2026 Goliath Main Event | Enrollment surpasses 12,000, Farzin sets record for largest Day 1 chipset ever.

On July 31, 2026, the Goliath Main Event in the UK will once again challenge the entry record. According to PokerNews, the number of entries for this year's event has exceeded 12,000; as of the end of Day 1G, the seven completed starting groups have recorded a total of 10,987 entries, with 704 players successfully advancing to Day 2.

By the start of Day 1H, 1,150 people had registered, with over 350 on the waiting list; the Day 1I fast track event held that same evening also had approximately 200 pre-registered participants. Based on these figures, even without any new registrations or re-entries, the final number of participants would still exceed 12,600, only about 300 short of the 2025 record of 12,961.

A total of 10,987 participants were in the seven initial groups.

The first seven starter classes of Goliath 2026 have been completed. Day 1F, with 2,227 participants, is the largest flight so far and the second highest number of participants for a single starter class since Goliath was founded in 2011.

The seven starting groups saw 3,523 re-entries, representing approximately 32.11 TP3T of total entries to date. With Day 1H and Day 1I proceeding consecutively, the final size of Goliath 2026 is expected to continue to increase.

Day 1F attracted 2,227 visitors, but only 137 advanced.

Day 1F recorded 1,580 first-time entries and 647 re-entries, for a total of 2,227 participants, making it the largest starting group so far in this year's competition.

After 20 levels, only 137 players successfully completed the bagging process, resulting in a progress rate of approximately 6.21 TP3T. The best performer in the group was the player who registered as "FS" and accumulated 2,100,000 chips by the end of the day.

Grosvenor Poker later revealed on their official Facebook page that FS's name was Farzin. This player not only became the Day 1 chip leader but also rose to become the overall chip leader, breaking the Goliath record for the largest Day 1 bag of chips.

Farzin made history with 2.1 million chips.

Farzin finished Day 1F with 2,100,000 chips, 335,000 more than the previous leader, PM, and is currently the only player to have broken the 2 million mark.

PokerNews cited comments from social media platforms indicating that Farzin employed a rather aggressive playstyle in some hands, including opening with a 10-big-blind opening from early position. However, this information comes from comments made by players in the game and is not a complete record of the hand.

Regardless of the specific playstyle, 2,100,000 chips gave Farzin a significant lead before Day 2 and left him with ample room for maneuver in the later stages of the tournament.

Day 1G Fast Group: 928 participants, John Bousfield leads the pack.

Day 1G, which took place on the evening of July 30, adopted a fast-paced structure and attracted a total of 928 participants, including 762 first-time participants and 166 re-participants.

After 20 levels, 91 players successfully advanced to Day 2. John Bousfield became the chip leader in his group with 900,000 chips, but failed to make it into the current top ten of the overall leaderboard.

Goliath's current top 10 scoreboard in 2026

The original PokerNews table listed Dragos Bulgarea's 1,290,000 chips after Marc Bryant's 1,285,000; this article reorders them according to chip count.

Farzin currently leads second-place PM by 335,000 chips and third-place NS by over 660,000. With the final two starting groups completed, new million-chip players could still emerge on the overall leaderboard.

The final record for the competition is almost certain to be broken.

By the time the seven starting groups had been completed, Goliath had 10,987 participants. Adding the 1,150 participants who had already registered for Day 1H, more than 350 on the waiting list, and about 200 pre-registered participants for Day 1I, the total number has surpassed 12,000.

Goliath recorded 12,961 entries in 2025. With Day 1H and Day 1I still open for new registrations and re-entries, PokerNews predicts the 2026 event will break records again.

Brett Wilkins won the championship with his first live cash payment.

The same event update also announced the results of the £440 Card Room Direct Mystery Bounty.

This mystery bounty tournament attracted 1,076 entries, creating a ranked prize pool of £223,440. According to The Hendon Mob, Brett Wilkins had no prior live tournament cash records prior to participating in this year's Goliath Poker Festival.

Wilkins ultimately made it to the final four. After Matthew Bonham was eliminated in fifth place, the remaining four players reached a prize-sharing agreement; the tournament then continued to determine the champion, with Wilkins becoming the last player remaining at the table to take home the title and a ranking prize of £36,040.

£440 Mystery Bounty Final Table Score

The prize money for the top four places reflects the prize-sharing agreement among the four participants; the amounts in the table do not include the Mystery Bounty earned by the contestants.

Because of the agreement-based prize distribution, Gareth Cresswell's £25,330 in fourth place was higher than Haydn Dickinson's £24,870 in third place, so the final income no longer decreased according to the ranking.

Goliath Main Event record and Day 2 competition heat up simultaneously.

Goliath 2026 has not yet completed all starter groups, with total registrations exceeding 12,000. Farzin broke the Day 1 bagging record with 2,100,000 chips and will be the most watched leader on Day 2.

However, the massive field of competitors means the road to the championship is still quite long. Currently, 704 players have advanced from the first seven starting groups, and Day 1H and Day 1I will bring even more contenders.

With the final entry numbers about to be determined, the focus will now shift to how much Goliath can surpass the 2025 record of 12,961 entries, and whether Farzin can maintain his record Day 1 lead into the later stages of the main event.

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