The Rail This Week
Yesterday
Chasing $10 million in paradise.
The final table of the 2025 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event is about as eclectic as they come. According to PokerOrg, the field of 2,891 has been whittled down to eight, each guaranteed at least $1.1 million, and the winner walking away with $10 million. Jean-Noel Thorel, noted for his scientific background as much as his poker prowess, sits atop the chip counts.
Binder, an Austrian with a hot streak online, is looking to turn his recent digital success into live tournament glory. Natasha Mercier, half of poker’s original power couple, has returned to the felt after focusing on family life.
With high rollers, comeback stories, and a dash of scientific curiosity, this is one final table that promises more than just big pots.
Day 3 action of the WPT World Championship live stream is here.
This live stream runs to the 3-hour mark, making it another great watch to have in the background while we all pretend to work before shutting down for the holidays.The story behind Jean-Noel Thorel is amazing.
He’s 78, a pharmacist and leads the Super Main Event with an impressive chip lead!Jesse Lonis on Jesse Lonis.
What he really thought about that hand.Alec Torelli breaks down that Jesse Lonis hand.
Everyone’s got an opinion.Watch day 4 Paradise highlights.
We know the feed is flooded with WSOP Paradise content, but honestly, the stories are too good and the highlight reel is excellent.Ever wanted poker advice from Phil Galfond or Hellmuth?
Well BetRivers Poker has got you covered in their new series called, “Between Two Phils”.“A career highlight is the result of pure audacity,” according to David Lappin.
He has assembled his panel of “poker avengers” to find out their personal highlights for 2025.Absolute brutal scenes for Faraz Jaka.
Just catching up with the all the Super Main Event action we missed over night. This one stings!The Super Main Event slowroll that has everyone talking.
This hand between Benny Glaser and Eric Wasserson has got everyone tied up in knots.The WSOP Super Main Event final table is set.
Jean-Noel Thorel is not your average chip leader. At 78, the French biologist dominated Day 4 of the WSOP Paradise $25,000 Super Main Event, ending with almost 40 percent of the chips after knocking out Leonard Maue in a classic aces-versus-kings battle. According to PokerNews, Thorel’s closest rival, Bernhard Binder, lost ground late but still has a healthy stack heading into the final day.
Natasha Mercier, the last woman standing, will try to better Liv Boeree’s deep run from last year. The final table also features bracelet winners Eric Wasserson and Franco Spitale, along with Belarmino De Souza, Terrance Reid, and Peter Chien.
“The day began with just 24 players returning from a record field of 2,891 entries at Atlantis Paradise Island Bahamas, which created a massive $72,275,000 prize pool with a cool $10,000,000 up top.”
It’s a stacked final table, but for now, the spotlight is firmly on Thorel and his commanding lead.
December 17
How to win big at poker: avoid the parties, play your own game and focus.
Chris Moneymaker knows a thing or two about turning an amateur ticket into a multimillion-dollar win. In an interview for Pokerati, he reflects on his own experience arriving in Las Vegas as an unknown accountant, and the temptation for new players to get distracted by the lifestyle and glitz.
He suggests rookies should keep it simple:
“I don’t try to study poker and learn new concepts, new strategies. There’s a time and place to learn poker theory, but going into the tournament, you need to play your game, what you’re comfortable with.”
With amateurs again lining up for WSOP Paradise in The Bahamas, Moneymaker’s advice is to focus on the game, not the parties or goodie bags. It might not be glamorous, but it worked for him back in 2003.
WSOP has revealed its key 2026 dates and a few new twists.
The flagship Las Vegas WSOP series will happen from May 26 to July 15 at Horseshoe and Paris, while WSOP Paradise returns to the Bahamas for December. For those planning ahead, satellites for all three major bracelet events will be running online via GGPoker and WSOP Online.
The European leg is moving to Prague and will now happen from March 31 to April 12, 2026.
This marks a big shift for WSOP Europe, which has traditionally slotted in later in the year. The full Vegas tournament schedule and Main Event dates are still under wraps. According to the announcement, players should “make early travel arrangements” if they want the best rates, so maybe don’t wait for the last minute offer this time.
Only 100 days until the Irish Open returns.
This one always delivers, and players just love it! If you want to try to win your way there for less, we know online satellites are running on PokerStars, iPoker, and Paddy Power over in the dot-com market (i.e., players NOT in America).Here’s the live stream of Day 3 of the WSOP Super Main Event.
This video is over 11 hours long, but if you want something playing in the background while you pretend to work, this is the one.Chips, champs, and a shrinking crowd.
