# 2015 World Series of Poker

The 2015 World Series of Poker is the 46th annual World Series of Poker (WSOP). It was held from May 27 – July 14 at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Paradise, Nevada. There were 68 bracelet events, culminating in the $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event, which began on July 5. The November Nine concept returned for an eighth year. Instead of a $10 million guaranteed first prize for the Main Event, however, there were now 1,000 guaranteed payouts.
New tournament formats included the $565 Colossus No Limit Hold'em event, the lowest buy-in open event at the WSOP since the 1980 WSOP. The tournament featured four starting flights with a re-entry option for each flight and a $5,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. The $1,000 WSOP.com No Limit Hold'em event awarded the first WSOP bracelet in an online tournament, with the final six players playing at the Rio on July 4. A bounty tournament was also featured, with a player earning $500 for each elimination. A Super Seniors event was also added, open to players 65 or older. In addition to these new formats, the structure for lower buy-in events was also altered and featured five times the buy-in for a starting stack.

## Event schedule

Source:
| # | Event | Entrants | Winner | Prize | Runner-up | Results |
| 1 | $565 Casino Employees No Limit Hold'em | 688 | Brandon Barnette (1/1) | $75,704 | Greg Seiden | Results |
| 2 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em | 422 | Michael Wang (1/1) | $466,120 | Bryn Kenney (0/1) | Results |
| 3 | $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better | 918 | Robert Mizrachi (1/3) | $251,022 | Jacob Dahl | Results |
| 4 | $3,000 No Limit Hold'em Shootout | 308 | Nick Petrangelo (1/1) | $201,812 | Jason Les | Results |
| 5 | $565 The Colossus No Limit Hold'em | 22,374 | Cord Garcia (1/1) | $638,880 | Bradley McFarland | Results |
| 6 | $1,000 Hyper Hold'em | 1,436 | John Reading (1/1) | $252,068 | Marc Macdonnell | Results |
| 7 | $10,000 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball Championship | 109 | Tuan Le (1/2) | $322,756 | Max Casal | Results |
| 8 | $1,500 Pot Limit Hold'em | 639 | Paul Michaelis (1/1) | $189,818 | Tom Marchese | Results |
| 9 | $1,500 Razz | 462 | Max Pescatori (1/3) | $155,947 | Ryan Miller | Results |
| 10 | $10,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em Championship | 143 | Keith Lehr (1/2) | $334,430 | Paul Volpe (0/1) | Results |
| 11 | $1,500 Limit Hold'em | 660 | William Kakon (1/1) | $196,055 | Daniel Needleman | Results |
| 12 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em 6-Handed | 1,651 | Idan Raviv (1/1) | $457,007 | Iaron Lightbourne | Results |
| 13 | $2,500 Omaha/Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better | 474 | Konstantin Maslak (1/1) | $269,612 | Hani Awad | Results |
| 14 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em Shootout | 1,000 | Barry Hutter (1/1) | $283,546 | Benjamin Zamani | Results |
| 15 | $10,000 Pot Limit Hold'em Championship | 128 | Shaun Deeb (1/1) | $318,857 | Paul Volpe (0/1) | Results |
