All eyes at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas were on one person today: Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel. Nearly four decades after his first one, Seidel had made his 43rd WSOP final table in Event #96: $3,000 6-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha of the 2026 World Series of Poker, looking to capture his 11th bracelet and the largest share of the $2,381,640 prize pool.
Unfortunately for Seidel and his sizable rail of fans, he ran into the unstoppable force that was Joshua Wang, a recreational player originally from China but now residing in the United States. Wang accounted for four of the five eliminations at the official final table, with Seidel the last man trying to play the role of the immovable object. However, after a brief heads-up battle, Seidel was dispatched as well, meaning Wang walked away with the $407,137 top prize and his first-ever bracelet.
Event #96: $3,000 6-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Wang | China | $407,137 |
| 2 | Erik Seidel | United States | $271,371 |
| 3 | Robert Mizrachi | United States | $185,282 |
| 4 | Christopher Vitch | United States | $128,819 |
| 5 | Pakinai Lisawad | Thailand | $91,232 |
| 6 | Biao Ding | China | $65,840 |
“I feel amazing,” Wang shared with PokerNews after he had received poker’s ultimate trophy. “Coming here, playing the best players in the world and this amazing game, amazing structure. I really enjoyed it, and I feel so lucky to be the last one standing and to win this, my first bracelet.”
The other names Wang took out from the final table were no slouches themselves. Biao Ding, Christopher Vitch, and Robert Mizrachi, all accomplished 25K Fantasy picks, fell victim to Wang’s wrath.
Late Arrival Wang Dominates Day 3
With 17 other players returning for the final day, Wang was notably absent from his seat for the first 30 minutes of play. Once he sat down, though, he immediately started collecting chips. Not your typical grinder, Wang engaged in table talk nearly every hand, showing cards left and right, all the while increasing his stack to commence the final two tables as second in chips.
“I wasn’t using that as an edge,” Wang explained. “I just enjoy the game, and I try to improve my game by showing my cards, giving other players that are ready to exchange information with me.”
There was no stopping Wang, who eliminated Andreas Hagen (9th – $36,336) on his way to amassing a massive chip lead for the unofficial final table of seven players. Wang then put a brutal beat on Krasimir Yankov, who became the bubble boy of the official final table when Wang rivered a set of aces against Yankov’s flopped set of kings. Securing the massive pot meant Wang had nearly half the chips in play six-handed, enabling him to steamroll the competition in what became a final table masterclass.
If there were any doubts left about how Wang would fare for the rest of the final table, they were completely erased four-handed. An enormous preflop confrontation saw him knock out Vitch and Mizrachi in one fell swoop, securing a heads-up battle with poker legend Seidel. Despite starting with a six-to-one chip disadvantage, Seidel offered some resistance at the start. However, in the end, nothing could stop Wang’s hot run, not even flopping the nuts, as Seidel would find out. He got all his chips in with a flopped straight against Wang’s set and flush draw, but Wang locked up the pot on the turn with a full house to secure his first-ever bracelet.
After the dust had settled, Wang made sure to honor all who made his poker journey possible. “I want to thank my family, who support me and thanks to all my friends who was here and who is at home, [who] cheer for me. And I thank all you guys, the staff and dealers. You make this possible for us.”
As for the rest of the summer, only one thing remains for Wang. “I’m going back home to see my kids. It has been a long summer for me.”
