Minnesotan Banks $1.3 Million World Series Of Poker Monster Stack Win

There are only a handful of major tournaments in a given year of poker that take more than a week to play out. For those fortunate enough to make the final table of the World Series of Poker’s $1,500 Monster Stack event, and especially the eventual champion, it’s time well invested.

Richard Alsup had been to the WSOP promised land once before, winning an $800 no-limit hold’em deepstack at the 2022 WSOP. But on a far bigger and brighter stage, with a considerably larger sum on the line, Alsup earned a much larger victory this summer.

Alsup, a Minnesota-based pro, outlasted a field of 11,933 entrants in the 2026 WSOP $1,500 Monster Stack no-limit hold’em event on his way to a staggering $1,302,125 payday. His second career bracelet victory earned Alsup his first career seven-figure score, multiplying his previous best result by almost five times. His lifetime haul now exceeds $3.9 million.

He also earned 1,440 Card Player Player of the Year points in his first qualifying cash of 2026. That result puts Alsup just outside the top 150 in the yearlong race presented by CoinPoker.

Alsup’s final table journey was filled with memorable hands, including two runouts in which Alsup rivered trips to crack pocket aces and double. Through each big hand, Alsup’s belief never faltered.

“I just stayed positive and I just really felt it, that I was going to win when I won,” Alsup told PokerNews’ Erick Torres.

The Long Road To A Winner

A tournament that started with cards in the air on June 3 finally crowned its champion late on June 10. Along the way, over the course of four starting flights and four separate day 2 sessions, 11,933 entries produced a $15,841,057 prize pool, the first to hit eight-figures so far this series.

Just 660 players made it through to a combined day 3. Alsup sat in eighth place out of 80 remaining players following day 3, and Alsup was in sixth place among the final eight players heading into the final day of action.

Kevin Eyster had the chip lead to start eight-handed play. He, like Alsup, Salvatore Dicarlo, and John Ripnick, also came into this final table with a previous bracelet win. In addition to his 2014 bracelet triumph, Eyster had also won World Poker Tour titles in 2013 and 2015.

Aaron Massey, a tournament veteran with over $6 million in career earnings, also navigated his way to the monster stack final table. On just the second hand of the day, Massey surged from second-shortest stack to the chip lead in the kind of hand that every tournament poker player in the world has dreamed of playing late in a major event.

Waking Up on the Right Side of a Cold Deck

After outlasting 11,924 players to reach the MONSTER STACK final table, Aaron @nevermissmassey Massey woke up with pocket aces at exactly the right time.

With $1,302,125 up top, a massive three-way pot with life-changing implications… pic.twitter.com/sVmOxheISN

— WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) June 11, 2026

Massey picked up pocket aces under the gun, min-raised, and Eyster three-bet big from the cutoff with A♣K♣. Short stack Nikolaos Angelou of Greece woke up with pocket kings in the small blind and four-bet shoved. Massey was all too happy to five-bet shove over the top, and Eyster called with his kings. By the turn, Massey was sweating just one out, the case king, and held to scoop the massive pot. Angelou was out in eighth place ($190,000).

Dicarlo Devastates The Field

Over the next hour of play, Dicarlo built up a commanding lead over the rest of the field. Eyster, who had started the day with all of the hope that comes with a major chip lead, completed his tumble to the bottom of the chip counts. His K♥Q♦ failed to overcome Pierce McKellar’s pocket queens, leaving Eyster with less than five big blinds.

Dicarlo and Alsup called Eyster’s ensuing all-in bet, and checked down a Q♣8♥4♣K♠10♦ runout. Dicarlo’s K♦9♦ made a pair of kings, which claimed the pot and eliminated Eyster in seventh place ($240,000).

An impressive run of form continued as Dicarlo claimed the entirety of McKellar’s stack in a battle of the blinds. McKellar shoved the small blind with A♠7♣, Dicarlo called in the big blind with A♣K♣, and the best hand held. McKellar settled for sixth place ($305,000).

Alsup’s goose was nearly cooked five-handed. With just over 15 big blinds, he was all in on the button with K♦Q♦. Dicarlo, in the big blind with pocket aces, naturally obliged him. Alsup picked up a king on the flop. He then found another king, which saved his tournament, gave him a crucial double, and finally put Dicarlo’s incredible run on a brief pause.

That ended in a matter of minutes. Dicarlo rivered a straight against Matthew Miller’s turned trip nines to hit a new high-water mark for his stack. Most of those chips passed along to Ripnick, who doubled through Dicarlo into third place when his A♠K♦ held off Dicarlo’s A♣J♦. Dicarlo still had three times as many chips as Ripnick following the hand.

Alsup’s Ascent

Dicarlo soon picked up his third straight elimination, along with the last of Miller’s chips. Dicarlo’s A♠K♥ was too much for Miller’s A♦5♠, and Miller dropped in fifth place ($400,000).

Massey rode his early windfall into four-handed play, but from that point on, couldn’t find any momentum. He shoved his last seven big blinds from the button with pocket fives, and Alsup called with K♠J♠. Alsup pulled way ahead on the J♥7♠7♣ flop, and there would be no miracle for Massey on this board. He walked away with $520,000 for fourth place, the second-largest live result of his 17-year tournament career.

Three-handed play lasted exactly one hand. Ripnick ran A♣J♠ into Dicarlo, who woke up with pocket kings for another monster in the big blind. Neither player touched the board, and Ripnick was out in third place ($700,000). Ripnick, who won a WSOP Online bracelet in 2021, multiplied his previous best result severalfold.

Dicarlo’s lead over Alsup entering heads-up play was more than 2:1. He extended his advantage to nearly 4:1 at its peak. Then, with the tournament on the line, Dicarlo experienced the worst kind of deja vu.

He min-raised the button with pocket aces, and Alsup called. On the 8♦6♣4♦ flop, Alsup checked, Dicarlo bet out small, and Alsup shoved. Dicarlo called, and he was ahead of Alsup’s 7♠6♠. He was dodging a few more outs than in their previous encounter and got a clean J♥ on the turn. Just as he had the previous time around, Alsup found a miracle on the river, as the 6♥ made him trips, saved his tournament, and pulled Alsup right back into contention.

Back And Forth To The Finish

Salvatore Dicarlo

Alsup soon took over the chip lead and extended it. But Dicarlo came roaring back, turning pocket kings into a full house, aces full of kings, to claim a massive pot and retake the lead. They traded the lead back and forth, but Alsup pulled ahead going into the final hand of the tournament.

Having slipped just below 20 big blinds, Dicarlo shoved with A♠K♣. He got just the kind of call he was looking for, as Alsup matched his bet with A♣7♥. If Dicarlo held, he’d pull just ahead of Alsup in chips and continue the match.

But for the third time at the final table, with a ton of chips in the middle, Alsup found his outs. The J♣7♣3♦ flop put Alsup well ahead, and neither the 5♠ turn nor the 8♥ river could pull it out for Dicarlo. Instead, he collected $900,000 for second place. The 2025 WSOP Online bracelet winner set a lofty new top-score mark for his career.

In the aftermath of his staggering victory, Alsup pointed towards his source of a little extra inspiration and a lot of extra luck.

“Even on the last hand when I got it in with an [ace]-seven against ace-king, I just felt it was going to come. I got new baby run-good, so that probably helped out a little bit. I’m just very thankful to get a big score and provide for my family.”

Final Table Results

Photo credits: WSOP / Lennart Hennig