| 16 | $1,500 Millionaire Maker No Limit Hold'em | 7,275 | Adrian Buckley (1/1) | $1,277,193 | Javier Zarco | Results |
| 17 | $10,000 Razz Championship | 103 | Phil Hellmuth (1/14) | $271,105 | Mike Gorodinsky (0/1) | Results |
| 18 | $1,000 Turbo No Limit Hold'em | 1,791 | John Gale (1/2) | $298,290 | Gary Luther | Results |
| 19 | $3,000 Limit Hold'em 6-Handed | 319 | Matthew Elsby (1/1) | $230,799 | Gabriel Nassif | Results |
| 20 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 1,844 | Benjamin Zamani (1/1) | $460,640 | Natasha Barbour | Results |
| 21 | $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship | 157 | Daniel Alaei (1/5) | $391,097 | Kyle Miaso | Results |
| 22 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 1,915 | Sam Greenwood (1/1) | $318,977 | Cole Jackson | Results |
| 23 | $1,500 No Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball | 219 | Christian Pham (1/1) | $81,314 | Daniel Ospina | Results |
| 24 | $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. | 772 | Arash Ghaneian (1/1) | $239,750 | Robert Campbell | Results |
| 25 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em 8-Handed | 493 | Jeff Tomlinson (1/1) | $567,724 | Pierre Milan (0/1) | Results |
| 26 | $1,000 Pot Limit Omaha | 1,293 | Aaron Wallace (1/1) | $226,985 | Marko Neumann | Results |
| 27 | $10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship | 91 | Brian Hastings (1/2) | $239,518 | Scott Clements (0/2) | Results |
| 28 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em Monster Stack | 7,192 | Perry Shiao (1/1) | $1,286,942 | Eric Place | Results |
| 29 | $10,000 No Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball Championship | 77 | Phil Galfond (1/1) | $224,383 | Nick Schulman (0/2) | Results |
| 30 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 2,150 | Ivan Luca (1/1) | $353,391 | Artur Rudziankov | Results |
| 31 | $3,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better | 480 | Jeff Madsen (1/4) | $301,413 | Jean-Marc Thomas | Results |
| 32 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em 6-Handed | 550 | Jason Mercier (1/3) | $633,357 | Simon Deadman | Results |
| 33 | $1,500 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball | 388 | Benny Glaser (1/1) | $136,215 | Brock Parker (0/3) | Results |
| 34 | $1,500 Split Format Hold'em | 873 | Andre Boyer (1/2) | $250,483 | Erwann Pecheux | Results |
| 35 | $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. | 376 | Daniel Idema (1/3) | $261,774 | Matt Vengrin | Results |
| 36 | $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha | 978 | Corrie Wunstel (1/1) | $266,874 | Kevin Saul | Results |
| 37 | $10,000 No Limit Hold'em 6-Handed Championship | 259 | Byron Kaverman (1/1) | $657,351 | Doug Polk (0/1) | Results |
| 38 | $3,000 No Limit Hold'em | 989 | Thiago Nishijima (1/1) | $546,843 | Sotirios Koutoupas | Results |
| 39 | $1,500 Ten-Game Mix | 380 | Brian Hastings (2/3) | $133,403 | Rostislav Tsodikov | Results |
| 40 | $1,000 Seniors No Limit Hold'em Championship | 4,193 | Travis Baker (1/1) | $613,466 | Carl Torelli | Results |
| 41 | $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship | 111 | Max Pescatori (2/4) | $292,158 | Stephen Chidwick | Results |
