $114,200.

Final Table Results

Photo credits: WSOP / Lennart Hennig, Miguel Cortes, Dominic Iaquinto