Fawcett Doubles Up; First-Timers Price, Jacobs Win WSOP Bracelets

The 2026 World Series of Poker is rapidly approaching its crescendo, with over 80% of the coveted gold bracelets already awarded and the Main Event's final opening flight well underway. In this late stage of the series, three more players seized their moment in the spotlight, forever linking their names to this year's prestigious event. Justin Fawcett added a second bracelet to his collection in a specialized Pot-Limit Omaha format, while Toby Price and Adriaan Jacobs navigated immense No-Limit Hold'em fields to claim their first-ever WSOP titles.

Justin Fawcett, fresh off his first career bracelet win at the tail end of the 2025 WSOP in a $600 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em event, wasted no time in doubling his hardware. He triumphed in the unique $1,500 Double Board Bomb Pot PLO event, a format that exemplifies the diverse offerings of the WSOP schedule. Fawcett outlasted a field of 1,673 entrants, securing a hefty $322,564 first-place prize from the $2,220,907 total prize pool. His path to victory included navigating a final table stacked with talent, notably featuring defending Card Player Player of the Year Jesse Lonis, who finished 8th for $34,806, 2018 WSOP Main Event final tablist Antoine Labat, who took 5th for $81,720, and respected PLO specialist and bracelet winner Hokyiu Lee, who placed 3rd for $153,802.

This victory earned Fawcett 1,080 Player of the Year points, propelling him into the top 200 in the CoinPoker-sponsored standings. Lonis, meanwhile, holds strong in eighth place, continuing his pursuit of back-to-back POY titles, with Lee positioned at 64th.

| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Justin Fawcett | $322,564 | 1,080 | | 2 | Abdul Amer | $214,946 | 900 | | 3 | Hokyiu Lee | $153,802 | 720 | | 4 | Julio Trimmer | $111,414 | 540 | | 5 | Antoine Labat | $81,720 | 450 | | 6 | Daniel Walmsley | $60,701 | 360 | | 7 | Paul Fehlig | $45,669 | 270 | | 8 | Jesse Lonis | $34,806 | 180 |

For Toby Price, the 2026 WSOP marked a redemption story. In November 2021, Price came agonizingly close to a bracelet in a $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em event, ultimately finishing second after a heads-up battle against Paulo Joanello. This time, in his second career WSOP final table, Price left no doubt. He conquered a massive field of 6,803 entrants in the $800 'Summer Celebration' No-Limit Hold'em event, securing his first bracelet and a career-best $500,000. The final table was no easy feat, featuring seasoned pros like Michael 'Texas Mike' Moncek (3rd – $240,000) and bracelet winner and World Poker Tour champion Craig Varnell (5th – $137,000).

The 'Summer Celebration' was a whirlwind, condensing thousands of entries across two starting flights into a single winner by the end of a grueling Day 2. Price, who started Day 2 just outside the top 10, found himself in a tightly contested race, often swapping the chip lead. His decisive move came when he hit a king-high straight to eliminate Moncek. The heads-up play with Deniz Oeney saw the chip lead exchange hands multiple times, but Price ultimately sealed his victory with A♦9♠ against Oeney's K♥7♠, culminating in one final hand to secure the title. This hard-fought win earned Price 660 Card Player POY points, adding to his 2026 qualifying results.

| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Toby Price | $500,000 | 660 | | 2 | Deniz Oeney | $322,000 | 550 | | 3 | Michael Moncek | $240,000 | 440 | | 4 | Spencer Gore | $181,000 | 330 | | 5 | Craig Varnell | $137,000 | 275 | | 6 | Mauro Sosa | $105,000 | 220 | | 7 | James Murphey | $81,000 | 165 | | 8 | Fabian Niederreiter | $63,000 | 110 | | 9 | Yibo Song | $50,000 | 55 |

Rounding out the trio of bracelet winners was 21-year-old Adriaan Jacobs, who claimed the fourth-ever South African WSOP bracelet in the $600 Deepstack Championship No-Limit Hold'em event. Prior to this tournament, Jacobs had minimal major live tournament experience, yet he navigated a massive field of 5,177 players over four days to earn a $282,817 first-place prize and his inaugural bracelet. His win marks the first live bracelet for a South African player since 1990, a full 15 years before Jacobs was even born.

The Deepstack event guaranteed a first-time winner well before Day 3, as the last three previous bracelet winners — Georgios Sotiropoulos (57th), seven-time WSOP champion Men 'The Master' Nguyen (56th), and Frank Marasco (55th) — were eliminated in quick succession late on Day 2. Jacobs began Day 3 in third place among 50 remaining players and built a commanding chip lead with five players left. He briefly lost the lead in a three-way all-in pot where both he and Xingwei Chen held ace-king against Seong Han's pocket kings. However, Han soon returned those chips when his own A♥K♦ ran into Jacobs' pocket aces on an ace-high board. The final hand saw Jacobs' J♥10♥ hit a flush on the K♥ turn against Paul Merlette's K♦8♣, securing his monumental victory. Jacobs' triumph also awarded him 660 Card Player POY points.

| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Adriaan Jacobs | $282,817 | 660 | | 2 | Paul Merlette | $188,231 | 550 | | 3 | Seong Han | $139,723 | 440 | | 4 | Junichi Murakami | $104,555 | 330 | | 5 | Xingwei Chen | $78,876 | 275 | | 6 | Lisa Meiling Tan | $59,994 | 220 | | 7 | Toros Dimitian | $46,010 | 165 | | 8 | Christopher Summers-James | $35,580 | 110 | | 9 | Yoann Saubot | $27,747 | 55 |

As the 2026 WSOP hurtles towards its conclusion, these three players have left an indelible mark, showcasing the diverse talent and thrilling narratives that define poker's most prestigious tournament series.