| 42 | $1,500 Extended Play No Limit Hold'em | 1,914 | Adrian Apmann (1/1) | $478,102 | Yehoram Houri | Results |
| 43 | $1,000 Super Seniors No Limit Hold'em | 1,533 | Jon Andlovec (1/1) | $262,220 | Rodney H. Pardey (0/2) | Results |
| 44 | $50,000 Poker Players Championship | 84 | Mike Gorodinsky (1/2) | $1,270,086 | Jean-Robert Bellande | Results |
| 45 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 1,655 | Upeshka De Silva (1/1) | $424,577 | Dara O'Kearney | Results |
| 46 | $3,000 Pot Limit Omaha 6-Handed | 682 | Vasili Firsau (1/1) | $437,575 | Nipun Java | Results |
| 47 | $2,500 No Limit Hold'em | 1,244 | Matt O'Donnell (1/1) | $551,941 | Timur Margolin | Results |
| 48 | $1,500 Seven Card Stud | 327 | Eli Elezra (1/3) | $112,591 | Benjamin Lazer | Results |
| 49 | $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better | 815 | Young Ji (1/1) | $231,102 | Mark Dube | Results |
| 50 | $10,000 Limit Hold'em Championship | 117 | Ben Yu (1/1) | $291,456 | Jesse Martin | Results |
| 51 | $3,000 No Limit Hold'em 6-Handed | 1,043 | Justin Liberto (1/1) | $640,711 | Seamus Cahill | Results |
| 52 | $1,500 Dealers Choice | 357 | Carol Fuchs (1/1) | $127,735 | Ilya Krupin | Results |
| 53 | $10,000/$1,000 Ladies No Limit Hold'em Championship | 795 | Jacquelyn Scott (1/1) | $153,876 | Hope Williams | Results |
| 54 | $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Championship | 387 | Alexander Petersen (1/1) | $927,655 | Jason Mercier (1/3) | Results |
| 55 | $1,500 Draftkings 50/50 No Limit Hold'em | 1,123 | Brandon Wittmeyer (1/1) | $200,618 | Derek Gomez | Results |
| 56 | $5,000 Turbo No Limit Hold'em | 454 | Kevin MacPhee (1/1) | $490,800 | Igor Yaroshevskyy | Results |
| 57 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 2,497 | Takahiro Nakai (1/1) | $399,039 | Mel Wiener (0/1) | Results |
| 58 | $111,111 High Roller for One Drop | 135 | Jonathan Duhamel (1/2) | $3,989,985 | Bill Klein | Results |
| 59 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,155 | Alex Lindop (1/1) | $531,037 | Aurelien Guiglini | Results |
| 60 | $25,000 High Roller Pot Limit Omaha | 175 | Anthony Zinno (1/1) | $1,122,196 | Pakinai Lisawad | Results |
| 61 | $1,111 The Little One for One Drop | 4,555 | Paul Hoefer (1/1) | $645,969 | Mario Lopez | Results |
| 62 | $1,500 Bounty No Limit Hold'em | 2,178 | Jack Duong (1/1) | $333,351 | Vitezslav Pesta | Results |
| 63 | $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship | 204 | Andrew Barber (1/1) | $517,766 | Viacheslav Zhukov (0/2) | Results |
| 64 | $1,000 WSOP.com Online No Limit Hold'em | 905 | Anthony Spinella (1/1) | $197,743 | Hunter Cichy | Results |
| 65 | $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better | 547 | Gerald Ringe (1/1) | $180,943 | Christopher Vitch | Results |
| 66 | $777 Lucky Sevens No Limit Hold'em | 4,422 | Connor Berkowitz (1/1) | $487,784 | John Armbrust | Results |
| 67 | $10,000 Dealers Choice Championship | 108 | Quinn Do (1/2) | $319,792 | Rep Porter (0/2) | Results |
| 68 | $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event | 6,420 | Joe McKeehen (1/1) | $7,683,346 | Joshua Beckley | Results |

