Top 10 poker players to follow at the 2023 WSOP

Stephen Chidwick (photo by Flickr)

The competition in the World Series of Poker is fierce, and only the best of the best have what it takes to come out on top. In this article, we'll look at 10 players who have established themselves as top contenders to make some noise at this year's event, which begins on Tuesday at Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas on the Strip and runs through 18 July.

From seasoned veterans with multiple bracelets to up-and-coming stars making a name for themselves, these players are worth following if you want to stay on top of the action in the world's most prestigious poker series.

10. Espen Uhlen Jørstad
The 2022 WSOP Main Event winner, Espen Uhlen Jørstad, is someone to follow since it is always interesting to see how the defending Main Event champion fares. He crushed it last year at the WSOP and probably spent a lot of time working with poker software to get even better, so let's see what 2023 brings to him.

In addition to achieving the ultimate poker feat and outlasting 8,663 players, the second-largest field in WSOP history, on his way to a $10 million payday, the Norwegian also won the $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold'em with Patrick Leonard for $74,042.

9. Stephen Chidwick
Another crusher from the poker tour, Stephen Chidwick, has won over $47 million in live poker tournaments, which is enough for fourth place on the all-time money list. He also ranks No. 1 on England’s all-time earnings list.

He already has a rich WSOP resume with one bracelet, 13 final tables and 53 cashes.

Chidwick's only WSOP bracelet came in 2019 when he won the $25,000 Pot Limit Omaha High Roller for $1,618,417, but don’t let this fool you. The Englishman can play with the best of them, and last year he came very close to winning his second bracelet, when he took fifth in the $10,000 Short Deck No-Limit Hold'em.

8. Bryn Kenney
Bryn Kenney is best known for being one of the winningest-tournament poker players (money-wise) of all time. He is second on the all-time money list, behind Justin Bonomo, with over $57 million. While he has been dominating the poker scene in recent years, with only one bracelet, seven final tables and 32 in-the-money finishes, he has one of the weakest WSOP resumes of all the players on the list. His only WSOP bracelet came in 2014 when he won $153,220 in the $1,500 10-Game Mix Six-Handed event.

Justin Bonomo (photo by Flickr)

7. Justin Bonomo
With over $60 million in live poker tournament earnings, Bonomo sits atop the all-time money list, with more than $1.1 million of those winning coming in the first three months of 2023. In addition to his good run to start 2023, the Virginia native has a solid track record in the WSOP, winning three bracelets, getting to the final table 19 times and 55 cashes.

Bonomo’s first WSOP bracelet came in 2014 when he outlasted his opponents in a $1,500 Six-Handed Texas Hold'em event and took home $449,980. His best WSOP year was 2018, when he managed to win the $10,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em Championship and set his personal record with a $10 million score in the $1 million No Limit Hold'em The Big One for One Drop.

Although he had a great year overall in 2022, he only managed to cash in just three WSOP events, with his biggest score a $100,000 min-cash in the $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em.

6. Fedor Holz
Fedor Holz, who turns 30 in July, might be the youngest player on our list, but with two bracelets, five final tables and 18 WSOP cashes, he has already achieved more than a lot of his older colleagues. In addition, the German is 10th on the all-time money list with over $38 million in winnings.

Holz's first WSOP cash came in 2015, when he finished in 25th place in the Main Event, earning over $250,000. He then went on to win his first WSOP bracelet in 2016, in a $111,111 No Limit Hold'em High Roller for One Drop event, earning over $4.9 million in prize money. His second bracelet came in 2020 when he won the $25,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em for $1,077,025.

Fedor’s biggest score at the 2022 WSOP was seventh place in the $50,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em, earning him $203,107. With his newly launched Pokercode school, which is already among the best poker training sites, he is expected to create some buzz around it at this year's WSOP.

5. David Peters
While David Peters is mostly unknown outside of the poker community, amongst his peers, he is considered one of the most feared tournament poker players in the world. With over $42 million in tournament winnings, the American sits in seventh place on the all-time money list.

The 35-year-old has four bracelets, 17 final tables and 70 in-the-money finishes. His first bracelet came in 2016 when he won the $1,500 No Limit Hold'em for $412,557. He added online WSOP wins to his resume in 2020 and 2021.

Peters is one of the players on this list who recorded a WSOP win in 2022. He won the $100,000 High Roller Bounty No-Limit Hold'em for $1,166,810 after defeating Chance Kornuth heads-up.

Phil Hellmuth (photo by Flickr)

4. Jason Koon
Jason Koon is another American who has been making a name for himself in recent years. He is fifth on the all-time money list, with almost $44 million in tournament winnings.

With one bracelet, nine final tables and 60 cashes, his WSOP resume might look a bit pale compared to some of the other names on this list. However, his skill does not. Koon’s first and only WSOP bracelet came in 2021 when he won the $25,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold’em Championship and took home $243,981.

3. Phil Hellmuth
Widely regarded as one of the best tournament players of all time, Phil Hellmuth’s has the most WSOP bracelets in history with 16, to go along with 64 finals tables, and 186 in-the-money finishes, making him the most decorated poker player in history.

The Poker Brat's first bracelet came in 1989, when he won the Main Event at just 24 years old, becoming the youngest player ever to win the tournament. Since then, he has continued to dominate the WSOP, winning bracelets in various events, including No Limit Hold'em, Seven Card Stud, and Razz.

Last year, he came close to winning his 17th World Series of Poker bracelet in the $3,000 buy-in Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em tournament, failing to beat David Jackson heads-up. Undoubtedly, The Poker Brat still has a lot to offer, easily making him one of the players to follow in WSOP 2023.

2. Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu is the most famous poker ambassador in the world. However, the Canadian isn’t only a poker celebrity as he also has an impressive record in the WSOP, including six bracelets, 45 finals tables and 148 in-the-money finishes.

Negreanu's first bracelet came all the way back in 1998 when he won a $2,000 Pot Limit Hold'em event becoming the youngest WSOP bracelet winner in history. And while his record was broken in 2004 by Scott Fischman, the six-time bracelet winner had plenty to celebrate as he went on to win another bracelet and cash in five other events while getting voted the WPT Player of the Year.

The 2022 WSOP was pretty painful for the GGPoker ambassador, as he finished just over $1.1 million in the red. Negreneu’s biggest score came in an online event where he finished fifth for $88,081, while his biggest loss was in the $250,000 Super High Roller, where he didn’t manage to cash even though he fired two bullets.

Phil Ivey (photo by Flickr)

1. Phil Ivey
If Phil Ivey is playing in a poker tournament, you should probably keep an eye on him, and the 2023 WSOP should not be an exception. With 10 bracelets, 31 final tables and 59 in-the-money finishes "No Home Jerome" is one of the most successful WSOP players ever.

His first bracelet came in 2000 when he won a $2,500 Pot Limit Omaha event, and since then, he has managed to secure WSOP wins in a variety of different formats, including No Limit Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, Seven Card Stud, 2-7 Draw Lowball, and Mixed Events.

The 10-time bracelet winner had a pretty successful campaign in 2022 when he managed to cash for at least six figures in four different events, including a $597,381 score in the $250,000 buy-in Super High Roller No-Limit Hold’em, where he finished seventh and fell short of securing his 11th bracelet.