According to PokerOrg, the WPT World Championship at Wynn saw its field shrink for the second straight year. Only 1,865 showed up for the $40 million guaranteed event, a 22 percent drop from last year. But as the article notes, “no one is complaining about the upscale accommodations at Wynn.”
Phil Ivey and Johnny 'World’ Hennigan are among the notables heading into Day 3 with big stacks, joined by a rare Triple Crown winner. Despite the smaller field, 733 players survived Day 2, with just eight more eliminations before everyone still standing makes the money.
The article points out that other tournaments, like WSOP’s Super Main Event, are drawing bigger numbers and prize pools, but the WPT still delivers a successful championship which is a fan-favorite.
The remaining 24 players of the WSOP Paradise Super Main Event return today at 1pm EST to play down to an huge final table.
Here is a sneak peak at the Super Main Event Day 3 top 10 stacks (and there are some big names in there.) It’s great to see Natasha Mercier repping the ladies and Faraz Jaka for proving the haters wrong.
| Position | Player | Chip Stack |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pascal Lefrancois | 126,400,000 |
| 2 | William Blais | 123,300,000 |
| 3 | Daniel Reijmer | 115,400,000 |
| 4 | Jean-Noel Thorel | 101,200,000 |
| 5 | Charles Hook | 94,200,000 |
| 6 | Bernhard Binder | 89,500,000 |
| 7 | Natasha Mercier | 88,000,000 |
| 8 | Belarmino De Souza | 86,500,000 |
| 9 | Leonard Maue | 70,000,000 |
| 10 | Faraz Jaka | 63,300,000 |
Weeeee! WSOP Paradise Super Main Event prize pool now exceeds $72 million.
The stats are in, and they are crazy! The WSOP Paradise Super Main Event had a guarantee of $60 million, which has been easily met. The prize pool now stands at over $72 million, making it one of the top ten largest prize pools in poker history.Where’s the most interesting place you’ve played poker?
Not sure our answer of down the pub would cut it compared to some of these answers.David Lappin weighs in on the unlimited reentry debate.
Are they good for the game or bad? As ever, Lappin has thoughts, which he isn’t afraid to share.The WSOP Europe schedule for 2026 is here.
According to the recent announcement, the Player of the Year race is also going global, connecting events from Europe, Las Vegas, and the Bahamas into a single, unified leaderboard with a total prize pool of $1 million.
“We are thrilled to kick off 2026 with a bold new vision for the World Series of Poker,” said Ty Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of WSOP. “By uniting our three flagship live series under a unified, $1M Player of the Year competition, we’re giving players a true global season to chase history.”
The race starts in Prague, moves through Las Vegas, and finishes in Paradise. The top 100 players will win WSOP packages or tickets, and the overall winner gets a $100,000 Paradise package—so someone’s holiday plans are sorted. Check out the new leaderboard if you want to see who’s already logging those air miles.
December 16
Want to get a simple take on the Fair bet Act?
Railbird Creations has got you covered in their recent substack.“There will be blood.”
Kevin Hart takes centre stage of the 15th season of High Stakes Poker. The show will be available over on PokerGO.BetRivers has two out of three famous poker Phils signed on as ambassadors.
Check out what poker skills Galfond and Hellmuth are working on at the moment, courtesy of BetRivers Poker.Who do you ask for an autograph?
Phil Ivey or Brad Owen?The Mizrachis do Paradise.
According to the latest episode of The Grinder in Paradise, Michael Mizrachi secured a bag for Day 2 of the WSOP Paradise Super Main Event. The episode details his post-grind adventures, including a family trip to Jaws Beach and a crash course in 'how to be a shark.’
There are updates on Day 1A last longer results and plenty of footage of the Mizrachi brothers causing chaos in the Bahamas. As Michael puts it in his intro, he’s ready for another day on the felt and maybe a bit of mischief with his brothers.
'After the grind, we hit the beach… gotta teach these guys to be sharks in and out of the water.’
It’s poker, family antics, and a healthy dose of sunburn. No word yet on whether the sharks were impressed.
PokerStars sharing some great hands from EPT Prague.
Check this one out.Things are looking rosy over in Vegas.
The WPT Championship numbers are in and the prize pool now stands at over $18 million. Noice.Day 10 at WSOP Paradise.
This one is painful. It is not a good day at the office as Negreanu busts the WSOP Super Main Event.“What the f**k? How am I out? I’m f**king furious right now.”
Daniel Negreanu is spitting feathers as he busts out of the WSOP Super Main Event. To be fair, if we were down $400,000, we would be pretty upset too!Shaun Deeb continues to fire shots at Phil Hellmuth.
Over at WSOP Paradise, Jeff Platt catches up with Shaun Deeb, who remains certain that Phil Hellmuth is not the player he once was and will never add to his WSOP bracelet count. Obviously, the poker brat couldn’t disagree more.Miscommunication: the most expensive hand at the table.