## Player of the Year

Final standings as of October 24 (end of WSOPE):
Standings :
| Rank | Name | Points | Bracelets |
| 1 | Mike Gorodinsky | 2,251.81 | 1 |
| 2 | Jonathan Duhamel | 2,174.64 | 2 |
| 3 | Kevin MacPhee | 2,168.98 | 2 |
| 4 | Brian Hastings | 2,122.53 | 2 |
| 5 | Shaun Deeb | 2,056.40 | 1 |
| 6 | Anthony Zinno | 1,942.72 | 1 |
| 7 | Paul Volpe | 1,889.46 | 0 |
| 8 | Ismael Bojang | 1,808.40 | 0 |
| 9 | Stephen Chidwick | 1,764.68 | 0 |
| 10 | Mike Leah | 1,710.95 | 0 |

## Main Event

The $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event began on July 5 with the first of three starting flights. The November Nine was reached on July 14, with the finalists returning on November 8. The final table was played over three days. The first day played down to the final six players, the second was played down to three players, and finally the bracelet was awarded on November 10.
The Main Event drew 6,420 players, creating a prize pool of $60,348,000. The top 1,000 players finished in the money. Each player at the final table earned over $1,000,000, with first place being $7,683,346.

### Performance of past champions

| Name | Championship Year(s) | Day of Elimination |
| Johnny Chan | 1987, 1988 | 2AB |
| Phil Hellmuth | 1989 | 4 (417th)* |
| Jim Bechtel | 1993 | 5 (121st)* |
| Dan Harrington | 1995 | 2AB |
| Huck Seed | 1996 | 2C |
| Scotty Nguyen | 1998 | 3 (713th)* |
| Carlos Mortensen | 2001 | 2AB |
| Robert Varkonyi | 2002 | 2C |
| Chris Moneymaker | 2003 | 2AB |
| Greg Raymer | 2004 | 3 |
| Joe Hachem | 2005 | 4 (298th)* |
| Jamie Gold | 2006 | 2C |
| Jerry Yang | 2007 | 1C |
| Peter Eastgate | 2008 | 2C |
| Joe Cada | 2009 | 1C |
| Jonathan Duhamel | 2010 | 4 (565th)* |
| Greg Merson | 2012 | 1C |
| Ryan Riess | 2013 | 4 (426th)* |
| Martin Jacobson | 2014 | 1C |
* Indicates the place of a player who finished in the money

### Other notable high finishes

NB: This list is restricted to top 100 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.
| Place | Name | Prize |
| 11th | Daniel Negreanu | $526,778 |
| 25th | Fedor Holz | $262,574 |
| 36th | Upeshka De Silva | $211,821 |
| 49th | Brian Hastings | $137,300 |
| 51st | Matthew Jarvis | $137,300 |
| 53rd | Toby Lewis | $137,300 |
| 64th | Justin Bonomo | $96,445 |
| 95th | Brandon Adams | $55,649 |

### November Nine

| Name | Number of chips (percentage of total) | WSOP Bracelets | WSOP Cashes* | WSOP Earnings* |
| Joe McKeehen | 63,100,000 (32.8%) | 0 | 8 | $883,494 |
| Ofer Zvi Stern | 29,800,000 (15.5%) | 0 | 5 | $58,384 |
| Neil Blumenfield | 22,000,000 (11.4%) | 0 | 3 | $44,395 |
| Pierre Neuville | 21,075,000 (10.9%) | 0 | 19 | $591,460 |
| Max Steinberg | 20,200,000 (10.5%) | 1 | 11 | $1,406,138 |
| Thomas Cannuli | 12,250,000 (6.4%) | 0 | 2 | $20,203 |
| Joshua Beckley | 11,800,000 (6.1%) | 0 | 4 | $19,403 |
| Patrick Chan | 6,225,000 (3.2%) | 0 | 4 | $113,145 |
| Federico Butteroni | 6,200,000 (3.2%) | 0 | 2 | $49,255 |
*Career statistics prior to the beginning of the 2015 Main Event.

### Final Table

| Place | Name | Prize |
| 1st | Joe McKeehen | $7,683,346 |
| 2nd | Joshua Beckley | $4,470,896 |
| 3rd | Neil Blumenfield | $3,398,298 |
| 4th | Max Steinberg | $2,615,361 |
| 5th | Ofer Zvi Stern | $1,911,423 |
| 6th | Thomas Cannuli | $1,426,283 |
| 7th | Pierre Neuville | $1,203,293 |
| 8th | Federico Butteroni | $1,097,056 |
| 9th | Patrick Chan | $1,001,020 |

## Records

The $565 Colossus No Limit Hold'em event established a new record for largest field in a WSOP event, attracting 22,374 entrants. The previous record was set in the 2006 Main Event with 8,773. The event also set a new record as the largest live poker tournament.
With his victory in the $10,000 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball Championship, Tuan Le became the first player to win the same $10,000 buy-in event in consecutive years since Johnny Chan won the Main Event in 1988. Counting all buy-in amounts, he is the first to accomplish this feat since Thang Luu won his second consecutive $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better event in 2009.