Top 5 WPT® Poker Hands Uploaded in October 2025

Daniel Bugzon with pocket 7♦7♣ faced a pre-flop raise to 800,000 and decided to go for gold, moving all-in. Jin Hwang, holding a strong A♠K♠, made the call. Daniel asked for a count with an incredulous expression before committing his chips, and just like that, a 12.8M-chip cooler was underway. 

This kind of cooler of pocket pairs versus A-K remains one of the most frequent final-table matchups in WPT® history, but it rarely swings this dramatically. 

The flop of Q♦10♠9♥ kept things tense. Bugzon’s underpair was still ahead, but Hwang picked up a gutshot straight draw and a handful of live outs. When Hwang called out in hope for a Jack of hearts, his prayers were answered, the J♣ hit the turn, giving him broadway. 

Hwang’s call pre-flop with A-K suited is standard at this stage, but hitting Broadway on the turn after missing the flop shows how thin equity spots can flip entire tournaments.

Bugzon still had a backdoor flush draw, but the 7♥ on the river bricked out, sealing the massive pot for Hwang. Bugzon exited in third place, cashing for over $300,000, while Hwang cemented his dominance at the table.

After picking up K♠7♦, Amit Makhija decided to shove all-in pre-flop, confident the move would close out the tournament. John Phan peeled his cards to find 3♣3♦ - a small pair but solid against a wide shove, and after a moment of tanking, made the call.

Pocket threes win only about 54% of the time versus K-7 offsuit pre-flop, but once the flop brought Q-5-5, Phan was almost a 99% favorite.

Both stacks were under 25 BB effective, which explains Makhija’s shove frequency and Phan’s snap-call range.

The flop of Q♣5♥5♠ connected perfectly for Phan, giving him a full house, fives full of threes, while Makhija still had two live overcards. The A♦ on the turn brought more outs for Amit, but the 10♣ on the river confirmed Phan’s victory.

Phan captured the WPT title, the $4.2M pot, and the respect of everyone watching, both players showing real class and sportsmanship to close out an unforgettable final hand. It’s fantastic to see a WPT® final hand close with such a clean board - no slowrolls, no controversy, just solid play and respect from both finalists.

The action started when Jeff opened to 550,000 with Q♠2♠, and Jay called with J♥4♥.

The flop came J♣4♣4♦, giving Jay a flopped full house. This setup is one of the rarest in hold ’em, as flopping a full house occurs about once every 700 hands. When it happens, most players check to protect value and keep weaker hands involved.

However, he checked, opting for a trap, and Jeff checked back. The 7♠ on the turn changed nothing, with another check from Jay, slow-playing his monster.

Slow-playing here is standard on such dry textures. With no overcards or straight draws threatening the board, Jay’s check disguises strength and maximises value from bluffs on later streets.

Then came the 9♦ on the river, completing Jeff’s runner-runner flush. Jay led for 750,000, Jeff raised to 2M, and Jay instantly moved all-in. Jeff made the call and turned over his flush, only to see Jay table fours full of jacks for a crushing showdown.

Jay scooped the 10M pot, giving us one of the wildest river coolers in WPT memory.

So, what's interesting about this? 

It's a hand that shows why river aggression cuts both ways. Flush-over-full-house spots are some of the most expensive in tournament poker, and this one will likely join the WPT® highlight reels as a classic example of variance at work.

Upon seeing his 6♣6♠, Andy did not hesitate for a moment to lay down 600 grand preflop. 

Darren Elias, one of the game’s most consistent crushers, woke up with 10♦10♥ and 3-bet to 1.55M. Andy called, setting up a classic middle pair vs. overpair confrontation.

With the flop giving 9, A, 6, a triple on the flop gave Andy a nice boost. As it turns out, Elias decided to go forward with a continuation bet of 1.3 million. It was only a matter of Andy raising or calling, and he went with the latter. 

A Queen of diamonds arrived on the turn, which both players checked. Four spades on the river offered little development for either player until Andy went all in. 

After what seemed like an eternity (even prompting the manager to consider calling the clock), Elias made the correct decision to fold, and the sizable pot went to Andy’s corner. His decision to fold an overpair here shows veteran discipline. Even elite players respect the ICM pressure of late-stage WPT® finals, where survival value outweighs chip EV.

An aggressive force at this final table, Jason Koon sat second in chips and opened the button with 6♠5♠ for 250,000. Randal Flowers, holding J♦10♦, defended his big blind.

The flop came K♣8♣8♦, missing both players. Flowers checked, and Koon, known for his relentless triple-barrel potential, fired 250,000. Flowers floated with no made hand, setting up a move for later streets.

The 9♦ on the turn was a dream card, giving Flowers an open-ended straight flush draw and real equity. Koon, still with just a gutshot, bet again, and Flowers called.

Then came the 7♥ on the river, both players hit their straights, but Flowers held the nut end. He checked to induce. Koon bet 1.5M, and Flowers shoved all-in, covering him.

After a long tank, Koon made the call, only to see J♦10♦ rolled over for the winner. Koon’s lower straight couldn’t hold, sending him out in 4th place as Flowers vaulted into the chip lead, the kind of sick cooler only seen at a WPT final table.

Summary

Across October’s uploads, aggressive range play dominated final-table highlights. Cooler situations, flushes, straights, and full houses showed how thin equity spots decide major titles. 

November’s uploads promise more big-stack pressure and deep-run drama as the season heads toward the World Championship.

More to come.

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