James Caputo found himself at the center of another WSOP controversy, and this time it was over a hand that left everyone scratching their heads. In the $25k Super Main Event, Caputo got tangled in a multi-way all-in with Ryan Depaulo and Andre Moreira. After some verbal confusion and a misinterpretation by the dealer, Caputo’s hand hit the muck, even though he insisted he never folded.
PokerNews reports that the hand took about ten minutes to resolve, with the floor manager called over to make a ruling. Caputo argued, 'I never said fold,’ while tablemate Martin Zamani backed him up. Meanwhile, Depaulo and Moreira were left to play on, as Caputo’s tournament life was decided by an apparent misunderstanding.
The incident has sparked debate among poker fans about the importance of clear communication at the table and the role of dealers in high-stakes moments.
December 15
PartyPoker Tour team members revealed.
PartyPoker has its ambassadors, the Staples brothers, as everyone knows: Jaime and Matt Staples.
But the PartyPoker Tour has its own dedicated team, and it has just unveiled a dozen players, including Barry Carter, Sam Acheampong, Joe Beevers, Asif Warris, Natalie Bromley, and Glenn Brown.
Turns out, your side hustle can be more profitable than your 9-to-5.
Matan Krakow took a winter break from his day job to win the EPT Prague Main Event, proving that sometimes, a hobby really does pay off. His flush on the river sealed the deal for €778,255 and a shiny trophy, giving his colleagues back home plenty to talk about.Poker pro Adrián Mateos up for prestigious sports award.
Loyal readers of The Rail will know we broke this last week, but now other media sites are catching up, so there’s no harm we revisit it.
He joins a roster of names like Lamine Yamal and Carlos Alcaraz, which is not the usual crowd for a high stakes poker pro. According to Mateos, this nomination is not just about him. He told Winamax:
“This nomination is great for poker. Newer generations are already seeing it for what it is: a mind sport.”
Mateos is no stranger to accolades, with five WSOP bracelets in his collection, but this is a new kind of achievement.
Clubs Poker is rolling out its 12 Days of ClubsMas event from December 14 to 25, and they’re keeping things simple.
Sit at a Sweeps Coin ring game between 9 PM and midnight, and you could be at one of three mystery tables each night where everyone wins 20 SC, just for being there.
You don’t have to win a hand, hit a jackpot, or meet complex qualifications — just show up, stay in your seat, and stay active. Three coin drops happen each night, so in total there are 36 chances to get a little holiday bonus.
California’s sweepstakes scene just got another empty chair.
Clubs Poker is calling it quits in California. The platform will let players cash out until December 29, so if you live in the Golden State, now is a good time to check if you have any unredeemed rewards. Looks like the sweepstakes party is officially over. Check our article for more details.Barstool Nate gets an early checkout, courtesy of his own fingers.
Barstool Nate’s poker face may need a reboot after his WSOP Super Main exit. According to PokerNews, a misclick turned a raise into a limp, and then he found himself jamming into pocket aces on stream.Day 8 and 9 vlogs from Negreanu who is still over in WSOP Paradise.
Catch up with all of Negreanu’s antics in the Day 8 and 9 videos, which include famous faces and a re-buy controversy.Winning by mistake: the Moneymaker way.
Did you know Chris Moneymaker’s legendary WSOP Main Event run started with the most relatable poker move of all: an accidental click?
In an interview we had completely forgotten about from years ago, Moneymaker admits he never meant to enter the satellite that changed poker history.
We found that interview and are bringing out the highlights you may have missed.
This is brilliant!
Need a reminder as to who Chris Moneymaker is? Then here you go.Spraggy recaps action at EPT Prague.
Relive the drama with Spraggy as he breaks down this insane hand from the EPT.Everyone’s favorite Jennifer Tilly gets cornered by Jeff Platt in Paradise.
A lovely chat with Tilly as she is between hands at WSOP Paradise.The 2025 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event was billed as the biggest single-tournament guarantee in poker history, and PokerNews reports it has officially hit the mark with room to spare.
The magic entry number of 2,400 was reached during Day 1d, with late registration still open for nearly another day. That means the final prize pool could climb even higher.
Day 1a saw 869 entries, and the momentum never slowed. As PokerNews notes, 'Players have clearly taken to the format or have simply been pulled here by the guarantee.’ Negreanu himself was among those firing multiple bullets early on.
With unlimited re-entries and a record-breaking prize pool, the only question left is just how big the payout will get. For now, it sits as the second-biggest poker tournament prize pool in history, trailing only the 2019 Triton Million.